Last Updated on – Dec 2, 2021 @ 12:24 pm
This entry was co-authored by Jason Acidre, a seasoned digital marketing consultant who has been developing strategies for numerous SMBs, highly-valued startups, and Fortune/Inc. 500 brands since 2010.
You may not be aware of it, but you’re actually in the business of selling.
What do you sell, you ask? Your time and skills. It doesn’t matter what you do exactly—the bottom line is that people pay you to provide something of value.
And the internet age has ushered in a whole new way of conducting business.
At the time of this writing, the world’s richest man is Jeff Bezos, whose net worth is more than a hundred billion dollars. What does he do? He created Amazon—the world’s biggest online shopping store.
More than a century ago, the wealthiest and most powerful people on the planet were businessmen who traded steel and oil.
Today? You’ll see icons like Jeff Bezos, Mark Zuckerberg, Bill Gates, and Google founders Sergey Brin and Larry Page. Folks who made billions creating digital products and online services.
Proof that in the digital age, online businesses are king.
You can buy almost anything online right now, whether it’s a physical product, software or service. But what exactly do people sell online?
To give you a better picture, let’s break it down into 4 categories.Time: Services, Consulting, FreelancingInformation: Premium contentPhysical Products: Sold through online stores or online selling platforms (Ecommerce)Digital Products: Access to software, apps, web-based tools, Service as Software (SaaS), & online courses
Here’s the thing, there are literally hundreds of ways to make money fast. Don’t believe me?
Here’s an extensive list of ways you can quickly cash in (both online & offline). We won’t cover them in detail though as most of these are not scalable (read: no capability or potential to grow). MethodLevel of DifficultyProfitabilityNo-Risk Match BettingMediumMediumOnline SurveysLowLowPaid for web searchingLowLowOnline Market TradingHighMediumStart your own websiteHighHighGet “Paid To” sitesLowLowDelivery Rider/DriverLowLowWrite and Publish an EbookHighMediumMobile Phone RecyclingLowLowClickworkerLowLowCashback when shoppingLowLowPart Time Online JobsMediumMediumFiverr GigsMediumLowReview MusicLowLowSell Second Hand Course BooksLowLowJoin ContestsLowLowBuy and Sell Domain NamesHighMediumBe a Mystery ShopperLowLowBe an ExtraLowLowSell old stuffLowLowRent out your parking spaceLowMediumBabysitLowLowDog Walking and SittingLowLowBe a Charity CollectorLowLowRent your house for filmingLowMediumSell used clothesLowLow6 Ways to Earn Money Online in the PhilippinesBlogging & Content PublishingCreate an Online Store: Ecommerce & DropshippingFreelancing BusinessAffiliate MarketingWebsite FlippingLaunch a Startup: Selling Digital Products
Now comes the juicy part: Legit, tested, and proven ways to make money online.
These have the potential to grow into money-making machines that scale with the right skills and know-how.1. Blogging & Content Publishing
How do we know this: I started blogging back in June 2010, and earned $10,000 in my first 5 months of blogging (P450,000 during that time).What is Blogging?
“Web log” or simply, Blog, was created in the early days of the internet to serve as an online personal diary.
It shouldn’t be confused with a regular website, because a blog primarily serves as an “online journal” where the author shares his view and posts them in reverse chronological order.
Aside from blogs, there are two other types of blog content publishing:
Podcasts are digital audio files (some include video) that are presented in episodes and can be downloaded or streamed over the web. Most follow your usual talk show format, while others simply narrate content. Popular ones include The Tim Ferriss Podcast and Joe Rogan.
Video blogs are essentially content presented in video format. YouTube remains the king when it comes to serving as a platform for vloggers due to its popularity and reach. Popular vloggers include PewDiePie and Casey Neistat.8 Ways to Monetize a Blog
Here’s the number one thing that a newbie asks before or after creating a blog: “How can I make money off my blog?”
Here are the different ways you can monetize a blog.
Ads are perhaps the most ubiquitous form of income generator when it comes to most websites or blogs. In a nutshell, you earn money by displaying ads in your blog.
Google Adsense remains the most popular ad network although there are others, like Clicksor and Bidvetiser. You’ll encounter terms like PPC (Pay Per Click), CTR (Click Through Rate), and CPC (Cost Per Click) as you learn more about ads for websites and blogs.
Blogs serve as a great platform for promoting your services. For example, if you’re a copywriter, you can offer paid services to write for other people or blogs.
You can create a “Work with Me” page where you can list out your services which can include your rates for freelance blogging or coaching sessions for budding copywriters.
3. Paid Reviews and Sponsored Posts
This happens when a business reaches out to you to review their product on your website. You are not necessarily required to give them a positive rating, and it’s ethical practice to disclose any sponsored reviews to your site visitors.
Some businesses may opt to sponsor a specific post instead and request for a link back to their official website.
We covered this in a previous article discussing Passive Income Ideas. In a nutshell, a lead is personal information from an individual who expressed interest in a company’s service or product.
This interest comes in various ways and forms: signing up for a job application, filling in personal details to download a free e-book or program, getting discounts by signing up for coupons, and more.
Here’s one way of generating income for leads. Let’s say your website covers Nursing review tips and guides. When people sign up for your free newsletter or guides, you can include links or buttons that will lead to Nursing Review center websites who may pay you for the referral.
Ever seen those links below those YouTube videos you watch?
For example, popular YouTube site, Linus Tech Tips (LTT), provides content around tech mainly covering PC components and gadget reviews. In the video description section, you’ll see links to the products or services mentioned in the video.
When you click on them, it will direct you to the company’s page or website where you can buy it (e.g Amazon, eBay, etc). And if you buy the product through the link, the LTT channel will earn a commission from the purchase.
It’s the same with blogs. The author(s) may include links to services or products that they personally recommend or use and earn Online Shop via commission for each successful sale from a visitor who clicked through their link.
6. Paid Live Workshops/Webinars
The idea is basically the same as attending a regular training seminar or workshop but you do the presentation online. For example, if you want to know more about direct email response copywriting, you can sign up for live workshops from experts on that field.
They will teach you via live stream or some sort of pre-recorded material that you can access on the web after you pay for it.
You probably tried a game or two on your mobile phone, right? Notice how most options and levels are locked the first time you start the game?
If you want to access those, you’ll be asked to purchase it with real money or have you watch a video advertisement so the creator can still get paid in some way.
Companies call this option, “Freemium”, which is a pricing strategy that provides the service/software/media/content for free initially but will require you to pay for additional services and premium features.
You can apply the same pricing strategy for the service or product you offer. Hook them in with freebies and useful content then offer premium features or materials for the paid option.
If you’re an expert in a particular field or have your very own product (e.g., Social Media Manager, published an e-book), you can sell them online.
For a social media manager, for example, she can create an online course that will show others how to be one for a fee.
If you have an e-book, you can sell it through online platforms like Amazon and Goodreads, or even simply market it through your network in Facebook or your website.How to Start a Blog