The secret to making money isn't finding a high-paying job, it's finding creative solutions to people's problems, and it doesn't take much learning to do that. Check out these common and less common ways to make money below and get your ideas flowing.
People Who Make Money
Resale Goods
1. Buy cheap used books. Take a mobile phone or PDA (personal palm computer) with a scanner to scan the ISBN number of the book there when you go to a second-hand bookstore or thrift store, and then go to a website such as Amazon to see the price of the book there . When you see a good price (not often, but the process is quick so you don't have to wait too long) buy it and sell it online. Do this quietly, as the store owner may not like it when you do it.
2. Find bargains at home yard sales and thrift stores. If you are more knowledgeable in a specific field (such as Mexican silverware from Taxker, action movie figures, classic National Geographic magazines, etc.) or just good at quality, then go to those private stores early, and you can often Found an unexpected bargain.
3. Go to the police auction house. You can find unbelievable deals here, and while some of the hardest-hit vehicles may not be resold, you're still likely to find great bargain jewelry, and there will be buyers who will be more than happy to buy from you.
4. Renovate worn-out furniture. If you have paint thinner, sandpaper, fuel, and some crafting skills, you can buy some worn-out furniture, rehabilitate it, and resell it for a premium.
5. Recycle broken wood. Wooden bottom row and bottom row items are often cheap (or even free) and easy to find. Find untreated wood at a construction site, community college, renovation yard, or logistics warehouse, plan it, and/or dry it in a homemade dryer to bring out the good parts of the wood. You can then sell the wood as is, or make beautiful furniture. (Be sure to advertise the wood as "reclaimed," as people are often willing to pay more for such a product.)
6. Resell a house or apartment. If you're a craftsman who knows how to design, understands the ins and outs of home building, and can afford it, you might consider buying, renovating, and reselling real estate. This requires a small start-up capital, and it is hard work, but the rewards will also be great.
Participate in Research Activities
1. Sign up for focus groups in areas you know well. The research activities you can participate in are only occasional, but the wages are very good - often you can earn more than $50 an hour. Such focus groups are also available online, but you will need to identify fake "research activities" and some sites will ask you to pay a certain amount of money to participate before you can find worthwhile research activities that power.
2. Participate in medical research activities. If just thinking about it scares you, you should know that the level of intensity of this research activity varies widely. Some studies ask participants (especially those with a disease) to test treatments or drugs that have adverse side effects, while others ask participants to perform physical tasks that have no long-term effects. If you're in good health and worried about continuing that way, you can go to a nearby medical institute or medical school and get involved in the control of research activities.
Find an Art Store
1. Sell photos. If you have a good camera and know light and shadow, color, and composition well, then you can sell the photos you took, such as photos without text descriptions, which are used in many places and are usually used for Illustrating web articles or products - this saves the most effort. A gallery of pictures of places (a fire hydrant, a bare wall next to an interesting tree, or anything you can find for your computer's default background image) is better, but a gallery of pictures of people (such as during an argument people, people kissing, people laughing) usually sell for more because these images are more versatile and require written legal permission from the subject. Find a reputable stock photo dealer or database that will pay you well before signing up with anyone.
2. Design web graphics. Combining your aesthetic and design skills or the use of image editing software, you can create and sell background images for media web pages, website icons or computer icon packs. If you can or are willing to learn computer programming, you must consider making web pages; there are many programmers, but it is hard to find those who understand aesthetics.
3. Make and sell crafts. If you know a little about crafting, consider selling your products online, such as Etsy. While you can make a little more money on large, complex projects (e.g., delicately roasting a gourd over a wood fire), smaller, less labor-intensive projects can also bring you handsome sums if you're willing to make a lot of them. Who knows - maybe you're doing so well, you might even get inspired to start a craft business.
Participate in Marketing Research Activities
1. Become a mystery shopper. It's about consuming broadly and then evaluating their goods and services without their knowledge. This may sound easy, but remember, do this without continuity, with a good memory for details (such as the name of everyone who has helped or served you), and enough to pay for your consumer experience Startup capital, then wait to get paid when your review is approved
2. Write product reviews. Many companies will spend a little more money to get the opinions of customers. Writing product reviews is not as demanding as other writing jobs, and it's a great way to get paid to express your opinion.
3. Fill out the online survey. As tedious as it is, online research is often quick and easy, and the few bucks you make once you do it can add up quickly. For more information read How to Make Money Taking Free Online Surveys.
Chase Your Passion
1. Start a website or blog. Competition in the online world is indeed fierce, but what makes a website or blog stand out is the dedication and passion of its authors. Many websites spend too much time on search engine optimization and keywords. SEO is of course a necessary way to help your content monetize, but digging out the really important content can make you different from those flashy competitors.
2. Start a small business. Passion often translates to superior products and better service, and the quest for these things is especially rife in the age of anonymous, quick online reviews. Worried that there is no market for your interest? In fact, while you yourself may not know what a lot of people want from you, thanks to the Internet, there is a huge market for niche products (dove diapers, chainmail wedding dresses, you name it) You might even become a trendsetter. To start an online store, you can build a website yourself, or sell it on eBay or similar sites if you don't want to build your own server.
Do Temporary Work
1. Watch/walk pets for neighbors. Take a few dogs to the park every week, fun, exercise, meet new friends, and most importantly, make some money at the same time.
2. Landscape. Find jobs like gardening, lawn mowing, or logging, some of which can earn you long-term clients. Such work can save you money at the same time: if you hire pine needles, you can use them to cover your roses, which will increase their acidity and increase the effect of weed suppression; if you hire you to cut down and clean up fallen trees , it can be used to warm the house in winter.
3. Run errands for the elderly. Contact your local community center or church to find out who seniors need help with groceries, cleaning sinks, or getting to the post office. You can cultivate some warm relationships at the same time.
4. Find temporary work online. Go to Craigslist, Fiverr, or Zaarly to see if something interesting or unusual pops up.
Use Money Making Apps
1. GigWalk: This iPhone app lets you work with various companies that post jobs and earn money by completing small tasks. These tasks range from mystery shopping to delivering deliveries to program testing to photoshoots. Just install the app, create a profile and start finding quests in your area.
2. WeReward: This iPhone and Android app lets you complete small tasks (such as snapping a photo of yourself with your favorite drink, or eating at a newly built place) to earn points, which are then converted into cash. Even though the rewards for each mission are small, with millions of cooperative ventures, the points accrue fairly quickly. If you live an active lifestyle, location-based rewards are in your best interest, as they won't force you to eat and drink outside all the time.
3. CheckPoints: This iPhone and Android app lets you go to stores and scan items for points that you can then redeem for prizes. It's a handy way to generate extra income while you're shopping, but be aware that these rewards are either actual items or gift certificates - no cash.
Sell What You Found Outside
1. If you have evergreen shrubs: Cut and dry the branches and sell them online. Believe it or not, people love to make crafts out of these things. In fact, a lot of stuff that you don't give a second glance is ordered online because people who live in cities don't have access to it.
2. If you have curly willow: Cut, dry, and sell the bent branches online to craftsmen or local florists, as these are often used to make small furniture pieces like bouquets.
3. If you have a pine tree: Sell the pine cones that drop all over your yard every fall. Extra large or extra long pine cones make beautiful holiday decorations, especially when paired with a simple ribbon.
4. If you live by the sea: the floating wood can be sold, these things can be made into crafts, and aquarium decorations if they are large and strong.
5. If you have a pond: Pick and dry cattail cattails before the fluff seeds scatter. These can be sold as decorations in bouquets (or bundled together for individual bouquets). You can also divide up your water lilies, water hyacinths, mosses, or whatever plants fill your pond and sell them bit by bit.
6. If you have a mistletoe-covered tree: Cut the mistletoe down, wrap it in ribbon for a festive look, and sell it for the holidays.
7. If you have something that you know and can prove hasn't been processed: You can brand it as organic, which raises interest and gets you a premium.
8. If you don't have any of these things: get someone to hire you to collect them. Many people are happy to hire someone to cut down their evergreen bushes, or go into their ponds and pick their water lilies, which means you can collect them for money and then resell them.
Make Money Passively
1. Into a live ad. Wrap up your car with ads, go to the places you frequent, and make money doing it every month. (Some San Francisco advertising cars can earn as much as $400 a month. Of course, it depends on how big your city is, when and how you go to the places you frequent.) You can also wear a T with the company logo Shirts go around and make money (especially if worn in high-profile places like your school; see shirtsinschool.com for an example).
2. Rent out a space. If you have an extra room, an unused parking space, or a driveway downtown, or even a vacant space that you don't mind turning into an urban garden, rent it out and enjoy the extra income each month.
3. Try affiliate marketing. This is promoting someone else's product or service, but you don't actually have any in stock. There are many ways to integrate affiliate marketing into your website, blog, webpage, including banners (basically ineffective because people avoid them), linking articles (workable if the article is thoughtful and doesn't look like spam emails), and placement videos (very effective, especially if they are made by attractive or humorous people). You can do affiliate marketing without even having a website. Basic ways to make money with affiliate marketing include:
- Paid to Click: You earn a very small amount every time someone clicks on your content to go to the advertiser's page; good for sites with high traffic
- Paid Introduction: Someone who signs up as an advertiser's affiliate through your site's content, or fills out a form in return can earn you a little more
- Paid acquisition: You can earn a commission (fixed amount, or share) every time someone buys an advertiser’s item through your website content; suitable for high-quality websites with focus.
Make Money Fast
1. Sell CDs and/or DVDs. Back up your collection to a computer or portable hard drive, then sell the discs. You can make money fast and save a lot of space. If you have a collector's edition collection (set series, limited edition, etc.), sell it for individual market prices; or, sell your discs reasonably (remember, your potential buyers can spend a buck or a few cents online The same song can be downloaded immediately). Even $4 a piece, a whole set of CDs can make you a lot of money.
2. Sell hair, plasma or other body parts or fluids. Long, healthy, untreated hair can be sold for a variety of uses (including high-end wigs and extensions), and can range from a few hundred to a few thousand depending on color, health, and length. Plasma can be "donated" (with compensation) provided you are old, healthy, and of sufficient weight to qualify. Sperm can also be donated, but you usually need to know (or be able to submit documents) a lot of information about your parents, as well as your own health records, to qualify. But be cautious, for example, egg donation is often a fast and highly profitable medical procedure, but the process actually requires participants to undergo hormone and medical conditioning, do regular checkups and ultrasounds, and abstain from sexual intercourse and alcohol. It takes weeks, even months, before the eggs reach the required level for removal. The procedure of enucleation itself is invasive and lasts about 30 minutes. Just be sure to think through your options before doing anything of this sort.
