Myth 1: You can not make a lot of money on the Internet, and even if you can, it succeeds only a select few
3 million dollars. That is how much in May 2020 was the turnover of money on the Ukrainian freelance exchange Freelancehunt. And if we take the amount of payments to freelancers at the world's largest exchange Upwork? In general, earning online is real.
But how to earn on the Internet with income from $ 1000 (we'll take this figure, since it is most often sought by freelance beginners)? It's simple - work very hard and invest in your training. Alas, there is no magic pill or some kind of secret. To reach the desired income, you must first work hard, then build a system of finding clients, work with them, learn, increase the cost of services, connect additional ways to earn money, etc.
Myth 2: There are a lot of scammers and a high probability of not getting paid for the work
We will partially agree with this myth. There are indeed a lot of scammers on the Internet and those who want to get a service for free. But here are a few ways to insure yourself:
Work on trusted platforms. There is no shame in starting freelancing on exchanges, and it's okay to start. But choose the ones that guarantee security not only for customers, but also for performers in a "frozen" prepayment format - when the client pays in full before the project starts (this will secure the performer), and the freelancer receives payment only when the work is accepted (this will secure the customer).
Work as a sole proprietor under a service contract. For this you must be registered as an individual entrepreneur. Next, before you start working on the project you make a contract, which spelled out the main organizational points - in what time frame you have to complete the project, when and how to get payment, etc.
You should work only on 100% prepayment. Of course, not all customers will agree to this condition, especially if you have a small portfolio and few reviews. So you can start with 50% prepayment, and when you build up a good reputation, you can go to 100%.
Myth 3: Great competition, unrealistic to break through
Actually, there is not much competition. Yes, there are really a lot of freelancers, especially after the quarantine. But how many of them are good, quality professionals who know how to work responsibly (to turn everything in on time and do it well), communicate competently with clients and build their freelance systems? Not many. So if you are a really good specialist, you will always have clients and income.
How to earn in the Internet: what is necessary to start earning online?
Work online at home for many who have lost their job or for one reason or another can not get a job in a company for a staff position - this is an opportunity to somehow earn. But in order to determine what new profession can be mastered in a short period of time, you need to analyze what skills you already have in your asset. How to do this, advises career consultant Tatiana Voloshina:
Write out all the professions in which you have worked before. Even those where you have received minimal experience will do.
Write down skills gained throughout life. Even if they are not directly related to professional activities. For example, the ability to concentrate when your phone won't stop ringing with notifications, to work two days without sleep, or to quickly find a compromise that benefits both parties. This way you get a list of skills that are already well developed and those that can be improved and monetized.
Look for information on what professions or skills are currently on the market. To do this, look for frequent inquiries on freelance exchanges, job search sites, or themed Facebook groups.
Now think about how with your skill set and experience you can help people online and get paid for it. The list of ideas can be large (10 or more items). Weigh everything out and pick one or two opportunities and focus on them.
Let's say you've decided on a specialty in which you can try to realize yourself. But it's still scary to start making money online. How to be?
The ideal option how to earn on the Internet is to find experts in your chosen field and talk to them. They will tell you about the specifics of the work and what knowledge and skills you need to pull up. You can even try to arrange for such a professional to become your mentor. This will help you to avoid many mistakes and to start earning faster.
If you can't find a mentor, form a plan for individual development on your own. Find relevant sources for pumping up those soft and hard skills which are not very well developed yet, but are necessary for professional growth (YouTube channels, Telegram channels, books, articles, podcasts, etc.).
Earnings on the Internet without investment for beginners
Earnings on the Internet without investing is quite real, it's not a myth. But immediately warn - do not expect to make a lot of money at once. And in general, these simple ways are unlikely to be able to reach a good income. Therefore, to start ways described below, quite suitable, but in parallel it is better to look for something more serious and long-term.
№1. Job Exchanges
There are more than 100 online exchanges that post simple tasks like "post a video recording to your page", "create multiple accounts on site X", "install a mobile app and leave a review". Although the tasks are easy, but they can take a long time to complete and pay little. In addition, users complain that it is extremely difficult to withdraw money from services. If you try very hard, really earn $ 5-20 dollars a day. Therefore, it is recommended to consider exchange assignments only as a last resort and certainly not for permanent employment.
what is needed to get started.
It is important to be attentive, disciplined and patient. No particular hard skills are needed. You may need to know a foreign language (for example, to work on Amazon Mechanical Turk).
It is obligatory to have an e-wallet for withdrawal of funds.
PLUSES MINUSES
➕ A real opportunity to earn quickly, having only the Internet and a telephone, a computer.
➕ You can develop soft skills, such as self-discipline, stubbornness, patience, communication skills.
➖ There are no opportunities for career and professional development, as the tasks are very primitive and disposable.
➖ Low work efficiency. You will work a lot, but earn little. You are unlikely to get a stable income.
№2. Transcribing (transcribing audio, video and books)
The essence of this way of earning online is to reproduce information from audio or video in text format. The need for such help often arises for journalists, blog editors, television workers, entrepreneurs and other professionals. This allows them to significantly save time on routine.
Such a part-time job can be sought at freelance job exchanges, in telegram feeds and Facebook groups for freelancers. You are unlikely to get a full-time job at a company in a similar position.
What is needed to get started
It is enough to be attentive, patient, and ready for a routine. It is excellent if you know a foreign language, as it will allow you to earn more.
Resources to pump up your skills:
Books or videos on business communication basics, speed typing.
PLUSES MINUSES
➕ Learn interesting information, sometimes costly and classified.
➕ Improve quick typing, attention span, and memorization skills.
➖ No career prospects. This kind of work is easy to automate, and it's a risk of being unemployed and without income.
➖ It's hard to increase your earnings. Because it's easy for you to find a replacement in the form of a cheaper professional.
№3. Typing
Typing is one of the popular ways to make money online without investing. The essence of the work is to retype the text from images and scans of documents. Pay little. Even working 5 days a week for 8 hours, you can at best come to an income of up to 2000 UAH per month. And at worst you will not get paid at all. Or worse - will lure your money, demanding a deposit for the allegedly valuable materials or payment for checking your first text. In general, this way of earning - a very popular among the scammers. In addition, to find real orders for the typing today is difficult, because there are free and fast alternatives for the customer, such as services for the conversion of files from one format to another.
What is needed to start
It is important to be able to type quickly, to use text editors (MS Word, Google Docs).
PLUSES MINUSES
➕ An opportunity to earn a small amount of money with no skills at all.
➖ There are a lot of scammers in this field.
➖ A lot of competition. Because you do not need any special skills.
➖ No prospects for development. Unless you want to learn different typing techniques.
➖ Little pay, because there is no intellectual work.
№4. Earn money from online surveys
You can take online surveys from research centers that are approached by the marketing departments of various companies. The purpose of such surveys is to form a portrait of the customer, assess the level of brand awareness or the demand for a particular product.
You get paid for every questionnaire you fill out, if you meet the requirements of the customer. Unfortunately, it is only possible to understand whether you are suitable for a focus group while taking the survey - the system will tell you about it.
What you need to get started
No special skills are required, but it is important to like routine tasks and to be diligent. To start work, it is enough to register on the appropriate platforms and fill in information about yourself.
PLUSES MINUSES
➕ Opportunity to influence product lines and marketing campaigns of well-known brands, which are often survey customers.
➕ The opportunity to understand how surveys generally work as a sociological and marketing tool for researching the demands of potential customers.
➕ No work schedule and no need to take every test they send you.
➖ Low or sometimes zero performance. You can spend 10-30 minutes on the survey, and as a result earn little or nothing (if it turns out that you are not included in the target audience, for the study which created the test).
Most services which offer to take tests have a high threshold for the withdrawal of income, which you can never reach, even if you pass the survey regularly for 6 to 12 months. That is, you can earn money, but to get it quickly - not always.
➖ There is no stability. One month you may be offered 20 surveys, the next month you may be offered zero.
Sale of goods online
A popular way to make money on the Internet. You can sell used goods, and your things in good condition, and new products, and on the Ukrainian market and internationally. Yes, in the process it may turn out that sales are not your thing, but it is worth a try.
№5. Creating an online store
Online-shop - an opportunity to make good money, even if you live in a village. The main thing is to have the goods, a post office (preferably Novaya Pochta), and a stable Internet connection. You can sell anything - from phone covers to carpets and tablecloths. But before you do this, study the demand for the desired product, and better yet test (try to sell a small batch).
What is needed to start
You can create an online store even without a website and hosting, for example, on instagram or marketplace. But you can't do without a budget. To start you need at least a few thousand hryvnias for the purchase of goods, promotion.
Also, when creating an online store it is important to decide with:
a niche;
Products (choose, buy, test the quality and only then sell);
visual style;
pricing policy;
working conditions.
It is desirable to prepare answers to popular questions, take pictures of products, write posts, and be sure to create a business page on Facebook and Instagram.
PLUSES MINUSES
➕ Small investments. A couple of thousand hryvnias is enough to test the niche and try to launch an online store.
➕ This is a great way to start a business.
➕ It is an opportunity to understand whether you like running a business or are more comfortable working for hire.
➕ An online store can be developed in parallel with a full-time job. You can also improve your time-management skills.
➖ It is not certain that there will be income, much less profit, in the first months of the store. Sometimes you have to develop it for six months to start making money.
➖ The first time can be difficult. You will have to study a lot of information about marketing, sales, customer service, and business in general, and learn as you go along. You can't do without draining budgets.
➖ It may not work out. Make a mistake with a niche or product, choose too narrow an audience, fail to build a strategy for project development or sales.
№6. Selling on AMAZON
Amazon is a marketplace with more than 1.6 billion monthly visitors from around the world, where you can sell almost anything. It's an opportunity to create your own online store on a platform where you don't need to attract traffic. And special programs allow you just to buy goods, deliver them to the Amazon warehouse and work with customers (logistics, storage of goods, handling returns are not your concern).It is important to know the economics of business on the site. It looks roughly like this:
30% of the product cost is shipping to Amazon's warehouse and the cost of production;
30% - Amazon's commission for other services and use of the service;
15% - marketing, promotion, expenses for salaries of your team;
25% - profit.
What is necessary to start
It's important to decide on the product, as in the launch of any business. If you want to sell on Amazon, use Unicorn Smasher, Jungle Scout, and AMZScout. They analyze the turnover of other sellers of certain products, predict the number of sales in the near future and give you the most popular items.
What else is important:
Have pumped up communication skills to easily communicate with vendors, Amazon employees, and customers;
Have a good command of English (at least B1 level, but better C1);
DETAILS
have a starting capital of $300 or more (this is the advice from those who have built a successful business on Amazon);
Have a good understanding of marketing, sales, and financial accounting.
PLUSES MINUSES
➕ You don't have to think about where to get traffic. But it is important to think about how to turn visitors into customers.
➕ High conversion rates - about 13% versus 2-3% in classic ecommerce.
➕ No need to build your own website.
➕ You don't have to think about logistics, as this is the task of the platform.
➕ You can reach an income of more than 5000 dollars, put a higher markup than in the Ukrainian market.
➕ It is realistic to find American partners for other businesses.
➖ It is difficult to form a customer base, as Amazon does not give access to their personal data.
➖ There is unfair competition from other sellers. But where is it not?
➖ Branding doesn't matter and creative PPM doesn't always save the day. Visitors pay attention to prices, reviews, and ratings more than to the other parameters.
№8. Dropshipping
Dropshipping is the ability to sell goods without physically having them in stock. Here you, as a dropshipper, act as an intermediary between the manufacturer or supplier and the buyer. The main task is to find customers. The more customers, the higher the income.The customer places and pays for the order with you.
You receive the payment, write to the supplier, transfer the money to him (but you keep the surcharge-profit).
The supplier processes the order and sends it to the customer.
What is needed to start
To work on dropshipping, it is important to decide on a niche, specific products, find suppliers and create either a website or a business page in social networks (determine the sales channel). It is also necessary to allocate a budget for advertising. Otherwise you will have to wait a long time for your first customers.
PLUSES MINUSES
You don't have to buy goods in advance. That is, even if your business will not go, it will be difficult to find customers, you do not lose much (except time).
➕ You do not need to look for storage space and think about logistics. This is the concern of the supplier.
➕ Large selection of manufacturers and suppliers who are willing to work on dropshipping. And this is an opportunity to experiment with products, suppliers.
➕ The opportunity to try to start your own business and assess how pumped up your skills in finding customers, sales, business correspondence.
➖ A supplier can cheat. A common situation is that they send a really good product for evaluation and testing, and then send a poor quality product, even with defects, to the customers.
➖ You cannot control all the stages of interaction with the customer. And if something goes wrong on the part of the supplier, you are the one to blame for the customer.
➖ There may be difficulties in resolving financial issues. But if you discuss various risky cases in the contract with the supplier, there will be no problems.
Selling intellectual content
№9. Publishing books for Kindle
The Kindle is Amazon's e-book reader. Anyone can write and publish a book on the Kindle publishing platform for this reader. It is possible to earn 35-70% of the cost of the book.
The important nuance - it is better not to go to Kindle with Russian-speaking books. They may not be allowed by the moderators. And if they do, you will not earn much. So if you are going to put books on Kindle, translate them into English first.
What you need to get started
To put a book on Kindle publishing, you need your own book (someone else's translation will not work, because you need to confirm the copyright) in English.
You will need these skills for a successful start:
An understanding of sales in the U.S. market;
Ability to develop marketing strategy for the American audience;
English skills at least B1, and if you plan to write a book or do the translation yourself - C1, and an understanding of conversational peculiarities.
PLUSES MINUSES
➕ This is an opportunity to start working with American or other foreign publishers. Sometimes with advances of $5,000 to $10,000. But you need proof that you're a cool author, and for that you need great sales.
➕ This is a chance to make good money if writing and publishing books is your main focus for professional development.
➖ An author only gets an honorarium if he or she manages to sell $100+ worth of books.
➖ High level of competition. There are authors from all over the world on Kindle. To stand out, you need a thing or a very interesting book.
➖ It takes a lot of time to write or translate a book, and if you don't know English at a native speaker level, you need money for the services of writers-translators.
➖ You also need to spend money on the cover design if you are not a designer yourself.
№10. Selling photos and videos
Selling photos and videos is a great option for photographers, designers, illustrators, and videographers to earn extra income. The point is that you place your works (necessarily in good quality) on photo and video sharing sites with the possibility of unlimited purchase. With that you get a bonus fee (about 30% of the cost of photos and videos). The more times your work is downloaded, the more income.
What you need to get started
It is enough to have unique photos and videos (you should not sell the same work on different channels) in good quality (it is better to read about what each photo and video site understands by "good quality" in their requirements on the sites).
Selling platforms
You can sell your photos and videos at Shutterstock, Dreamstime, VideoHive, BigStockPhoto, DepositPhotos. The main thing is to stick to the requirements of each platform.
PLUSES MINUSES
➕ It's a passive income. You take a photo or make a video once, post it, and then you make money from it without any extra effort or expense.
➕ This is an opportunity to start cooperation with foreign clients.
➕ You can do interesting shoots. Once a year, photostocks write about the trends of the new year and tell you which works they will consider first. Often these topics are abstract: equality, feminism. It's difficult, but it allows you to flex your creative muscle.At the beginning you have to upload a lot of photos, about 10-30 every day. With video, the situation is the same.
➖ It is difficult to predict what content to make for sales. Since it is very difficult to determine in advance which works will be successful.
➖ To make a good quality photo/video, you need expensive equipment and the appropriate skills.
working with content
Working with content opens up many options for development, from creating your own blog to developing your own training materials. You can be a content maker as well as manage the processes of the content department.
№11. Rewriting
Unlike copywriting, which we'll talk about below, here you have to rewrite texts, not write them from scratch. Often they order rewriting of competitors' articles with retention of meaning, but rephrasing the sentences. This allows the customer to avoid copyright infringement, while obtaining quality content.
What is needed to start
To become a rewriter, it is enough to have a good command of language (Ukrainian or Russian), to be able to find synonyms, to formulate thoughts in other words, to structure information. If you plan to work on the international market, it is important to know a foreign language at least B2.
Where to look for work
Typical customers of rewriters are SEO-studios, content-studios, blog editors. Such specialists are rarely hired as staff, more often working as freelancers. Orders can be sought at freelance exchanges, in thematic groups, telegram channels with orders.
PLUSES MINUSES
➕ Improve your language skills, pump up your writing skills.
➕ You can move from rewriting to editing, proofreading, copywriting. But this requires training and tightening up other skills.
➕ Great demand for such a service, so if you can competently establish yourself, you can easily find orders.
➖ The low cost of services. If compared with the cost of services copywriter, it is lower, although the time to write an article on the basis of a ready-made, you can spend as much as to write the text from scratch.
➖ Often the SEO indicators (uniqueness, spamming, number of keys) are more valuable in texts than the meaning and quality of the content.
№12. Copywriting
Copywriting is writing promotional materials (sales texts). Their purpose may be different: to stimulate the purchase of a product, increase brand awareness and more.
Copywriters can be both full-time employees (office or remote), and freelancers (taking one-time orders). They work with texts for websites, weblinks, pages in social networks, e-mail lists, product cards, YouTube channels (scripts for videos). SEO-studios, online-shops, entrepreneurs, editors of online media and corporate blogs are frequent customers.
What you need to get started
To become a copywriter, you need, in addition to your writing and creative skills, to know sales techniques and marketing tools. It doesn't hurt to have a negotiating skill. It is also desirable to know about related areas (at a basic level), for example, user experience if you write texts for webpages, or SEO if you create content for search promotion.
PLUSES MINUSES
➕ Broadening your horizons, especially if you plan to create content for different thematic blogs.
➕ Literate speech. You simply can't afford to write even simple letters or texts for friends with mistakes.
➕ Creative expression. Even with rigid TOR you can (and should) find opportunities for creativity.
➖ Professional deformation can occur. For example, on culinary forums, instead of studying recipes, you will start to analyze content, see an opportunity to improve it or SEO texts with poorly inserted keys.
➖ You have to give out creativity all the time. Even if it's SEO text in infostyles.
№13. Translations
This way of earning online is suitable only for those who have a good command of foreign languages (at an above average level). You can work on various task projects: translating articles or presentations, writing subtitles for English videos, proofreading and editing foreign-language texts, doing interpreting through various online meeting platforms. You can get a part-time or full-time job at a translation agency, work with copywriters or SEO studios.
What you need to get started
Foreign language skills at B2 level and above, so you can not only translate but also edit texts.
PLUSES MINUSES
➕ Constant practice of the language.
➕ Broadening your horizons. You may be the first to learn about trendy technologies in different areas and get access to very expensive information products.
➖ Competition from artificial intelligence (the same Google Translate). But this only applies to translation, and for a self-respecting company, a lightly combed translation from Google will not do.
➖ It is easy to get stuck at one level of development. And constantly translate information of plus or minus the same complexity, in the same topic, forgetting words and phrases from other topics.
№14. Photo processing
Photographers, photo studios, design studios, bloggers who need to process a large number of photos usually cooperate with such specialists.
What is needed to get started
The most difficult in mastering this way of earning will be learning Photoshop and Lightroom programs. You need to be able to do photo retouching, color correction, and work with white balance.
Resources for pumping skills:
Photo marathons from bloggers or photographers on social media (there are both free and paid ones);
YouTube video tutorials on photo editing.
PROS AND CONS
➕ Often retouchers are offered jobs by foreign companies after seeing their portfolios on Behance or Dribbble.
➕ Many opportunities for professional development. You can continue to develop as a retoucher, working with different types of images. You can go into IT. You can become a designer.➖ If you don't take care of your health (especially your eyesight and the position of your back while working), you can do a lot of damage to yourself. But exercising every hour can help prevent problems.
➖ If you like the treatment, it is not a fact that the customer will like it. Even if it's made to specifications.
№15. Video editing
In fact, the profession of an editor is quite complex and requires an excellent command of video editors and knowledge of the basics of directing. That is why it is recommended to begin with something simple and short, rather than with large, voluminous videos of more than 15 minutes. You can help bloggers or entrepreneurs with editing video stories in Instagram or Facebook feeds. And then gradually take serious orders and work with YouTube bloggers, advertising and digital agencies, and production studios.
What you need to get started
The most difficult thing in mastering this way of earning will be learning editing programs: Adobe Premier Pro, VEGAS PRO MAGIX (Sony Vegas), Final cut pro X. You also need to know the basics of directing, screenwriting and editing techniques, and have a powerful laptop or PC.
Resources for pumping skills:
video tutorials about editing (for example, on this channel);
Books about directing, types, and editing techniques.
PLUSES MINUSES
➕ You can collaborate with interesting people. Today editors are often sought by bloggers from instagram, youtube for permanent collaboration.
➕ There are opportunities for career development. You can try yourself as an editor in television, film, music industry, go into the event-sphere.
➕ Learning the profession yourself is realistic. It is important to study special programs, editing techniques, analyze and try to repeat the work of experienced professionals.
➖ You need a powerful computer, as you work with large files and complex programs. If you do not have such a computer, you should buy one. But we advise to do it only after you test such an activity and understand that you like it.
➖ It may be the seasonality of the work. But if you build a system for finding customers, this problem will be eliminated.
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