Full sizeMobile Gigs and Online Rewards Programs
Full size
You can also earn some beer money with your mobile phone by doing simple gigs while you're out and about. Previously mentioned Gigwalk is one example, paying from $3 to $90 for tasks, such as mystery shopping, taking photos of parking lots, testing mobile apps, and so on. You just need an iPhone or an Android device. If you can't find any gigs on Gigwalk, there are several other options in this "mobile taskforce" marketplace, such as Field Agent or Easy Shift (both only iPhone only right now).
If you don't mind being paid in rewards like gift cards, you can try previously mentioned CheckPoints or similar Shopkick mobile rewards programs (both on iOS and Android). Bing Rewards is an easy way to get stuff like gift cards and Xbox Live credits. All you have to do is search with Bing.
This post on Reddit's beermoney subreddit offers a list of rewards programs you can join that require only about 5 to 10 minutes of your time per task. They seem to pay only about a few bucks or in rewards credits.
Microjobs
The
"microjobs" marketplace—for short, one-off tasks—is booming now. In
addition to Gigwalk and the mobile gigs above, there are many other microjobs you can do online. Fiverr,
for example, pays you $5 for doing any kind of simple online task that
someone will pay for. You can list your own services or reply to service
requests. I've used Fiverr to get audio files transcribed on the cheap;
you could sell (or outsource) other small jobs such as proofreading a one page document, customizing a Wordpress template, or even impersonating a famous character in a custom video message. Gigbucks and TaskRabbit
(which includes offline jobs as well) are two alternatives where you
can pick up miscellaneous jobs. These microjobs pay from $5 to about $50
and typically take less than an hour to do.For More Recurring Part-Time Cash: Sell Your Skills or Start a Low-Maintenance Side Business
Microjob services can net you some pocket money, but they don't tend to offer regular, recurring deposits into your bank account (although some people do microjobs as their only source of income). For more regular side pay, you'll need to get more entrepreneurial.Freelance from Home
What are your marketable skills? You can use them to take on home-based work. If you enjoy writing, for example, you can become a freelance blogger or writer; typical blogging jobs pay you to post regularly but on your own schedule. ProBlogger and Freelance Writing Jobs are great resources for writers or would-be ones.
Find
temporary or recurring project opportunities for all sorts of online
skills (programming, web design, photography, and more) on job boards
like Freelance Switch or freelance marketplaces such as oDesk and Elance.
With the marketplaces, you can set your own rate and reply to
employers' requests for project help. The only issue with these types of
marketplaces is there's a lot of competition, and you can easily be
underbid way beyond what your time is worth. So be careful. But if
you're just starting out, these are good places to look for contract
work.Make Money Off Your Own Website or Online Store
It's also possible to make money with your own blog or passive-income-producing website. JetSetCitizen highlights fourteen travel bloggers
and how they generate enough income from their blogs to fund their
travel. Some of these include using affiliate links/ads or offering
information products for sale. You'd need a good amount of traffic
before your blog lets you quit your day job, but if you can offer
something no one else does in a particular niche and are willing to do
some marketing, you have a better chance.Or if you have a hobby and something worth selling, you could set up your own online store on your website or using a store-building service. If you're crafty, of course there's Etsy.
In short, there are lots of scam-free ways to make money online—whether it's a quick buck or more substantial side income. Also keep in mind that once you earn more than $400 in a year from your freelance endeavors, you'll have to report the income and pay taxes on it. But it's worth it if your time isn't otherwise being spent productively. Good luck!
