Getting a full-time job is the traditional way to make money online, but it isn’t for everyone. If you’re looking to make money online from home, you have plenty of options. You can start a side business, sell your photos on stock photography sites, become a freelance writer, or start an online store.
We’ll go over five ways you can make money from your weekend gigs online, including how to make money from taking photos. Keep reading for more information on each option.
Sell Your Photos On Stock Photography Sites
The stock photography market is a large online market, with sites like Shutterstock, Dreamstime, and Fotolia generating millions of monthly visits and thousands of dollars in monthly revenue for image sellers. Selling photos on stock photography sites is a quick and easy way to make money online, and all you need to do is find a decent camera, learn how to use it, and then find a subject you’re passionate about. Since many of the sites offer revenue sharing, this can be a profitable opportunity for people looking to make money online in the short term.
Start A Blog
Blogs don’t just have to be about fashion or beauty. You can start a personal finance blog where you focus on educating people on how to save money and live a better life. The key to blogging is to find your niche and build your audience around it. For example, I have a travel blog where I profile the best destinations and places to travel to, as well as tips on how to travel smarter and save money. The blog also profiles luxury brands and products, as well as those that promote sustainable and environmentally friendly practices. Building a following around a niche topic can lead to lucrative online opportunities, as long as you can find the time to research and write engaging content that appeals to your audience. As you grow your blog, you can consider making money with affiliate marketing, which could significantly increase your revenues. Affiliate marketing is the performance of actions (sometimes called “triggers”) on social media platforms like Facebook or Google when a consumer performs an action (such as purchasing a product or service) that is associated with your affiliate marketing code. If you use an affiliate marketing software tool like Linky or Merchant Circle, all you need to do is enter your affiliate marketing links into these platforms and you’ll start earning revenue from your blogging efforts (even if it’s just a few dollars each month). You can use the money to fund your travel adventures and lifestyle.
Become A Freelancer
If writing is your skill and you’re comfortable articulating thoughts and ideas, you can consider becoming a freelance writer. You’ll need to find clients and work with companies to build and grow your portfolio. Once you’ve established yourself as a reliable and influential writer in your chosen niche, you can start looking for clients and projects. In return, you’ll receive an income every month.
Create And Sell Your Own Products
If you have a creative side and know how to create a good product, you can start a product-related business where you design and sell your own products. You can use a platform like Shopify to create an online store that you can utilize to sell your goods. You’ll need to register with Shopify (and potentially other platforms like Clickfunnels or WooCommerce) to set up your store, but after that, it’s just like setting up any online store, with the added bonus of having customers reach out to you directly if they have questions about your products.
Start An Etsy Shop
Etsy is the world’s largest online marketplace for handmade and vintage goods. If you have a creative side and like to sew, you can start a clothing boutique on Etsy where you promote and sell your own handmade creations. You can use the platform to find customers near you, as well as engage with them on a more personal level through your listings and messaging. While Etsy is the world’s largest marketplace, it’s certainly not the only one. You can consider launching a similar store on Shopify or WooCommerce to grow your business and reach more people.
Take Advantage Of Trending Topics
Blogs and articles aren’t just about posting content that appeals to your existing audience. You can use topics that are emerging in popular culture to attract new audiences and engage with existing ones. Popular topics that bloggers and journalists cover include:
- Lifestyle
- Health
- Fashion
- Mining
- Geography
- Travel
- Investing
- Etc.
If you’ve got a keen eye for fashion and are good at capturing outfits and style videos on video, you can create a fashion blog where you profile the latest trends and style tips. You can even create short videos teaching users how to achieve a particular look using what you’ve got in your own closet. Since fashion is one of the most popular trending topics right now, it’s a great opportunity to build an audience quickly and make some money from a fun hobby.
Reduce Your Social Media Activity
If you’re active on social media, you know how important it can be to gain as many followers and engage with your audience as possible. However, you may be losing money and valuable time through all of your activity on social media. One option is to simply remove yourself from the majority of social platforms to reduce your costs and improve your productivity. You can choose to remove yourself from platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter, where you may be gaining a following, or you can choose to keep yourself active on smaller, more personal platforms like TikTok and Instagram stories. The important thing to consider is that while you’re reducing the amount of platforms you’re active on, you should still be engaging with your audience on those you keep. It’s a numbers game when it comes to gaining true traction on social media. You’ve got to keep posting to continue getting traffic and engagement, even if it’s just a few likes or shares.
Join A Start-Up Or Invest In A Franchise
If none of the above seem like a fit, you can consider investing in a franchise. Franchises offer a potentially lucrative opportunity to anyone looking to make money online. Franchises provide you with a proven model that you can use to launch your own similar business. The franchise model is one way to quickly and easily create a profitable business, and it’s one of the primary ways that Amazon and eBay make money online. If you’re looking for an investing opportunity, franchisees may be the best bet for you.
Start-ups are also a great option. You’ll simply need to find a profitable niche and then develop products or provide services around it. Once you do, you can register your business with the Australian Business Register and begin selling your wares. You don’t necessarily need to register your business to sell products online. However, registering your business will allow you to take advantage of the numerous government grants and subsidies that are available to new businesses in Australia. Most importantly, you’ll be able to access the many business loans available through the banks and other lenders.
The Bottom Line
There’s a lot of money to be made online, and it doesn’t necessarily have to be through a traditional job. Plenty of people make their living solely through blogging, freelancing, and other online ventures.
As you see, there are many options for people wanting to make money online. It’s important to find something that appeals to you and offers opportunities to grow. Don’t be afraid to experiment or take a chance on a new idea if you feel that it could be beneficial to you and your future income. Just make sure that you’re not committing a crime or violating anyone’s rights in the process.