Posts

How To Make Money Online With No Or Little Money

StrategyDriven Entrepreneurship Article |Make Money Online|How To Make Money Online With No Or Little MoneyYou must have heard or know people making a living from working online. You may also want to do the same but don’t know where to start. The sea of information out there may be doing you more harm than good and only adds to your confusion. The truth is that hundreds of companies offer legitimate online work, and some are even looking for people to recruit.

The good news is that many online work platforms don’t require you to invest. You just need to be skilled. Some strategies to make money online require self-motivation, while others do everyday office tasks remotely.

Below are some ways you can legitimately earn online with little or no money:

Participate In Online Surveys

Money earned doing online surveys can’t replace a full-time job’s income or provide you with instant financial freedom, but it can give a slight financial boost to pay small debts. Start by researching the best survey sites that have the most positive feedback. After deciding which online site to opt for, you need to register, and you’re in. The survey companies will then pay you to express your thoughts on numerous topics, products, or services. However, you should reach the specified threshold to cash out your earnings.

Be A Virtual Assistant

If you’re good at planning and organizing, then a virtual assistant job is right for you. Being a virtual assistant involves various tasks for individuals or businesses, such as making and receiving phone calls, managing their social media pages, and responding to emails.

As businesses continue to grow and new work trends emerge, there has been a sharp rise in virtual assistants’ demand. You can apply for these jobs through online platforms like Indeed and Upwork. If you want to make it as a virtual assistant, you must market yourself effectively.

Sign Up For Transcription

With the development of AI, it may seem that speech-to-text transcription no longer requires human involvement. Indeed, nothing could be further from the truth. Artificial intelligence in that area is still far from perfect. That’s why many companies still rely on transcriptionists to convert audio from video and speech files to accurate text. Typically, as an online transcriptionist, your earnings will be determined by your speed.

Transcription jobs are paid by an audio hour. The length of time it takes to transcribe an audio file depends on factors such as the volume level, the clarity of the recording, and the speaker’s accent and speaking speed. Most employers will accommodate your scheduling preferences, and you won’t have to pay anything upfront to get hired. All you really need is access to a computer and stable internet. However, you should have top-notch communication, writing, and typing skills.


Join An Affiliate Program

If you have marketing skills, you can earn commission by promoting services, brands, or products on various online platforms. Once you’re hired, you’ll share your affiliate link with others, and when someone purchases through your link, you earn a commission. Being an affiliate marketer, there’s no limit to the products you can promote. The more you sell, the greater your earnings will be.

You’re also free to partner with multiple companies. However, each business will provide you with a special affiliate link. Creating a blog with high-quality content can drive traffic in your direction. You can then advertise your products in your blog posts and strategically place your affiliate links on the blogs’ pages. To be an affiliate marketer, you’ll just be required to sign an agreement with the companies whose products you promote.

Start A YouTube Channel

Nowadays, launching a YouTube channel dedicated to virtually any interest is free. Just upload content regularly to educate or entertain your viewers. The greater a video’s subscriber count and overall views, the more money it can make. Once you get a specific number of subscribers, you can monetize your channel by partnering with brands on sponsored content and retail sales.

To build a loyal and robust audience, focus on a specific niche. There are many topics to choose from, including travel, fashion, product reviews, or even sharing knowledge on a subject you are well conversant with. To keep your business successful, you need to stay abreast of consumer trends and preferences. Though you might not gain followers right away, you can expect your fanbase to expand rapidly if you remain consistent. As you become a monetized YouTuber, you’ll make passive income consistently.

Conclusion

Be wary that there are just as many scammers, bogus agencies, and fraudsters as there are legitimate ways to generate money online. So, it would be best if you were more cautious of online job sites requiring you to pay registration fees upfront or insist on having your personal information before accessing it.

However, you shouldn’t let this stop you from taking advantage of the possibilities. Therefore, before committing to any online service, ensure you do a thorough background check to be safe.

The Gender Pay Gap & the Importance of Retirement Planning

StrategyDriven Diversity and Inclusion Article |Gender Pay Gap|The Gender Pay Gap & the Importance of Retirement PlanningWhile there has been progress made in terms of gender equality in recent times, it is clear that there is still much more that needs to be done. The gender pay gap is one of the biggest issues in the workplace right now, especially when you consider that it is not just career earnings that this will impact as it will also result in women having a smaller pension at retirement.

The Retirement Gap

The gender pension gap is a serious issue that needs to be addressed. Additionally, it means that women need to plan their retirement finances and make sure that they have taken action to try and bridge the gap as best they can. Key Advice CEO, Will Hale, commented on the worrying issue of the gender pay gap and its impact on retirement finances:

“With women typically earning less over the course of their careers, more likely to work part-time or need to juggle their career and caring responsibilities, the gender pay gap quickly becomes the gender pension’s gap at retirement. It is disheartening that in 2021, women still expect 25% less than their male counterparts and nearly a third expect their income to fall below Joseph Rowntree Foundation’s (JRF) Minimum Income Standard. There is no quick fix to this situation but it does illustrate how important it is to consider all your assets at retirement.”

So, what are a few of the best steps that women can take to plan their retirement finances?

Equity Release

Many people are turning to equity release these days and it can certainly be an effective way to give your retirement income a healthy boost. Essentially, equity release is a way of freeing up the value in your home. The loan amount and any interest are paid back by selling once the last borrower dies or they move into long-term care. Equity release can be a great solution for many homeowners, but there are key considerations so you should always speak with an equity release specialist to see if it is right for you.

Passive Income

Anyone looking to grow their wealth and build towards a brighter retirement may also want to look into passive income streams. This can be a smart way to boost your income while you work and requires little effort once it is up and running. There are a few passive income options, such as rental properties, affiliate marketing and dropshipping businesses.

Investing

Investing is also a smart move for anyone looking to improve their retirement fund. Obviously, there is risk when it comes to investing, but options like index funds can be a smart way to diversify and build wealth over time.

There is no quick fix to the gender pay gap issue, which means that it is important that women are planning ahead when it comes to retirement and doing all that they can to boost their finances.

More Money With Less Work: The Game of Passive Income Explained

StrategyDriven Entrepreneurship Article |Passive Income|More money with less work: the game of passive incomePassive income has proven to be one of the most effective strategies for all those seeking financial freedom. I being a very big believer of passive income have started several businesses that have provided me with financial freedom. I have gained all I have today through digital marketing and affiliate income. I have recently started a blog – www.SMTPServers.co on marketing automation where I do an affiliate for automation tools to increase my passive income.

The concept of passive income describes the generation of sales without having to work for it. But is that really possible? How does passive income work and which success factors need to be considered? What business ideas are possible?
In this guide to building a passive income stream, I have described the procedure step by step and given successful examples of passive income.

The problem: if you want to earn more, you have to work more

Make money without working for it. Don’t we all dream a little about it? The principle of passive income is described on the Internet on mostly dubious sites as a concept that enables money to be made without real labor – so to speak, become a millionaire overnight. But what is really there about the concept of passive income?

The origin of the idea of ??passive income is based on our supposedly inefficient use of labor. A self-employed craftsman who wants to double his turnover, but already works 50 hours a week, has a problem: His turnover increases proportionally to the work done. If he works less, he earns less. If he works more, he also earns more. The same applies to a freelance web designer. If she accepts four orders a month and is thus almost fully utilized, she can no longer increase her sales significantly without having to sit in front of the computer during the night.

Passive income: the theory

Anyone familiar with the concept of passive income will quickly notice that one has to break away from the basic pattern of work efficiency that we are familiar with. To put it more simply, if you want to earn more, you don’t necessarily have to work more.

By automating work steps, it is actually possible to achieve higher sales with little or possibly even no additional effort. Thanks to the success of the Internet and digitization, a large number of processes can be digitally mapped and thus automated. There are plenty of free autoresponder tools available online which you can use to automate your client interaction.

In addition, there is the enormous reach of the Internet, thanks to which, the potential customers from all over the world can reach us with just one click of the mouse.

The concept of passive income looks complicated at the first glance, but it is actually quite simple to implement. The following is an example of the four steps involved in building a passive income stream:

1. Step: Develop the product

A freelance web designer writes a book on the development of modern websites on vacation and needs three weeks to do so.

2. Step: Selling the product automatically

She self-publishes the book as a print edition and e-book on sales platforms such as Amazon & Co on the Internet. The books-on-demand provider takes over the entire book production.

3. Step: Generate passive income

With every book sold, she receives an author’s margin – for the next few years. All processes are automated, she has no work whatsoever.

4. Step: Regular product maintenance

A book about the development of modern websites should of course be revised regularly so that it remains up to date and is also sold frequently in the future. A little time must be invested in product maintenance.

These four levels are the basis of passive income. However, in order to be really successful, it is important to orientate yourself on the following success factors.

Success factors in passive income

In order to generate passive income, there are three factors to consider that are decisive for the success of passive income:

  • Digitization of the product
  • Automation of the processes
  • Distribution to an existing reach

With the concept of passive income it is necessary to create a product that can be reproduced without additional effort. Only in this way is it possible to decouple the relationship between workload and sales result. Digital products such as texts, e-books, images, videos or software have this property and are therefore ideally suited for use as a product for passive income.

The next step is to find sales processes that can be automated. After all, as a self-employed person, you don’t want to sell your book (if we go by above example) yourself, but rather be able to distribute it automatically without your direct involvement. The Internet serves as an excellent automated sales channel. The management consultant could sell his e-book fully automatically via his own website, with every process step being digitally mapped: from acquisition via online marketing to sales initiation on the website to payment processing and e-book download.

The automated sale of a digital product via your own website can already generate passive income, but this requires the implementation of appropriate online marketing measures, for example with Google AdWords or Facebook Ads . The creation of such campaigns costs time, money and is not an easy matter for the inexperienced. For this reason, the third success factor with passive income is the use of an existing range of potential customers. Internet marketplaces such as Amazon or Fotolia (selling photographs) are predestined for this: Millions of people can be reached through them without having to invest a cent in marketing.

Examples of passive income

But enough of the theory. The following examples are among the most widespread and most successful implementations of the passive income principle:

  • Becoming an author: Selling books and e-books
  • Selling photos and video clips: Success with online marketplace for photos
  • Templates and construction kits: passive income for web designers and developers
  • Successful through online advertising and affiliate income

Becoming an author: Selling books and e-books: Let’s be honest. Who wouldn’t want to publish a book? As part of the passive income, the self-employed now have the opportunity to make this dream come true. The main effort lies in the writing of the book, a reproduction is relatively cheap. E-books as digital goods can easily be multiplied. All processes are outsourced inexpensively through production and distribution via self-publishing, so that in the end the e-book and print version can be automatically sold via Amazon.

And for whom is the book concept suitable? Ultimately, it comes into question for all those who have accumulated special specialist knowledge in a field and can put this into words accordingly. Management consultants, web designers, doctors but also craftsmen with specialist knowledge and a good writing style can generate passive income in this way. The great thing about it, by publishing a book, you create a brand for yourself and position yourself as an expert in a certain area. This can lead to appearances in various media, which in turn strengthen your own brand and generate additional orders.

Sell photos and video clips: Success with online marketplace for photos: Photographers, cameramen or motion designers can take advantage of the digital properties of their products by selling them to a large number of different customers from all over the world instead of the usual one to just one customer. On online marketplaces for photographs and moving images, such as Fotolia or Shutterstock, artists can post their works and offer them for sale worldwide. Once you as a photographer have built up a certain portfolio with high-quality images, an attractive passive income can be generated.

Passive income for web designers and developers: Self-employed web designers and programmers are usually paid on an hourly basis. If you want to earn more, you have to acquire additional customers and do extra work. Fortunately, the concept of passive income is particularly suitable for the software industry. By developing website templates for well-known content management systems such as WordPress, TYPO3 or Joomla, a web designer can sell one-time work to a large number of customers. As a sales channel, he either uses his own website or uses marketplaces with an existing reach that have focused on the sale of website templates.

The programmer can also take advantage of marketplaces by bringing his developed WordPress plugins, Java classes or shop modules to the man there. But the development of Android or iOS apps and their sale via the respective app stores, possibly also as part of a freemium model, can generate attractive passive income with a corresponding added customer value.

Successful with online advertising and affiliate income: Are you an expert in a field and have unique knowledge? With the appropriate content and a little know-how in search engine optimization , you can find a source of passive income via your own website or blog by using advertising banners or for your visitorsPlace affiliate links on your website. In order to generate attractive income, the number of daily website visitors should be at least 1,000 – this is usually only possible after a year at the earliest. It is therefore important to show perseverance with this type of passive income.

Even college students can generate passive income.  Are you a college student?  Click here to learn about passive income opportunities for college students.

Get rich with passive income?

If you have understood the concept of passive income, it is best to get to work straight away. Because for a successful passive income stream some time and work will be necessary. The belief that passive income means turnover without work is therefore wrong. Especially at the beginning, a lot of energy has to be invested in the development of a product that has the properties necessary for passive income and also offers potential customers real benefits . Only when the product has been created and all processes have been automated can you at least lean back a little and hopefully celebrate your first successes.

But can real wealth be accumulated with the concept of passive income? In principle, this is certainly possible. A few, such as successful author Timothy Ferriss, who describes his approach in the book “The 4-Hour Week”, have made it to a successful entrepreneur with passive income. However, this remains the exception. The concept of passive income should not be considered the unprecedented Path to Wealth, but rather as a new, efficient tool for the self-employed, in which working time can be used more efficiently and in accordance with the current state of technology, so that more time remains for the important things in life.

Alternatives to passive income

Do you like the idea of passive income? In the following, I present two more concepts that make it possible to generate additional income with the same amount of work:

Passive income through growth

If you are already self-employed as a freelancer or business owner, you can generate additional income without any additional effort, given the corresponding order situation. By hiring employees , you can take on additional jobs that should earn you more than the new employees cost you. Growing your own company is therefore an attractive opportunity to receive passive income.

Generate passive income with seminars and lectures

Even if the concept of passive income is not entirely correct here: If you, as an expert on a certain topic, have a lot of know-how, then you should pass your knowledge on to others. You can reach a large number of customers at the same time through paid lectures or seminars, but you only have to do your work once. In addition, you strengthen your personal brand at the same time and can enforce higher hourly rates for individual orders.

And now let’s get down to work – I wish you every success in building your passive income stream!


About the Author

Aabhas Vijay is a seasoned entrepreneur and digital marketer, who loves to explore tricks and tips on how a business can use a free SMTP to automate most of the user interaction and increase his passive income.

Outside Of SEO, Why Is Your Content Gold?

StrategyDriven Online Marketing and Website Development Article |SEO|Outside Of SEO, Why Is Your Content Gold?It’s impossible nowadays to launch your online presence without considering the importance of SEO – Search Engine Optimization – in your business growth. Indeed, mastering the art of boosting your SERP ranking — aka your ranking in the search engine result pages – can substantially influence web traffic. Search engines such as Google and Bing prefer content-rich sites that diversify their content and update it regularly to reflect on current trends.

Ideally, blogs are one of the most effective tools when it comes to creating keyword-targeted content.

Content, as a result, is the key to your SEO strategy and, by extension, your digital visibility. Creating new and informative content has become a major marketing strategy for any business trying to leverage their online presence. It’s not uncommon, as a result, to design a content plan that addresses major primary, secondary, and long-tail keywords to maintain your presence in a constantly changing market. However, you’d be wrong to assume that content only matters to support your SEO strategy. Content, as it happens, is a crucial factor of growth for your entire business. Here’s everything content can transform that isn’t SEO-related.

It establishes your reputation

While your products are your main offering, your content is the closest your audience can get to understand your brand. Therefore, ensuring you push your content online, not only on your website but also on social media platforms can help to build your brand reputation. Indeed, your audience uses online platforms such as Twitter and Facebook to interact with businesses – it’s the favorite channel when it comes to customer care inquiries and complaints. As a result, it’s fair to say that your social media posts are considered with great interest. Not only can you engage in direct interactions with your audience, but you can also launch a campaign to share your latest updates. Your choice of hashtags is detrimental to reaching out to a broad audience and establishing your reputation. Additionally, your attitude and behavior on social media are public, which means that the way you choose to share content online can affect your brand image too.

It generates passive income

If you’re an established blogger or digital influencer, you understand that content is money. Indeed, a youtube affiliate, for instance, use their content creation as part of their traffic strategy. Creating videos that appeal to a broad audience can maximize their channel subscriptions – aka the number of active and loyal followers – and views. It’s important to understand that users don’t need to follow a channel to watch its content. The affiliate network can share both the subscription volume and viewer number with businesses that are looking for advertising partners. The collaboration typically defines the affiliate earning by considering the total number of views each video receives. Therefore, building an informative and popular portal of content can indirectly create a stream of passive income through affiliate activities.

It showcases your expertise

Very few experts can claim they don’t worry about competition in their niche. Showcasing your expertise when you’re one of many other market players can be challenging. While success stories and portfolios can help to display your skills, they may not be enough. Ultimately, nothing seems more suspicious of potential leads than reading testimonials from your past clients. What evidence is there that those clients are real or that you’re as good as they say you are? None and as such, most digitally-savvy users tend to ignore testimonials – these are, after all, very easy to fake. However, you can publish your opinions, tips, and case studies online to attract your audience. Guest articles on a popular blog, for instance, are an ideal ice-breaker to reach out to a new audience. You can even consider creating tutorials or online courses to share your knowledge.

It gives your website depth

Sure, you might have a responsive web design, but what good does it do if you don’t have enough content? For a web visitor, reaching a site that feels content-light or that hasn’t been updated with new content leaves a poor impression. Most visitors judge your business by your site. If you don’t provide enough informative background – about the business and its expertise – people tend to be reluctant to purchase. Your content gives an additional dimension to your company, turning the online presence into a professional and trustworthy organization.

Content is at the heart of your business growth. It builds your online visibility through SEO ranking, but that’s not all it does. High-quality content can help to establish your brand and showcase your expertise. Additionally, you can use your content to support your affiliate marketing income. Finally, content brings trustworthiness to your online presence.

How I’m Retiring In Style and How You Can Do It Too

StrategyDriven Entrepreneurship Article |Retirement Planning|How I’m Retiring In Style and How You Can Do It TooToday I am one of a small group of investors that owns several Commercial Real Estate (CRE) properties valued at over $50 million.

The First Leap to Financial Freedom: Starting my own business

In August of 2003, I made the great leap into the unknown when I went into business for myself. It turned out that starting Marshall Commercial Funding was the single best career decision I have ever made.

Financially, things changed quickly and dramatically.

For the first time in my life I was making good money. I was able to sock away money into savings which was good because we all know what happened in 2008 – The Great Recession. I was able to weather the economic storm because I had enough money in savings to make it until the real estate market turned the corner. And when the economy improved I was able to pick up right where I left off before the recession hit.

The Second Leap to Financial Freedom: CRE Investing

So in 2007 I made the next biggest and most financially rewarding leap in my career. I approached one of my long-time clients to see if I could invest with him.

He had everything I was looking for in a real estate sponsor: He was competent, he was trustworthy and he had a proven track record. I asked him if he would be willing to take me on as an investor when he purchased his next rental property and he readily agreed.

Do you remember where the real estate market was in 2007? It was at the absolute peak of the last real estate market cycle. My timing couldn’t have been any worse. Nevertheless, I have invested with him nine times.

Retiring In Style Is My Goal

Today, not only could I retire at this very moment, I could retire comfortably. I don’t know about you, but I don’t want to retire comfortably. I want to retire in style. I want to see and do all the things I’ve always dreamt of.

Currently I have seven sources of passive income generated from my real estate investments. I estimate if I wait a few more years I may have as many as two or three additional sources of passive income. And when the passive income from my rental properties coupled with my future Social Security checks consistently and significantly exceed my monthly personal expenses, then and only then, do I plan to retire.

At that point I’ll be able to retire in style. And although I haven’t quite gotten their yet, I’m ever so close to doing so.

If I can do it, so can you!

Why am I telling you about my journey from financial distress to hopefully retiring in style? Because I believe that 90% of you reading this, if not more, are in the same predicament I was in. You’re either currently in financial distress, as I was for the first 24 years of my CRE career, or you are financially prosperous but realize that unless things change dramatically you’re not going to retire well.

I’m here to emphatically tell you if I can go from serious financial distress to being on the verge of financial freedom, SO CAN YOU!

Follow the Road Map to Financial Freedom

Simply put, by investing in commercial real estate you can slowly, but steadily build real wealth and grow passive income from your rental properties. It’s not a myth. And it’s not a get rich quick scheme. It actually works.


About the Author

StrategyDriven Entrepreneurship Article |Passive Income|How I’m Retiring In Style and How You Can Do It TooDoug Marshall, CCIM, founded Marshall Commercial Funding, Inc., a commercial mortgage brokerage firm located in Portland, Oregon in 2003. He has more than four decades in the commercial real estate business. His new book is Mastering the Art of Commercial Real Estate Investing: How to Successfully Build Wealth & Grow Passive Income from Your Rental Properties. For more information visit: www.Marshallcf.com.