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Resources to Build Your Wealth

Efficient Ways to Make Money as a Stay at Home Mom

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Being a stay-at-home mom has a lot of advantages. You can spend more time with your children and make sure that they constantly have everything that they need, you can take care of everything that needs to be done around the house. Basically, being a stay-at-home mom gives you the opportunity to be a bigger part of your kid’s life. However, there are also a few downsides.

If things ever get tough, financially, then the family will only have one source of income to rely on. Or at least that’s what most people think. In reality, being a stay-at-home mom only comes with advantages. For example, if you ever need a couple thousand dollars more, then you can always make the money online. The internet offers a lot of opportunities for people looking to earn money without having to leave their home.

However, choosing the ones that can help you maximize your profit may prove to be difficult. This having been said, this article will guide you through some of the most efficient ways to make money online.

Each one of the following jobs can be done without any kind of special training or any kind of qualification. Basically, if you know how to use a computer, how to surf the web, and how to use a few basic applications like word processors, then you can make money online.

Also, a number of these ways to make money online can be scaled up and transformed into a fully-fledged business. So, if you ever come to the conclusion that you would like to do a particular job full-time, then you can always make the necessary changes and turn it into your main source of income.

Alternatively, these strategies and ideas can also be approached by individuals who are looking for a way to work from home or a replacement for their day job.

Overall, working from home will never mean that you will not be able to spend as much time with your children as you would otherwise. The best thing about these jobs is the fact that they can be done while keeping an eye on your kids. You can take care of business while the kids are watching TV, or by taking your laptop with you while going to a park.

In terms of earnings, the amount of money that you’ll be able to make depends on how much time you spend working. Most of the moms that have tested these jobs have reported that they were able to make between $2000-3000 each month, by working only a couple of hours per day. Furthermore, their workload was split into short sessions, so that they performed the jobs in between activities with their kids.

Again, if you ever choose, and are able, to spend more time working, then these jobs can bring you a lot more money.

So, you don’t have to be tech savvy, you don’t need any kind of special equipment, and you don’t need any kind of qualification. If you’ve got one or two hours per day – even if they are spread across the whole day – then you will be able to make money using these jobs.

Offline jobs that you can do from home

While this article focuses mainly on ways that you can use the internet in order to make money, it is important to mention that you also have the option to make money from offline jobs.

One of the most popular choices for stay-at-home moms is to start a daycare service. There are a lot of parents who will choose to leave their kids with a stay-at-home mom than at a daycare center. This is usually a great choice, and most moms don’t find the activity too tiresome. If you’re a stay-at-home mom, then you’re already used to taking care of your children. Taking care of other kids won’t be any different. On top of this, your kids will have someone to play with, so they will benefit from this activity as well.

Now, it is important to mention that you will need to take care of some paperwork before being able to start offering these services, however, once you’re in the green, you’ll make quite a bit of money. For example, if you take care of 3 kids besides your own, then you should be able to make around $2,000 per month.

Running your own daycare also means that you get to decide how many kids you want to take care of, and how much you want to charge. In other words, you are your own boss, and this can make a lot of difference when something unexpected happens, or when you decide that you need a break.

To get started, make sure that you take care of all the required paperwork, and then start advertising your services around town. Begin by asking your friends if they are interested, and put up posters around local schools, community centers, churches, and senior centers. You can even run a paid ad on Craigslist, or let people know on Facebook.

Don’t forget to also make use of any artistic skills that you may have. Most parents will be more likely to choose your service over others if you advertise that you can teach their children to play a particular instrument.

Starting a daycare doesn’t mean that you’ll be stuck with this job alone. There’s nothing stopping you from also starting an online business at the same time. However, if you choose to mix and match jobs, make sure that you choose something that requires very little time.

Online jobs for stay-at-home moms

If you like DIY projects and are artistic, then you can always start selling on Etsy. The platform will allow you to sell a huge variety of products, from handmade jewelry and clothes to children’s toys and even crafting supplies. Etsy has a large number of users and while this does mean that you will have the advantage of listing your products on a huge, dynamic marketplace, it also means that there is a lot of competition. So, do a bit of research beforehand, and determine what are the products that sell the most.

Another thing that you can do, especially if your home is too cluttered, is gather all the things that you no longer need or use, and sell them on Craigslist or Ebay. Video games, collectibles, and handbags will sell fast, however, you should always do a bit of research in order to determine how you should price them.

Also, gather any electronics and old appliances that you can part ways and clean them up as well as you can. Phones, tablets, and laptops will make you more money if you sell them with all their original accessories such as chargers, docks, and headphones.

You can also sell clothes. There are several websites that enable people to sell their designer clothing and sporting equipment. Always sell these on specialized platforms in order to make more money.

Although selling things isn’t a long-term solution, it is a great option if you need a bit more money one month, or if you have too many things and want to get rid of them.

Selling clothes can be turned into a long-term business, by going to thrift stores and buying designer clothing that is still in great condition. Most of the time you will find that these are cheap to buy from thrift stores, and they will make you quite a bit of money if you sell them on eBay. You won’t even have to do anything to them, except iron them and put them on while you snap a few photos.

You won’t make a lot of money, but the profit will be there. People usually make between $5-10 with every sell that they make. While it may not seem like much, over the course of a month, you should be able to make around $600. So, if you like to go shopping for clothes, you may want to consider this business strategy.

You can do the same thing with collectibles and antiques. Just make a habit out of going to garage sales, and once you find a couple of things that are in good condition, put them up for sales. Alternatively, you can buy old things on Craigslist, fix them up, and then resell them.

Virtual jobs that you can do to make money without leaving home

By far the most profitable ways to make money from home are online businesses and virtual jobs. There are a lot of things that you can do on the internet in order to earn money, from working as a virtual assistant to testing software or websites.

Being a virtual assistant is one of the easiest jobs online. You would basically work as a secretary, however, you would never have to leave your home in order to do your job. Most people will ask you to make appointments and reservations for them, to send emails, and to search for various things. Depending on the gig, you may be paid per week, per month, or per hour. You won’t need any kind of specialized software, but you will have to have a word processor, as well as an app that allows you to work with spreadsheets.

In order to get started, you can look at the gigs offered on various freelancing websites such as Fiverr, Upwork, and Freelancer. Also, keep in mind that if you have more spare time, you can work with several people at once. If you work as a virtual assistant and have two or three clients, you should be able to make around $300 per month.

Another way to make money online is by testing websites. Platforms like User Testing pay people to test and review various websites. The entire process of testing and reviewing usually takes around 30 minutes and this makes it the perfect activity for when the children are napping or watching TV.

Between working as a virtual assistant and testing websites, you should be able to earn around $800 per month. This may not seem like a lot, however, these jobs do not take a lot of time do to and can be easily sprinkled throughout the day. Ideally, you should do these while also taking care of the daycare business. If you add the money that you can earn from all of these jobs, you should get close to what you would earn from a full-time job.

Another virtual job that pays well is freelance writing, however, this is also more time-consuming. As a freelance writer, you would have to write anything from blog posts, to speeches and scripts. You can easily choose the jobs that suit you by going on one of the many freelancing platforms and looking at what gigs are offered. Whether you’re a ghostwriter or a freelance writer, you should be able to make around $800 per month by working 4 hours each day. Most of the time you will have to write texts from one day to another, so make sure that you can handle this workload before taking on a gig. The freelancing world is built around referrals and reputation so if you start working on a gig and don’t do your part, you may find that people will be reluctant to hire you in the future.

Start a blog and make money in the long run

Blogging is one of the best ways to make money in the long run. This is due to the fact that a blog is basically both an active as well as a passive source of income. In other words, you will work once and make money from your content multiple times, but you will also be able to actively work in order to earn more.

You may be tempted to start a blog on a free platform such as Blogger. While Blogger does offer a few ways to monetize your content, your blog will hit a brick wall once you try to make money using services other than the ones provided by Google. It is usually better to buy a domain and to create a blog using WordPress. This will give you full control over your website, from the way you want to monetize your work, to the ability to join affiliate programs and sell products offered by online stores such as Amazon.

Furthermore, when you create a free blog, the website will have to follow the rules imposed by the platform. For example, if Google who owns Blogger decides at one point that users should receive less money, you won’t be able to do anything about it. However, if you create your own website, you will decide which monetizing service to work with and which ads to place on your blog.

Another great thing about creating your own website is the fact that you have the ability to sell it whenever you want. There are quite a few people who make a living by creating blogs and making content for them (time in which they make money from it), and after a certain period of time, selling them to the highest bidder. These people usually decide to sell once the website has a stable audience.

If you don’t exactly know where to start, then just think about what you know that others would be interested in. You can write about your life as a parent who works from home, or about a particular skill that you have.

In time, you will make more and more money. There are quite a few people who are currently making around $10,000 from their blog alone. They usually run ads on their blogs, but the bulk of their income comes from the fact that they also create products that they sell to their audiences.

This having been said, keep in mind that you can easily make this amount of money. You simply have to be patient. Nowadays, anyone can create and manage a website. You don’t have to know to code or to have any kind of technical skills. You just need a bit of money to get started (a domain starts at a few dollars), and time to write the content. Everything else can be learned as you go. The creation of the website can be done with only a few clicks and there are a lot of online guides that will show you how to monetize your content.

Each of these jobs is great for a stay-at-home mom, and you are bound to make money from them. Regardless of which ones you choose, keep in mind that you should never feel pressured. Most of the jobs presented in this article can be started and ended whenever you want. You won’t have a work schedule and you won’t have a boss to tell you that you should work late.

 

4 Strategies to Make Money Using Your Smartphone

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Smartphones have become ubiquitous, however, most people are not aware of their full potential. The majority of individuals who buy smartphones only does so in order to browse the internet or to use the may apps available. Unfortunately, very few actually understand how they can either monetize the time that they spend on their phone, or how to make money using this gadget.

The best part about making money using your phone is that you would use something that you already have. The following strategies can be approached using pretty much any phone, even older models. You don’t need a flagship smartphone or one that just came out yesterday. If you can install apps on it, and it can connect to the internet, then you’ll be able to use it in order to make money.

This having been said, please keep in mind that the idea of earning so much money that you’ll be able to quit your job and only life off of what you make using your smartphone is unrealistic. You’ll start by making a dollar per day, however, you’ll be making it without even realizing.

Also, most of these ways to make money using your smartphone don’t require your full attention. Most of the time, you’ll make money by doing things that you would normally do on your phone. For example, there are apps that will pay you money in order to download certain games and to play them for a few minutes. You can easily do this when you wait in line or commute.

The best part about these strategies is the fact that you will not be required to spam your friends on Facebook or any other social network in order to earn money. You will earn by performing various tasks inside the apps that you install, by participating in surveys, or by shopping. There are no tricks and no requirement to spend money in order to make money.

As a word of advice, don’t take the promises made by app developers for granted. There is a large number of apps that will promise money in return for doing all sorts of tasks. While the ones presented in this article are legitimate and have been tested extensively, this does not mean that any app that you will come across will be as effective at enabling you to make money using your phone. So, avoid downloading apps that you do not know anything about. Spend a few minutes researching it, and looking at the developers’ website. If everything checks out, then you can install it and give it a go.

Most apps will have reviews both on the app stores offered by Google or Apple, as well as online, in the shape of articles.

Now that you know what do to before installing unknown apps that promise to help you make money, let’s take a look at 4 proven ways to make money using your smartphone.

  1. Make money by surfing the web and by watching various videos

Most of us spend a lot of time online, moving from website to website, hoping to find what we need, or something to entertain us. However, what few people know is the fact that it’s easy to monetize this activity. Basically, you can make money by doing the things that you normally do on your phone. For example, there are apps that will reward you with points when watching certain ads. These points can then be redeemed in order to get anything from gift cards and discounts to actual cash. Here are a few apps to get you started:

  • Swagbucks – This one has been around for quite some time and is still as popular as ever. You can earn Swagbucks by searching for things online, using the platform’s internal search engine, by watching videos, and by answering surveys. Once you have enough points, you will be able to redeem them for a gift card, or for PayPal cash. There is a large number of people who are currently making money on this platform, and this stands testament to how reliable Swagbucks really is.
  • CashPirate – A great alternative to Swagbucks, CashPirate rewards you for participating in surveys, playing games, and clicking on ads. Similar to the previous platform, you will be rewarded with points that you can transform into PayPal cash once you reach a minimum redeemable amount.
  • Fronto – The third app that you may want to try is Fronto. This one is a bit more flexible, in the sense that it rewards you for viewing news, articles, product deals, and reviews. You will also be able to make money by downloading free apps suggested by the platform.

These three are a great way to get started, however, you should always be on the lookout for more platforms that offer rewards for minor tasks like the ones above.

  1. Make money by spending money, when you buy things online

Most people shop online every month. Whether they buy house appliances, gadgets, office supplies, or food, a lot of people prefer to purchase things online, rather than go across town to find what they need. Luckily, there is a way to make money when you make online purchases. There are several apps that will essentially pay you to shop. For the most part, you will only have to install an app on your phone, and then take a photo of your receipt. Here are 3 reliable apps that people are currently using in order to make money when they shop online:

  • Ibotta – Ibotta will reward you when you go grocery shopping, however, you will be required to complete a few easy tasks on the app beforehand. You will have to basically specify which are your favorite brands, and what kind of products you regularly buy. Once you’ve finished, you can go to the store and buy what you need. Next, take a picture of your receipt and you will receive a cashback amount. While you will receive cashbacks every time you shop for things that are included amongst the platform’s deals, you will only be able to withdraw the money once you earn at least $5.
  • Shopkick – Shopkick is a bit more difficult to use than Ibotta, in the sense that you will have to shop in certain stores. However, if you already buy things from said stores, then there’s no reason not to profit from what this app has to offer. Shopkick will reward you with cash and gift cards that you can use the next time you buy something.
  • Receipt Hog – This one works the same way as the ones above. You have to take a picture of your receipt and you will receive points that you can then redeem for cash. Receipt Hog doesn’t restrict you to certain stores, and you will also be able to do other things in order to earn points, like watch ads and participate in paid surveys.
  1. Sell any items that you no longer use or want

Most people tend to keep every gift that they receive, regardless of how little they like it. This means that most people will have at least a couple of things that they can part ways with, items that have never been used and could be sold for quite a bit of money. On top of this, people you may have old electronics like tablets and laptops that can be sold for parts or cleaned and sold to companies that refurbish this kind of items.

When it comes to the actual process of selling the items, things couldn’t be simpler. As long as you have a smartphone with a decent camera, you’ve got everything you need to put things up for sale. Here are a few apps that will help you sell the things that you need as fast as possible:

  • Depop – Depop is basically an app that allows you to snap and sell. In other words, you can put things up for sale extremely quickly, and the platform will handle most of the technical side of things. While you will benefit from having access to a popular marketplace that a large number of people visit, you will also have to pay a 10% fee on everything that you sell. Also, the platform is great if you want to sell gadgets or high-tech items, as it is geared to a younger audience.
  • Poshmark – If you have any designer or brand-name clothes that won’t fit you anymore, or you no longer want to wear, then Poshmark is a great place to sell them. Clean your clothes, take a photo of them and then establish a selling price. Once someone buys your clothes, Poshmark will deduct 20%, and send you the rest. Keep in mind that this is also a great platform to look for deals on clothing. So, if you don’t have a lot of money to spend, you can look around and you should be able to find some great deals on the Poshmark marketplace.
  • Letgo – Letgo has been described as being a mobile version of Craigslist. This platform will let you keep 100% of the sale price and you won’t have to pay any shipping fees due to the fact that all exchanges are made in-person. A lot of people use the platform, and this means that your items should sell relatively fast. However, since you will have to deliver the items yourself, you should read the safety guidelines that the platform offers, before starting to sell your things.
  • eBay – The mobile platform offered by eBay is just as good as the browser one, and offers the same features. Once you create an account and post an item for sale, you will have to wait for users to bid. The highest bid wins, and you get the money when you ship the item. However, if you would rather avoid the trips that you have to make to the post office, there is always the eBay valet service that will have the platform take care of shipping, in exchange for a percentage of the sale. Overall, the app is great if you have a cluttered house and need to sell a couple dozen items.
  1. Make money by playing games on your phone

Everyone plays games on their phone. Whether you do it for a couple of minutes each day, while you’re waiting in line, or for a couple of hours while commuting, if you’ve got a smartphone, chances are that you’ve got a few games installed on it. While most people are aware that certain games try to convince you to spend money on various virtual items and powerups, few actually know how to make money from them. So, here is a great game that you can make money from playing:

  • Qriket – Qriket is a chance game where you spin a wheel in order to receive prizes. You can earn anywhere from a few cents to $10 with each spin. Once you install the game you will be rewarded with a certain number of free spins. When you use them up, you can watch short video ads in order to receive more. The best part is that the game also features events where the grand prize is $100. When it comes to cashing out, you will be able to withdraw the money that you’ve earned to your PayPal account, however, you will have to reach at least $25.

Again, these are only a few of the many apps and strategies that you can use in order to make money using your smartphone. More apps are being released each month, however, you should always research them beforehand. While all apps are checked by the Google Play store or the Apple Appstore, these marketplaces rarely actually check to see if people are being tricked by the developing companies.

Also, never install apps from sources other than the official ones. While Google and Apple analyze the apps in their stores, you have no guarantee that the apps that can be found on unofficial websites are safe to use.

7 Tried and Tested Ways to Make Money Online

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There are countless opportunities on the internet, unfortunately, many of them are presented as being much more profitable than they really are. This has generated the somewhat well-known misconception that people who manage to make money on the internet are either not honest about how much they earn, or they have some sort of key to success.

In reality, the secret is being able to identify the online jobs and businesses that are profitable. This can be more difficult than it seems, considering the fact there are a lot of businesses that generate a very small profit but tend to invest a lot in exposure marketing.

This guide will look at some of the best ways to make money online. All of these jobs, businesses, and strategies have been tried and tested countless times, by people all around the world, and are considered to be some of the most efficient ways to earn money on the internet.

It is important to mention that these strategies can be used to make a quick buck if you’re in a tough spot, but they can also be turned into a main source of income, basically replacing your full-time job.

But before actually talking about the various ways that you can make money online, let’s put things into perspective.

First of all, these are not get-rich-quick schemes. You will have to treat them like you would a full-time job. In other words, you will only make money if you take your job seriously and put in the required time, then you’ll earn a decent amount of money. However, if you don’t have discipline and are constantly looking for ways to cut corners, you’ll find yourself constantly struggling to a couple hundred dollars.

This having been said, there is no denying the fact that making money on the internet is far easier than doing so through a traditional job. With many of these jobs, you will be able to work from home, to create your own schedule, and be, for all intents and purposes, your own boss. A downside that you will face is the amount of time that it may take for you to make a profit.

All of the strategies below work, and can generate quite a bit of money, however, you may have to be patient with some of them. For example, in you decide to create a blog, you will only be able to make money from it after you’ve created an audience.

Furthermore, once you start making money, you will have to continue working, in order to keep making a profit. While there are a few ways to make a passive income, it is usually better to avoid relying on money that you don’t actively work for.

There are 7 main ways you can make money online. Each of them branches out and provides various strategies to make a profit, so you won’t have to do things that you dislike or don’t fully understand.

Some of the jobs that demand more time and effort will generate a larger income, while others that only require a few minutes of your time will be great ways to make money on the side. It is usually best to pair them. Choose one or two jobs that can make you a lot of money and pair them with a few smaller, less demanding strategies.

 

Making money online

A lot of people tend to believe that any strategy that can help them make a couple thousand dollars per month is either a trick or a lie, so they don’t pay attention to it. While there are a lot of individuals who constantly try to take advantage of desperate people who need to make money fast, there is a golden rule that can help you avoid a lot of bad decisions: If you can understand how you make money, and why you’re paid for the work that you do, then it’s probably legit. In other words, you have to understand what the value of your work is, and why it’s profitable for an individual or a platform to pay you in order to do a certain action.

Equally important is research. Just like you would do in the case of an interview, you should first learn as much as you can about a platform or a business before starting work. All the websites presented in this article are legitimate and have been online for a long time, however, there are many platforms that have people work only to take them through an infinite maze of procedures in order to get paid. Most of the time, people give up before getting their money.

Another important aspect of working online that you should consider is whether you also have a day job or not. The beauty of working online is that there is something for everybody, so if you work 8 hours per day and are looking for a way to make some extra money, then you may want to focus on passive income ideas. These will help you make an extra couple hundred dollars without having to constantly work for the money. Think of it like publishing a book. You work hard at the beginning and you make money from it for the years to come.

Furthermore, you will work only once, and get paid for as long as you keep the product or content online, essentially, creating a safety net around you. Should anything happen that will prevent you from working for an extended period of time, you still have a source of income that can help you get back on track.

Alternatively, if you’re looking to replace your day-job, then you can focus on more active strategies that can help you earn much more money, but are also a lot more demanding on your time. Either way, you will still have to work for your money.

As a side note, you should always try to make sure that you have at least two or three sources of passive income, before getting into a job that requires you to actively work for your money. This way, you will have a source of income to sustain yourself while you work on the larger project. Keep in mind that the jobs that pay more, and are great on the long term, will usually take a while to start generating a decent amount of money.

Keep in mind that your time is limited, and you will still need to make money while waiting for your main project to make money. However, once you have the opportunity to start a long-term high-value project, be prepared to work for every dollar, at least in the beginning.

Another aspect that you should consider when looking to make money online is your ability to scale up a certain strategy or business. Smaller businesses that rely on selling products or content that you create can be easily scaled up in terms of volume, however, things may be a bit more complicated in the case of larger projects such as online stores and webinars.

Before choosing something to make money from, you will first have to determine how much money you want to earn every month. Also, establish if you want to choose something that can be expanded in the future, or if you’re only interested in starting a business that you can shut down in a few minutes.

The golden rule when it comes to making money online is to cover all your bases. You don’t have to become a jack of all trades and open 10 businesses at the same time, but it is a good idea to create at least a couple of income sources for you. Also, they should be varied so that if anything ever happens to a certain area of the internet, for example, the platform that you use for your blog, you will have another source of income to fall back to.

 

  1. Make use of the many apps that are already helping people make money

If you’re in a bind and need some money fast, then the best course of action is to take advantage of one of the ways that people around the world are already using to earn some cash.

Most of these are extremely easy to use and you would basically be your own boss. Furthermore, you can sign up to one or more of these platforms, and make money from each of them. The best part is that you basically only need a computer, laptop, tablet or phone, and an internet connection. Also, you won’t have to commute. These apps are built around the idea of working when you have time, wherever you want to, so you can easily fit the jobs into your daily routine.

  • Work as a driver for either Uber or Lyft – If you’re lucky to be in one of the areas where either of these companies exist, then you can make quite a bit of money by working as a driver for them. It is extremely easy to get started, and you will only need a smartphone, a car, and an internet connection. Please note that both of these services require that you have a clean driving record. These two are great options if you like enjoy driving, or if you move around town a lot. You might as well make some money if you have to drive across town 4-5 times per day.
  • Deliver things for Postmates – Another great app, Postmates will pay you to deliver various items around town. This one is a great choice if you don’t own a car, or if you live in a major metropolitan area.
  • iBotta – This one is great when it comes to cashing back rewards for various purchases. You basically add rebates, make purchases, and then take a photo of your receipt in order to get some money back. The app is very simple to use and it is extremely popular.
  • Task Rabbit – If you’re trying to make some money on the side, then Task Rabbit is perfect for you. There is a large variety of tasks that you can to for money, starting with deliveries and small repairs, and ending with more difficult things like moving furniture across town. You choose which tasks you want to do, and how often you want to work.
  • Ebates – Ebates is a great alternative to iBotta. This one too will enable you to get cash-back rewards for any purchases that you make from major retailers. However, this app doesn’t require that you scan a receipt. You simply have to buy things through the links provided by the app.
  • Swagbucks – This is an extremely popular platform that will actually pay you in order to do things that you would normally do while online. You will make money every time you search for something online (you have to use the Swagbucks search engine) when you watch videos, answer surveys, etc. You will be able to earn gift cards, or by paying for your activities.
  • Inbox Dollars – Inbox Dollars pays you to watch television, take surveys and shop online. It’s a great way to monetize the time that you spend online and can be a great way to make some money on the side. Most of the time you will forget that you’re using it and discover that you just made money without realizing.

 

  1. Make use of the existing websites that others around the world are already using

There are websites that can help you make both passive, as well as active income. Their sheer number means that you will find something that suits your needs. Some websites are great when it comes to selling things that you no longer need, while others will pay you to design products such as t-shirts. However, some of the best ways to make money are offered by websites that help freelancers find jobs.

  • Craigslist – One of the most popular websites for people looking to make money online, here you will be able to see anything that you no longer want or need, rent out a spare room in your house, or even offer various services to those who may be interested. Keep in mind that if you’re going to sell anything online, you should first of all try to keep everything that you by in great working condition.
  • Upwork – One of the best platforms for freelancers, Upwork is a great marketplace that you can use to sell your services. The best part is that you don’t need a seller’s account or anything similar. You simply have to create a website and then to choose your preferred job out of a list. The website offers great technical support and also guarantees your payment by making the client deposit the money in escrow until you do your part of the job. Once the contract is completed, you will receive your money. The platform offers a large variety of jobs and projects, from content creation to web design and video editing.
  • Café Press – If you’re a creative individual, then Café Press might be perfect for you. The platform enables artists to create and sell digital designs. It is important to mention that you will only create the design, which the platform will then place on various items such as t-shirts and mugs, and sell. For each sell that it makes, you will receive a commission. While this may seem unfair, keep in mind that you will not have to worry about warehousing or printing, the website will take care of everything.
  • Fiverr – Created in 2010, Fiverr has outgrown its initial concept, becoming a fully fledged freelancing company. The platform was initially built around the idea of enabling people to sell services that would cost $5. Fiverr quickly outgrew its initial design, and is now one of the most popular online marketplaces for a freelancer. The creators have stated that the platform was built with the user’s interests in mind. As a result, there are quite a few people who earn 6 figure incomes on Fiverr.
  • Mechanical Turk – This Amazon owned and developed platform is based on human-intelligence tasks, also called HITs. While it is not the best way to make anything more than a few dollars, the platform is great when it comes to monetizing every free minute that you may have between other jobs. Over time, you will be able to make a hundred dollars which is great when every bit counts.
  • Flippa – Flippa is a great platform for those who have a knack for buying and selling websites. If you know how to assess the value of a site, then this is the best way to make money from your knowledge. If you know your stuff, then it is perfectly possible to make a few thousand dollars on this platform.
  • Etsy – While not as popular as it once was, Etsy is a great platform for anyone who likes DIY projects. The website enables users to sell handmade items without having to set up complicated e-commerce systems or any kind of automation. Once you decide which items you want to offer, you can list them for a small fee. After that, the website will take a commission of every sale that you make. It is also important to mention the fact that you can sell digital products here, such as artwork, posters, etc.
  • Shutterstock – You should definitely give this one a try if you have a keen eye for photography. It will give you a chance to make money from the photos that you take. The platform is filled with talented artists and you will need to do a bit of editing in order to compete with them. This having been said, Shutterstock can be a great source of passive income.
  • Threadless – This Chicago-based company enables users to sell their digital designs by placing them on t-shirts, mugs, towels, etc.
  • Zazzle – A great alternative to Etsy, Zazzle will give you the chance to make money by selling handmade products. You can use the website to sell anything from art to jewelry and various decorative objects.

 

  1. Sell your own products

More and more people are getting into the e-commerce business, looking to make money online. In response to this growing interest, many platforms have implemented ways that enable anyone interested to set up an online store in only a couple of days.

To get started, you will need a website and a hosting account, or a platform such as Amazon on which to create the store. If you want to set up the store on your own terms, then you will also need a merchant account. Most people choose either Stripe or PayPal, due to their reliability, however, you can go with any service you like most.

Once you have a host and a PayPal or Stripe account, you will have to start designing your website. The next step is to build a sales funnel and to do a bit of marketing using email.

Overall, the process sounds a lot more complex than it really is, and there are many guides that can help you.

However, if you’d rather build your online store one a preexisting website, then things will be much easier. Companies like Shopify and Amazon make it easy for users to set up and operate a store, and in some cases, you won’t even have to personally handle the inventory.

  1. Sell products from other companies, as an affiliate

There is a large number of products that you can sell as an affiliate. Most businesses and online stores have affiliate programs through which they pay people a commission of what they sell. This having been said, you will have to pay attention to one thing: Some companies and platforms will only pay you if a client buys the product that you were trying to sell, while others will pay you even if an individual goes to their website through your link and buys another product.

ClickBank, Commission Junction, Share-a-Sale, and Impact Radius are only a few of the many companies that you can source products from. It is usually a good idea to ask a company if they are willing to start an affiliate program with you even if it doesn’t offer one on its website.

Please keep in mind that your website may need to get quite a bit of traffic in order to be able to join certain affiliate programs, however, once you get approved, you will earn substantial amounts of money.

  1. Start your own blog

It has never been so easy to start a blog, as it is today. There are countless guides that will show you exactly what you have to do, step-by-step, and it is one of the cheaper ways to make money online.

Blogging is an easy, sustainable way to earn money online, however, it does require a lot of work and patience. If you find a good niche and have a loyal following, then you can make money using the blog for a couple of decades. The core concept is that you have to offer valuable information to your audience, and in exchange, you can monetize the exposure that you’re getting.

You can make money by joining an affiliate marketing program and advertise the products through your blog, however, the best course of action is to create and sell your own products to the members of your audience. Depending on your chosen niche, you can sell anything from ebooks and online courses to physical items. The most important thing is to always make sure that your products have value to your audience, and that you create them with their needs in mind.

  1. Make money through email marketing

Making money through email marketing isn’t complicated, and the profit can be pretty large. You basically have to set up the email software of your choice, and then create a lead magnet that you can use as part of your sales funnel. Once you start building up your list, you should be able to earn about $1 per subscriber, each month. So, for example, if you have 10,000 subscribers, you should earn somewhere around $10,000. The secret is to deliver value, and to not turn every email into a sales pitch.

  1. Make money from Webinars

Webinars are one of the most profitable ways to make money online due to their high engagement potential. Simply choose a skill that others would be interested in, and then start teaching it to others, for a price. There are a lot of people who would be interested to learn how to write a book or to start their own successful website.

Now, you will need to have a website in order to host the webinar, and you will also need to be active on social media and various forums tied to the niche that you’re interested in. This way, you will already have an audience who will be interested in whatever you want to teach.

In terms of webinar platforms, the most popular one is GoToWebinar. Also, if you don’t know where to start, there are countless guides online, and even a few webinars that will teach you how to do your own.

4 Side Jobs That Will Enable Stay-at-Home Moms to Make Over $3,000 per Month

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In today’s age, every member of every family needs to make money, if they are to afford a normal, relatively care-free lifestyle.  Kids can mow lawns, and help clean-up yards, and even say-at-home moms and find something to do in order to make some money on the side.

The following tips and strategies have been tested by people around the world, and they have been found to be the most efficient ways that stay-at-home moms can make money.  Also, the following side jobs will enable you to make an average of $3,000 per month; some months you may earn more, and some less.  The amount of money that you earn depends on how much time you invest in these jobs and how much effort you put into doing a great job.

The following four side-jobs are great for stay-at-home moms, but can also easily replace a day-job if you like the idea of working from home.

 

4 Side Jobs That Will Enable Stay-at-Home Moms to Make Over $3,000 per Month

Most of the time, we don’t plan to be stay-at-home moms, and letting go of the dynamic lifestyle that we’ve become used to at work can be a pretty difficult process.  However, being able to stay at home with the kids is incredible, and it’s great to actually be close to our children at all times.

Luckily, you don’t have to give up on work in order to be a stay-at-home mom.  There are many ways in which people can earn money on the internet, however, only few of them pay well enough in order to actually make a living out of them.

Truth being told, in today’s age money is slow to make and fast to spend, and it’s important that every family member does his part in order to ensure that nobody goes over budget.

This having been said, there is only so much that a family can do in order to keep to a budget plan.  Sometimes, there just isn’t enough money with only one source of income, and having ways to make money without leaving home can make a big difference.

So let’s take a look at the ways that stay-at-home moms can use in order to make over $3,000 per month, all while also taking care of their children.

It should also be specified that these jobs do not require any kind of training.  Again, anyone can do them as long as they have a good internet connection and a computer or a laptop.

 

  1. Mystery Shopping

This is a side job that has a bad reputation but is in reality extremely stable.  The reason behind all of the bad press that it has gotten lately is the fact that there are a lot of scams built upon the concept of mystery shopping.  However, if you do a bit of research before starting to work for a company, it is usually pretty simple if they’re legitimate or not.

A great place to start (and a legitimate company) is Trend Source.  Once you join, you will be able to do gigs that will bring you $10 for 30 minutes of work.  Unfortunately, you won’t get too many of these, so you will have to join a few other companies and work for them at the same time in order to make more money.

However, as an example, let’s say that you only join Trend Source, and that you get 10 gigs every month.  That’s $100 that you earn without leaving your kids at home, or actually doing any kind of work.

 

  1. User Testing

Another great way to make money on the internet is testing websites in order to determine what kind of user experience they offer.  Platforms like Usertesting.com are constantly looking for people to do various tasks on newly published websites, in order to establish if there are any glitches that still need fixing, or if they require any kind of improvement.

Once you join, you will be able to complete tasks that only take 10-15 minutes, and you will be paid $10 for each of them.  The best part about this is that you don’t need any kind of training.  You just have to join Usertesting.com and you can get started.

User testing can help you discover some great websites, before other people have a change to find out about them, and this can sometimes help you get ahead of the others and take hold of opportunities that others don’t even know about yet.

If you’ve got a stable internet connection, a laptop, computer, phone, and/or tablet, then you’re good to go.  Sometimes, you may be asked to explore a website’s features using more than one device, however, you will still be able to work, even if you only have a laptop or desktop computer.

Each test takes 15 minutes to do, and you will have to install an application that will take screenshots of your screen every few seconds.  This means that you will have to find something for your kids to do, however, if there is ever an emergency, you will have a pause button that you can press in order to take care of your children, and then resume work.  Pressing it will not have a negative impact on what you earn.

If you can manage, there is nothing stopping you from taking care of your children while doing the tests.  The application records your screen, not you.

Over the course of a month, you should be able to earn somewhere around $100 by working only two or three hours in total.

 

  1. Blogging

Blogging is one of the best online businesses around, and it is extremely easy to get started.  Many people don’t create a blog due to the fact that they don’t know what to write about.

Choosing a subject is easy, but we’ll get to that in a moment.  First let’s discuss what you need.

Depending on your choice, you may only need a computer with internet access, or you may also need a bit of money in order to create your blog.

There are several platforms that allow you to create free blogs, and who pay you for your work.  For example, you have BlogSpot.  This platform gives you the option to create a free blog, and then to monetize it using AdSense, with only a couple of clicks.

Alternatively, if you’re confident in your abilities, you can buy a domain and create a stand-alone blog.  This opens up several other possibilities, such as selling the blog, or using other types of monetization in order to earn from the content that you post.

When it comes to topics, just write about what you know, or about what you’re going through at the moment.  Chances are that there are a lot of people who have just had a kid, or are preparing for one, and who would be extremely interesting in what you’re going through.  There aren’t any real manuals to parenting, and most people will appreciate your stories and opinions regarding this subject.

The money is pretty good, and it’s a form of passive income, which means that you will continue to make money from every piece of content that you post, for as long as your blog is online.  Unfortunately, it may take a while until you start actually making money.

In order to monetize your blog, you will first need an audience, and it may take a while for people to discover your website and start following it.  However, once you do monetize the website, you will be making increasingly larger amounts of money, as you post more attractive content.

Another great advantage of blogging is that you can always turn it into a full-time job, and take it to the point where you will be making a few thousand dollars from what you write alone.

In other words, it is completely possible to go from $200 per month to $20,000 per month.  You just need to be smart about how you create content and to avoid spamming your audience.  Also, you don’t have to post daily.  There are great blogs that share content two times per week, or even two times per month.  In the end, it’s not about how much content you create or how often you share, it’s about the quality of your posts.

If you provide your audience with useful information, you will be successful.

 

  1. Childcare

While it may seem complicated, childcare is a great way for stay-at-home moms to make some money on the side.  While it is true that this job can make your life a bit more hectic, and also impose a few restrictions on your day to day life, childcare can bring you a lot of money.

Also, by being a stay-at-home mom, you are basically already taking care of your children.  So why not look at the local laws and regulations regarding licensing and make some money by taking care of a few other children.

Depending on how many children you want to take care of, and what their ages are, you can make anywhere from $200 to $800 per week.  This having been said, the rates do vary from one region to another, and you will also have to pay close attention to what you need in order to get a license.

You won’t have to jump through any hoops, however, the laws that govern this occupation are very different from one state to another, and you will need to do a bit of research beforehand.

In terms of activities, and what you can expect, things are pretty straightforward.  Parents will contact you in order to have you take care of their children, and once you agree on a price, they will drop them off at your house.  The children will stay with you until the parents have finished their work, after which they will come to pick them up.

Alternatively, if you either don’t have enough time, or would simply like to spend more time with your own kids, you can consider doing before school or after school care.  The parents could drop of the kids when leaving for work, and the school bus would pick them up and take them to school.  The same bus will also get the kids back to your house where they will stay until their parents come to get them.

So the only thing that you have to actively do is to take care of them as you would your children.  Their parents will do the rest.

In addition to the money that you’ll get for each of the children, you will benefit from great tax deductions on the taxes that you have to pay on this income.  However, in order to take full advantage of these tax deductions you will have to keep track of everything that you spend for childcare.  Save every receipt that you get and should do just find.

If you take care of 4 children in addition to your own, you can could easily make around $1,800 per month, and the best part is that you can always keep your kid in sight, and take care of him like you would normally.

These have been four side jobs that can bring you over $3,000 per month.  Now, you should keep in mind that you can work more, and take care of more children, or write multiple blogs, and make a lot more money.  If you work less, then you will make less.

Now, let’s look at a few jobs that could help you make money as a stay-at-home mom, but that may be done at the same time with the ones above.

 

Other great side jobs for stay-at-home moms

Start a business on eBay

Starting a business on eBay can be a great source of income, and it wouldn’t require you to actually leave your home in order to make money, or if you would, it wouldn’t be for more than half an hour.

There are a lot of ways that you can make money on eBay.  For example, you can buy clothes from the thrift store, and only pay a few bucks for them, only to resell them on eBay for 2-3 times the amount of money.  If clothes aren’t your thing, you can always look for bargains at yard sales, and then clean those items up and sell them online.

Listing the items on eBay is extremely simple, and you only need a smartphone in order to take pictures of the items and then upload them to the website.

Once you have a buyer, you can handle shipping through UPS, so you don’t have to leave your home and deal with your clients face-to-face.

You wouldn’t be making too much money, but then again, you wouldn’t have to spend too much time taking care of the business.  You could probably make around $700 per month, but you would have to constantly keep an eye on places to get new things to sell, and you would also have to sometimes deal with emails from unsatisfied customers.

Become a Voice-over Actor

If you have a good control over your voice, you can make money by being a voice-over actor.  You will find a large number of courses and tutorials to help you get started, and you would be working from home, so this is great for stay-at-home moms.  Also, if you ever want to turn it into a full-time job, you shouldn’t have any difficulties finding someone to hire you.

The best part about this is that you can get your kids to work along side with you, so it can also be a great family activity, and you would all earn money to spend however you see fit.

Work as a Proofreader

Proofreaders are always in demand, considering the fact that even the most advanced software that has been designed to do this job can still make a lot of mistakes.  You would basically have to read documents and to correct any errors that you find.  Again, you will find a large number of online courses that can help you get started, and you would basically be a freelancer.  So if you ever decide that you need a break, or a week off, then there’s nothing stopping you, and you can get right back into it when you feel like it.

Bloggers and authors are constantly in need of good proofreaders, and if you do a good job, they should supply enough work for quite some time.

Become a Freelance Writer

One of the easiest and most interesting things that you can make money from online is freelance writing.  Also, if you decide to start a blog, then you should also get into freelance writing.  The blog would basically help you showcase your talent and writing style.

Overall, you would basically get topics to write about, and then get paid for your work.  Some clients will pay per word, some per project.  Sometimes you may even be contacted by representatives of various websites in order to write an article for them.

This having been said, you don’t need to be a good writer, or to have any kind of experience with whatever you are writing about.  You just have to be able to do some research and be consistent with your writing style.

Work as an Online Teacher

You can easily find people who want to learn something online.  For example, if you know how to speak a foreign language, you can find people who are willing to pay you in order to teach them.  To get started, just think about what skill you have that others would be interested in.

Become an Online Tutor

If teaching isn’t your thing, then you can become an online tutor.  There are a lot of children who need help with they homework, or with various projects.  Go to Tutor.com and get started there.  You will find someone who needs your help in no time.

Work as a Virtual Assistant

The Internet has given us the opportunity to work from anywhere in the world, and being a virtual assistant is a great example.  You don’t need to be near someone in order to work as his secretary.  Virtual assistants can work from anywhere in the work, and do a great job.  Some of the tasks that you may have to do are: handling emails for your employer, schedule meetings and clients, make reservations, and handle social media accounts.

Work as a Dog Walker or Make Money from Pet sitting

Depending on how much free time you have, you could work as either a dog walker, or make money by pet sitting.  A lot of animal owners need someone to leave their pets with while they are out of town, and this could be a great opportunity for you.  Your children would be delighted to have a few animals to play with, and most clients would have no problem in both bringing the pet to your house, and also coming to pick it up when they can.  So you wouldn’t have to leave home.

On the other hand, as a dog walker you will have to stay away from home for a couple of hours each day, so you should go for this one only if your children can take care of themselves for a short while, or if you are willing to take them along.

Set up an Etsy Shop

If you like DIY projects, then Etsy is a great place to sell handmade jewelry, accessories, and pretty much anything that you can think of.  You may not earn a lot of money, but it’s something different to do, and you can make the products with your kids.

Make Money From Stock Photography

If you have a good camera, then you may want to consider starting to photograph everything from furniture and electronics, to receipts, grocery carts, and vehicles.  There are a lot of people who are constantly looking for photos of various items in order to use them on their websites, projects, or presentations.  While you don’t need any kind of training, you should look for a few online guides before starting to photograph things, just so that you can get a sense of what is currently in demand.

 

A Nifty Way to Get Free Things from Amazon

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Amazon is one of the most popular online marketplaces around, and a large number of people has gotten used to buying various things from it, rather than go to a real-world store and make the purchase. However, few people know that there is a way to actually get things for free.
If people want to buy a product, they will usually look at what’s on offer, and then see what the reviews say. Depending on the review, they will decide if the item is worth the money. Once satisfied, they will buy it. Also, some people will leave a review on the Amazon listing, explaining where they stand regarding that particular product.
This having been said, if you’ve spent time reading Amazon reviews, you may have noticed that there are also a few people who never actually buy the product, but receive it for free. They basically act as sales drivers for a particular product.
For example, if a product doesn’t have any reviews, then nobody will want to buy it. If nobody buys and tests it, then there won’t be anyone to write reviews. The need for reviews grows as more and more companies start selling through Amazon’s FBA program, not only due to the increase in competition but because people tend to be extremely careful when considering to buy something from a lesser known brand.
As a result of this, companies have started to send review products to various individuals.
You’ll basically help companies get their products out there, and they will pay you by sending you free products. Everybody wins, and if you get bored of a product, there is nothing stopping you from going online and putting it up for sale. This way, you will actually get money for the reviews that you leave.
This guide will help you do just that. With the tips included below, you will be able to ask companies to send you products for free, in order to write comprehensive reviews about them.
Again, there are hundreds of new products that are entering the Amazon marketplace each day, and this will make things easier for you. Also, this means that you will be able to choose the products and companies that you are interested in.

Now, there are two ways of becoming a “professional” reviewer on Amazon: A simple way, and a more difficult one.
Let’s start with the difficult one.
The hard way to get into this activity requires that you find a way to be part of an Amazon community called “Vine Voice”. Why is this the difficult way? Well, because you will have to create a reputation for yourself, and then to hope that you’ll be noticed by a community member who will be willing to send you an invite.
Unfortunately, this automatically means that you will have to buy products, in order to be able to leave reviews. Your reviews will have to be detailed and useful to the customer. In other words, this way will require an initial investment, however, once you’re in the community, your reputation will create a lot of review opportunities with all sorts of companies.

One way that could potentially enable you to bypass the need to invest a lot of money in products is to look for cheap items that will only set you back a couple of bucks and to review them. Alternatively, if you’ve been buying things from Amazon for a few years, then go back to the listings of those products and start leaving reviews.
That’s the hard way, now let’s look at the easy one.
If you don’t like the idea of buying products in order to leave reviews, you can also sign up for Tomoson.
A large number of companies that sell their products on Amazon use Tomoson in order to find people that will review their products, which they, of course, send for free.
Most of the time, companies will send individuals 100% off coupon codes that can be used in order to buy the products, however, there are cases in which a company will have a reviewer actually buy the product from Amazon, and then reimburse him.

The sign-up process is simple, but you will need a few things in order to get started. Here are the main steps that you will have to follow:
• Create a profile at Tomoson.com;
• Connect your social media accounts such as Facebook and Twitter (Yes, you do have to be active on both of them);
• Create a blog which you will use to share your reviews, in addition to the review section on Amazon;
While it may seem complicated, this way will enable you to get free products without having to invest any money beforehand, and setting up a blog isn’t a difficult process. You can create a free blog in a matter of minutes.
Bonus round
If you look around, you will also be able to find Amazon review websites. These have been built largely on the same concept and will enable you to get products or discounts in exchange for your reviews. However, some of these websites tend to be a little shady, and you should always pay a lot of attention before signing up. Furthermore, keep in mind that some companies will want to send you their products from the other side of the world, which will take a while.
Choose your preferred method of starting out with these “professional” reviews, and you’ll start getting things in the mail in no time.
As a word of warning, there may be companies that will ask you to lie and give them a great review regardless of the product’s quality. Never compromise. If you give a product a good review and then people buy it and notice that you lied to them, your credibility will suffer, and companies may avoid working with you in the future.

You may be skeptical. Give these methods a try, and see how things work out.

The Best Way To Make Money On Etsy

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Many people tend to believe the fact that being an artist also means that you’re broke. While there are a lot of artists that have a hard time making a living from their art, it doesn’t mean that choosing to pursue an artistic career will automatically lock you down financially.

This preconceived notion has been born from the fact that artists are mainly focused on the final product. They put vast amounts of time into making sure that whatever they produce, is of the highest possible quality, and place financial value further down on their list of priorities. This can lead to the illusion that they don’t care about money, and that they are constantly broke.

While it is important for artists to think primarily about the end result, everyone needs to make a living. One of the best ways to earn money as an artist is by using a platform like Etsy.

Etsy is great because it gives people who are artistically inclined the ability to earn money while also creating art. From a technical point of view, the platform is an online marketplace that has been designed to cater to the needs of artists looking to sell their work.

Users can sell both locally, as well as globally, and offers great support in order to ensure that all parties are satisfied.

What you can sell on Etsy

Etsy has been built with a large variety of products in mind. From handmade jewelry, to design services, the possibilities are endless.

While you can sell pretty much any type of artsy object or service, you should always choose to make and sell the things that you are passionate about. The more fun you have when working for your money, the less it will seem like work. Furthermore, it will enable you to deliver more quality to your customers, which will, in turn, increase the amount of money that you make.

Even if you cannot sell your products (for example if you are a carpenter or a potter), the platform will allow you to make money by selling patterns and tutorials. This way, you will make money off of your art, but you will also help others improve their craft.

Now, let’s take a look at what you should keep in mind when considering which products to sell on Etsy:

  • Products should be lightweight – You must keep in mind that the costs of storing and shipping your products can easily affect your profit. Try to choose products that are both light, as well as relatively small;
  • Niche products may bring in more money – Try to sell products that target a particular group of people. For example, if you’re a jeweler, consider selling custom name rings or items that have a particular aesthetic (goth, medieval, etc.);
  • Pay attention to how you price your items – Your products should be priced competitively. In order to determine which is the best price for a particular item, look at what other people sell similar products for. Afterwards, you can set your price a little higher, or lower, depending on how it compares to the competition’s products;
  • Sell things that can sell continuously – Avoid choosing seasonal products. Instead, look at what you can sell in order to have people buy regardless of the time of year. Furthermore, you should also try to come up with things that won’t go out of style the next year.

If you look around, you will find that there are a lot of people who have made quite a bit of money by selling macramé jewelry on Etsy. If you come up with a great product, you may earn over $100,000 per year.

Can private label products be sold on Etsy?

Etsy has been built around the idea that artists should be able to easily sell their products, however, there are a lot of people who have discovered that a lot more money can be made as long as they sell premade products which they brand.

The practice originated on Amazon and has become quite popular on many online marketplaces and websites. This having been said, Etsy sellers do not tolerate private label products. The core concept of the platform is that artists should be able to easily sell the products that they have handmade with love and care. Selling items that are built on an assembly line, and then rebranded is considered to violate Etsy’s philosophy.

If you attempt to do this, regardless of how careful you are, there is a big change that the website’s administrators will ban your seller account. Try to come up with a product of your own, and then do the best that you can in order to sell it. Always be fair to your fellow sellers, and you will be alright.

How to sell your arts and crafts on Etsy

In order to start selling your products on Etsy, you will have to set up an online shop on the platform. Once you create it, you will be able to fill it with various products, each having a description, as well as one or more images. This is where things get a bit complicated.

You will have to pay a fixed amount of money for each product listing that you want to include in your online shop. The listing fee is $0.2. After this, you will also have to pay 3.5 % of every sale that you make using Etsy. On top of these expenses, you will also have to add any other fees that you may need to pay if you accept payment via PayPal or credit card (in addition to any conversion fees that may come into play).

Now, it may seem that selling things on Etsy is too expensive, especially when compared to building a website and selling your creations there, without having to worry about listing fees, etc.

While there are a few advantages to selling products on your own website, Etsy gives you something extremely important: an audience. By using the platform in order to sell your creations, you will have access to a large number of buyers who trust the platform, as well as the artists that use it.

Etsy will basically help you reach your target audience a lot easier than you would have through a personal website.

When you building a website, you are basically creating something that people know very little about. As a result, they may prove to be reluctant to buy products that are sold on it. This platform helps you get through this difficult process of reaching people and making them trust you.

If you do the math, you will find that creating a website and selling your products on it is a lot more expensive than listing them on Etsy. It’s a lot slower as well, so you will have to find another source of income while working to maintain the website and create an audience that will actually buy your creations.

If you sell on Etsy, the platform will basically do the hard work for you, giving you time to refine your products and designs. Also, the fees that you have to pay are small when compared to what you can make by selling your creations, and if you sell a product that follows the guidelines above, you will be able to run with the same products for several years.

Would having more than one shop be useful?

First of all, it is important to mention the fact that there is nothing stopping you from having an Etsy shop, while also selling your products on your personal website. There is no rule that forbids this, however, it is hard to determine if selling your products both on and off Etsy can actually increase your profit.

Also selling your products on your own website would be profitable, as long as you create the Etsy shop first, in order to promote your product, and to create an audience. Once people know your brand and products, you can expand to other marketplaces or websites, and get rid of the fees that Etsy requires you to pay.

Selling on your personal website would also enable you to develop your brand without having to worry about any kind of restrictions or rules. It would give you a lot more flexibility, however, it is imperative that you create your Etsy shop first.

The secret to creating a great listing for your product

When creating a product listing on Etsy, you will basically have to look for the same result that you would want when having a website indexed in Google Search. In order to sell your product, the listing should appear at the top of the page, and be attractive enough to determine potential customers to click on it, in order to get additional information.

Here are a few useful practices that will help you create efficient product listings that will attract the kind of shoppers that you need, while also arousing the curiosity of people who are randomly browsing the product listings.

  • Do a bit of keyword research

Some may recognize this process from search engine optimization. Product listings on platforms like Etsy work somewhat the same like search engines do. This means that you will have to tailor your product title in order to make it easy for people to find.

The best way to do this is to use the proper keywords for your products. Classic SEO offers a large number of tools that can help you determine which keywords you should use, however, Etsy only has one, Marmalead.

This tool will provide you with all the information that you need. First, you will have to enter a keyword, after which you will receive information regarding the competition, engagement, etc. If you don’t know where to start, the application will even give you keyword suggestions, and tell you what the main trending tags are.

Marmalead has been tested and used by countless people and using it in order to find the right keywords for your products can either vastly increase the amount of money that you make, or decrease it.

  • Research your competition

Most people tend to come up with a product, and then start selling it immediately.

Selling something on the internet is never as easy as some would think, and if you want to make enough money to live off of, you will have to take a close look at your competition. This will give you valuable insight into what you can change in order to increase your sales.

Again, you will have to use Marmalead. The tool can also show you shop grades, and various information regarding how you can increase your score. This tool is invaluable if you want to make a living out of selling your art on Etsy, and you should experiment with it in order to learn the various features that it offers.

However, if Marmalead is not enough for your needs, you can also use the Listing in Search feature offered by Etsy, in order to better understand what your competitors at doing. You basically need to find at least three shops that are direct competitors for your chosen keyword. Once you do, type each of the store names into the Listing in Search, along with your keyword.

This process will return a bit of extremely important information, such as all the tags that that particular shop attaches to their products, and the items that are shown when someone searches for the keyword.

Once you have this information, use it to populate your store. Ideally, you should use the same tags and keywords as the competitors, in order to steal a bit of their traffic.

Optimizing your product listings

There is more to selling on Etsy, than simply having your products at the top of the search results list. You need to be able to actually make the sell, once a potential customer clicks on your product.

Keep in mind that you can find a few general tips regarding how to optimize your shops, on Etsy, however, this is rarely enough. Below, you will find additional information that will help you get ahead of the competition.

  • Do not spend too much time on image optimization

There is no point in spending more time than you have to, on the images for your product listings. The main goal is to ensure that the image is clear and that it is under 100kb. Do not lose time trying to insert the keyword in the name of the image, as this will be overwritten by Etsy, in accordance with their internal naming convention.

  • Be consistent with your listing

You should constantly promote your most popular products. Also, keep in mind that Etsy favors shops that are updated daily, and spending a few minutes doing this will have a large impact on how much you sell.

  • Always stay informed with regard to updates

Etsy’s administrators update and change its algorithm quite often, and if you’re not careful, you may find that a change has taken your shop down to the bottom of the list. You will be notified each time one of these changes occurs, so be sure to read the notifications and modify your listing accordingly.

 

Search Engine Optimization for Google

The shop that you create on Etsy will also show up when someone performs a search on Google, and you will have to do a bit of optimization if you want to be visible on the world’s most popular search engine.

Unlike the optimization process for Etsy, if you want your shop to show up on Google, you will have to spend a bit of time creating proper meta tags for your title and description.

Both of these can appear on Google, as search results, and you will need to make them both machine, and human-friendly. In other words, your titles and descriptions will have to be appealing to the people who read them, but also contain keywords necessary for the Google algorithm to understand what is going on.

The first thing that you will have to remember is to keep your product page title under 55 characters (not words), and your description under 120 characters.

Next, make sure that the description provides as much information as possible about the product.

Another necessity when looking to increase your ranking on search results is to do a bit of link building. Remember that, while this practice is extremely efficient, it is also very time-consuming, and you will have to find a balance.

Link building basically means that you will have to network with website owners, influencers, and forums, and build relationships with people. Your objective is to convince them to put links to your listings on their websites and in their content.

As a word of caution, most people will know if you’re only after backlinks. An organic relationship with an influencer can help you get many more things other than a few simple backlinks. For example, if you’re on good terms with someone who owns a popular website, you can ask them if they would be willing to do a review for one of your products.

Conclusion

Etsy is a great platform to sell your arts and crafts. Its developers and administrators are constantly doing everything in their power to stay true to the artists, and to help them make a living from their creations. This having been said, there is a lot of competition, and this can make it difficult to make money on Etsy if you don’t know how to get ahead of everyone else.

Follow the tips and lessons in this article, and you will be making money on Etsy in no time. In today’s interconnected, always-online word, there is nothing keeping you from monetizing your passion.

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