Inflation has reached record levels, prompting the Federal Reserve to respond by slashing interest rates and expanding its balance sheet. However, with the cost of living increasing, Americans are searching for ways to make money online. Unfortunately, the truth is that you can’t rely on one source of income. You need to find at least ten (10) ways to make money online in the United States.
Here are ten (10) ways to make money online in the United States:
1. Start a Blog
Blogs aren’t just for fun these days. They can be quite the moneymaker when done right. The key is to pick your niche, build your audience and connect with advertisers. When executed correctly, the income from a blog can be fairly substantial.
To illustrate, Blogger, who owns and operates the popular Blogger.com platform, had an annual revenue of about US$16 million in 2017, according to the company’s annual report. The report also stated that Blogger has over 500 million monthly active users and is growing at a rate of 25 million monthly active users per year. So, if you’ve been thinking about starting a blog, go for it! There’s a demand for quality content and if you can provide that, you can be sure that you’ll be able to make some money online.
2. Start an Online Store
If you’re the creative type, you can start up an online shop that sells artwork, clothing, stationery, etc. Etsy, which is the largest online marketplace for handmade goods, had over $16 billion in revenue in 2018 and over 500 million monthly active users. If you’ve got a creative side, why not try and make some money off of it? Etsy sellers offer a diverse portfolio of products and many make a full-time living off of their craft.
3. Start an Affiliate Marketing Program
An affiliate marketing program is when a business pays you a commission when someone clicks a link or buys a product that’s promoted on your website. You can choose to be paid in cash or you can choose to be paid in affiliate marketing credits, which can then be traded for cash. Some of the largest affiliate marketing networks include Amazon, eBay and Google. When executing an affiliate marketing program, you’ll want to focus on finding products that are high-quality and that consumers are looking for, with a goal of increasing sales.
To take it a step further, you can sign up to be a distributor with a niche product company who pays you to promote their products. Depending on the number of clicks you generate, you can gain more or less reward. When you make money off of clicks, it’s called a performance-based affiliate program.
4. Start a YouTube Channel
YouTube creators can make a lot of money, even if they don’t monetize their content. In fact, YouTube creators can even make a living off their content with advertising and affiliate sales on their channels. In 2018, TikTok, the popular video platform, had over 400 million monthly active users and over $16 billion in revenue. If you’ve got a talent for creating entertaining videos, why not try and make some money off of it? There’s definitely a market for what you’ve got to offer.
5. Start an Instagram Account
Instagram is another popular social media platform with over a billion active users. If you’ve got a decent-sized following on Instagram, you can take advantage of that by becoming an influencer and in turn, can make money off of your Instagram account. When someone follows you on Instagram, they’ll see your daily posts and can either click a link or buy a product that’s promoted in the image or video that they’re viewing. When someone follows you on Instagram, you’ll notice that a small box will appear at the top of their Instagram page, which is called a “subscribe box.” When someone types in their email address and clicks the “Subscribe” button, they’ll be added to your mailing list and you’ll begin receiving email messages from them. If you’ve got a large enough following on Instagram, you can even become a publisher and make money off of your Instagram account. When someone follows you as a publisher, you’ll notice that a small box will appear at the top of their page, which is called a “subscribe box.” When someone types in their email address and clicks the “Subscribe” button, they’ll be added to your mailing list and you’ll begin receiving email messages from them.
6. Start a Podcast
If you’re the talking type, you can start up a podcast. Podcasts are a bit like audiobooks, but instead of simply listening to the content as you please, you’ll be required to actively participate by answering questions or commenting on particular topics as the host of the podcast interviews or storytellers discuss them. You can do this remotely via digital audio recordings, or you can opt for a more traditional method and meet with friends and family to talk about your favorite topics.
Podcasts grew in popularity in 2018, with over 1.2 million podcast episodes being downloaded per day in January and February of that year, according to a report from Midia Mica, a marketing agency that specializes in branding, content strategy and podcasting.
7. Start a Classified Ads Site
If you’re the determined type, you can start a classified ads site, like Craigslist or Kijiji, which are the largest classified ads websites in the world. You’ll want to be able to post a variety of ads, including jobs, cars, real estate, services, etc., and will want to make sure that your ad is as specific as possible. When someone clicks on the “services” section of Craigslist, for example, they’ll see a variety of jobs, including marketing professionals, transcriptionists, etc. If you’re determined enough, you can even use your own classified ads site to monetize your time.
8. Start an Online Store (Part 2)
If the previous option isn’t for you, you can opt for an online store that sells a range of products, from clothes to accessories, furniture to food. You’ll need to set up a sales page on your own website and then use a shopping cart platform, such as Shopify, to maintain your store. When someone clicks on an item and makes a purchase, you’ll earn a commission.
As for the range of products you can sell, it’s unlimited. You can literally sell anything that you can think of online. The sky is the limit.
9. Start an Etsy Shop
If you’re looking to make money off your creative side and have a talent for creating things, you can start an Etsy shop. Etsy sellers offer a diverse portfolio of products and many make a full-time living off of their craft. When someone clicks on an item and makes a purchase, you’ll earn a commission.
Etsy, which is the largest online marketplace for handmade goods, had over $16 billion in revenue in 2018 and over 500 million monthly active users. If you’ve been thinking about starting an Etsy shop, go for it! There’s a demand for quality goods and if you can provide that, you can be sure that you’ll be able to make some money online.
10. Start a Drop-Shipping Business
If you’re looking for an even more passive income stream, you can start a drop-shipping business. With a drop-shipping business, you essentially operate a shop from which you order goods, such as clothes, accessories and home decor, that are branded by large companies. When the goods arrive at your warehouse, you’ll package them up and ship them to the customer. The profit comes from the brand’s name, which they grant you, as well as the cost of the product. You can find drop-shipping businesses to fit every budget.
As you might imagine, the advantage to this kind of business is that there’s very little effort required. You can literally get up and go to sleep each night, knowing that you’ll be making money from an online store. You’ll still, however, need to keep up with customer service, marketing and sales, so it’s not like you’re completely hands-off. You can also find many high-quality products to sell, which can increase your income, particularly if you’ve got a large-scale operation. You’re also not restricted to one platform, like Shopify, to run your eCommerce store, so it can be accessed from any device that has an internet connection.