There are several sites that claim to give opportunities online that can make you rich overnight. I’ve invested some time in researching some online opportunities and found that there are indeed some legitimate ways of making sustainable income from the net (though none will make you rich overnight!). The earning potential of these methods can be substantial as your expertise grows. I want to share my views on three such opportunities.
- Internet Marketing: Also known as Affiliate Marketing. You can earn performance-based commission by driving traffic (and subsequent sales) to a merchant website through your special affiliate URL.
So, it’s simple; as an affiliate, it is your job to get web surfers(traffic) to visit the merchant site. Some ways to generate traffic:
a. Advertise – for example, by paying to get listed in the “sponsored listing”in Google search. This is called Pay-Per-Click (PPC) advertising. Every time a user clicks on the ad, you pay a small amount. This amount depends on the quality of your ad. You collect commission (sometime up to 75%) if the user makes a purchase.
b. Article Marketing: Unlike PPC, this method is free. You write an article about a topic and submit it to an article website(usually free), and then wait for it to get listed. Profits are made by including an affiliate URL in the article or by providing a link to your website (if you have one) where you can make a proper sales pitch for the product you are trying to sell.
- Freelancing - If you have special skills like writing/ programming/webdesign, there is a huge opportunity for you to earn a full-time incomeonline.
There are people online who do not have the time or technical skills to createtheir own web pages. A few sites where you can easily obtainprogramming/web development work online:
Rentacoder.com
Elance.com
ScriptLance.com
Check out the “monster list” of freelancing job sites at FreelanceSwitch.com
- Passive Income: This is income that is generated even when you are not actively working onit.
Examples of passive income are:
a. Selling photography, flash or illustrations as stock.
b. Providing a subscription service such as hosting and domain names.
c. Making products such as books, art, plugins and tools, software etc.
Earning money online is like any regular job – you need time and sustainedeffort to establish yourself. But if you like one of the many who like to earnfrom the comfort of their homes, get to be their own bosses and keep all theprofits, I hope the options listed here with help you get started. Good Luck!