We’re all looking for ways to make money quickly and easily. One 16-year-old British girl has already made a whopping £48,000 after putting her plan into action. It involves helping Chinese parents give English names to their babies.
Beau Jessup is a young student from Gloucestershire. She came up with a fantastic idea after her family took a visit to China. While she was there, Beau was asked for help in giving a newborn baby an American name.
It is important to provide an English name to a Chinese baby when they are born as this can help them in the future if they study or conduct business in the UK.
Beau realized she had an opportunity to make money off of the need. She came up with the website “Special Need” in order to help parents choose an English name.
The website prompts the user to choose five personality traits that they wish their child will have as they get older. Beau knew that the Chinese base the names of their children around the elements. She wanted to give them a similar experience when they picked an English name for their child. Users of the website pay about 60p.
In order to provide this experience, Beau assigned various personality traits to the English names on her website. The user first selects the gender of the child. The website then chooses three names which will be shared on app called We-Chat, which is the Chinese version of WhatsApp. Family and friends can then help the parents make the final decision.
The three suggestions are able to be printed out on a certificate. Each shows the meaning of the name and one example of someone who is famous with the same name.
Beau revealed that she was surprised to be asked to name the baby of a family friend. She didn’t think she was qualified or even relevant enough to provide something so personal. However, she learned that the Chinese may give their child an embarrassing name, often unintentionally. One name she was shocked to hear was “Rolex”. She decided that she could help make a difference in the names of many Chinese boys and girls.
When people ask why the Chinese cannot pick names themselves, it is because they have limited access to the internet in China. They are not able to use normal baby-naming websites like other countries. Beau said that they often pick names that they hear from pop culture and popular movies, such as Cinderella and Gandalf.
The special names that are picked are based on what the parent wished for in terms of personality as well as individual preference. At the moment, Beau has helped name more than 200,000 babies and has made £48,000 doing so. She said that it is a wonderful way to be a part of such a personal experience.
The success of the website came as a pleasant surprise after she wondered if her idea could actually make money. She always thought of it as more of a “small project”.
Here is hoping that Beau has a lot more success with her wonderful idea in the future.