Thanks to the internet, anyone can earn money in the comforts of their own home. As long as you have stable Wi-Fi, some technological know-how, and a little creativity on the side, you can score extra profit or even multiple streams of income. Below are five of the most scalable ways to make money online.
1. Blogging
Web logs or blogs started as a form of virtual diary in which a person would journal about their day. Over the years, many entrepreneurs saw marketing potential in blogging. In fact, a Hubspot study reports that over 55% of marketers use blog content creation as their top inbound marketing priority.
How can I make money from blogging?
Ads
One of the easiest ways bloggers make money is through ad placement. There are two types of ads:
1. CPC/PPC Ads
Cost per click or pay per click ads are usually clickable banners that you place in your content. A blogger is paid every time a reader clicks on that ad.
2. CPM Ads
With CPM (cost per thousand impressions) ads, you get paid based on the amount of impressions. An “impression” refers to a single instance of an advertisement appearing on your website. Readers only have to view, and not necessarily click, CPM ads for the blogger or website owner to get paid.
Tip: To earn more from CPM ads, be sure to place them in highly visible locations on your website. CPMs often work better for blogs with a lot of traffic. Thousands of visitors per day mean more impressions and more profit.
Paid reviews + sponsored posts
This happens when a business pays a blogger to publish content about their brand. Sponsored or paid content may come in the form of product reviews or announcements of special discounts or new arrivals. Businesses may also sponsor a specific post or a freebie in exchange for a link back to their website.
Lead generation
Leads are potential customers who are interested in a brand’s product or services. One way for brands to capture leads is through bloggers. A company will ask a blogger to include links or buttons on their websites designed to extract a potential customer’s information in exchange for say, a free e-book or coupon.
Affiliate marketing
Similar to sponsored posts and lead generation, affiliate marketing uses the word-of-mouth approach to influence consumers. Bloggers may post tracked links to a company’s website or product page on their blogs. When leads clicks on these links and complete a transaction, the affiliate (or the blog the content appeared on) receives a small percentage of the sale.
2. E-commerce
Electronic commerce or e-commerce is the purchasing and selling of goods or services through the internet. It’s online shopping, in a nutshell. Shoppers love e-commerce websites because they have access to a wide array of products anytime and anywhere as long as they’re connected to the internet.
Most e-commerce owners follow the drop shipping business model where the online store itself does not actually hold any of the products in stock. Instead, when a customer buys an item from the website, the seller purchases the items from a third-party supplier or a drop shipper who in turn, prepares and ships the goods to the customer. Most entrepreneurs prefer this method since it saves them more time and capital.
What are the steps to building an ecommerce site?
Choose an ecommerce website builder
There are plenty of website builders that offer templated themes that don’t required advanced coding skills. Famous e-commerce builders include WooCommerce, Shopify, Wix, and WordPress. These website builders are relatively affordable and incredibly user-friendly. Shopify ($29 – $299/month) is great if you’re planning to build a full-fledged online store with more than 10 products. For smaller stores with tight budgets, Wix ($23 – $49/month) is your best bet.
Purchase a domain name
A domain name is the part of your URL that identifies your store’s name. It establishes your brand and builds credibility.
Domain names can be purchased through Shopify, Wix and BigCommerce for around $10 to $20 per year. You can also use a domain name registrar such as GoDaddy and Bluehost to obtain your domain and link it to your online store builder.
Tip: You may want to add a popular search term in your domain name to help you climb search engine rankings. It also pays to be careful with country codes. A “.com” domain means you’re accessible to international customers.
Select a theme
The theme is essentially the entire look of your online store. Website builders offer a variety of themes that can make your site look great with just a few touches.
Once you’ve selected a theme, you can proceed to customize and make the store your own. Most templates allow you to tweak some elements such as text size and font, color palettes, product positioning, image sizes, and others.
Add your products
Product pages are the heart and soul of your e-commerce store. The main elements of a product page are:
- Product Image
- Name
- Price
- Category
- Weight & Dimensions
- Description
Tip: When writing product descriptions, make sure to add keywords relating to your products. Keywords will raise your Google rankings. Higher ranking means more traffic and potentially more sales.
3. Freelancing
Freelancers are individuals who work independently for multiple companies or clients. Most freelancers charge by the hour or day and often work remotely.
What are popular types of freelance work?
- Content Writers and Editors
- Graphic Designers
- Virtual Assistants
- Online Teachers
- Social Media Managers
- Mobile and Web Developers or Programmers
- Bookkeepers
- Photographers and Videographers
- Transcribers and Transcriptionists
How do I become a freelancer?
Build your online portfolio
Showcasing all your work in one place makes it easier for clients to evaluate your skill set and decide if you’re a good match for them. A well-thought-out portfolio increases your credibility and helps you get more clients.
Get the right gears
You can’t be a reliable freelancer without a solid laptop or desktop unit and a high-speed internet connection. It’s also important to have a back-up computer, power bank, and pocket Wi-Fi in case of power loss or bad ISP connection.
If your job requires frequent talking on the phone, invest in quality headsets and microphones. You may also want to purchase noise-cancellation earbuds.
Set up your payment method
Accepting checks is one of the most stress-free ways to receive payment as a freelancer while PayPal is the most widely used option. You can also opt for credit cards, electronic funds transfer, or e-wallets such as PayMaya or Gcash.
Join online job portals
The easiest way to get freelance gigs is through online job marketplaces. Just create an account, upload or provide a link to your portfolio, and browse through hundreds of freelance jobs. These websites allow you to bid and match with clients looking for your services.
4. Website flipping
Website flipping is the practice of buying or creating niche websites, making them more profitable, and then selling them for a higher price.
You can either build a website from scratch or “flip” an existing one. Flipping is similar to buying a second-hand house. You renovate it until it becomes a money-maker and when it does, you sell it.
How do I start my website flipping business?
Build or buy a website
Building is pretty simple. You buy a domain, choose a website builder, or develop everything from scratch. You have complete control of what your website will look like and how it will function since everything will depend on you and your web developers.
Buying, on the other hand, requires you to assess various factors including website traffic, keyword ranking, revenue, domain authority, and potential growth. You can buy and sell websites from WeSellYourSite, EmpireFlippers, Sedo, BizBroker24, and others.
Improve your website
You want your website to make as much profit as it can. The greater revenue it generates, the higher you can sell it for. Similar to blogging, you can put ads on your site or sell affiliate products and get a commission from each sale. Make sure the products you link are related to the industry or niche your website caters to. Or you can always develop your own products, whether physical or digital, and sell them on your site.
Sell your website
Ideally, it will take up to 6 months for your website to start generating revenue.
Once it does, it becomes a money-making digital property and can be up for sale. Some websites such as Empire Flippers offer variation tools you can use to estimate your website’s monetary worth. Knowing its theoretical value can help measure your website’s growth and help you sell it with more confidence.
5. Selling digital products
Digital products are software, apps, and tools sold on the internet in digital format. These products are manufactured once and can be shared countless times. Digital tools are quicker and cheaper to produce and distribute compared to physical products.
What are the types of digital products I can sell?
E-books
Publishing or selling Electronic Books or e-books are relatively cheap and simple. You can write them yourself, hire writers, or use public domain content, and create your ebooks from various sources. You can even curate your old blog posts into a PDF and turn them into a full-fledged e-book.
Web and Mobile Apps
Applications are more complicated to produce since they require technical prowess and hefty development costs. But with smartphone usage more popular than ever, the market for mobile apps is growing rapidly like never before. Businesses are also becoming more dependent on web-based apps to generate more profit or organize their internal processes.
Video, Audio, and Online Courses
Easy-to-use platforms such as Udemy, Skillshare, and Teachable have simplified online course creation. Creating and selling online courses offer a steady stream of income and don’t require much capital. Once your courses have gained a loyal following, people will see you as a credible source of information, translating to more profitable opportunities.
Kickstart your online business today
These days, anyone with a computer and an internet connection can be an entrepreneur. Apart from enjoying the monetary benefits, running an online business lets you be your own boss anytime and anywhere.
Whether you choose to run a blog or open your own e-commerce site, managing an online business takes proper budgeting and financial planning. Moneywise provides life-changing financial advice for every type of venture. We offer investment tips, money-saving hacks, and modern business tricks. Check out our blogs to start your financial journey today.