If you were laid of due to the coronavirus quarantine, if you had to close your business, or you have fewer work hours and consequently less income, how will you make money?
My work hours have also decreased, which means a lower pay. I’m grateful, though, that I still have work. Instead of teaching in school, I now teach online. Despite this, I still lost two classes.
How Can You Make Extra Money?
There are several options. Some may provide you with some extra cash while others could supplement your income a great deal. Here are the three best ways to make money on your free time (which we have an abundance of nowadays).
- Surveys
- Write articles on Medium
- Affiliate marketing
Surveys
They will not make you rich. Surveys can get you a little extra cash, some pocket money to buy medicine or other necessary items. Let’s hope we won’t need them.
I don’t recommend surveys a lot, because they can be time-consuming, restricted to certain countries, and sometimes you answer several questions only to find out that you don’t qualify for that particular survey. Can you earn a few extra bucks with this? Yes, you can, just don’t expect loads of money.
There are many survey platforms, too many to list, but which ones are actually worth it? Swagbucks is definitely one of them. It has a very interactive home page and there are several ways to make money. Basically, you get Swagbucks (reward points) for filling out surveys, and doing other activities.
Besides surveys, what other activities does Swagbucks reward you for?
You could also watch videos and get Swagbucks for it, yes, just for watching videos. Sounds good, doesn’t it? Searching the web with their toolbar (which you will have to install) also earns you points.
The home page always indicates how many Swagbucks you have. They can be redeemed for gift cards or cash.
Medium
If you love to write, you can publish articles on medium.com and get paid for it. Medium is a great site where people can share articles or short stories. This platform has over 60 million active users – readers and writers. The good thing about Medium is that it gives your article or story great exposure. Subscribers also get a Medium weekly digest sent to their emails. Having your article featured in that newsletter is another great opportunity to get exposure.
You can get paid for your articles. You just need to set up your profile, and indicate your payment settings, and you’re all set. However, – and this the one thing I don’t like about Medium – payment is restricted to some countries. They use Stripe to pay their writers and Stripe has a list of supported countries. If your country is not on that list, you can still write articles, but you won’t get paid for it …
Stripe apparently only supports 31 countries. If you’d like to know whether your country is included, you can check in this link.
Affiliate Marketing
This is what I recommend the most. Although it may take time before you start earning money, once you start making an income, affiliate marketing can turn into a lucrative side and even main business. There are many success stories of people who did so well that they ended up leaving their day jobs.
It may sound daunting to some. Affiliate marketing includes setting up a website and connecting with sales platforms, but creating a website nowadays is easier than you think. In fact, you can do it in under a minute.
==> Find out how to set up a website in this free lesson <==
Then, you write content and build your audience. Finally, you insert affiliate links, and if someone clicks on your link and buys a product, you can earn a commission. Even if the customer buys something you did not promote, but gets there by clicking through to other products via your link, you can still earn a commission. Sweet, isn’t it?
If you’d like to find out more, click on my previous article in which I explain more about affiliate marketing.
Final Thoughts
Of course, there are other ways to make money online. We have all heard of MLM’s (also known as pyramid schemes), YouTube, etc. While MLM’s certainly work for many, it is not always easy to get your recruits, and frankly, I’m not a huge fan of them. The three platforms I reviewed here can surely make you money. Just remember, surveys won’t make you rich 😉 They can be fun though, and now that we’re all stuck in the house, we can use a little entertainment, right?
YouTube is also a wonderful platform. You need to get lots of likes and subscribers, and once you have achieved 1000 subscribers, you can monetize your YouTube account. Pretty cool, right?
Now that we are all staying indoors (and please do, stay safe and healthy, OK) we have plenty of time on our hands to write articles on Medium, and also to dabble in affiliate marketing. Why not? Create your website right now and see it take shape in under a minute.
If you have any questions about Swagbucks, Medium, or affiliate marketing, please let me know.
I would definetely choose Affiliate Marketing, it gives you the chance to get paid multiple times for something that you did only once, it educates you to be an entrepreneur and gives you a chance to run multiple businesses, receiving a lot of passive incomes. Doing more and more work instead of collecting, it uses multiplying, which is the best thing!
Well said, Victor! That’s what I would choose too 🙂
Interesting post. Everyone likes to make money, especially not making your free time just be a lost, but rather be a gain of money making. Nice researched Post, that highlights on the how process of accomplishing such dreams. There are enormous ways as to how to come by this procedure. I for one enjoy affiliate marketing, its one of the best means to achieve it. Thanks for sharing.
Thank you! Yes. I agree 🙂 Affiliate marketing is a good means to achieve financial freedom.
I have spent some time doing surveys and it works for my downtime, but I agree that it isn’t going to make anyone rich. I think of it as gas money, or money to be put back into my website. I haven’t heard of Medium before, though. I love to write, so do you have any idea how much a consistent writer could make using the platform?
Affiliate marketing sounds like a great way to go and the earnings potential seems really good! Thanks for writing this up!
Hi Steve
On Medium your article earns money every time a reader “claps” for it, so basically giving it a like. The more claps you get, the higher your income. Not every article earns money and many are not noticed, but there are writers who have made a few thousand dollars with it. It’s a finicky system though, to get noticed.
Well Done. I enjoy what you have written, and the fact that you did not OVERwrite. Everything was to the point. I have tried the survey route and got discouraged when I would get halfway through one, then be dismissed because I am a female, or too old/young, or caucasian (not sure). Love what you have offered on further input on WA. Have been over thinking this SEO thing, and I appreciate what you had to share. I feel so blessed to have found this platform and the community here. I plan on keeping you bookmarked for further research.
I also really appreciate that you are encouraging people to write. I was very hesitant on getting started here and any input you care to share would be so greatly appreciated.
Love, Light and Blessings, GField aka Surina
Hi Surina!
Yes, the survey route sometimes takes you to many “not qualified” roundabouts, wasting valuable time. Thank you for bookmarking my page and becoming a frequent visitor. 🙂 Feel free to check out my other articles about SEO and writing.
Have a great day!
Hi Christine,
Thanks for sharing with us for these three ways to make money from home since we all got more free time due to the impact of Covid-19, right?
I never know that writing articles on Medium that brings extra income, although I read articles on this platform. Sometimes, the articles I read on Medium are highly valuable too. But, my favorite is just like your last proposal – affiliate marketing.
In the first few years, there might not be little positive results. Once it is rocketing, it would support your daily expenses or make you quit your 9-5 jobs. So, I think I will stick to it and keep working hard for my online success.
Besides having a correct mindset about affiliate marketing, do you have other essential mindsets to share with us if we like to pursue a career with it?
Cheers,
Matt
Hi Matt,
Thank you for your thoughtful comment! I would say that it’s important to be patient and stay positive. Rewards will come eventially in affiliate marketing. Every business needs time to take of. Rome wasn’t built in one day.
Hi Christine! I have enjoyed reading your article, as I started out my online journey with completing surveys…..until I found Wealthy Affiliate, which you are also promoting. I think, comitting all of my free time to affiliate marketing does make more sense than doing surveys, isn’t it? How long did it take you in order to earn your first commission in writing about affiliate marketing, if I may ask? Did it take long? I appreciate setting up an own website and staying true to it, and as far as I know, it’s the best way in order to create a full-time business….please give me some tips or tricks about the topic, I am always curious, also about how a professional writer like you is doing affiliate marketing and blogging. Thank you very much, Fabian
Hi Fabian,
I agree that affiliate marketing is more worthwile than filling in surveys. Feel free to check my website for any other articles. I have written about several tools that come in handy for affiliate marketing. It is still a journey of discovery for me, but rewards are now finally coming in. Anyone can do affiliate marketing, you just need to stick with it 🙂
Hi Christine
You have come up with some good ways of earning some money at this worrying time of great uncertainty. With so many people not knowing where the next paycheck is coming from. I also think that survey websites are a waste of time and effort, for the reasons you have stated. I think companies get a lot of information for very little reward and often they make unsubstantiated claims of large paying surveys, which you never seem to get. I think that affiliate marketing is the way to go, as you can start making money, once you put the effort in. MLMs I personally hate them as they often make money for the owners and nothing for people on the bottom rung of the ladder.
Thank you for helping people to keep motivated at this difficult time.
Thanks
Antonio
Hi Antonio,
I also think that many survey sites make grand claims of big paying surveys which you often can’t finish because after several questions you suddenly “don’t qualify”. I gave up on surveys a long time ago 😉
Now are certainly trying times, and I hope that people will get some ideas from this article, maybe it can help find a way to make some money.
Wow! This topic is very interesting. Thank you so much for sharing this suggestive article with us. Currently the pandemic is COVID-19 snd now we are all spending leisure time at home. You have shared with us three ways to make money using this free time. Multilevel marketing can make a lot of money based on online platforms. If you like to write, you can earn money by writing different articles and making videos on YouTube channels. But affiliate marketing is really great and there is a lot of potential to earn money. I am really inspired to read your article and share your article with my friends. Good luck.
Hi!
Thank you for your comment! I’m glad this article was useful to you 🙂
Hello,
Thanks for sharing your bog “How to Make Money On My Free Time. I like the fact that you touch on surveys, writing articles on Medium, and Affiliate Marketing. I had not heard of Medium; it seems like something I would be interested in exploring. Affiliate Marketing seems like a great resource, as well. I will be taking a closer look at these resources that you provided. You provided great information Thanks again for sharing!
Best Regards,
Audrey
Hi Audrey!
If you like writing, then Medium is a good place to explore. Thank you for your comment!
Hello Christine. I have my own website and I can definitely testify that this is not easy work but if you stick with it then it can be very rewarding work. You also feel great when you know that you have posted a great post and that you are putting something positive into the world. It is also great that you can get paid to do this too. Wealthy affiliate is a great start because it is a cheap sign up and you have a free week trial. That week trial you learn so much and you are set up great to make money online and to spread a helpful positive message at the same time.
Hi Eric,
True, if you stick with it, it can be very rewarding work. I agree. Wealthy Affiliate is a great start, and sign up is free. Like you, I also learned so much in only my first week. With everything I had learned, the support and training tools, becoming a Premium member was a no-brainer 🙂
Hello thanks for this review.affiliate marketing sounds like a great way to go and the earning potential is really good.currently because of the pandemic Covid 19 we have been spending leisure time at home and it’s good that we can actually make money through the three ways you have listed out.thanks for writing this up.
Hello Martha,
I’m glad you found this article useful 🙂 Thanks for your comment!
Thank you for your post. It is a timely article for many. Now I am working at time and never leave home due to the coronavirus and try to prevent the virus infection. I have a lot of time and sometimes I feel bored.
You bring the brilliant idea that using the time to make some extra money. I like your suggestions on Medium, which sounds an attractive program. I love writing, but in the normal situation I have no time, now I can exercise passion on writing and publish my article on Medium and make some money.
I live in US and Stripe is available. I am definitely going to try this program.
Hi Anthony,
That’s great. Medium is a good site for writing articles and stories. And it has many readers.