If you want to start making money online, it’s important to consider how you’ll build an audience and find ways to monetize that audience. Whether you’re using social media, blogging, or another tactic, there are plenty of opportunities to make money online in 2022—but you need to work hard, show up consistently, and be willing to explore multiple income streams. This guide will tell you how.
Starting Point
Consider learning a new online skill or honing an existing one. Even if you don’t have a background in software development, for example, there are plenty of resources available online to help you learn how to code; there’s no excuse not to take advantage of that. Another idea is building your own e-commerce site from scratch (like many bloggers do). Even if it doesn’t become a big revenue driver for you, it can be a great learning experience and show off your talents. And, if nothing else, selling your own products can be great motivation for people who are trying out different business ideas as they work on perfecting their skills and/or try to find clients.
Traffic Generation Strategies
In 2010, an estimated 64 percent of internet users had a social networking profile and by 2012, that number was 77 percent. If you're looking for ways to make money online in 2022, you should definitely consider leveraging social media as part of your solution. Facebook still maintains its status as king of social networks with more than 1 billion active users. There are plenty of other powerful networks out there, though; one strategy is to build up an audience on several different networks instead of just one.
Growing an Audience
If you're looking for an easy way to make money online, one of your best bets is also one of the oldest and most straightforward. Social media influencers get paid based on their reach, so building up an audience can be a quick, low-cost way to turn your passion into a paycheck. (You'll never pay more than a few cents per post.) Our tip: Have authentic conversations with people and provide useful (i.e., real) information. How do you know what people want? Ask them! If there's something you can deliver that they're not getting anywhere else -- which takes some original thinking -- you could be onto something.
Boosting Engagement with UGC
When you create useful, valuable content on your website, customers feel comfortable sharing it with their peers because they know you aren’t trying to sell them something or steal their information. This is called user-generated content (UGC) and can help grow your audience, boost engagement, and drive brand awareness through social media channels. If your site includes a Q&A section or forum where people can engage with one another and provide advice, UGC offers an excellent way for existing customers to demonstrate authority on certain topics and increase conversion rates. Companies like Quora and Reddit are making money by helping people generate their own content.
Monetizing Your Audience
If you already have an audience, monetizing it can be incredibly rewarding. There are countless ways to do so (sponsorship, advertising, affiliate marketing), but make sure you fully understand each model and how it works before jumping into any strategy. Each model has its own benefits and pitfalls, so choose wisely! One of our favorite strategies is sponsorships—they’re easy to sell (you don’t need much more than a brand logo) and easy for your audience to understand. More importantly, they’re easy for your audience members to take action on—putting money in their pockets with just a few clicks!
Other Ways to Monetize an Audience
If you want to make money online, there are several other ways you can do so. You could publish an e-book or report and make money selling it on your website, create a membership website for monthly subscription fees, or write something free on Medium (like a starter guide) that gets tons of social shares and then sell related products from your own site. You’ll find many different business models on CreativeLive’s marketplace. If you’re not sure which way is best for you, have a chat with a member of our team – we would love to help!
Focusing on Quality over Quantity
While it’s true that quantity can bring you profit, many new sellers have a difficult time focusing on quality over quantity. They churn out loads of products and worry about quality control later. This is a huge mistake because there is no better way to earn returns than by selling something you know is going to sell—and can be sold with ease. As soon as you begin focusing on creating high-quality products, your buyers will know they’re in good hands, they’ll purchase more, and they may even tell their friends or write reviews for your product!
Investing Back into Your Audience
Creating a product is one of your most effective ways to make money online, but only if you can get people interested in it. You can invest back into your audience by using affiliate links and ads. Here’s how it works. Let’s say you sell dog treats and somebody buys through your affiliate link on Amazon. Amazon will pay you, say, $1.50 (or 15% of that). But if you give an additional 15% off your order when people use your affiliate link (which is common with many companies), then you have just added $0.30 more for every purchase of dog treats sold!