There are many people who are looking for other ways to earn extra money and a great way to add to your income is to try your hand at making money online.
There are literally thousands of money making schemes available on the internet, but not all ways are legit. Many people have been taken for a ride, paid for educational packages that led to no returns, all while in search of the dream to make money online.
The Different Money Making Methods
Several money making schemes are very effective in earning money online, but they are definitely not a get rich overnight process like some have wrongly promised. You need to invest huge amounts of time to get the ball rolling for any business and making money online is no exception.
The most popular money making scheme is blogging and this is the road I chose to travel. You can earn a lot of money through blogging and I have shared how I make money online a number of times on my blog.
Here are some more examples of how to make money online:
- Blogging
- Building websites to sell
- Article writing
- Graphic design
- Website design
- Managing other people’s blogs
- SEO services
- Installing, editing CMS and themes
- Writing software
The thing is, there are just so many ways to make money online and there lies one of the biggest problems.
#1. Choosing a Money Making Method
Sticking to one way of making money online is a good way to earn money but there are just too many choices, therefore watering your efforts down. This is probably the best reason for online earning not being as easy as it sounds.
This is a case of being dammed if you do and dammed if you don’t. I like having all the thousands of opportunities to earn money online but it does make the decisions harder. Many people flit from one method to another and never really develop or master just one.
#2. The Stigma of Online Jobs
There is a stigma attached to the online world and we all know it. People think that if you work online either for someone else or in your own business, you are probably a spammer. Trust me, this stigma still exists today. This is a great reason why making money online is not as easy as it sounds because we all start with this biased opinion in our heads. It is the strong ones that ignore what others say and step past this stigma.
Wow. I have only mentioned two very simple reasons why online moneymaking is not that easy! What about the good points?
#3. Sifting Through the Scams
There are so many scams out there on the Internet and most of them are to do with making money. Unfortunately this in itself causes a huge problem for people starting out online as they have to distinguish between what is real and what is a scam.
People will tell you that you can make money out of anything and that you can do it really quickly. This is obvious to the well seasoned Internet user; however the newbies are sucked in and spat out by the scams.
#4. They Say it is Easy
The problem is that many top bloggers and Internet marketers say that it is easy to make money online. But unfortunately when you go and try it for yourself and fail, you feel let down, as you did not succeed like they said you should have.
This is a big letdown for most people as they have high expectations for their own success. Unfortunately big parts of the equation have been left out; the main part where it says it could take a year or 2 to build up a business online. Of course the time varies, depending on what type of moneymaking method you choose.
#5. Competition Eats You Up
Making money online is getting harder as many people have jumped on the bandwagon therefore creating more competition. This does not mean that there are no opportunities left because the Internet is a huge place with many ways to make money. It just means that you have to think smarter when choosing your moneymaking method.
All the negatives about earning money can cause some people to give up on their moneymaking goals, but if only they could have seen the benefits before the bad stuff came along.
The Benefits of Money Making Online
There are definite benefits to earning money online and once you have a taste for this lifestyle, it is extremely hard to turn back.
The most obvious benefit is the fact that this kind of work involves working from home. This means you can work anytime of the day or night, whichever suits you. You can even earn money while you sleep (seriously). Most jobs online do not require you to show up for any appointments, especially if you are working for yourself.
This brings me to the next benefit. You don’t have to actually work from home. Because I am a full time blogger, I can work from anywhere in the world as long as I have a laptop and an Internet connection. Now that is even cooler than working from home.
Another great advantage is that online businesses cost far less to run than a real-life business. For example Web hosting can cost anything from $10 a month for smaller websites and only $10 a year to register a domain name. This is crazy when you think about the costs of actually renting a bricks and mortar commercial shop to run your business from. I know which one I would rather.
Why Making Money Online is NOT Easy
The problem is that the benefits of some money making methods only show after months or sometimes years of work and most people’s patience threshold is worn out by then.
Of course there are ways to earn instant money online, for example by writing articles, however this is still something that has to be built upon. When you want to be an online writer you have to build up a reputation to bring in higher earnings for your work. Otherwise you will be churning out articles for a minimum wage and that does not sound like a dream job.
I know the journey I have traveled and would still recommend this job or business venture to anyone that wants to earn money online.
Image © TheSupe87 – Fotolia.com