How one can make a living on internet

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In today’s world there would be no single person on this planet who wasn’t aware of Internet and its uses. In the past people were struggling with their traditional jobs to make a living. There was no electronic mailing system and no social media. Telecommunications, postal service , Television and printed media dominated the pre-internet era. The life of the employees was almost routine. People become accustomed to work in office and that too on an average of 8 hours.But, now the scenario has completely changed with evolution of internet. There are vast opportunities for an individual to stand out from the crowd.

People can make a living on internet without any hassles. All they need is time and little investment. But, I admit that it is not as easy as said. It needs dedication, determination, patience, enthusiasm and skills. The problem with 9-5 jobs is you have to walk in someone else’s shoes. Where as a freelancer has the complete freedom to do anything creatively. I’m not compelling any employee to leave his/her present job to do freelancing. The situations vary from person to person. Employees can do freelancing work in their spare time. You don’t need to go to any office. You can start it straightway from your home. There are hundreds of professions which are internet based but I’m emphasizing more on 5 important ways one can make a living on the internet. They are as follows :

1. Blogging

Blogging is the new ‘mantra’ for the people who seeks both recognition and money. From my perspective one shouldn’t blog for money. Yes I agree to the fact that money is essential to make a living but bloggers shouldn’t start their blogging career to gain handsome income. Start a blog with a topic which interests you and keep writing content on regular basis. Many successful bloggers haven’t thought of monetizing their blogs initially. It is the content which decides the success of any blog. WordPress has become a household name for the bloggers. Being a blogger you have to decide whether to go with free WordPress blog or paid hosting. Maintain consistency in writing informative posts and build genuine following. If your blog attracts adequate readership, money would likely to start following you.

2. Freelance writing

If you are good at writing you can go as a content writer.  There is hell lot of opportunities for content writing. For instance If you are passionate about technology and gadgets, employers may hire you to write reviews of new products or services. The topics could be anything from health to technology. Content writers should research well before committing themselves to writing. The client may demand you to write about trending stories in 1000 words. Being a content writer make sure your content is fresh, unique and understandable. It is advisable to have permissions for using third-party media content. Giving credits to the original author is a good practice. You can search Freelancer and Odesk for freelance writing opportunities. If you are an experienced writer joining as a About.com writer is beneficial.

3. Selling your services

If you are good at something try to take advantage by selling your services online. For instance you are good at customizing T-Shirt designs, you can deliver the services online. This strategy is not confined to services itself. Even it is applicable to products. For doing these things you need to have a 5 pages business website. The hosting and domain fees are affordable. Selling services is the most common way to make a living on internet.

Examples of services

1. Web designing and development

2.  SEO services

3. Setup of a WordPress site

4. Selling E-books

5. Logo designing

and the list goes on

You may also be interested in How to start a successful online business from scratch

4. Affiliate marketing

Affiliate marketing is a risk free job as you don’t need to invest any money to get started. Being an affiliate you will get paid when a user or customer buys a product or service from the referral link. One should not expect great earnings while starting affiliate marketing. It may take long time to see your income flow depending on the product. Being an affiliate you can choose a range of products or services to market. After signing up as an affiliate you need to paste the referral code on your blog or website to show advertising banners or text links.

5. Youtube

Video marketing is a great way to expose your skills or market your brand. All you need is to Start a channel, make videos and upload them on Youtube. The videos may contain comics and text depending on the niche. For instance you are a good keyboard player and wants to get noticed by users around the world then uploading self-made keyboard playing videos helps you. Make sure that your videos are informative and interesting otherwise people won’t come back. If your channel attracts adequate views you can go for monetization with Adsense.

This is all about how one can make a living on internet. I hope you enjoyed my article and please do share your experiences as well.