How to make some money on the side...
May 28, 2009 8:50 AM   Subscribe

I am looking for making some money on the side

I am looking at making some money on the side, whether its via small investments (couple hundred) or some online gig...

I work full time but have time at work to do things... weekends free

Here are the options and please advise the success rate...

1) Sell on ebay (i currently do this time to time but nothing steady)
2) small investments (200/300 dollars but where?)
3) online job part time (any one have any success)
4) ???
posted by minsid to Work & Money (15 answers total) 13 users marked this as a favorite
 
Your local newspaper's classified ads and your local Craigslist can provide helpful leads regarding local part-time jobs.
posted by Pope Guilty at 8:57 AM on May 28, 2009


Response by poster: 5) How about online surveys?
posted by minsid at 9:02 AM on May 28, 2009


small investments (200/300 dollars but where?)

For that amount of money, you're going to have a very hard time finding an investment better than a savings account, which with the current rates will make you about $5 after a year of letting it sit in your account. Any investment claiming to make significanly more than that will either come with a large risk or be an outright scam.
posted by burnmp3s at 9:02 AM on May 28, 2009


In order to make any money with online surveys, you have to be glued to a computer 24/7 and absolutely diligent with it. And even then, you're not making much at all.
posted by jerseygirl at 9:08 AM on May 28, 2009


We were talking about a photo retouching business the other day.
posted by delmoi at 9:09 AM on May 28, 2009 [1 favorite]


Save judiciously. It is slow and arduous but guaranteed to work. Anything else is caveat emptor. Suckers are fleeced every minute
posted by stratastar at 10:53 AM on May 28, 2009


Suckers are fleeced every minute

Well then the point is to be a fleecer rather than a fleecee.
posted by goethean at 11:21 AM on May 28, 2009


Response by poster: Thanks for the comments.. let it keep coming in...
posted by minsid at 11:24 AM on May 28, 2009


Do you have a graduate degree? You could possibly teach online or at a local community college in the evenings.
posted by mrmojoflying at 12:17 PM on May 28, 2009


eBay is hit or miss these days; it used to be, if you had something unique, you could easily find somebody to pay you good money for it. eBay has grown, and the focus is less on the unique (there's so little unique anymore, and it's hard to find something you've never seen before on eBay now) and more on the cheap and quick. If you can turn inventory cheaply and quickly and make a profit, eBay is good for you.

As for making money on the side, on weekends: check with the small locally-owned businesses in your area, especially ones where you've got connections. While I don't own the business I work for, I do some hiring, and more than once the boss has brought someone to me and said, "put 'em to work, these are the hours they're available" because they're a friend or acquaintance who needs some money and is willing to work. Willingness to work is a big deal to small businesses; they can't always expect that from the people Job Service or temp agencies send, so sell yourself that way. Local grocery stores, restaurants, cleaners, etc., may be more than happy to have somebody willing to work the Saturday nights that everyone else wants to take off. An hourly job will almost always pay you better than eBay or Adsense or get-rich-quick-schemes for the small number of hours you plan on working. I know you sound like you don't want to work away from your desk, but business rarely pay well when things are done at your convenience; they pay you for the inconvenience of doing what they ask you do to and where they want it, and if you can find one flexible to the time of day you're willing to work, you're doing alright.
posted by AzraelBrown at 4:24 PM on May 28, 2009 [1 favorite]


You can be a ChaCha guide.
posted by saxamo at 7:00 PM on May 28, 2009


Weird... I was just about to post this exact question when I came across your's... This cnn article is what got me thinking about creative ways to make money. I especially like the idea of selling your photos to stock photo companies.

If you have the time or interest, this article is great for investments.
posted by karyotypical at 7:34 PM on May 28, 2009


-I've read about people putting together a portfolio of small loans at P2P websites (e.g., 12 $25 loans)

-Open bank accounts for the bonuses. I opened a Wells Fargo account with $100 and rec'd a $50 bonus 30 days later. Not a lot of money but it was a 50% ROI.

-Find crafty stuff you like on Etsy and then buy the raw materials to make your own, better. Better yet, find something not on Etsy at all. You can also sell crafts at Saturday Markets, etc.

-Use the money for gas to pick up stuff offered on Freecycle. Then have a garage sale. Probably violates the spirit of the thing but offerers get relieved of the crap they wanted to be relieved of.

-Get a job as a barback. Maybe learn how to tend bar and, in time, do that for catered events or something.

-Got an artistic side? $300 bucks will buy you a lot of supplies, business cards, and a tank of gas to canvass coffee shops and libraries with enough left over for a small website if you can photo and code it yourself.
posted by codswallop at 8:28 PM on May 28, 2009


Join a few affiliate networks and learn about affiliate marketing. Basically these networks are full of offers you can promote online and earn commissions from the leads/sales you generate. Affiliate marketing gets a lot of flack from people who have tried it and lost money, but I can say from first-hand experience that you can generate some nice income from marketing offers online. Affiliate marketing is largely a numbers game and involves a bit of testing and expense to get right. However, if you keep at it and test campaigns with what you can afford to lose, the ROI can be very nice. One warning: if you choose to try this out, don't buy into any e-books that claim you can make X overnight with their fool-proof method(s). These are the guys that give AM a bad name.

Anyhow... just a thought for you.
posted by OccamsRazor at 9:12 PM on May 28, 2009


P.S. eBay actually has an affiliate program as well. It's called the eBay Partner Network. Might be a good place to get started.
posted by OccamsRazor at 9:14 PM on May 28, 2009


« Older Help me schedule a kids' party   |   Help me learn about Staten Island neighborhoods? Newer »
This thread is closed to new comments.