So you want to live the “internet-lifestyle’ and be free to work wherever you want and whenever you want? Well, that’s very simple. Actually, the question is not « can you make a living online », but « what is the best way to get started ” !
Getting into an online business is…. Well, a business. And in that sense, it is very similar to an offline business or a brick and mortar shop. Yes, in the real world you can also make a quick buck by finding a job at McDonalds or distributing newspapers. And if your objective is to only find a way to make the $100 or $200 a month, because that’s what you’re short off every end of the month, that’s fine.
However, if you’re objective is to create a full-time income, then you very likely have to put in fulltime work. There are no shortcuts to fast success online as there aren’t any in the offline world. If they existed, this ‘system’ would be known by everybody but this would defeat its purpose.
Imagine that someone had a ‘system’ that would make you win at the lottery. Guaranteed. What would happen? IF it would work, in no time everybody would be playing this system. And what would happen? There is a pot of 10 million dollars and all 10 million players have the winning combination. Result: the ‘system’ has killed itself.
Jeff Bezos, the founder of Amazon, didn’t create his multi-billion dollar business in a couple of months. Actually, he wrote the business plan for Amazon in 1994. And I still remember, reading numerous articles in 1995 and the following years, how difficult it was to convince his investors to stick to it, despite the millions of dollars that were pumped in his ‘silly’ idea, to sell books on the internet. But he stuck to it for years. And see what has become of it. 20 years later it is the biggest online retailer in the world !
So, if you are still dreaming about becoming an overnight millionaire, first thing to do is: wake up. But hey, that doesn’t mean that you cannot make a living with an online activity if you put in enough effort and time.
Ahh, you want it fast also ? No problem, goto www.SendItStraightintoMyPaypalAccountAndGetRich.com and you’ll bring the PayPal transaction processor on its knees in less than an hour.
Ok, enough fun for now, so let’s get serious (I’ll try). Setting up an online business is as easy, or as difficult, as any brick-and-mortar shop. If you setup a shop in a dead-end it’s very unlikely that customers will find you. And that’s the same on internet.
There are 2,5 BILLION people connected to the internet, and the worldwide penetration is only 34% (source http://www.internetworldstats.com/stats.htm)
Now what are the different ways to start with an online activity? There are HUNDREDS of ways. I compiled a list of ‘just’ 150 of them. Here is a small listing
- -Get paid to read emails
- -Get paid to listen to music
- -watch TV
- -Sell other people’s stuff through affiliate marketing
- -Write eBooks
- -evaluate products
- -Participate in focus groups
- -Get paid to socialize
- -Get paid to tweet
- -Buy and sell websites
- -Sell your own products on dedicated sites
- -Become an affiliate for Ebay
- -Get paid to surf the web
- -Arbitrage (buying on one site, reselling on another one)
- -use revenue sharing on sites like squidoo, hubpages
And the list goes on and on and on. For the complete list have a look at my latest Kindle book. It’s on KDP select, so you might be able to pick it up for free.
But don’t forget, whatever you may undertake, it will take time and effort before you can reap the profits.
I suggest that you set your objectives on an achievable level. Trying to create a second Amazon is maybe not the smartest way to go.
Wish you all lots of success in your online activities.
