In 2020, the world of online marketing and sales continues to evolve as the pandemic temporarily paused our day-to-day lives.
While many businesses adjusted to the “new normal,” emerging digitally focused businesses saw an opportunity to step up and provide valuable services to customers during this time.
If you’re looking to make money online from home in the foreseeable future, you have several options. While some prefer to go the affiliate route and earn money passively from advertising, others want to go the extra mile and become a digital nomad.
Here, we’ll discuss how you can make money online in the foreseeable future – even if you’re located in a place with very limited or no digital nomad opportunities.
Get An Independent Residual Income Stream
For many, the financial uncertainty and stress of the pandemic led to a desire to create a passive income stream. In the meantime, you can start making money online very quickly by taking advantage of the independent contractor loophole.
If you’re an independent contractor, you’re automatically considered a freelancer. As a freelancer, you get to choose your own hours and work remotely. You don’t have to commit to working a certain number of hours per week, and you’re not tied to one location. All you need is a computer, a phone, and some basic internet access to get started.
The catch is that you need to be able to find customers who want what you have to offer. While it’s easy enough to make money off your own ideas, it’s much more difficult to find customers who want what you have to offer. And that’s where most independent contractors fail.
Sell Your Skills and Expertise To Make Money Online
If you’re looking to make lots of money online, you have several options. One way is to learn SEO (search engine optimization) and try to rank websites as highly as possible in the search engines. You can then advertise for small businesses who want to purchase ads on their behalf. You’ll need a micropayment account to take this route, but the potential to earn is great. You can learn more about this route here.
An emerging area of online marketing is affiliate marketing. With affiliate marketing, you don’t necessarily need to learn SEO to get started. You simply need to learn how to sell a product or service that someone else has established. Once you’ve established a basic understanding of the affiliate marketing and the products that you’ll be promoting, you can get started with a free affiliate marketing suite like Commission Junction. The great thing about CJ is that it automatically gives you a nice little monthly income without you having to lift a finger. Simply recommend products that you think are valuable and make sure you put in the necessary work to make sure the review is balanced and accurate. It’s a very simple process that can lead to big results if done correctly.
Still feeling adventurous? Want to try a different approach and become a digital nomad? You can always use your phone to find clients. Most professional services, such as hair and makeup, wardrobe, and fitness, among others, have a mobile app that allows you to get connected with potential customers who are in your area. Once you’ve established a presence in a few areas, you can begin offering your services digitally and take your pick of where you’ll go in the world.
Join An Online Community
There are several platforms designed for just that – providing a space for online nomads to connect with potential customers. These platforms usually operate on a freemium basis, with the option to upgrade to a paid membership if you wish to gain access to more features. A few of the more popular ones are listed below.
Wondering how virtual assistants make money? Through community management. On these platforms, you can take on clients and manage their social media accounts, optimize their websites, and perform various other tasks for them. Since these are online communities, you’ll need to learn how to use social media and engage with potential customers in a meaningful way. Plus, you’ll need to be available to take on extra work as and when it comes up. However, with more and more people searching for ways to earn money remotely, this certainly is a viable option. You can learn more about community management here.
Create And Sell Your Own Products To Make Money Online
If you’re looking to develop a full-time income stream, you can create and sell your own products to make money online. One of the simplest ways to do this is through affiliate marketing. As discussed above, you don’t necessarily need to learn how to code to get started with affiliate marketing. Simply find products you think are valuable and write an honest review. Then, you can get started with a free affiliate marketing tool like Mercado Libre. Essentially, all you need to do is define products you’re excited about, find a niche, and begin creating demand for what you have to offer.
The great thing about this route is you can build a large audience quickly. Simply follow the instructions and make your first sale within minutes. From there, you can learn how to scale your business and how to make money from this source of income. You can learn more about this route here.
Be Creative
There are several ways to make money online without ever having to leave your home. If you’re feeling creative, you can start a flower delivery service or create online stores that sell and ship floral and fruit arrangements. You can even create online scrapbooks that people can purchase and ship to their loved ones. The world is your oyster!
Remember, though, that if you want to succeed as an online marketer, you need to be unique and stand out from the crowd. You can get started very quickly if you follow the guide but finding paying customers can be a little challenging. Make sure you’re prepared to put in the necessary work to meet people where they are and make them want what you have to offer. With so many opportunities available online, anyone can make a buck. But, only someone who is creative and prepared to be a bit different will make the real money.