When we hear the phrase “making money online” we usually think about owning and developing a website and monetizing it in some way, for example by selling the ad space to ad networks or selling access to premium content.
However, did you know you can create an online based business without having your own website, and it can be a very lucrative business on top of that? Interested? Here are some ideas of activities deemed by many as profitable enough to be their full-time job.
Freelance Writer
One of the most popular online-based jobs is writing. Many businesses and companies are in constant need of quality content and well-written copy as their marketing assets or for their blogs. You can aim even higher and become a freelance journalist – one that isn’t affiliated with just one publisher and can write for any newspaper or news portal.
The pros of this kind of job are that you can do it anywhere you want. Although it helps a lot you don’t need the constant access to the Internet. This means you can work at home, at your favourite cafe, at your summer house or while travelling on train/bus. This is one of the most popular choices for people that want to live as so-called “digital nomads”.
The cons are of being a freelance writer is that you have to like to write a lot, sometimes very similar stuff over and over again. Moreover, the competition is quite harsh, so you have to be a really good writer to be competitive on a market that is not yet filled but surely full of really skilled copywriters.
Social Media Manager
We live in a time when having a company social media profiles is a must. However many companies don’t have a dedicated social media employee to take care of their accounts. Moreover, some business owners don’t know how important it is to get your social media profiles right and how profitable it can be in the long run. If you have good communicating skills, always have your phone a hand’s reach away from you and know about every new social media platform it may be a job for you. Some past experience with marketing or public relations can be very helpful. Now, go and find three or four social media profiles to take care of and you’re set!
Online Courses
Are you good at doing something other may want to learn? Do you speak in language others may want to speak in? If the answer is yes, you may want to consider teaching people online. From easy one-on-one language lessons through simple conversation to complex webinars for those already advanced in certain business skills, giving lessons online has its renaissance now. If you have trouble finding people to teach, check out different e-learning platforms and boards. The biggest pro in this type of activity is that you teach people what you already know, so the time investment may be lower than in case other mentioned activities. However, at some point and level of service, it would be good to learn a thing or two about educating others.
Sharing Short Links
If you are actively sharing a lot of fresh news and new tools at different discussion boards, social media platforms and forums you may want to start giving the links to the same content but shortened with one of the link shorteners. The important thing is to pick one that pays well per 1000 clicks, for example, Shorte.st or Ad.fly. The rules are really simple. The link you wanted to share has a shortened and slick URL and still leads to the address you wanted it to lead to. However, the ad network that created the short link borrows your traffic for a mere 5 seconds to show some ads to the person clicking on the link. After this brief holdup, your viewer will go straight to his or her destination and you’ll get money. If you want to learn more, check out the Shorte.st, guide to short links earning on their blog.
Outsourcing
If you don’t really want to do anything yourself but are good at coordinating stuff between multiple people, you may be interested in running an outsourcing business. The thing is pretty simple. You find a company that needs some stuff done – it may be a blog post commission or some graphics assets. Then you find someone who will do this for an indecently low price and give a higher but still acceptable price to the company. In the end, your margin is the difference between the two prices. Of course, it requires high-level soft skills and a good eye for trustworthy people because you most likely have to coordinate all your operation through email.
