A few years ago, if you wanted to make money online, you basically had to do one of two things; become an affiliate marketer for a company such as Amazon or join one of the many affiliate networks such as Commission Junction or ShareaSale to promote products on your behalf. While the first option gave you a fairly decent chance of earning decent money, it also carried with it some pretty significant downsides. The second option, joining an affiliate network, was much more convenient as you simply had to sign up and begin promoting a range of products that the network associated with. Additionally, the upside of this route was that the more products you promoted, the more money you potentially could make. Sounds like a good deal, right?
Well, things are certainly changing as more and more companies realize the value of online marketing, as opposed to just relying on organic search engine results. As a result, more and more affiliate networks are expanding their services to include online marketing as part of the package. Essentially, these companies now offer you the ability to make money online without having to trade your time for money; you can do this by simply promoting products that these networks recommend. Sounds like a dream, right?
Well, if you’re looking for a way to make money online without having to become one of the many digital nomads scrambling for a living, you’ve come to the right place. Below, we’ll walk you through how to make money online without leaving the comfort of your home or office. We’ll cover how to make money with a side job online, how to make money with a YouTube channel, as well as how to make money with affiliate marketing so you can begin to build a passive income stream.
How to Make Money Online (Without Leaving Your Home or Office)
One of the defining features of the Information Age is the omnipresence of the internet – particularly the world wide web. With our smartphones, tablets, and laptops, there’s always a way to get information online and access the web whenever we want. For decades, industries such as real estate and finance were largely offline activities. Not anymore. Today, anyone with a smartphone can quickly and easily get the info they need to function. As a result, more and more businesses are moving away from traditional cash-based transactions and moving towards digitizing their business models.
Now, whether you’ve decided to go the digital nomad route or whether you’ve decided to stick around and start a business, the internet provides the perfect vehicle to do so. Thanks to platforms like Shopify, Google Docs, and WordPress, creating an online store is as easy as 1-2-3. However, operating an online store isn’t quite as simple as it seems because, as a business owner, you’re also responsible for collecting money from customers and getting your products to market. In this case, the perfect platform for all of this is Affiliate Marketing. Let’s explore.
What Is Affiliate Marketing?
Put yourself in the position of a digital nomad who’s decided to operate an online store. You’ve decided that operating an online store is the best way to go, but you also want to be able to supplement your income with an additional stream of revenue. What do you do? You join a network of affiliate marketers and make money from advertisers who want to promote their products alongside yours.
In order to do this, you basically have to sign up with an affiliate network (also known as an affiliate marketing network) and then begin to promote various products and solutions that they associate with. In exchange for giving you a small commission when a sale is made, the network will provide you with everything you need to successfully market their products. Essentially, you’re allowing the network to share in the profits of your hard work while also providing a convenient way for potential customers to find the products they’re interested in.
Why Should You Join a Network of Affiliate Marketers?
If you’re looking for a way to make money online without having to worry about being creative or coming up with unique strategies to make money online, you can’t go wrong with affiliate marketing. Simply follow the steps above and you’ll have a passive income stream. Additionally, you’ll have access to multiple affiliate networks, so the chances of you meeting someone who can help you are good. You can also find thousands of affiliate products to promote, so the chances of you running out of products to promote are slim.
One of the major draws of affiliate marketing is that you don’t truly need to be good at sales in order to make money. In most cases, advertisers will compensate you for bringing in enough revenue to the network. So, in theory, anyone can make money online with affiliate marketing. All you need is a reliable internet connection, a microphone, and a computer or mobile device.
How to Make Money Online (From the Comforts of Your Home or Office)
While operating an online store is a fantastic way to make money online, it’s not the only way. There are numerous ways to make money online without having a store. Some of the more popular methods include the following;
1. Start a Blog
Blogs are a fantastic way to make money online. The key to monetizing a blog is to establish yourself as an authoritative source on your chosen topic. Once you’ve done that, you can utilize affiliate marketing to monetize your blog. As a blogger, all you need is a laptop or mobile device, a reliable internet connection, and the will to write. If you have the former, you have the latter.
To establish yourself as an authoritative source, you simply need to put in the work. In most cases, this will come in the form of either writing extensively about your topic or curating quality content from other sources and incorporating it into your blog. When you’ve established yourself as an authoritative source on your topic, you can then use your blog to promote various products and services related to your topic. If you’ve written an authoritative blog post on fashion, for example, you can promote fashion-related products such as bags and shoes.
2. Start a YouTube Channel
YouTube channels are another fantastic source of passive income. Channels such as “Vloggers”, “Scott Adkins”, and “Marketing Sherpa” can help you to gain 500+ subscribers in no time. Once you’ve reached that threshold, you can promote various products and services related to your niche. Typically, the monetization strategy for a YouTube channel revolves around displaying ads alongside content or using a “native advertising” scheme, in which case you’ll have a more organic relationship with your viewers.
The great thing about starting a YouTube channel is that there’s a wide range of products you can promote; you don’t need to be limited to just the products your blog is affiliated with. For example, if your blog is focused on fashion, you can create a YouTube channel around men’s fashion trends or womenswear styles. In any case, you’ll need a smartphone, a microphone, a computer or mobile device, and a reliable internet connection.
3. Start an Etsy Shop
Etsy shops are another fantastic way to make money online. Essentially, an Etsy shop is a platform that allows anyone to sell handmade and bespoke items. The great thing about Etsy is that you don’t need a huge investment in order to get started. You can literally start an Etsy shop with a small purchase of $25. An even greater benefit of operating an Etsy shop is that you don’t necessarily need a storefront in order to make sales. Thanks to online marketplaces like Shopify and Bigcommerce, you can operate an entire Etsy shop from the comfort of your home or office. All you need is a microphone, a computer or mobile device, and a reliable internet connection; not one, not two, but all three!
4. Start a Membership-Based Site
An online membership-based site is a great way to make money online. The concept is pretty straightforward; you create a membership site where members can either pay a fee in order to access certain content or can contribute to the site themselves. When someone pays for your content or contributes to your site, you earn a commission on each sale.
The key to establishing a membership-based site is to focus on creating a quality product that will be of value to your audience. Once you’ve done that, you can use various monetization options to make money online.