AngelaHere at the Side Hustle site we are all about making money online from the comfort our own home. I’m Marcus and I have been experimenting with different online money making methods since 2004.
Below you will find a run down of my favorite ways to make money from home. These are not get rich quick schemes or silly “beer money” surveys.
They are all genuine business ideas or freelancing opportunities that you could try. Every one I have either tried or is still currently one of my income streams in 2020.
So if you are looking for a new side hustle, why not give one of the methods below a try. It could be a valuable new income stream or even eventually replace your full time income.
This post may contain affiliate links. Please read my disclosure for more info.
Top Ways To Make Money Online From Home
1. Print On Demand eCommerce
One of my favorite ways to make money from home is with print on demand eCommerce. The basic premise is you create a design for merchandise like t-shirts, mugs and stickers. You then list it for sale before its been printed and only create it if you make a sale. Even better it can all be automated, plus printing and shipping is taken care of by somebody else.
There are hundreds of different items of merchandise you can make custom designs for. Also you do not need to be a graphic designer, just simple text based designs sell very well.
Pros of Print On Demand
- Free To Set Up
- Automated Fulfillment
- Passive Income
- Zero Stock Held
- Organic Traffic
Cons of Print On Demand
- Takes Time To Scale
- Some Niches Saturated
- Trademark/Copyright Issues
- Good Designs Are Copied
Is Print on Demand Working From Home Friendly?
Yes you can manage a print on demand business from anywhere with an internet connection. You can even make new designs from your mobile while at home watching the kids.
Print On Demand Resources
If you want to learn more about starting a print on demand business. Here are some useful tools, services and links.
- Course By Side Hustle Site: Ultimate Print On Demand Guide 2020
- Printful – Recommended Print On Demand Provider
- How To Sell Photos & Art On Redbubble
- How To Make Money With Print On Demand 2020
2. Start A Niche Affiliate Blog
Creating a blog (like this one) is a great way to build your own piece of online real estate. If done right, it could generate passive income for years to come.
The key is to rank for keywords on Google, this generates free traffic to your site. You can also promote your content on social media like Twitter, Facebook and Pinterest.
You make money by either adding adverts to your blog or by sending visitors to affiliate products and services.
Pros of Blogging
- Passive income, posts can generate traffic and income for years
- Very low cost to start (under $100)
- No barriers to entry, anyone can do it
- Can build an email list from organic traffic
- Valuable asset, they sell for up to 40x monthly income
Cons of Blogging
- Slow to start, may take 6 months before you earn anything
- Requires some technical knowledge to set up
- You need to learn SEO to rank on Google
- Writing 2k+ word posts can be very time consuming
Can You Do Blogging From Home?
Yes you can easily do blogging at home. You can create content from anywhere, even by typing on your phone. However you really need to finish off posts on a desktop computer to make sure they are SEO optimised.
Blogging Resources
- Affiliate Niche Blog: How To Build A Money Making Blogging
- Bluehost Low Cost Website & Blog Hosting
- Course By FreedomSeeker: How To Build A 6-Figure Affiliate Website
- Ubersuggest Free SEO Research Tool By Neil Patel
3. Selling eBooks & Info Products
Do you have a specific skill or know about something that others don’t? If so you should probably be making your own eBook or info product. Its one of the easiest ways to make money online very quickly. Its never been easier with platforms like Gumroad and it costs nothing to start.
A simple PDF guide can be created for free using Word and sold for $10 – $50. Twitter is one of the best places to promote your ebook to your specific niche.
It could be about anything at all like making money, fitness, DIY, mindset, pets or hobbies.
Pros of eBooks & Info Products
- Costs nothing to create an eBook or course
- Digital products have high margins (90%+ Profit)
- Fully automated sales with no shipping
- You can start making money straight away
Cons of eBooks & Info Products
- Large upfront investment of time
- Can be subjected to charge backs
- Ideally you need to grow an audience on social media
Can I make an eBook or Info Product at home?
Yes this is another great work from home side hustle. As long as you can find a quiet place to write or record, you are good to go.
eBook & Info Product Resources
- Gumroad – Great platform for creators to sell content from
- DIY Book Covers – Create 3D Mock Ups For Free
- Canva – Create Free Book Covers
4. Build A YouTube Channel
Building a YouTube channel is a tried and tested model to create passive income on the side. Its not as easy as it used to be but you can still make money from YouTube in 2020.
There are a few ways you can generate income with YouTube. The one most people know about is that YT will share the ad revenue that your channel generates. However before this starts you need 1000 subscribes and over 4000 hours watch time. So get uploading.
The other ways you can generate income is by directing people to affiliate offers related to your niche. You can also promote your own blog or digital products like courses to sell.
Pros Of YouTube
- Free to start
- Could be done from your phone
- Passive income
- Organic traffic (no ad spend needed)
- Earn straight away from affiliate marketing/selling products
Cons Of YouTube
- It could take months/years to start earning ad revenue
- Basic video editing skills recommended
- Lots of competition
- Need reasonable quality recording equipment (laptop, high spec phone, Camera/Go Pro, mic)
Can I record YouTube videos at home?
Its definitely another side gig you can do at home and in the evenings or weekends. Although you might need somewhere quiet to go for recording new vids.
Build A YouTube Channel Resources
- Shotcut is a free, open source, cross-platform video editor
- OBS Studio Free and open source software for video recording
- Canva – Create Free YouTube Thumbnails
5. Monetize Social Media
If you can gain a following on social media then you can make money. Wherever you have peoples attention, there is money to be made in a number of ways. Basically all you need is a smartphone.
This applies to pretty much any social media platform, so pick the one that best suits your skills and personality. This could be Twitter, Facebook, Snapchat, Instagram, TikTok or Twitch.
For example I started a Twitter account for the Side Hustle Site in Nov 2019 and after just 5 months my tweets have had 1 million impressions. See the screenshot of just the first 3 months of 2020.
Pros of Monetizing Social Media
- Free to start
- Large organic audience reach
- Can be partially automated
- Valuable Asset (Some accounts can be sold)
Cons of Monetizing Social Media
- It can be addictive 🤳
- Trolls, trolls everywhere
- It takes consistency and time to build
- You may not make money straight away
Monetizing Social Media Resources
- How I Make $100 A Day On Twitter – With No Ad Spend Or Following
- Official Twitter Analytics
- Free Month of Tailwind Social Media Scheduler
6. Freelancing
Its never been easier to offer your time & services online to generate a regular full time income. There are thousands of people and companies looking every day for services and tasks to be done.
This could a specific skill like Web Design, SEO, Graphic Design or computer programming. Alternatively you could write articles for blogs, manage somebodies social media or even offer coaching and teaching.
Get creative and use skills you already have like a second language to translate or organisation as a virtual assistant. The most popular platforms for freelancing include Fiverr, Upwork and People Per Hour.
Pros Of Freelancing
- Work as much or as little as you want
- Quick way to earn money online
- No boss or long commute
- Freedom!
Cons Of Freelancing
- May need to start free/cheap to get reviews
- Exchanging time for money (not passive)
- Work not guaranteed
Freelancing Useful Resources
- Fiverr
- Web Design Freelancing Course
- Fundamentals of Design Freelancing Course
- How To Make Money On Fiverr: The Complete Guide
Other Ways To Make Money From Home
Affiliate Marketing
Affiliate marketing involves recommending products and services to your audience. Rather than a stand alone money making method, its best combined with one of the other methods outlined above. You can link to affiliate offers from your Blog, Social Media, YouTube and email list.
If you are interested in joining a group of link minded affiliate marketers, then you may be interested in joining The Affiliates Club. I am currently a member myself, you can find out more about it by clicking here.
Flipping
The basic premise of flipping is buying an item and selling it for a higher price. This could be picking up cheap books from charity shops and selling them on Amazon. Some people even make thousands buying from traditional retailers like Walmart and then selling on eBay or Amazon.
Podcasting
Sadly there is no Side Hustle Site podcast just yet! I certainly listen to a lot of them and I imagine you do to. The market for podcasts is growing very quickly and you can start your own very easily for free. You make money in the same way that Blogs and YouTube channels do. From adverts, affiliate marketing and promoting your own products/services.
Making Money From Home: Where To Start
If you are not sure where to start, the best advice I can give is learn a new skill. Learn an in demand skill that you then charge people for. There are so many resources online for learning skills like Udemy, YouTube, Paid Courses and many more.
You can even turn that new skill into multiple streams of income later down the line by following this method:
- Learn New Skill
- Charge & Freelance Using New Skill
- Create a Blog Documenting Your Journey Learning Said Skill
- Share Useful Information On Social Media
- Create Course or eBook Around Skill
- Start YouTube Channel Around Skill
- Build Up Authority Within Niche
- Consistently Create Content and Grow Audience
- Collect Emails To Grow Marketing List
Just from learning once niche/in demand skill you could create multiple income streams that continue to grow month after month.
Good luck with your new online money making venture, please comment below with any questions or useful info.
You must log in to post a comment.