The pandemic has brought about a new kind of life. We live in a society where getting jobs is restricted because of the need to distance ourselves from others. This does not mean, though, that there are no job opportunities during these times. This new normal has given birth to a new labor economy where people can make money at the comforts of their home.
If you need cash now, know that there are easy, fun, and legitimate ways where you can make money online. You do not need to expose yourself to the dangers of COVID 19 because these jobs offer a work-from-home setup.
If you need money, here are 15 legal ways to earn online. Note that some of these jobs require certain skills and experiences. You have to identify which of them is the best fit for you. Another option is to train yourself to do these jobs as you have a lot of free time.
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Blogging: Sell Your Insights
Blogging has been in existence for decades now. It has transformed from being a personal online diary to being an effective marketing tool. People write blogs to sell their products or the services they offer. As people are online today looking where to buy and spend on, creating blogs is a great way to reach your customers and clients.
If you want to make a profit out of blogging, you have to build your readership first. To qualify for affiliate marketing programs, you have to have a lot of website visitors. Another way to earn is to get companies and businesses to advertise on your site. Get sponsorships for the blogs that you post.
You can start your blogging journey on WordPress. This is a free website. They are friendly to beginners, and you do not need to learn to code to create your blog entries. You can also choose to pay extra if you wish to buy your website’s domain name so it may look professional.
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Virtual Tutoring: Sell Your Expertise
Even with COVID, people continue to learn. Much of the classes and learning sessions are done online now. This means students are looking for tutorial services using Skype, Zoom, and other video communication tools. You can take this opportunity to earn money.
Besides academic learning, people are also willing to pay to learn a certain skill like digital drawing, photography, painting, singing, and many more. If you are good at something and can teach this skill to others, you can do this virtual tutoring. To begin, you can advertise your services to your family, friends, and neighbors. Once you have gained sufficient experience, you can then advertise your service on social media like Facebook.
Remember that as you gain more experience, you get to set a higher hourly rate. Hence, you must build your resume to prove to others of your ability to provide a virtual tutorial. Also, investing in a stable internet service provider heavily requires being connected to the online community.
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Downsize & Declutter: Sell Your Unwanted Stuff
Let’s face it; our homes are filled with perfectly good but unnecessary stuff. Over the years, we have bought items that we might have used once or twice but did not use ever again. As you are cleaning your homes during the lockdowns and quarantines, you can choose to sell unwanted items on the internet. Post them on sites like eBay, Craigslist, or on Facebook marketplace.
For others, decluttering can be a challenging task. One easy way to deal with this is to gather together items that you have not used in the last six months and probably not use them in the next six months. Consider them as non-essentials because you have survived without using them. Sell these items and make a profit out of them.
One trick to get better prices selling items online is to take good photos of the product to make them presentable. You can also describe the things you are selling, emphasizing their best qualities. Learn that even online selling needs branding and marketing. You can get a better profit if you sell your products more convincingly.
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Freelance Writing: Sell Your Words
If you have the knack for writing, you might want to consider making it an income source. Freelance writers have various job opportunities, including essay writing, SEO writing, copywriting, and many more. For beginners, you can sign up on websites meant for freelances like Upwork and Fiverr. At first, you might have to charge your customers with a minimal fee, but as you take on more writing experiences, you will be able to set higher prices or rates.
It is easier to get clients if you have a writing portfolio. This is a collection of articles you have written previously. It is best if these articles were published to show your clients the quality of work you can produce. The bigger the portfolio you have, the higher your chance to set competitive rates.
Note that writing has many types. You can choose to specialize in a specific industry. If you wish to write for websites and online businesses, learn trade secrets. Master SEO was writing to make sure that your articles reach more people. By doing so, you also get to build your client list.
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Pet Sitting: Start a Doggy Day Care in Your Home
If you are a pet lover and have experience taking care of pets, there are websites dedicated to pet sitting pet boarding like Petbacker and Rover. Pet owners will book your services, and you can charge around $20-$50 per pet per day. If you have a large house, you can take care of more than five pets.
If you are into this type of work, you can also navigate other job opportunities related to pet sitting. You can offer a pet daycare service where owners would leave their pets in your home during the day. While the pay here is smaller than pet boarding, this job is fairly easy. You can eventually offer other tasks such as pet grooming, pet walking, and even pet transportation service.
Note that the CDC has found no compelling evidence to prove that pets have a significant contribution to the spread of the virus. Hence, taking care of a pet in these times should not worry you. Honestly, the pet industry is a thriving business because pet owners are willing to spend on their pets.
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Remote Accounting: Launch a Virtual Bookkeeping Business
Why not learn a new skill during the pandemic? One job that remains essential is bookkeeping. As online businesses are growing like mushrooms, bookkeepers are in high demand. Grab the opportunity to open a virtual bookkeeping business where you provide your service online.
Admittedly, you have to learn bookkeeping before you make a business offering a bookkeeping service. You check out sites like Bookkeepers and other websites to have access to free materials and resources. Once you are confident with your bookkeeping skills, you can then set up your business by creating a website or social media pages.
To make your life easier, you can also hire people who have experience in bookkeeping. Starting the business alone can be tiring and tedious. You can remain the owners of the businesses and manage the operations of your site. The downside is it would require you to pour in more capital.
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Retail Arbitrage: Learn How to Buy Low and Sell High
Retail Arbitration refers to the act of buying items in bulk and low prices and then selling them retail at high prices. Most people doing retail arbitration sell clothes, gadgets, and accessories. It may also include buying and selling large assets like cars, homes, lots, etc. The bigger capital you have, the bigger the profit margin you can have.
Remember that doing this business need not require a big capital investment. You can start with $500 and then grow your business from there. One good news is that it is easy for you to buy directly from manufacturers and factories online. Make sure to do market research to make sure that you make a profit out of this venture.
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Promote Classes & Webinars
This job opportunity is meant for individuals who have grown their resume or curriculum vitae successfully over the years. If you have developed expertise about a particular topic, you can sell your knowledge by doing online classes and webinars. People have a lot of free time now, so they are willing to pay to spend their time learning more about things that they like.
Unlike offering a tutorial service, you are targeting adults and professionals here. Hence, you can charge a higher rate. This means that you have to produce professional-looking classes and webinars worthy of the pay you are charging. To do this, you can hire video editors and assistants to help you out in presenting your lessons.
To make a profit out of this job, you must market yourself. You have to show your legitimacy to potential students by showing them your educational background, job experiences, and organizations. Also, try to invest in branding and marketing your classes on social media. They do not need to be fancy and expensive. They have to appear professional, so you can target the clients you wish to reach.
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Cash Back & Coupons: Earn When You Shop
Do you know that you can earn money by buying things? Yes, you heard it right. Websites and mobile apps are dedicated to giving you a cashback every time you make an online purchase. Mypoints and Swagbucks are two of the most popular cashback apps today. You can also check out other apps in the market today to find which ones the best work with the online stores you use.
Since we are spending most of our time at home, we have been doing most of our shopping online. One way to save money in our online shopping is through using coupons. These coupons give discounts on bulk purchases and other buys. You can save a substantial amount of money by using coupons.
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Review websites & apps for cash
For sure, a lot of us are familiar with websites and apps. But do you know that you can make money by reviewing them? Websites like Testerwork and Usertesting pay users who are willing to use, navigate, test, and review websites and apps. The first thing you have to do is register on these websites dedicated to paying people to review sites.
You do not need to have a background in computer studies or programming to review these sites and apps. You are expected to share your honest insights and opinions regarding these platforms. In exchange, you are given money for your time and effort. Take note that payments for these review sites are very minimal. You cannot rely on them for your monthly income.
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Affiliate marketing and Dropshipping
Affiliate marketing is where you get paid by advertising and marketing the products and services of another business. To earn money, you must first have a site (can be a website, Youtube channel, blog, etc.) where you get to build an audience. Find an affiliate program where you can apply into. Once you have a unique affiliate link, you are then to share it with your platforms. The more people to use that link, the more income you will earn.
On the other hand, dropshipping is where you sell products to your customers, but you do not need to keep stocks. As a seller, you take the items from a third party who will ship the items to the customers. Dropshipping is a great business model for business owners who do not have enough space to keep their stocks. Without the need for a stock room, you can save more money.
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Trade in old phones, electronics for cash
Let’s admit it. We buy new phones not because we can’t use the old ones but because there is a newly released one. As a result, we gather a pile of perfectly functioning smartphones left unused in our homes. During these difficult times, we can turn these unused items into cash. We can turn these old gadgets into cash.
There are websites solely dedicated to phones and other electronic devices. For example, Gazelle takes in old smartphones. You can send your devices to these companies, and they will pay you in exchange. By doing so, you not only get to make money from your old electronics, but you also get to contribute to the environment.
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Monetize your social media channels – Youtube, Instagram, and FB
Everyone knows that using social media means spending time and effort to build your page or channel. You get to keep your follower engaged by producing content that entertains them. Hence, it is no surprise that you can turn your social media accounts into income-generating platforms. The easiest way is to join affiliate marketing programs on these sites.
Today, only Facebook and Youtube have affiliate programs. And honestly, only the very popular channel earns enough from joining these programs. Another option to earn money is to take sponsorships from businesses and corporations. You get to dedicate posts and other channel content promoting the services and products they offer.
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Take online surveys for money
You can also make money by sharing your thoughts and insights about various topics. Answer some online survey questions, and in exchange, you get some cash. Various websites are willing to pay for people to answer surveys like Swagbucks, Surveys On the Go, Google Opinion Rewards, and many other more. You can also look for mobile apps where you can easily answer some questions during your spare time.
Take note that you may not earn a lot from these survey sites. You might have to download multiple sites to get more cash. But still, do not think that what you can earn here can substitute your regular income.
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Rent out your car
Now that we are spending more of our time at home, one way to earn money is to profit from the things that we already have. You can rent out your car to people who need it more. Sites like Getaround or Turo can help you find customers willing to pay you to use your car. These websites might take a percentage of your earnings, but you can still make a profit on something you are not using.
Final Word
We truly are living in difficult times. We have to be extra creative in finding ways on how to earn money. These 15 legal and legitimate ways to earn money help those who do not know where to begin. Remember that much like any career, jobs online require time and effort before you can attain success. As you gain more experience, you can increase the prices of the products and services you offer.
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