Editor’s note: This article was first published in July 2013; the services and figures it cites reflect that year, and several platforms it names, such as Conduit’s custom toolbar service, Google Hangouts and the Getty Images collection on Flickr, no longer exist.
I imagine you have seen those adverts that give you the recipe for making easy, quick money online more than once, some even promising that anyone can earn 3,000 euros a week or 200 euros a day.
Obviously we all know there is no magic formula for earning such astronomical amounts, and it certainly wouldn’t be quick and easy, because if it were, it wouldn’t be advertised to everyone. If I had the secret to earning 3,000 euros a week the easy way, I, for one, would save it for my grandchildren.
That said, there are many ways to earn extra money online. It is true that some of them take patience, such as starting a blog or a YouTube channel, but if what we want is to earn a little money straight away and without too much hassle, we need to focus on other kinds of ideas and draw on our skills or the things we are good at. Here are 8 ideas for earning some money where we invest only our time and can get some money in return (or a lot of money). (Also read: 5 questions to find out how you could earn extra money)
1. Make money freelancing at what you are good at.
There are many websites that pay for one-off jobs, from designs and logos to SEO, computer repairs and so on. One of the sites for micro-jobs or freelance work in Spain is TrabajoFreelance.es. Look for sites like this in your country, and if there aren’t any, you already have an excellent business idea (create one).
2. Make money with Conduit.
Conduit is a platform where you can create custom apps and toolbars. Every time someone downloads an app or installs the toolbar you created, Conduit pays you.
3. Make money on eBay.
On eBay you can make money not only by selling your own products but also by offering to sell other people’s and charging a small commission for it. When we talked about micro-businesses, one of the cases we mentioned was a person who bought very cheap items in second-hand shops and then sold them on eBay. That is how Sophia Amoruso got started in fashion. We won’t ask you to make 250 million like her; settle for 1% 🙂
4. Private lessons or advice in what you are good at.
Many graduates have finished their degree and are unemployed with no income, and still they are not taking advantage of the internet, where nowadays, especially at exam time, you can make a fortune giving lessons online, both one-to-one and in groups. Google Hangouts and PayPal payments make it possible. You set the price per hour, individual or group.
5. Jobs for less than €5.
If there is something you know how to do that would take someone else an hour or two while you do it in 10 minutes, there is a business in it. For example, someone who knows nothing about websites and blogs and needs to install a plugin or a simple share button. For €5, I at least wouldn’t think twice. There are also people who do translations for €5 a page.
6. Write online.
Did you know that many prominent websites are paying people just to copy articles from other sites? What does that mean? That they hire people who have no idea about the subject they write about, or who are not very creative (they lack ideas). If you are good at a subject and have an interesting angle on a particular topic, you can make money easily online by writing for websites, whether about trends, nature or life experiences… There are thousands of subjects online, so you can probably cover one of them.
7. Make money with your car.
Your car is parked 95% of the time. I understand that a car is something very personal, but if you are short of money for the monthly payment, nowadays there are websites like SocialCar where you can rent out your car by the hour or by the day. That way we can turn the car into an asset instead of a liability.
8. Make money taking photos for stock image libraries.
There are many stock image libraries that pay you every time someone downloads or uses your photo. This way of making money isn’t quick, as it may take a while to sell your photos, but it is one more option. One of the biggest stock libraries is Getty Images. Of course, you need to know the pros and cons of doing this very well. In this blog post, the author gives an excellent summary, from his own experience, of how to sell your photos on Getty Images.
And no, “playing” binary options does not count as a realistic way to make money fast.
Other ways to make money with businesses that need no investment or from home:
- 9 profitable business ideas from home, without commercial premises
- 6 business ideas for young entrepreneurs
- 10 ideas for making money by saving
- Businesses that work in a crisis
Featured image: MAKY.OREL, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
