How to Make Money Online for Beginners

How to Make Money Online for Beginners
Our guide on how to make money online for beginners includes ventures like eCommerce, dropshipping, NFTs, and selling products online.

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If you’re looking to start a small business, an online store or just looking to make some extra cash, this guide to how to make money online for beginners will show you the different options.

There are many options available to you. Today, you can make money simply using your laptop, an internet connection a great idea and some hard work. But how? Admittedly, it is a little more involved than that. To explain, we look at how to make money online for beginners in the below article.

In this guide to how to make money online for beginners…

Start an eCommerce store

Perhaps you have a product or service that you wish to sell. For example, you might paint, create art, or make handmade gifts. Traditionally, to sell your products, you would need a storefront or some physical outlet for point of sale interactions.

Today you can simply sell your products and/or services online! This is due to the revelation of platforms like Shopify, Wix and Squarespace. These are all website builders that also have an eCommerce functionality. Using a platform like Shopify, you can create a website with a fully-functioning online store.

This includes payment processing and often things like inventory management. The store builders are usually easy to use and have great features. For example, with a Shopify store, you can add product discounts and customise the appearance of your product pages.

This could be a great way to make money online if you make products or can sell a service.

Drop Shipping

One of the main issues with creating a business is the overheads and investment to get started. If you want to sell a product, there are many things you need. This could include a warehouse for distribution, a storefront to sell your products, and a facility to make the products.

Dropshipping effectively negates these costs and needs. Dropshipping is the process of selling someone else’s products for them. You are essentially the point of sale and are simply responsible for the marketing and sales transactions. The manufacturer does everything else. This drastically reduces your costs.

There are many drop shipping suppliers for UK clients that specialise in this process. You can form arrangements with them and set rates etc. They make the product, you create the online storefront and sell the product for them – you take a percentage of the sale as commission. Simple.

The main barrier with drop shipping is finding the right type of products and suppliers. It is also incredibly competitive and can be difficult to break into.

Affiliate Marketing

Affiliate marketing is a similar concept to drop shipping. However, you are not directly selling the products/services via an online store. Instead, you are simply creating links to products/services and including them in your online content.

Blogging, and affiliate marketing websites are the most common platforms for this type of online business. Many people create specialist blogs on subjects they are knowledgeable about. Within these blogs, they may include affiliate links to Amazon products that they can earn commission from.

Alternatively, there are businesses that also create information websites that provide guides and useful tools to customers. For example, if you are knowledgeable about fishing, you could create a fishing affiliate website where you create guides on the best fishing rods or the best types of bait.

Within these articles, you would recommend products and provide affiliate links to them to make a commission on.

This type of business can be highly successful, but it often requires SEO knowledge and marketing expertise.

Freelancing

There are many online platforms today that specialise in freelance work. Freelancing is essentially where you are hired temporarily by a company to provide a service for them.

Popular freelancing platforms include UpWork, Toptal, Freelancer, and SimplyHired. Some platforms specialise in set industries. However, platforms like UpWork offer a wide variety of digital work. This includes content creation, writing, admin, sales, web design, graphic design, and accounting, for example.

The premise of such platforms involves the freelancer and the hiring company. As a freelancer, you browse the platform and apply for suitable jobs you think you would like to do. This usually involves submitting a job application, together with your proposed rates and experience.

The hiring company creates their job description and outlines what they want from the freelancer. They can then hire individuals to complete the work and pay them when the job is done. This is a great way to make money online, particularly if you have a skill like writing, accounting, or web design.

Forex Trading

Different countries use different currencies. Each currency has its own value when priced against other international currencies. These form currency pairs and are the basis of Forex trading. This is the trading of currency pairs such as USD/EUR, USD/GBP, and GBP/EUR.

People buy and sell currencies and benefit from the fluctuations in prices. The relative value of currencies changes due to changing economic climates, world events, and things like economic booms or recessions. For example, at the time of writing this article, 1 Pound Sterling is equal to 1.35 United States Dollars (GBP/USD). Tomorrow, or even within the next hour, that price could have increased or decreased.

The aim with Forex is to purchase currency when its value drops, and then sell it for a profit when the value has increased. There are many online Forex trading platforms available that allow you to do this. Popular platforms include FXCM, Plus500, City Index, and XTB. 

Crypto Trading

One of the most exciting types of trading currently available is cryptocurrency trading. Cryptocurrencies are digital currencies usually based on blockchain technology. They can be used for a variety of things and many cryptocurrencies are accepted for making online payments.

However, cryptocurrencies are also mainly used for trading and speculation. This is because their prices can fluctuate wildly. Prices can swing by huge percentages in days. As a result, this can lead to some incredible financial gains. On the flip side, prices can also drop by huge amounts and result in major losses.

There are many crypto exchanges and trading platforms available. Many of these platforms like Binance, and Coinbase offer simple trading tools that beginners can use. Using these platforms, you could make money by trading cryptocurrencies. Please be warned that cryptocurrency trading is highly volatile, however.

Stocks, Shares and Commodities Trading

The original type of trading compared to Forex and Crypto is also highly accessible in the online world. We are of course talking about stocks, shares, and commodities. Traditionally, to trade in stocks and shares, you would need to set up an account or ISA with a bank or speak to a trading expert. This was often a lengthy process and did not give you great control over your investments or assets.

However, you can now easily trade in stocks, shares, and commodities online. There are many online brokers that allow you to trade in these assets with low fees. Examples include Fidelity Investments, Merrill Edge, Hargreaves Lansdown, and Interactive Brokers.

There is also a new emerging generation of trading apps. These are apps you can download for your smartphone that allow you to trade on the go. Popular examples include eToro and Trading 212.

Trading in stocks and shares can lead to a regular side income from dividends and fluctuations in share prices. However, we urge caution with this type of investing you can also lose money.

NFT Trading

NFTs are Non-Fungible Tokens. They are digital assets that can be traded on different platforms. Typically, NFTs are bought, sold, and traded on the blockchain. This makes them incredibly secure as there is non-repudiation of data. The blockchain shows proof of transactions and ownership.

In recent years, NFTs have exploded in popularity. They come in many shapes, designs, types, styles, and collections. Many of them are collectable items that appeal to collectors, or fans of specific genres/industries.

For example, one of the most popular NFTs is NBA Top Shot. This is an ever-expanding collection of official NBA basketball “moments” – digital video footage from actual NBA games. These NFTs can sell for tens of thousands and are highly collectable. Other popular collectable NFTs include Cryptopunks, The Board Ape Yacht Club, and Ballerz. 

If you enjoy collecting and gaming, entering the world of NFTs could be a great option. If you pick the right NFT and get in at the right time, it can also be lucrative.

How to make money online for beginners – summary

As you can see, it is possible to make money online in a variety of ways. These are merely the different methods available, however. If you want to pursue one of these options, you must be willing to do plenty of research. 

You must also be willing to put in hard work, effort, and time. Don’t be fooled by the various adverts and websites claiming that you can make thousands each day with minimum effort. That isn’t the reality. You can make plenty of money online, but it is something that you will have to work at. Also, there are associated risks, and there is no guarantee that you will be successful.

If this guide on how to make money online for beginners helped you, please recommend DigitalSupermarket.

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