Nice little earner – making money working from home

• There are, of course, many reasons why people work from home. Some are by personal choice, others by personal necessity. Many parents (single or not) just want to spend as much time as possible with their child or children, but need the income that jobs from home can provide. Some may be going through a period where employment is more difficult to secure, while many others (perhaps even the majority) seek the extra income which working from home can provide, while still maintaining their day job. The working from home page on my site, is specifically aimed at all of these very deserving groups.
  
  There are many different types of work offered, some of which seems extremely attractive, but may not be what it seems, and a very good yardstick to adopt is:
  
  If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is!
  
  While the free to join schemes might sound attractive, and many are, there are a growing number where real caution is needed. This is particularly true of the data-entry jobs. You get free membership of the initial site, one where they introduce you to the companies requiring the data entry (typically filling in the details for ad sites, although not including the reputable like Google, Yahoo etc). However, before getting the work itself, and therefore the opportunity to earn, they require you to pay, often as much as $49.95. And it doesn’t stop there. Some of these scams actually require you to pay this sum for each and every opportunity they offer. Do not touch these offers. Please.
  
  The only paid sites I support as an affiliate, are those where unconditional money back guarantees are not only given, but they have been tested out aswell, to ensure that they live up to the promise of the guarantee. These sites are totally upfront about being a members’ site, with fee payment, one-time-only, and experienced users have said that they are usually able to recoup the membership outlay within the first job and certainly by the second. A typical one-time-only membership fee is around $24-$39. In fact the main home job site you’ll find on my site, HERE, is only asking $18 right now. This company has been around since 1999, which in itself is a great recommendation. Scammers tend to come and go after a few weeks or maybe a month or two.
  
  One of the reasons these sites are genuine in their requiring fee payment is that they incur fairly substantial costs by employing staff to maintain and very regularly update the directories of jobs on offer. The majority of the free sites cannot do this.
  
  Ok, so what types of jobs are offered? Well, there really are many, too many to mention here, but here are what I believe to be some of the most popular:
  
  
• Taking online surveys
• Telecommuting
• Typing
• Surfing the Net to review websites
• Reading emails
• Freelance photography
• Website designers
• Translators
• Internet shopping
• Writing articles
• Data entry
• Testing games
• Online tutors
• Software developers
• Telemarketers
• Financial services sales
  
  Currently, it has to be said that the greatest choice or work-from-home jobs is within the USA, but the internet has few borders, and some jobs will be open to people from just about anywhere, as long as they have a computer and an internet connection.
  
  Opportunities abound too in the UK, and although right now I’m not promoting any particular affiliates from the UK, it is only because I’ve not yet found one which is a good match to my own objectives. I am also aware of good opportunities in Canada, Australia, New Zealand and throughout much of Asia. As I find the right affiliates in these locations, I will promote these too, so please do bookmark my website and return regularly.

Internet and Affiliate Marketing – finding the good guys!

One of the most noticeable aspects of the world of Internet and Affiliate Marketing is the uneven split between the good guys, who seem to be in a minority, and the rest who seem to be a mixture of possible (or even confirmed) scammers, and way, way over the top hype writers.

You know the latter guys, I’m sure. They’re the ones who over-promise so much that it really does make you laugh. In my experience, many of these guys are not actually running a scam, but you find it hard not to see it that way. They’ve clearly been stuck in the marketing world of the 60s or 70s where hard sells promised you the earth, only to deliver a 1,000 square feet apartment. But, hey, that’s actually not so bad, is it.

No the guys to watch out for are those who charge you a fee for joining their directory membership list, but don’t even bother to offer a money-back guarantee, and of course fail to tell you that once you’ve got their list, most of it is out of date.

The good guys ARE out there. Some of the things to look for:

· How long have they been in business? If it’s more than two or three years, that’s a good pointer towards honesty and a genuine site

· Do they carry a certificate from Web Trust or similar? Those who do have usually been through some due diligence by the providers of the certification.

· Do they have a search facility which allows you to check that there are providers of the service you’re keen on, within an area that’s convenient for you. On my site (please see my details below) especially on the page devoted to getting paid to advertise on your car, or providing a free new one, I’ve made a point of only supporting affiliates who offer this search facility. It’s a great sign of their integrity.

· Have good review sites, like Top Site Review, given their recommendation to the site? I’ve found them particularly useful as they have tested out claims of money-back guarantees, and unless they have worked without hassle, the site does not get recommended.

· If you’re looking to become an affiliate yourself, does the site you’re considering state they will pay you themselves or go through a trusted intermediary like Clickbank? I’d be far more wary of those who say they’ll pay you themselves. I’ve found both Clickbank to be very efficient and prompt in their payments.

In conclusion, I’d say that I do not believe or expect to become extra-ordinarily wealthy through my online affiliate marketing business, but I do know that I can make a pretty comfortable living, provided I’ve not only chosen the right affiliate partners, but also, of course, that I have properly optimized my site for the top search engines.

If you follow a similar approach, either as a affiliate partner or as a member of the companies offering their directory services, you should find a similar outcome.


Michael is a British citizen, but long term resident of Asia (Hong Kong and now Malaysia).
After 25 years with a global banking leader, he began to head up his own Management consulting company, and today this successful business has branched out to include database/direct marketing aswell as Internet and Affiliate Marketing. Michael may be contacted through his web site http://www.makingdollars4u.com or directly via email mikeATmakingdollars4u.com