Make Money Online (Without Spending a Dime)Making money online used to pretty much require you to ha...

1. Make Money Online (Without Spending a Dime)
Make Money Online (Without Spending a Dime)
Making money online used to pretty much require you to have your own Web site, products to sell
and some marketing savvy. But a new generation of dot-coms have arisen that will pay you for what
you know and who you know without you having to be a web designer or a marketing genius.
But it's hard to tell hype from the real deal. I did a search on "make money online" and "making
money online", and much of the information out there is just promoting various infoproducts, mostly
about Internet marketing. I see why people sometimes ask, "Is anyone making money online besides
Internet marketing experts?"
So I put together a list of business opportunities with legitimate companies that:
Pay cash, not just points towards rewards or a chance to win moneyDon't require you to have your
own Web domain or your own productsDon't involve any hard-sellingAren't just promoting more
Internet marketingGive a good return on your time investmentIn the interest of objectivity, none of
the links below are affiliate links, and none of them have paid or provided any other consideration
for their presence here. These are legitimate companies with business models that allow you to get
paid for a wide range of activities.
Help friends find better jobs.
Sites like ReferEarns, Zyoin, Who Do You Know For Dough?, and WiseStepp connect employers with
prospective employees, many of whom are already employed and not actively job-hunting, via
networking - the people who know these qualified candidates. Rewards for referring a candidate
who gets hired range from $50 on up to several thousand dollars - not chump change. If you know a
lot of job-seekers (and who doesn't these days?), this is a great way to break into the recruiting
business with no overhead.
Connect suppliers with buyers.
Referral fees are a common practice in business, but they haven't been used much in online
networking sites because there was no way to track them. Sites like Salesconx, InnerSell and uRefer
now provide that. Vendors set the referral fees they're willing to pay (and for what), and when the
transaction happens, you get paid. uRefer also allows merchants to set up referral programs for
introductions and meetings, as well as transactions.
Write.
A growing number of sites will pay for your articles or blog posts. Associated Content and Helium
will "pay for performance" based on page views for just about anything you want to write about.
Articles on specific topics they're looking for can earn direct payments up to about $200. The rates
are probably low for established writers, but if you're trying to break into the field and have time on
your hands, they're a great way to start. Also, a lot of companies are looking for part-time bloggers.
They may pay per post or on a steady contract. Our Weblogs Guide posts blogging jobs weekly in the
forum.
Start your own blog.
You don't have to have your own Web site, or install blogging software, or even figure out how to set
up the advertising. At Blogger you can set up a blog for free in less than five minutes without

2. knowing a thing about web design, and Blogger even automates setting up Google AdSense so you
can make money off your blog by displaying ads and getting paid when people click on the ads. To
make even more money from it, set up an affiliate program (see below) for books, music, etc., and
insert your affiliate links whenever you refer to those items. You'll have to get a lot of traffic to
become a six-figure blogger, but pick an interesting topic, write well, tell all your friends, and you're
off to a good start.
Related: Monetizing Your Blog
Create topical resource hubs.
Are you an expert on a particular niche topic? Can you put together an overview of the topic and
assemble some of the best resources on the topic from around the web? Then you can create topical
hubs and get paid through sites like Squidoo, HugPages and Google Knol. Payments are based on a
combination of ad revenue and affiliate fees. You'll get higher rates doing it on your own, but these
sites have a built-in supply of traffic and tools to make content creation easier.
Advertise other people's products.
If you already have a Web site or a blog, look for vendors that offer related but non-competing
products and see if they have an affiliate program. Stick to familiar products and brands - they're
easier to sell. To promote those products:
Place simple text or graphical ads in appropriate places on your siteInclude links to purchase
products you review or recommend in a blog, discussion forum or mailing list you controlCreate a
dedicated sales page or Web site to promote a particular productThey all work - it just depends on
how much time you have to spend on it and your level of expertise with Web design and marketing.
Related: How to Really Make Money on the Internet With an Amazon.com Affiliate Site
Microstock photography.
You don't have to be a professional photographer to sell your photos for money. People are
constantly in need of stock photography for websites, presentations, brochures and so on, and are
willing to pay for the right image. People generally search for images on stock photography sites by
keywords, not by photographer, so you have the same chance as anyone else of having your image
picked. Just be careful that you don't have images of trademarked brands, copyrighted art or
people's faces that are readily identifiable (unless you have a model release), but just about anything
else is fair game, and I promise - you'd be amazed what people need pictures of, so don't make any
assumptions. If it's a decent photo, upload it. Some sites to get you started include Fotolia,
ShutterStock, Dreamstime and iStockphoto. The great thing about this is that it's truly "set it and
forget it".
The above list is by no means comprehensive, but it highlights some of the new and interesting ways
to make money online without investing any money, without having a product of your own, and
without having expert sales and marketing skills. Most of all, unlike taking surveys or getting paid to
read e-mail, the potential return on your time investment is substantial.
http://entrepreneurs.about.com/od/homebasedbusiness/a/makemoneyonline.htm