If you’re looking for ways to make extra cash, there are a variety of online jobs you can take advantage of. While some of these positions may require a formal education, most don’t. In fact, a lot of the jobs available online don’t even require much in the way of expertise. If you have a computer and access to the internet, you can become a digital assistant, perform SEO tasks, or start your own online store. Let’s examine the various ways you can make money online.
1. Building an Online Store
One of the simplest ways to make money online is to start an online store. An online store is where you can sell individual items like apparel, accessories, and toys. In addition to selling your own products, you can also become a shopify store and sell and promote products from brands and manufacturers. You don’t need a large inventory to get started – just a few products to get the ball rolling. Once you have a small audience, you can move onto the next step.
2. Affiliate Marketing
If you’ve ever shopped at an online marketplace like amazon or snapdeal, you’ve likely been exposed to affiliate marketing. Essentially, affiliate marketing is when an online store or business rewards you for bringing in and retaining customers. To be eligible for affiliate marketing, you’re required to have a minimum of 500 customers or transact 1000 units of a defined product (e.g. a chair, car, or house) within a given period (typically 90 days). You may be asked to promote products you’ve been gifted or are affiliated with, even if you don’t sell them. For example, if you’ve been given a free iPod touch and you decide to promote that you’re an affiliate for apple, you’ll have to get permission from Apple before you can start earning commissions on the device. Once you’ve established yourself as an affiliate, you can look for web hosts that offer affiliate programs and get to work.
3. Start An Online Store
If you’re looking for a way to make quick cash, one of the simplest and most popular options is to start an online store. With an online store, you can sell and ship the products yourself, or use a cash-back service like bluecheck to process the order and send funds to your account. You don’t need a huge inventory to get started, and most providers will let you set up a store in less than a day. The great thing about starting an online store is that it’s extremely easy to do – you essentially just need a website and a way to process payments.
4. Start A YouTube Channel
YouTube creators can make a lot of money with their content. While videos under 3 minutes in length have the potential to earn you 100%-500% of your ad revenue per day, longer videos can earn you up to 10x as much per day. One of the simplest ways to make money from a YouTube channel is to utilize the platform’s “publisher” status. Essentially, having a “publisher” allows you to monetize your content, which you can use to cover the cost of producing videos (e.g. cameras, editing equipment, etc.). Once you become a YouTube “publisher,” you can take advantage of the platform’s advanced tools to create and grow your audience. In addition, you can use other platforms like Google Adsense to earn money off the traffic you generate on YouTube.
5. Start A Blog
Blogs are another popular option for online content creators. Essentially, a blog is where you can write and publish articles and blog posts about a variety of topics. The great thing about blogs is they’re incredibly easy to set up. You don’t need a large audience to get started, and you can often get blogs up and running with just a few hundred dollars in WordPress plugins and themes. In addition, you can use affiliate marketing to promote and gain revenue from blogging. Many of the large online platforms like Google and Amazon run their own affiliate programs, and if you want to get started selling affiliate products, there are plenty of opportunities available online.
6. Start An Instagram Account
Instagram is one of the most popular social media platforms, and it’s extremely easy to use. Essentially, Instagram users can “gram” images and videos to their followers. To be able to utilize Instagram’s “gram” feature, you’ll need at least 10,000 followers. Once you have that many followers, you can start “gramming” and gain money from your content. To get paid for your Instagram content, you’ll need to become a “content creator” on the platform. Once you’ve done that, you can promote yourself as an affiliate or partner of a major brand or company, and earn commissions from any products or services they promote on your behalf. In addition, you can use other platforms like Facebook and Twitter to gain even more followers and potential customers.
7. Become A Virtual Assistant
If you’re looking for a way to make quick cash, one of the simplest and most popular options is to become a virtual assistant. A virtual assistant is basically someone who provides customer service and manages social media for large businesses. You don’t need a formal education to be able to become a virtual assistant, and the training takes only a few weeks. Once you’re trained, you can get to work for one of the largest global businesses.
8. Start A Transcribe Business
Not interested in online stores or blogs? Want to make even more money? You can start a transcribe business. A transcribe business is where you’ll listen to audio files and then type out what you hear. While some businesses require a formal education, most don’t. To get started, you’ll need a microphone, headphones, and a computer. After that, all you need to do is find some audio files you can transcription, and you’re good to go. To make money, you’ll need to find customers and then convince them to pay you for your services. It’s a pretty lucrative opportunity if you can land yourself a substantial number of customers.
9. Start An Online Travel Agency
If you’re interested in starting your own travel agency, you can take advantage of the increasing popularity of online travel agencies like nomadicswatchers.com and travelzen.com. Essentially, these businesses provide you with a platform to connect travelers with travel agencies, and give you the opportunity to earn a commission from each booking. To get started, you’ll need to have a travel agency license in your state, be registered with the state agency, and then submit a business plan to the state for approval. Once you have secured all the necessary licenses and registered with the state, you can get to work.
10. Start A Translation Business
If you’re looking for a way to make extra cash, you can translate English-to-Spanish, Spanish-to-English, or German-to-English. You don’t need a formal education to get started, and depending on your linguistic capabilities, you may be able to find work right away. Some of the largest companies like Google Translate and Cleverbot have all the text you need to get started, and all you need to do is translate and submit the text for payment. In addition, you can use other platforms like Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn to promote and gain business from your existing and future customers. Who knows – maybe someday you’ll be able to return the favor and translate from English to Spanish.
11. Get Paid ToTake Surveys
Surveys are one of the easiest ways to make money online. All you need to do is fill out some fairly short surveys and you can make a few hundred to a few thousand dollars per month. The more surveys you fill out, the more money you’ll make. Some of the more popular survey sites include Survey Junkie, Swag Bucks, OneOpinion, and Ipsos iSay. Make sure you read the terms and conditions before you get started.
How to Make Money Online – Passive Income Opportunities
With all these ways to make money online, you have plenty of opportunities to make extra cash. You don’t need a formal education to get started, and the training for many of these positions takes only a few weeks. Once you’re trained, you can get to work for one of the largest businesses or brands in the world.