On this post, you will learn about seven legit ways to make money online.
I know there are too many articles, guides, experts, gurus, scams, and quick rich schemes on the internet.
The internet is like the real world. You can find scammers but there are people who run their online businesses professionally as well, bad and good sites, online jobs, micro tasks to earn a few extra dollars and more.
After trying many different ways to make money online, I can tell you that there are opportunities everywhere but it is not easy to see them if you have never made money before on the internet.
This is the main reason I built this website, I want to show you that you can actually make money.
When you will read this article, you will know 7 ways that people use to make money online. All of these ways have created millionaires and many full-time online marketers.
Will you earn a full income online or can you become a millionaire?
Well, I do not know. Like the real world, many people try those things, some of them fail but some of them achieve their goals and dreams.
So, I will show you legit business models that are worth your time. No quick rich schemes, no exchanging your time for pennies, only ways to start your own online business.
1. Build A Website
It would be hypocritical if I would not start with my business model. You are reading an article on my website and building a site is a great way to start online.
Many people avoid building websites because they think it is too hard or too technical or they just avoid to create content for different reasons.
Do they have a valid point?
If we were at 2005, I could agree even if every skill can be learned. But these days, you can build a website in a few minutes. I use WordPress, I do not know coding but I make sales and people visit my site.
Starting a website is easy.
There are many types of websites, you already know that. Again, I will recommend the way I use to build my sites and make sales.
I like blogging, write articles, and tell my opinion while I get visitors from search engines and social media. I really enjoy the process.
If you do not like writing, there are many other types of sites you can try. Building a site it will not cost you over a few dollars per month.
Recommended training: Wealthy Affiliate
2. Write And Publish A Kindle eBook
Writing and selling a book for a profit can be a really profitable way to make money online. Some people say that it is the easiest and fastest way to make your first sales.
Like a website, you do the work once, when you research and write about the chosen topic and you will earn money for years if it makes sales.
I do not tell you to write the new Harry Potter but a nonfiction book on a topic you already know well.
If you search on Amazon for ebooks you will see many of them on any topic. Most of them are how-to guides and top ways to do something at low prices.
You can find so many ebooks because they make sales. Also, you can make additional money from each book if you add some affiliate links or create an email list.
Publishing your ebooks is a great way to build your personal brand while you earn money passively.
Amazon has a hungry audience. When people visit Amazon, they have the intention to buy. But there are many other marketplaces to sell your ebooks also.
Recommended Training: K Money Mastery
3. Affiliate Marketing
Affiliate marketing is a business model or it can be just a monetization method of a website, a blog, an ebook etc.
I think it is the most popular way to start online because you do not have to invest or build anything and you can learn everything through the process.
You do not own a product but you promote other people’s products for a commission. When they make a sale through your links, you get a commission, sometimes up to 75%.
You can see people make money with affiliate marketing on social media, Youtube, blogs, forums, even through advertising with a direct affiliate link to the sales page.
While I have a website, I monetize it with affiliate marketing. So, I can say that I am an affiliate marketer.
You can start by joining an affiliate network, some of them have not an approval process at all. Then you can get your links to start working.
In my opinion, affiliate marketing has created more full-time marketers than any other internet business model.
Recommended Training: Wealthy affiliate
4. Buy And Sell Domain Names For A Profit
Domain flipping has created many millionaires in the past. People have made a fortune by selling only one domain name.
It does not mean that you will buy one domain and you will become a millionaire but there are many opportunities to be discovered.
Most domain names that are worth millions have already be taken but many others are sold daily for thousands of dollars.
To get started with domain flipping, you need some money to invest ($100-$150). You should be able to buy 10-15 available domains for $10 each.
Some skills are required like an understanding of the online marketing. Why some domains are worth so much or who are your potential customers.
Then your work will be to research for domain names and discover opportunities. Just like any other business, your goal is to buy low and sell high.
Recommended Training: Domainer Elite
5. Build Your Own Online Store
You can find a supplier if you can afford to buy the products or you can start with drop shipping.
Drop shipping is a business model where you do not buy the product before you sell it. You contact the owner of the product (drop shipper) and you list it in your store at a higher price.
When you make the sale, you send the buyer contact info to the original seller who ships it with your selling details (brand, price, name etc.) while you keep the profit.
The benefit of drop shipping is that you do not need a budget and you do not ship the product. You just work on your computer.
The negative is that you cannot control completely your business and you will have a lower profit than making all the process by yourself.
Recommended Training and Resources: Shopify
6. Sell On eBay Or Amazon
It is a type of e-commerce business also but it has some differences that make you follow a different strategy.
You focus on a specific marketplace so you need to make your research on that marketplace. If you sell on eBay, you need to check what eBay’s visitors buy.
When you create your own store, your research should focus on your targeted audience. For example, if you get traffic from Facebook, you should make a research based on Facebook visitors.
The second difference is that you have less control than your own store. You need to follow the rules of eBay or Amazon.
However, the main benefit is that you can start faster because they have already many buyers daily who are looking to buy things.
Recommended Training: Shopify
7. Become A Freelancer
Freelancing is a promising way to to make some extra money and if you are good, you can earn a lot of money.
However, it is the least beginner friendly from the ways on this post. You need to have at least one skill that could be helpful to an online business.
The freelancers are hired from online business owners to do tasks they cannot or they do not have the time to do.
Have you any skills?
Some examples, writing, website building, web design, programming, social media management, copywriting etc.
In the beginning, you will start slow. You need to find a customer and you will probably ask for a few dollars but you can earn money later as you get positive feedback and build your portfolio.
There are freelancers that make $100/hour.
Recommended Training For Writers: Freelance Writers Den
DO NOT Try This Alone!
Making money or building a business is a journey. For this journey, you need information and a secret that many people do not know. This secret can be a game changer.
After leaving this post and my website, you may visit another similar post, you may not take any action and just do something else or you may feel ready to get started.
If you don’t take any action, you lose an opportunity to start changing your life. However, if want to get started, what is your next step?
Most people try alone to learn everything, I was making the same mistake for years without any results.
You may have tried things that do not work, you may have visited sites with outdated content, you may have lost money on “gurus” and scams. I was in your shoes once but I discovered the secret.
The secret is to ask HELP from people who already have success online.
If you get help from successful people, you will see that you can easily do the same thing. So, I invite you to join a community of successful online marketers where I help folks daily for FREE.
Hey Ilias this is a great list. But the best part is the help Wealthy Affiliate can give you. I’m personally a member of WA and I’ll tell you it’s been the best ride of my life. Not only I build a website, I’m now offering online marketing services to small businesses in my town. To me, that’s the best of both worlds (online and offline); I work from home and get to network with local businesspeople
That’s great, Marcus!
Many people have a hard time to make a few sales consistently. Achieving online and offline success at the same time is really inspiring.
Thanks for sharing your story.
I am always looking for new ways to generate an income online or on the side. I have tried many different options and can attest that all your suggestions are by far the best options to start with!
I will say I have not tried selling Domain Names for a profit. This was very intriguing to me and definitely want to find out more about this. Thank you for the inspiration!
I will testing out the Domainer’s Elite program you recommend, it seems very helpful and credible. Thank you!
Hi Cameron,
There are many domain names to be discovered, especially if you look into new niches with not much competition.
I wish you all the best!