Don’t get caught up in the pyramid scheme nonsense you see going around on Facebook. Friends are swearing by this and that new health thing; and oh, look it just so happens they’re a representative of said new health thing! If these ways to make money seem too good to be true, it’s because they are. They’re little more than scams.
So how can you make money online without getting scammed? It’s easy enough, if you know what’s reputable and what’s not. Start with some of these simple ways to make money online, and then do a quick Google search to see what people are saying about them. You’ll know if it’s safe to proceed.
Try these:
1. Selling Stock Photos
If you have some photographic skills and a decent camera, you have an easy way to make money. Build up a small portfolio (even just three or four really great pictures will do the trick) and then start showing them around to the online stock photo companies that purchase from freelance suppliers.
Invest in a good camera and fancy editing software. It’s expensive, but it can easily make its money back in a short amount of time. Plus, with that equipment, you can expand beyond stock photos to really maximize your profits. Offer to take family portraits, senior photos, pet photoshoots, or whatever. You can even take photos of local events and sell them to newspapers or the organization of the event for some spare cash. Sticking to stock photos is one of the easier ways to make money with that route, but it’s always good to cast a wide net. You never know… this could turn into a big business for you!
Just be sure that the stock photo company is verified as being nonscammy, and has decent reviews from fellow photographers online. Some websites will offer you a better deal for your photos, so don’t forget to do a little comparison shopping beforehand to know where to make the most money for selling your photos online to stock photo companies.
Some of them will try to cheat you on royalties and other sneaky technicalities if you’re not thorough. Read through the terms of the sale very carefully, and ask around to fellow photographers to make sure that you’re getting the most out of the deal as possible. Some smaller stock photo companies will try to bargain you down to a lower price if they don’t have a fixed price for stock photo submissions.
But don’t worry; most stock photo companies have fixed prices and conditions of the sale. It’s all clearly laid out, so you can read up on the terms and know exactly what you’re getting out of the deal in exchange for your photo. These companies operate primarily on submissions, so they usually take care of the photographers pretty well.
Check out some of these stock photo websites. They’re all known to purchase photos at good prices (and they’re 100% nonscammy):
● Alamy: http://www.alamy.com/
● Can Stock Photo: http://www.canstockphoto.com/
● 123RF: http://www.123rf.com/
● Shutterstock: http://www.shutterstock.com/
● Photoshelter: http://www.photoshelter.com/
● Dreamstime: http://www.dreamstime.com/
● Fotolia: https://us.fotolia.com/
● Getty Images: http://www.gettyimages.co.uk/?sunset=flickrimagerequest
● SmugMug: https://www.smugmug.com/pro
● iStock Photo: http://www.istockphoto.com/
Selling stock photos is one of those particularly fun ways to make money, especially if you already have a photography hobby or even fullscale business. You won’t get rich, but it’ll bring in a little extra cash whenever you need it, and it’s often as easy as digging through your old photo archives in your portfolio.
2. Pay to Review
Sometimes pay to review sites don’t ever quite get off of the ground. But the majority of the time, it’s an easy way to make money that can be a lot of fun, too. Basically, all you have to do is set up a website, blog, YouTube, or whatever; specifically for the purpose of reviewing and critiquing products of any kind. It’s usually best if you stick to a niche that you know very well, because people often want to see reviews of a specific type of product.
For example; if you consider yourself to be a bit of a video game connoisseur, you can write reviews of new games or film yourself in a piece of gameplay to give people a feel for the game before they buy it. Even if you don’t review it favorably, companies will still usually pay you to review the game in order to get some publicity and buzz going.
The more followers you have, the more money you’re likely to make, and more people will be asking to pay you to review their products. You can review movies, beauty products, music, tech products, or most lucrative of all; other bloggers and websites.
Bigger companies typically have their own marketing departments, so unless you have some absurd number of followers and the masses will rush out to buy their product at your command, they don’t really need your review. So they won’t give you anything (other than a free sample for you to try/review if they’re feeling nice).
But other bloggers and websites don’t have a marketing department (unless they’re Internet famous, maybe) and don’t even have a real channel for promoting themselves other than through fellow bloggers. They’re the most likely to pay you for reviews, and they’re the better guarantee on ways to make money.
3. Sell Stuff on eBay
Selling your own unwanted and unused stuff on eBay is now as classic as ways to make money as setting up a lemonade stand these days. It’s most people’s’ first goto money maker when they need some extra cash. Sites like eBay and Craigslist are easy, simple to use, quick, and convenient. Plus, you can milk more money than you might expect out of some of your old stuff that you cleaned out of the downstairs closet. That is… IF you happen to be good at it.
Some people are just truly awful at selling things online. Their descriptions are too short, and they’re misspelled and unenticing. So if they’re really serious about moving their old stuff, they’ll hire someone else to do the selling. Just like at auctions, you’ll get a better price if you go through someone who’s good at selling things, and has plenty of experience in getting a good price on even the most unappealing items.
Awesome stuff set at a bargain online will sell itself. But if you want to make any serious money, you want someone who’s good at selling. Sign a contract that agrees to something like you earning 2030% of the total sale money. You’ll have to do a little research to find out what’s a fair take given your experience and such. Do some more research on selling tips, and you and the seller will find ways to make more money out of the deal.
4. Tell People How to Do Things
It’s the perfect way to make money if secretly enjoy telling people how to do things better or more efficiently. The easiest way to do just that: eHow.com. Pretty much anyone can submit a howto guide on eHow. They’ll check to make sure that you seem to know what you’re talking about, and they’ll make sure everything is spelled decently and in good grammar. But if they find that everything looks good, they’ll send you some money in exchange for your howto article.
It’s easy to use, and they’re fun to write. Again, it helps if you happen to be a bit of an expert in something fairly specific, even if only informally. For example, if you’re a retired handyman, you could write hundreds of eHow articles on fixing everyday things. Teach people how to fix a leaky faucet, how to replace their air filters, how to light the pilot light on their furnace, and so on.
Everyone has a unique wealth of knowledge about some subject. You can make money and share it with the world! eHow is one of the simplest ways to make money in this way. But if you’re game for a little more work, you can take it a step further with video tutorials. You can write howto articles and/or film short video tutorials on a topic that you’re an expert on. Then you can build up a small portfolio of good work and send it to bloggers that might pay to include your tutorial on their site, local cable shows or news networks, or websites aimed towards a specific audience.
Try to go to people that would have a need for your niche howto’s. If you’re explaining techniques used to calm kids in the classroom because you’re also a gradeschool teacher, then send off your written articles or video tutorials to teaching websites, blogs, etc. You’ll be more likely to make more money from them than a website about gardening.
5. Get Crafty with Side Businesses
Etsy has made selling your handmade goods or antique store finds a much easier way to make money than just going to a craft fair. Now you can sell the stuff you enjoy making anytime. This is one of the best ways to make money if you’re creative. If you’re skilled at making things, then you can easily sell those crafts online for a surprising amount of profit. People buy these products because they can’t make them themselves, so chances are; they’ll pay a good fee for it.
And you can see your competition right on the screen, so you have an advantage. Whether you knit, make jewelry, hand tool leather, sew, or paint… your hobby could be one of the simplest and most fun ways to make money online. Sellers who can really think outside the box with their talents are often the ones who make the most money. They knit anatomically correct organs, or make portraits of people’s pets using a mosaic of old pennies. It’s the perfect opportunity to really get creative, and make some cash while doing it.
If you’re not quite so skilled with the homemade crafts and art, a similarly modeled side business is still a completely viable way to make money using your talents and experience. Even if you can’t sew on so much as a button.
Why not go oldschool and straightforward? Offer your special skills and services to others for a profit. If you’re a classically trained singer, then offer voice lessons! Post an ad on local online forums, and spread the word for free via social media. You can monetize your talent in an easy way.
Your side business doesn’t have to have any serious operating costs. Building a physical business is costly, slow, and extremely risky. But you can run your own side business like an Etsy store at little or no cost to you, and still have ways to make money online and from your own skills.
There’s no need to start up a brickandmortar business when you can offer your cooking expertise online and run your own side business from home. Offer to deliver homecooked meals to people who are short on time (or just manage to burn everything including cereal) or to teach cooking classes at the local rec center.
Operating through side businesses means that you’re completely your own boss. You decide how much work you can take on, and you can find your own methods and ways to make money using what you already know and what you’re good at. Using your talents, knowledge, and skills as a way to make money is extremely rewarding in a world where people will basically just pay you to sit in a space and breathe the air there for a few hours at a time. So whether you want to sell your homemade dog cupcakes on websites like Etsy or offer up your skills as a dog trainer online, you can turn your hobbies and strengths into cash without having to deal with the scams.
