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Simple Ways to Make Money from Home

Updated on November 25, 2022
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Nicholl McGuire has been providing useful content on websites since 2007. Learn more about her business Nicholl McGuire Media.

Looking for Simple Ways to Make Money?

Sometimes we don't always have the time or energy to put into making some extra cash. I think of the old adage as I write, "Work smarter, not harder." So with that said there are many ways to make money without doing too much of anything.

For instance, I personally know individuals who have used the extra space in their home, driveway, storage areas, and other places they felt were suitable to rent out. I also noticed that they will charge a rent fee and a deposit to neighbors interested in using their tools.

Another thing I have observed with people looking to make a little cash without much effort, is they look for things cheap and then resell them to family, friends and strangers for a higher price.

When it comes to doing work online, well there isn't much effort for a few dollars, I have taken surveys, written articles, created blogs and filled them with adsense ads, and done other things to make a little extra cash. What have you done to make some money online?

Top Three Things You Can Do to Make Money From Home

Working from home falls into three main categories: typing, selling, and customer service. If you know that you have the support system, have great people skills, and the ability to learn systems then you most likely will do well.

Typing

Whether it is a business that pays for you to tweet messages to your followers, post links on your social networking pages, or type business documents, you are getting paid to type. These days there are more and more companies springing up needing people to write articles (which will require you to type, upload and submit over and over again.) They are also seeking people to take surveys which at times the well-paying ones expect you to type lengthy responses.

Selling

Whether someone knocks on your door, calls you on the phone or sends you an email or flier through the mail, they are selling you something. You will find many companies recruiting you to do the following: connect with their company to post links and banners of their products, call others via the telephone, answer calls for them, ask you to attend meetings to learn how to recruit others, or get you to demonstrate a product or service. You may be the one selling your own products through online auctions, a personal website, or some other way, but whatever you choose you are selling something.

Customer Service

Companies need people to assist with their large volume of calls, emails, and other requests from their customers. So they look for people with administrative skills to assist. You may be interested in finding something that requires very little tools to begin and zero investment. A customer service business just might be the answer.

Now that you have a general idea of the top three ways to generate income from home, you will need to pick which company suits you best! You can learn more about me and my experiences here.

What are you looking to do from home?

Since there are so many ideas and opportunities to make extra income, what would you like to do online?

See results

How to Make Money Sending Ad Messages Via Your Twitter Page

You Think It's Easy Making Money from Home!?

There are many sites willing to pay cents on the dollar. That's right cents on the dollar for literally hours of work! From typing articles to creating web pages, you have to put in literally hours each day to see any pay off! With that said, consider long and hard how involved you want to get in a business that requires long hours on the computer.

The gurus say, "It's easy! You can make hundreds even thousands!" But is it? After visiting many forums where real people discuss their hangups about selling on sites like eBay, selling affiliate marketing products, and even hustling for decades old companies like AVON, it really isn't easy.

The common denominators of all of those who would be deemed successes who really do make thousands a month is: back pain, head pain, frequent computer and software problems, mail issues, product issues, and frequent changes of websites, search engines and other online companies they must do business with.

So how does one prepare for all of these challenges? Well, you could start by researching your desired business model. Let's say you want to become an affiliate marketer. You know that you will have to spend long hours on the computer posting your url link wherever traffic is frequent such as your social media pages and blogs. If you ever worked for a business offline where you had to sell merchandise, then you will learn fast that many of these businesses are willing to accept your application to market for them only if you can bring traffic to your url link. Just like a company offline would expect you to be able to take their merchandise here, there and everywhere and push it! It doesn't matter who you sell to, just so long as you sell and of course honestly and respectfully!

There is nothing easy unless you have the money to invest in the latest software, an employee or two, and have an office space exclusively dedicated to your business. However, with a limited budget, family and little if any office space, it will be challenging. Notice, I didn't say it can't be done, because it can. Decide now which shift you will work! I have worked double and triple myself on other sites the past three plus years sometimes weeks at a time and have seen my share of disappointments along the way.

There are plenty of changes that occur online especially when you are not the site owner. A site like Blogger made many changes over the years that actually caused people to lose their blogs, lose Adsense dollars, and worst get accounts suspended. At one time an affiliate marketer could post url links with ease on many sites, nowadays you will find that many of those same sites have changed or have come to an end which means no making money.

So is it easy to make money online? Pennies yes. Dollars no. If you want the serious money, be prepared to put some serious hours into whatever it is that you want to do!

Writing Reviews, Sharing Stories, & Commenting Helps Generate Traffic

Whatever you choose to sell, as long as you make the time to write about it, you will generate traffic. From personal experiences to tips, someone somewhere will always stop by your site for a visit. I think of the times when I had nothing to say online about what I was selling offline and missed out on many sales. In time, I started connecting what I was doing offline to what I was doing online via blogs, email, social media posts, articles, etc. and before long my audience grew around the web at various sites. All it takes is just one post, then another, and another on different sites blogging, commenting, etc. and before long, you will pick up people along the way. The following is an example of a page I put together to promote some Black Friday and Cyber Monday activities, click here.

Working from Home, Not for Everyone

They make it sound easy, experts in their fields from customer service to sales, working from home. "I have my own hours!" They say. "I make enough money that my husband could stay home if he wanted to!" But what they don't say is how much stress they are under when the children are fighting in the other room, when one's partner is spending far too many hours on the computer working, and how they had to rob Peter to pay Paul because once again they paid for an over-priced product.

You have to know yourself and those around you in order to be a success at working from home. Is your partner supportive? Do you have a schedule for the children especially when there are school breaks? Arguing about money woes, losing your cool when it comes to the children, and forgetting to complete a client's project are just a few of the work at home headaches you will experience. Further, consider how much sleep you will lose too.

For those who are just thinking, but aren't completely sold on working from home, you are making a wise decision to look the other way. Working at home requires time, money and patience. If you feel that you are short on two out of three these days, don't do it!

How to Make Money via Ebay and Craigslist

In Your Experience...

What is by far the worst home business idea/system/company you have tried?

See results

Think Beyond What the Guru Tells You

Behind every award winning, popular, or intelligent speaker, teacher, writer, entertainer, and others are golden nuggets of ideas, organizations, systems and more. These "plans" and "networks" are what puts money in these professionals' pockets while many consumers continue to struggle to put food on the table and save a few dollars. What are the plans that they use? Who do they know? Can they get you into certain circles to help you become a success too?

Take a moment to pray for some wisdom when researching a business venture, job, or career that is being marketed by a successful guru.

Find out what some of these professionals aren't saying. What do their tools, symbols, and clothing really say about them and the group that they represent? Most likely, they didn't maintain survivable revenue/commissions doing what they originally done on their own that's why they had to evolve. For instance, some professionals went from being sales people to becoming teachers because they couldn't achieve certain goals, others went from working at home to working outdoors, but didn't bother to update anyone on their changes. These type know they started losing money in a certain industry that's why they left. Then there are those individuals who went to school for one thing and then started doing a long list of flops, but they have to pretend that they are a success to keep their email list buying from them.

Beyond what these gurus are saying and doing, how are they really marketing their work? What connections do they have? How much money are they making in their industries? Can you do the same?

A guru has to do many things that aren't always ethical, good for the family or his or her health, among other things. Much sacrifice goes into working in or out of the home. Children may have to learn early to do for themselves while mom or dad works. Neighbors may complain about home events and frequent visitor traffic. Some gurus lose money almost daily trying different software programs, marketing strategies and the like.

So find out all the pros and cons before you lose your mind in any business endeavor. Interview former business owners, home workers, and others who have been in your desired industry. Pay close attention to market trends. Search for information on whether the company practices are in fact honest before you join. Also, track how much everything cost to build your business and talk your business strategy over with someone more knowledgeable about the industry.

Nicholl McGuire is a blogger, self-published author, and partnered with Amazon and other sites to sell educational products for children and other items.

Home Worker Positions You Can Research

There are many jobs, real jobs, that can be performed from the comfort of your home. The following is a list of job titles you can check out online. You can also offer your service to local businesses. Before you sign up with any online company, find out what others' experiences have been like. Check review sites and related forums.

Start searching and to your success! Please do come back and share your personal experiences working any one of these jobs. God bless.

1. Voice actors

2. Customer service work/call center services

3. Video tagging

4. Data collecting

5. Writing (blogs, articles, ebooks, websites)

6. Transcription

7. Data entry

8. Telephone mystery shopping

9. Telephone interpreters/bilingual speakers

10. Internet assessors

11. Editing/proofreaders

12. Telephone sales (take orders, sell products, perform cold-calling)

13. Live chat

14. Researchers (court records, medical, background checks)

15. Video producers

16. Technical support (quality control-evaluate records and reports)

17. Graphic artists

18. Answer questions for businesses

19. Process billing claims

20. Assist with applications (abstractors, data collectors)

21. Online tutors

22. Clinical trials

23. Accountants/bookkeepers

24. Medical coding

25. Concierge

26. Graphic designers

27. Developers/programmers

28. Database helpers

29. Typists

30. Jurors

31. Reservation agents

When You are Ready to Join a Business...

Some things that will come in handy once you start working from home would be the following:

1. A separate bank account for business.

There is a company that if offering no fees right now, see here. If you already have a bank account, you might consider switching.

2. Comfortable chair.

Working long hours in front of the computer on a chair that isn't the best fit for your body size will cause problems for you in the future.

3. A phone that has voice mail and caller id.

You will want to start screening calls; rather, than picking them up right away especially when you start working steadily. Distractions will affect your income, so keep them out of your business!

4. Quality technology.

From a printer to a good internet service, you will want to start saving for better equipment depending on what your home business requires. Sure, you can get away with some cheap items to prepare documents, converse with clients, or even run errands, but in time, you will want to say goodbye to cheap stuff and hello to the quality things!

To your success!

Believers: For those who have a job, what is your purpose for working at your company?

Unexpected Life Challenges Got You Down?

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