It’s no secret that money is tight. Unemployment is high, and many people are struggling just to make their mortgage payments. But you can change that. You have a chance to make some extra cash—more than you need for day-to-day living—and you can do it in your spare time, when you’re not working or studying.
Here are 9 ways to make money online as a nonprofit. Just remember: all of these ideas require some type of investment on your part. You’ll need to pick and choose which ones to implement, but you can’t do that if you don’t try them out first.
Penny Stocking
This is the most basic way to make money online. You can start by taking advantage of stock fluctuations and dollar off-sets in your favor. There are a few spots that allow you to make quick money by buying and selling securities. For example, let’s say you see that Amazon has discounted their bestselling Book by x% and there’s a matching offer for Google’s Gold Service. In theory, you could buy the discounted book and resell it for a profit. It’s a quick and easy way to make money online without any type of formal training. You’ll just need to learn how to navigate the different websites and follow the rules (which can be tricky). But, as long as you keep your eyes open for these types of opportunities, you can’t go wrong. With penny stocking, you’ll need to decide whether you want to go with high-risk, high-reward opportunities or low-risk, low-reward opportunities. The choice is yours.
Saving
Saving is a key component to any financial plan. Why? It’s a simple matter of math. Consider the example above. You found a great deal for a book that you think will be worth money in the long run. But you also know that there are a limited number of copies available at that price. So you could literally save money by buying the book now, before it sells out. Of course, you have to be willing to face the challenge of selling it at a later date. Some books are worth more than their cover price, while other books are practically worthless. It’s all about the luck of the draw. This type of investing is a bit more risky than buying and selling securities because you’re making a direct investment in a book’s price. But it can also be a lot more lucrative. Again, it all depends on how savvy you are and whether or not you want to take a high-risk, high-reward approach to investing (typically, people who take this approach make a lot of extra money).
Affiliate Marketing
This is one of the most popular methods of making money online. You’ll be paid a commission when someone clicks a link or buys a product that’s promoted on your behalf. There are several different platforms that you can utilize. For example, you can create a website or blog for marketing a particular product. When someone clicks a product link or buys a product that you’ve promoted, you’ll be paid a commission. You can specialize in digital products (such as ebooks and courses) or physical products (such as travel and event tickets, furniture, and food).
There are a few things you need to keep in mind when doing affiliate marketing. First, make sure that you always disclose the relationship to someone if they ask. Second, make sure that you’re not violating any COPPA rules (Kids’ Privacy Protection Act). Third, be consistent. If you want to get paid, then you need to be responsible for bringing in a steady stream of revenue. Finally, build your own audience. Having a sizable audience helps you to monetize your social media accounts (such as YouTube), as well as your blog. Once you have a decent amount of content, you can package it up and sell it as a digital product. Or, you can set up a crowdfunding campaign to fund your next big purchase.
Finance And Insurance
There are a number of ways to make extra cash with your personal finances. For example, you can borrow money from a bank or credit union and invest it in high-paying, short-term stocks. Or, you can take out a personal loan, invest that money in a diversified portfolio of stocks and bonds, and then make extra cash by taking smaller payouts every month.
Insurance is a field that has seen a massive paradigm shift. More and more people are realizing that they can make money online by selling their insurance policies and commissions. Some of the most popular platforms are Lemonade, GAP, and OneOpinion. You’ll have to learn the ropes on Lemonade, but once you do you can build a steady stream of income. If you’re looking for additional income sources, consider buying and selling securities, taking out a personal loan, or investing in the stock market.
Consulting
There are a variety of ways that a business can need help with their finances. For example, a business might not have the in-house expertise or resources necessary to properly track their income and expenses. In these instances, you can help by serving as an expert financial accountant or consultant. You’ll need to learn how to properly prepare financial statements (tax forms), audit them, and give financial advice. Once you’ve mastered that, you can take on engagements of around three to six months.
There are several different specialties that you can pursue when it comes to financial consulting. For example, you can become a CPA (Certified Public Accountant) and specialize in tax preparation or audit. Or, you can become a Certified Financial Planner and specialize in financial planning. Most CPAs and CFPs work on a cash basis, which means that they’ll generally need to know what you’re paying in terms of expenses (such as renting a place to live) in order to properly prepare your tax returns. On the other hand, individuals who specialize in insurance consulting typically work on an accrual basis, which means that they’ll need to know what you spent but didn’t earn in order to properly prepare your taxes. It’s a good idea to find a CPA or an Accredited Independent Financial Advisor who’s also a Certified Medical Loss Re-adjustment Specialist (CMLRSS). You’ll be able to get in-house accounting and auditing as well as take on clients who have suffered a medical loss. It might not seem like there’s a lot of money in helping out other businesses, but the fact is there’s a lot of money to be made. And it doesn’t seem like a bad career move either.
E-commerce
E-commerce is another popular way to make money online. Basically, you’ll be selling your own products (typically, digital or physical products) online. Some of the most popular platforms for doing e-commerce are Shopify, Drop Ship World, and Big Commerce. If you’re looking to get started, consider checking out Shopify’s blog for entrepreneurs where they give you an overview of how to start an online store. If you already have a physical product that you want to sell online, consider using a drop-shipping strategy so that you don’t have to worry about purchasing inventory yourself. Dropshipping allows you to market and sell a product without needing to own the actual product. When a customer makes an order, the vendor (you) ships the product from a third-party warehouse (such as Amazon or Best Buy). It’s a win-win because you avoid the hassles of having to manage inventory and order supplies yourself. All you need to do is create products that people want and can afford. Keep in mind that Shopify has a 14-day trial. So, you can test it out for yourself to see how easy it is to use.
Start An Online Store
If none of the above seem like a fit, you can also start your own online store. This is a similar strategy to dropshipping except instead of using a third party (a vendor) to handle the shipping, you’ll be doing it yourself (sort of like a wholesale or direct sales business). The advantage of starting your own online store is that you can take advantage of whatever programs your payment processor (such as Stripe or Google Wallet) offers. You can also use your own website to market your products. Start with a basic free plan and then upgrade as you get more active. You’ll also want to look into getting a merchant account so that you can accept credit cards (Visa, MasterCard, etc.) on your site. You can use Square for free with their minimalist plan, for example.