Are you looking to make money online? Whether you’re an experienced marketer or just starting out, there are a plethora of ways to make money online without an MBA.
You may already be familiar with the concept of ‘side-hustles’. These are small streams of income derived from a separate business or source of wealth. For example, you could sell your photos on stock photography websites for extra cash. Or, you could sign up for a survey web-site and answer questions (for a fee) to make money online.
A side-hustle is a great way to make extra cash, but it’s not always easy. You’ll have to find your own side-hustles (or create new ones) that complement your primary source of income. So it’s important to have a back-up plan. What’s your fall-back plan? Are you currently employed? Have you had any recent layoffs? Having a backup plan allows you to continue to generate income even if one source of revenue dries up. For example, if a major stock market decline causes stock photography websites to put a halt on inbound marketing, you could fall back on your survey money or opt for a part-time job.
You may wonder if any of these side-hustles will ever pay off. Or, perhaps you’ll wonder if they’re even worth pursuing. The answer is: yes, they are.
Here are 10 great ways to make money online that don’t require an MBA.
1. Start an online store
If you’re just getting started, it’s recommended that you start an online store. Why? Well, it’s simple. Building a reputable online store takes time. You’ll have to navigate the legalities of operating a business online (like copyright and trademark), find a reliable payment processor, and develop a presence on social media.
Once you’ve built up a reputable online store, you can look to expand into affiliate marketing, which makes money online without any extra work on your part. For example, let’s say you’ve set up an online store selling trendy women’s clothing. You could create a special coupon code (like ‘macy’s’ or ‘zara’s’) that when entered at checkout, will give you a 10% discount on your purchase. Now, when a customer makes an order (through your store), you’ll earn a small commission from the transaction. This could amount to a few dollars, or even a few hundred dollars if you’re selling high-priced items.
The best part? You can start an online store for free (through Shopify, for example). And, if you decide to go down this route, you’ll have an endless supply of cheap (yet high-quality) clothing to promote.
2. Start an online tutoring company
If you’ve got an expert knowledge base and are confident that you can instruct people on how to perform certain tasks, you can set up an online tutoring company. Now, for the sake of this example, let’s say you’re an expert Windows user and can teach others Windows-based tasks (like creating a desktop shortcuts or applying a theme).
With an online tutoring company, it’s all about the curriculum. You can select from a variety of tasks (like Windows, macOS, or UNIX based), set the price for each lesson, and generate income through a combination of inbound marketing (through blog articles and social media posts) and affiliate marketing (when customers purchase products after viewing tutorials).
Again, you can start an online tutoring company for free (through Skillful, for example). And, if you’re worried about generating revenue, you can always outsource the task of educating your customers to a pro.
3. Start a blog
Blogs aren’t just about posting content these days. They can also be a source of income through affiliate marketing. For example, you can set up a blog with the sole purpose of promoting a service or product. When an affiliate marketer promotes a product from within your blog posts, your blog will earn a small commission from the sale.
The best part? You can create a blog with any software you like, even if you’re not tech-savvy. Through a combination of automated tools and a little bit of hustle, you can let your blog do the work for you. Don’t worry about the mechanics of running a blog. The tools are easy to use and you’ll have an entire team of bloggers eager to help. Just make sure that you pick your niche, build your audience, and become active on social media.
If you want to learn more, check out these affiliate marketing training courses from some of the biggest names in the industry.
4. Start an online store using Shopify
If you want to get all the legal and technical details out of the way, you can use Shopify to start an online store. Launching an online store with Shopify is quick, easy, and affordable. What’s not to like?
You may be wondering if Shopify is the clear choice for your eCommerce store since it’s so affordable. Or, perhaps you’re curious about whether or not Shopify is even worth your time and effort. The answer is yes, it is. Setting up an online store with Shopify takes less than 10 minutes (and you’ll have an entire business established in no time). And, if you’ve got the technical know-how, you can even customize the look of your store with a little bit of coding. (Note: If you’re just getting started, you may want to choose a cheaper alternative to Shopify. CPanel provides a very basic hosting plan with no shopping features enabled. You can, however, use Stripe to process payments.)
At this point, you may be wondering: why does anyone need an MBA to make money online? It’s not like traditional business books gave you all the advice you need to succeed in the tech-world. The only difference is that traditionally, business books were only available in hard copy. Today, you can take advantage of all the information you need to succeed online without being at the mercy of a book’s pages.
Hopefully, this article shed some light on the topic. If you have another way to make some extra cash, please feel free to share in the comments section below!