It’s a gig economy, everyone says. But if using your car to taxi people around town isn’t your idea of a fun way to make some extra money, and you don’t want to rent out your home to strangers, there are other ways to make some cold hard cash. In fact, you can make money on your computer without ever leaving your chair.
But, alas, unless you’re creating an online business, many of the websites that offer ways to make a quick buck will make you little more than a buck. Still, if you’re looking for some reputable, ethical ways to make some extra money online, consider some of these tactics.
[See: 8 Easy Ways to Make Money.]
Become an online juror. We all like to judge other people, right? Seriously, though, there are websites that let you help lawyers get an idea of what an actual jury will think of a case. For instance, you could sign up at the website Online Verdict. If you’re chosen by an attorney, you’ll get a case file to review, and you’ll offer your feedback. You’ll later receive a check in the mail between $20 to $60, depending on the complexity of the case and the time expected to answer questions (generally between 20 and 60 minutes). You need to be 18, a U.S. citizen and not a felon.
Other websites to check out: ejury.com, jurytest.net and jurytalk.com.
Get paid for testing websites. You’re probably going to notice a trend with making extra money online. You often don’t make a lot of money. Still, you may want to check out User Testing. You get paid $10 for about 10 to 20 minutes of work, doing various tasks you’re told to do, like visiting a website and clicking through different pages, often voice recording what you like and dislike about the site.
Other websites to check out: testingtime.com and userfeel.com.
Take some online surveys. Swagbucks is probably the most well-known of these websites. You take surveys and watch videos in exchange for points that can be redeemed for gift cards or cash sent to you via PayPal. But before you get too excited, nobody seems to get much through Swagbucks or any of the websites listed below. When you have bloggers writing that they’re earning $5 gift cards through these sites after a month of taking online surveys, well, you begin to get the picture. Still, it may be worth trying.
Other websites to check out: mysurvey.com, i-Say.com and opinionoutpost.com.
[See: How to Invest in Dividend Funds.]
Get some passive income. Nielsen, the company that measures TV ratings for networks, also analyzes internet use, and if you’re willing to download its Nielsen Computer & Mobile Panel app, you can earn up to $50 a year for just surfing the web online like you usually do. You may want to note, “up to $50 a year.” You may not earn that much. Still, all you have to do is download the app and not mind the company knowing what websites you go to and how long you’re there. Nielsen’s website promises the information won’t be used to sell or market products to you, and you can earn entries into the company’s sweepstakes and possibly win cash prizes.
Other websites to check out: You could look at some online brokerages and have money automatically withdrawn from your bank account to be invested into annuities or money market funds. It may not seem as much fun as filling out a survey, or getting paid to surf the internet, but it is a way to make passive income.
Complete simple tasks for money. Mechanical Turk is a website where you can sign up and do simple tasks, like data entry or other menial work, for money. It’s also part of the worldwide machine known as Amazon.com. Generally, users report making pennies for many of these tasks, but some bloggers claim to be making a couple hundred dollars a week. Obviously, it depends on how much time you’re willing to put into doing the work that’s available.
Other websites to check out: You may want to look up EasyShift, although earning any money means leaving the computer. You download their app and find easy tasks to do and get paid for, but the tasks involve you leaving your home and going shopping. For instance, you might be asked to go to a nearby supermarket and take a photo of how the store stocks a certain brand on the shelves. Bloggers report the website pays around $2 to $5 for most tasks, with a bit more if the task is more complicated. Still, if you were going to the store, anyway …
[See: 10 Money Mistakes New Grads Make.]
Make some videos and get money for it. You could be the next YouTube star — or an Amazon star, ever since Amazon Video Direct came along a little over a year ago. Now, this is harder than it looks, but some people manage to make money without leaving their computer or going far from it. They post videos of themselves simply being engaging with the camera; explaining a challenging concept or providing entertainment. People watch, and you get paid. But it’s harder than it looks because a lot of people need to watch in order for you to make any meaningful money. For instance, with YouTube, if you set it up so that advertisements can be watched before your videos, you’ll earn $1 to $3 for every thousand views. Even if you have a thousand friends or people who follow you on social media, and if all of them watched one of your videos, that may only be three bucks. How are you going to convince another thousand people to watch your video? And another thousand? Unless you can quickly build a brand for yourself, this won’t be very profitable.
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6 Ways to Make Money Online originally appeared on usnews.com
