Legitimate ways to earn money from home

Employment rates are still high due to the unprecedented impact of COVID-19. It’s left many people struggling to make ends meet and looking for alternative ways to bring in some money while they are waiting for the job market to open back up again. Working from home is an enticing prospect for those people who have family commitments or need to shield due to an existing health condition. Whatever your reason for wanting to earn a few extra bucks, there are plenty of options out there for you to consider. 

Virtual assistant

Virtual assistants are becoming much more common in the business world.  A virtual assistant works from home, carrying out a variety of tasks for small businesses and entrepreneurs. You can offer generic admin services such as typing, transcribing, schedule management, or inbox monitoring. 

If you have specialist skills, you can offer these at a premium.  These can include graphic design, marketing, social media management, and bookkeeping. 

You’ll need a laptop/pc, cell phone, high-speed internet connection and access to the main software packages.  

There are a number of agencies that you can work on behalf of, who can handle the marketing, contracts, and finding clients but they will take a large chunk of the hourly rate.  

If you go into business for yourself, you’ll need to set yourself up with a website, a marketing plan to attract clients, and any necessary business insurance. 

Day trading futures and cryptocurrency

Day trading involves buying and selling stocks multiple times throughout the day during trading hours. The main difference between day traders and regular traders is that day traders get out of their positions at the end of the day and do not carry any positions over to the next day. 

You can trade cryptocurrency in much the same way. Cryptocurrency is still fairly new so there aren’t as many people trying to do it yet. 

With any type of financial trading, there is a steep learning curve.  There is lots of info on the internet to help you learn the ropes. Sites such as Investopedia are good free resources to learn the basics. 

Unlike some of the other ideas on this list, there is a greater level of risk and reward in financial trading. 

Social media manager

So much of a company’s interaction takes place on social media platforms.  Many businesses hire social media managers to run theirs. A social media manager will post, monitor, respond to messages, and analyze a company’s social media platforms. 

Managing a company’s social media is a very important role as you will be the voice of the company. Anything you say will reflect on the brand in a positive or negative way. 

A social media manager needs to have a range of skills including content creation, marketing, customer service, and public relations.  You’ll also need a high level of IT ability and knowledge of the main social media platforms and third-party posting and analytics software. 

Start a blog

If you’re looking to make money quickly, then a blog isn’t your answer.  However, if you have the desire to create content around something you’re passionate about, you can build a blog around this. 

Content creation is just the beginning, you then have to promote your content across social media and build up an audience. Once you’ve established yourself you can begin to monetize your blog by enabling advertising, collaborating with brands, or selling guests posts on your site. 

You can start a basic blog for free on WordPress or buy your own website hosting and create a more sophisticated site on platforms such as WordPress, Squarespace or Wix. 

Create an online course 

There has been an explosion in the uptake of online learning in recent years. People will pay to access quality educational content. 

If you have skills in areas such as marketing, copywriting, events, IT, coding, etc. you can create your own online course and charge people to access it. 

Producing an online course can be a great way to make a passive income.  Once you’ve spent the time creating the course and your sales funnel. You can automate your promotions and let the whole thing run on autopilot. 

Depending on your skill level, you can use a third-party platform such as Udemy to host your course or build your own website through specialist software such as Thinkific, Teachable and Podia.

Virtual fitness coach

The COVID-19 pandemic has raised the subject of general health up the agenda once again.  However, the lockdown has led to the closure of gyms and leisure clubs and millions of people have looked to online resources for their health and fitness needs. It is likely that this will lead to a permanent change and an opportunity for fitness professionals to be able to make a living online. 

Of course, if you’re going to be giving people advice on health and fitness, you’ll need the correct qualifications. There’s also an opportunity to specialize in certain areas such as pre and postpartum or seniors. 

Participate In market research 

Companies need information from consumers on their buying habits, likes, and dislikes and they are willing to pay for it. Filling out market research surveys is a good way to make a little bit of extra money. There are many platforms you can sign up to who will send you surveys to complete for a small cash sum (between 10c – $10).  The more surveys you complete, the more money you will be able to build up.  You usually only need a phone and email address. 

Be careful which companies you sign up with, you should never be asked to pay to join. 

Be alert to scams

Unfortunately, there are many people out there who try to take advantage of people. Always be vigilant and don’t hand over any financial details without first having vetted the company. 

Don’t fall for scams promising large sums of money for little or no work. If something looks too good to be true then it’s usually not.