10:14 AM
Ahsan Mirza
Saturday, May 12, 2012
Why Are You Here?
Why Are You Here?
Did you end up on this site because you were looking for a way to make money? Maybe you have always wanted to learn how to make money working from home but could never quite decide what to do or how to go about getting things started. Maybe you just want to make extra income to help make ends meet at home. It could be that you are a big dreamer and want to become the next multi millionaire!You could be someone who is already making a large income and want to explore new ways to make money.
Whatever your reason for ending up on this site one thing is certain...YOU ARE IN THE RIGHT PLACE!
Your Money Making University
I have one goal with this website and that is to help YOU learn what it takes to make money working from home.If you take the time to look around you will find an ever expanding library of tutorials and guides on ways to make money in many different niches. Basically, How to Earn Money 101 is your online "University" on money making ideas.
Knowledge Through Experience and Not Books
Unlike most schools and universities that teach you through "book knowledge" and from professors who have never done what they are teaching, here at "How To Earn Money 101" you will learn from people that have already SUCCEEDED at what they are teaching.More Than Just Making Money
Besides everything you can learn here about creating additional income you will also be able to learn advanced techniques on:- Making Money Online
- Affiliate Marketing
- Membership Websites
- SEO
- Link Building
- and MUCH MORE!
Let's Make Money Now
Ok, now that you know what this site can do for you, let's get started so you can get on the road to making more money than you ever thought possible!Please click on the categories to the right and browse the extensive library of tutorials and guides. You can also search for what you are looking for by using one of our two search boxes. I would also encourage you to sign up for my 6 part course that will teach you step by step how to get started making money online. Just complete the short form at the top of the page.
Here's to your Success!
Ways to Make Money on Facebook.
Whether the urban legend is true or not, it’s unlikely Facebook will take over the world. However, it has already built a strong Internet presence, and will probably be so for awhile. So why not take advantage of Facebook’s success and get a little piece of the action yourself?
If you do a little research, you’ll discover there are dozens of different ways to make money on Facebook. Some are easy and can be done with little or no technical knowledge. Others require more in-depth skill and/or business savvy.
In this tutorial we will talk about two of the most popular ways to make money using Facebook. We’ll rate each one on a scale of one to five for how simple or advanced each method is. A rating of one means easy, with no technical skills required. A rating of five means that advanced skills or special knowledge is needed. These ratings may help you to decide which method you should attempt to use.
I. Selling Stuff
There are a variety of ways to sell things on Facebook. In this section we’ll examine three of these ways, giving you steps for each method as well as a difficulty rating for each.Facebook marketplace: Facebook marketplace is like advertising in your local classified section of your newspaper, except on a large scale. The following section describes in detail:
1. Decide on a delivery method. You’ll have to think about how you will get whatever it is you’re selling to the buyer. You may choose to sell only to local contacts and require that they pick up any items they purchase. Then the onus for delivery isn’t on you. The only problem with this method is that you limit yourself in terms of the number of potential buyers you can sell to.Create and sell your own products: Don’t have a product of your own to market? Then create one! Companies like Zazzle and Café Press allow you to create your own customized products from their line of items.
If you decide that you’ll ship whatever you’re selling, you’ll have to find out how much various delivery services charge and then pass that cost on to your buyers. Most shippers, whether it’s the post office or a courier like FedEx, base their delivery charges on size and weight of the item being shipped, how far it’s going and how fast you want it to get there.
You can choose to deal only with one or two shippers and that will make shipping pricing much easier to deal with. The post office should be your main method of shipping. If you want to offer another option to buyers, pick just one carrier to use to keep it simple.
2. Come up with a way for your buyers to pay you. Local buyers who are picking up their purchases can simply pay you in person. (Ask for cash only, no checks to avoid getting ripped off.)
When it comes to buyers who live out of your immediate area, the best way to accept payment is via PayPal. Anyone can send or receive money via PayPal; all you need is an email address. PayPal allows customers to pay with a major credit card, or with cash they’ve deposited into their PayPal account.
If you don’t already have one, create a PayPal account. Go to www.paypal.com and click on the “Sign Up” button and follow the instructions. It’s free to create a basic PayPal account. Now when someone buys something from you, you need only to refer them to PayPal and give them your email address. (Don’t ship the item until the customer’s payment has been cleared.)
3. Enable Facebook Marketplace on your profile if you haven’t already. Just go to your home page and enter “marketplace” in the search field.
4. Go to the Facebook Marketplace page and click on the button that says “Post Listing to Marketplace.”
5. Enter the item that you’re selling. Use persuasive and descriptive words, but be brief in this field.
6. Choose your location (it may show the nearest major city by default, and you might not be able to change this location).
7. Select the type of item you’re selling from the drop down menu provided. Choose the best possible category that your item fits into (i.e. “Stuff”). You may also be given the opportunity to choose subcategories. Take advantage of this (i.e. “Stuff? Clothes? Shoes”). Be sure to do this, you’ll get more targeted interest this way.
8. Enter the reason why you are selling the item in the proper field.
9. Describe the item. Again, use persuasive and descriptive words, but don’t get overly wordy. Try to keep your description to less than 100 words, but make sure that you include all pertinent information (size, weight, shape, condition of the item, age of the item, etc.) depending on what you’re selling. You may also choose to upload a picture of the item. You should always do this if possible. It will increase your chances of selling the item.
10. Choose whether you want it to appear in the whole marketplace or just to your Facebook friends only by clicking in the appropriate field. (Note: always choose “marketplace.” You’ll have a much wider audience.)
11. Click “Post” when finished.
12. Choose “Allow” when the Marketplace box pops up.
13. Enter your email address if prompted.
14. Supply information requested, if prompted. This may include your name and email. You may also be asked to supply a password. Make sure that you agree to the Terms of Service (the box should be checked by default).
15. You’ll be sent an automatic email. You’ll have to follow the instructions in the email to activate the listing.
Difficulty Rating: 2 – This is about the easiest method of using Facebook to make money. The only reason we didn’t give it a “1″ for simplicity is because it will take you some extra time to set up a PayPal account, Marketplace account, etc. if you are brand new to this. Those who already have all of these things will probably find this to be more of a “1″ in terms of simplicity.
With either of these sites, you get to choose your product from hundreds of items. Café Press is best known for customizable t-shirts, but also lets you create custom mugs, stationery, wall art, device cases and other types of custom clothing. Zazzle lets you choose from items similar to Café Press, but also has some items you can’t find on Café Press, like hanging ornaments.
Once you have selected and designed your items, you can advertise them on Facebook. Include links on your Facebook page to your Café Press or Zazzle store. Feature products in your status box or use the “Links” app on Facebook to link to your store directly. You can even create your own business page for your products/store within Facebook.
First, we’ll start with the steps for designing Café Press items:Sell affiliate products: Not interested in creating your own product? Then just sell someone else’s. Affiliate marketing is the concept of selling a product made and/or distributed by another company. You are given a unique link to the affiliate product.
1. Go to the Café Press home page.
2. Click on the link near the top right hand of the page that says “Open your own online store.” You’ll be redirected to a page that lists some of the benefits of having your own Café Press “store.”
3. At the bottom of this page, click on the button marked “Start selling now.” You’ll be redirected to the sign up page.
4. Create an account supplying the requested information. Make sure you check of the box that indicates you agree to Café Press’ Terms of Service.
5. Click the “Join Now” button at the bottom of the page. You’ll be redirected to an expanded information page.
6. On this page fill out the information requested. This includes choosing a name for your “store.” Choose carefully, since this is the name that is going to reflect your business and will appear as part of your store’s URL.
7. Answer all questions and then click the “Submit” button at the bottom of the page. You’ll be redirected to an informational page.
8. Create your store and products!
Now here are the steps to creating Zazzle products:
1. Go to the Zazzle home page. Click on the “Sell” link at the top left hand of the page. You’ll be redirected to an informational page.
2. Click on the “Get Started” box, located about halfway down at the right hand of the page. You’ll be redirected to another page.
3. On this page, click on the box marked “Register,” located in the center of the page. You’ll be redirected to the sign up page.
4. Fill out the required information and choose a password. Click on “continue” when finished. You’ll be redirected to a confirmation page.
5. Click “continue” on the confirmation page. This will redirect you to another informational page. Read this information carefully. When finished, click on the “continue” button.
6. Zazzle will send you a confirmation email within a few minutes. Open the email and click on the “validate” button, or copy and paste the URL provided into your browser’s search field. This will validate your account (you won’t be able to do anything further until your account is validated). This email is time-sensitive and must be responded to within 24 hours.
7. On the validation page, click on the “OK” button. You’ll be redirected to a new page where you’ll choose the name of your store. Fill in the required information and then click on the “Create Store” button.
8. Your store is ready to be created!
Note: When creating your own products, make sure that your designs are either original (created by you) or that you have the rights to make money off of them. In other words, you can’t use copyrighted material to create and sell your own products.
Difficulty Rating: 3 – We give this a rating of 3 for a few reasons. The signing up process for both Zazzle and Café Press are very simple and straightforward (1-worthy). The extra work comes when you have to actually create your “store” and then market it using the various tools available on Facebook. Also, we know that not everyone is creative or an artist, and it will definitely take a bit of creativity to sell your designs.
All you have to do is talk up the product on Facebook. Like selling items created through Zazzle or Café Press, you can create a Facebook page for your affiliate product, post it in the marketplace, and promote it from within your own profile.
Wherever you advertise it, be sure to include that unique link. This is what allows the parent company to register the fact that you made the sale and pay you out accordingly. You receive a percentage (commission) of each sale that originates from your unique link.
There are a number of ways you can find affiliate products to promote. Start by perusing one or more of these recommended affiliate partners:
* Amazon
* Share A Sale
* Commission Junction
* E-junkie
You may also choose to promote a product that you love and which offers an affiliate program.
The processes for becoming an affiliate partner are similar no matter what company you choose to go with. The following steps are generalized, but should get you started on selecting an affiliate product to market:
1. Go to the home page of your chosen affiliate partner. Locate and click on the link for new affiliate registration.
2. Fill out the required information and submit your application.
3. Depending on which affiliate you choose, you may have to wait for an email approval. Open the email when it arrives and click on the validation link or button.
4. Select your product. Make sure that you choose a product that you believe in and that you would use yourself. It’s much easier to promote something you yourself think is amazing.
5. Get your unique product URL.
6. Supply the information required to receive payment for your sales. Some affiliate companies pay by check. Others pay electronically using an online bank such as PayPal.
Note: Government rules in some countries require you to legally disclose that the product you’re promoting is an affiliate product. Check into this if you aren’t sure what the regulations are in your area.
Difficulty Rating: 3 – We rated this a “3″ because the sign up process for most affiliate partnerships is fairly straightforward. There might be some extra work involved if you need a PayPal account and don’t already have one. It will also take a little bit of work to start marketing it in the various methods available on Facebook. However, once you have all this in place, there’s not much left to do except keep talking up your product.
II. Creating and Building a Facebook Application
Facebook has hundreds of apps, many developed by regular people. The most successful of these apps go on to generate tens of thousands of dollars or more every month.Facebook apps make money in four major ways:If programming isn’t your thing but you think you have a killer idea, it might be worth hiring a programmer to build your app for you. Professionals can be on the expensive side, but you may be able to find cheaper help if you look for a brilliant student (high school or college). Another option is to find a programmer who is willing to work for a cut of the profits.
* CPM: CPM means “cost per one thousand impressions.” With this model, the app developer makes a set fee for every 1,000 views of an ad that appears on the app’s page(s). In other words, after one thousand app users have opened up the app containing the CPM ad, the developer gets paid.
* CPC: This stands for “cost per click.” In this monetization model, the app developer gets paid a fee every time an app user actually clicks on an ad or link that appears on the apps page(s). If the user doesn’t click, the advertiser doesn’t pay.
* CPA: This means “cost per action.” In this model, the app developer receives a fee each time a user clicks an ad and then takes the action that is desired by the advertiser. For example, an advertiser who is trying to build up a contact list may pay an app developer for app users who click on his ad and then submit their email address to the advertiser. If the user clicks but doesn’t take the action, the advertiser does not have to pay.
* Affiliate programs: With this model, the app developer makes a percentage of the sale of any affiliate’s product that originates from the app’s page.
The more popular an app becomes, the bigger the potential for the developer to make money from it. Apps with the biggest audiences (number of users) can charge much higher rates for advertising. Plus, some of Facebook’s most popular apps, like Farmville, went on to generate millions of dollars in revenue through product licensing.
The key to making money off of a Facebook app is by coming up with an irresistible idea. Facebook is home to hundreds of boring, pointless apps that haven’t generated much revenue for their creators.
Add to that a growing mistrust of Facebook apps by some Facebook users. This is mainly due to a history of apps that generated unwanted spam for and on behalf of users, including making ridiculous postings while posing as that user. This has made it more difficult for app developers, but not impossible as long as the user’s privacy is respected and the app itself is worthy of widespread acclamation.
Instructions for downloading the Facebook platform and creating your app can be found at the Apps on Facebook.com page. From here, you’ll be able to find complete, step-by-step instructions, including:
* Creating your app
* Configuring your app
* Authorization
* Social channels
* Performance
* Special considerations
* Samples and next steps
Difficulty Rating: 5 – You should have at least a basic knowledge of programming to attempt creating your own Facebook app. Some business savvy will also be helpful. It’s definitely not something for an amateur to try, or at least, not without a partner who understands programming.
Posted in: FREE 11 Part Mini Course.
How to Make Money Using Twitter.
Twitter first hit the Internet publically in 2006. Thanks to savvy, outside-the-box advertising and a little bit of celebrity endorsement, Twitter.com became the newest way to say what’s on your mind (“Tweet”) without exceeding 140 characters (spaces included). Brevity is the key to making the most of Twitter.
“Tweeting” (definition: the act of posting a Twitter update) is often referred to as “microblogging.” Like its older, more familiar cousin, the blog, tweeting is simply another mode of sharing your thoughts, editorial style.
The difference, of course, is that with Twitter, you must choose your words carefully. It’s not always easy to send out a message when you’re limited to 140 characters. However, it has given rise to some powerfully creative advertising and money-making opportunities.
How to Create a Twitter Account
If you don’t already have a Twitter account, this is Priority One. Sign-up is simple and free of charge. Here’s how to do it:
1) Go to http://www.Twitter.com.
2) Locate the box with the header “New to Twitter? Join today!” Fill in your name and email address in the appropriate fields, and then choose a password and click on the “Sign Up” box. You’ll be redirected to a confirmation page.
3) On this page you’ll be asked to confirm your information. You’ll also be assigned a user name based on the name you provided on the previous page. If you don’t like
Twitter’s name choice you can change it, just as long as the one you choose isn’t already in use.Once you’ve completed this page, click on the “Create my account” button. Be sure you read Twitter’s “Terms of Service” first, especially if you plan to use your account to make money. You’ll be redirected to an informational page.
4) On the informational page, read the micro-tutorial and then click on “Next” to get to the next page.
5) On this page you have the option to choose some other “Tweeters” to follow from categories such as music, entertainment and others. It’s a good idea to start out by following people, companies or products, particularly any that relate to the theme you want your Twitter account to have. Otherwise, you can skip this step by clicking on the link at the bottom right of the page that says “Skip this step.”
6) On the next page you’ll be given the opportunity to look for people you know from within your various contact lists who are also on Twitter. You can search your Gmail, Yahoo, Hotmail and Messenger, AOL and Linked In contacts. You can also skip this step if you wish in the same manner as described in Step #5.
7) Finally, you’ll be redirected to your Twitter home page. Now you can start tweeting!
A Few Words About Creating Twitter Accounts
A common question is “Can I have more than one Twitter account?” The answer is yes, but you have to have a unique email address for each account. Many business people like to have a personal account (for personal tweets) and a business account. Some people have multiple accounts for different business ventures they’re involved in. If you don’t have a unique email address for every venture you want to undertake on Twitter, it’s easy to create email accounts for free using Gmail or Hotmail.
It’s advisable that you always create a Twitter account using your own name. This is because anyone can create a Twitter account using any name they want to, including someone else’s.
Creating an account in your own name is a good way to protect your interests, both personal and financial/business. If you’d rather not do business deals from your personal account, then create a second one (or third, or fourth) to do business within.
What to Do Now that You’ve Created Your Twitter Account
Congratulations! You can send out your first Tweet! After this, you should take time to update your profile. This is vital information if you plan on monetizing your Twitter account eventually. It will help potential followers to see what you’re all about. People are more likely to follow you if they have similar interests and tastes.
Doing Business on Twitter: Amassing a Following
In order to sell any product or service, you first need an audience. On Twitter, your audience is made up of all of the people who “follow” you on Twitter. Therefore, your first order of business once you create a Twitter account is to amass a following. Here are a few suggestions for doing this:
* Search people you know. If you didn’t do it during the sign-up process, now is the time to search for contacts through the forums already mentioned. On your home page, locate the link for importing your contacts. Choose one of the forums listed (i.e. Gmail) and click on it. You’ll have to input your user ID (i.e. your Gmail address and password).
Then Twitter will automatically search your contacts and see if any of them also have Twitter accounts. Once they find matches, they’ll bring them up, and you can click on that contact’s “Follow” button. Now ask that person to follow you.
* Use your other social networking sites to get Twitter followers. Are you on Facebook? Post a status update asking people to follow you on Twitter, with a link directly to your Twitter page.
* Search the profiles of people who follow you. Once you’ve started getting a few followers, go to their lists of followers and start following their contacts. Many will probably reciprocate the gesture.
* Click on the link located on your Twitter page that says “Who to Follow.” It’s located at the top of page, just right of center. Twitter will automatically generate a list of people you can follow based on clues it picks up from within your profile (i.e. your interests). Choose some or all of these to follow, and many will follow you back.
* Create catchy Tweets. People will follow you if they are drawn to your tweets. If creative writing isn’t your thing, it may be well worth paying a writer to create catchy tweets for you. Or, tweet famous quotes or irresistible tips.
* Add the Twitter widget to your Website or blog. Your site visitors will be able to click on this link and become your followers.
* Get yourself listed in Twitter directories. JustTweetIt and WeFollow are two good ones.
* Offer incentives. Links to exclusive product coupons or a prize for the follower who refers the most people to your Twitter page are two examples.
Don’t wait until you have a certain number of followers before you start tweeting. Begin sending out tweets as soon as you create your page. Your tweets will attract new followers.
How to Start to Actually Make Money Off of Your Twitter Page
So you’ve got an admirable following. Now what? There are a number of ways you can make money using your Twitter account. This tutorial will list three of the most popular and simplest to implement, with the steps you’ll need to take to employ these strategies.
Sponsored Tweets. SponsoredTweets is one of the best and easiest ways to get paid for tweeting. With this program, Twitter users can sign up as sponsored tweeters. SponsoredTweets will send out tweets (basically short written commercials) as you. You get paid when an advertiser sends out a tweet as you.
Here’s how to get started:
1) Go to http://www.sponsoredtweets.com/. Locate the button that says “sign up as a tweeter” and click it. You’ll be re-directed to another page.
2) On this page you’ll be asked to grant authorization to Sponsored Tweets. Click on the “Sign in with Twitter” button. You’ll be redirected to another page.
3) On this page, input your Twitter ID and password and click on “Add app.” This part may take half a minute or so. Then you’ll be redirected to the next page.
4) This is the page where you’ll provide some of the necessary information. Enter your email address, and choose how much you want to charge for every tweet (SponsoredTweets automatically chooses a default amount based on the number of followers your account has.) You’ll maximize the number of sponsored tweets you get if you choose this figure.
It’s suggested that you enable the “ClickWatch” feature (it’s checked off by default already). This increases your chances of getting sponsored tweets.
You’ll also be able to select your content rating. Choose from “Everyone,” “Mature” and “Adults Only.” This is one way of having some control over the kinds of tweets that will be posted on your behalf.
You’ll also be asked to choose “tags.” Tags are words that advertisers will use to find people who are willing to tweet about their products/services. Use words related to the kinds of things that you don’t mind having tweeted on your behalf. Some examples include “baby toys,” “organic cooking,” “hot rods,” “classical music,” “SEO,” “solar energy,” etc. You’re allowed to choose up to 10 tags (it’s recommended that you maximize this feature by choosing 10). If you’re unsure, you can click on the link that says “popular tags” for ideas. When finished, click on the button that says “create my tweeter account.”
* Note: You won’t qualify for Sponsored Tweets if your account is less than 60 days old, and/or you have no followers. If this is the case, you can still sign up, you’ll just have to wait until your Twitter account passes that 60-day mark and/or gets a few followers. You’ll be notified when this occurs.
5) Once your account is approved and active, you’ll be taken to a page with automatically-generated listings of some specific companies, services and/or products you might be interested in tweeting. You can choose any from this list if you desire.
Once your account is approved, you can sign in to SponsoredTweets anytime and check on the status of your account, how much you’ve earned and more.
MyLikes: This site is an advertising platform that not only uses Twitter to send out sponsored tweets, but users can also get sponsored YouTube videos and blog entries. This tutorial will focus on monetizing your Twitter account with MyLikes.
1) Go to http://www.mylikes.com. Locate the “Monetize your Audience” button, located near the top right hand of the page, and click. You’ll be re-directed to another page.
2) On this page, click on the box marked “Connect with Twitter.” On the next page you’ll be asked to supply your Twitter user ID and password. After this, click on “Authorize app.” You’ll be re-directed to another new page.
3) Fill out your email address and choose a nickname and a password. Next, click on the “Sign up” button. You’ll be taken to a page with a list of topics.
4) Choose up to 10 topics from this list (make sure to choose a full ten). Choose things you enjoy; these are the topics you’ll be making money from. Then click on the “Save Categories” button.
5) Next you’ll be taken to a page where you can choose from some specific tweets to run on your profile and how much you’ll make each time someone clicks on one. You can choose as many as you like. (Note: Some tweets are only paid out to tweeters in specific countries. This will be noted on the ad.) You can tweet the supplied text, or create your own tweet on the subject.
That’s it, you’re done! Now just keep coming back to run more advertising tweets and increase your earning potential!
Sell Affiliate Products: Instead of signing up for random tweets to be posted on your Twitter page, you can choose a specific product or products to sell, using tweets to promote them. All you have to do is sign up with your favorite affiliate product or partner.
You may already know of a product that you like whose seller offers a commission through affiliate marketing. Another option is to sign up with an affiliate company like Amazon Associates. There are hundreds of them on the Web. For the purposes of this tutorial, we’ll walk you through the process of signing up to be an Amazon Affiliate and then show you how to promote your product(s) on Twitter.
1) Go to https://affiliate-program.amazon.com/ and locate the box that says “Join Now for Free” and click it.
2) On the next page, enter your email address and click the field marked “I am a new customer.” Then click on the button marked “Sign in using our secure server.” You’ll be re-directed to another page.
3) On this page, fill out your name and re-type your email address. Then create a password. Finish by clicking on “Create account.”
4) On the next page you’ll need to provide your legal name, address and phone number. When finished, click on the box marked “Next: Your Website Profile.”
5) Confirm your correct address and then click on the box marked “Save this address.”
6) On the next page you’ll need to fill out the “Website Profile.” In the case of a Twitter account, use the name of your Twitter account and your Twitter feed. Answer all of the questions on this page based on your Twitter account. Make sure you agree to Amazon’s Terms of Service by clicking in the appropriate spot. Then click on the box marked “Finish.”
7) On the next page you’ll be assigned an associate’s ID and you’ll be asked to choose how you want to get paid.
It may take a few days to get your application approved. Once you do, you’ll be given codes/links to tweet. This is how your sales will be tracked and credited. You’ll make a percentage of every sale that originates from your Twitter account.
Posted in: FREE 11 Part Mini Course.
How to Make Money with Google Plus.
Google Plus was launched in a limited form in June, 2011 and opened to a handful of users. These users were later allowed to extend a limited number of “invites” to the social network as a beta-testing project before the site was officially launched. The site finally went public in September, 2011 and anyone over the age of 18 was allowed to join.
Google Plus integrated some of Google’s previously existing features. Google Buzz and Google Profiles are two examples.
Google Plus was the first to integrate the idea of social or friend/contact “circles.” Users are able to add their contacts to a specific “circle” of friends as designated by the user. For example, a user could create a “family” circle, in which they would place only Google Plus contacts from their own families.
Once circles are created, a user can post information and mark it as visible only to a certain circle or circles. This level of privacy is something that had previously been lacking in most competing social networking sites.
Since Google Plus is so new, there aren’t as many extrinsic methods for making money using Google as there are for, say Twitter (such as “Sponsored Tweets”). Undoubtedly there are several in the works, though, which will probably become available within months. In the mean time you should work at building up as big a following as you can on your Google Plus profile (more on that later).
First, we’ll tell you how to sign up for your Google Plus account:
- 1. If you don’t already have one, you must create a basic Google account. Unfortunately there is no way of getting around this; you can’t get a Google Plus profile without a basic Google account. It’s simply one of Google’s ways of ensuring Internet dominance. To do this, go to the Google accounts page.2. Enter your primary email address and choose a password. (Google will have to verify that this is an acceptable and unique password.)
3. Enter the country you live in (this may show up by default), and your birth date.
4. Enter the funny text so Google knows you’re a real person and not a spam bot, and read Google’s “Terms of Service.”
5. Click on the button at the bottom of the page market “I accept, create my account.”
Your account has been created, and you should receive a confirmation email from Google shortly.
Now that you have a basic Google account, you can create a Google Plus profile. Here’s how to do it:
- 1. Go to https://plus.google.com/ and sign in using your Google ID.
2. In the pop-up box, make sure that your name is correctly listed and select your gender. There is an option to add your photo. You should definitely have a photo on your profile, but if you skip this step now you can still add your photo later.
3. Click the “Join” button.
4. On the next page you can find other people that you know to add to your list of contacts. Google can search Yahoo and Hotmail if you wish. If you have contacts through these venues then you should definitely do this. Otherwise, skip this step.
5. Next you’ll be taken to your profile page. Google will automatically check your other Google affiliations (like Gmail) and find your Google contacts. You can then organize these contacts into “circles.”
As already mentioned, Google Plus is still too new and there are not yet any money-making apps or pay-per-post Google Plus programs yet available. It won’t be long, though, before you’ll be able to find some.
Right now the best way to use Google Plus to make money is to use it as a platform for cross-promotion. In other words, you can use your Google Plus profile to promote your other Internet ventures.
Before you’re going to be able to make any money off of your Google Plus page, you have to amass a following. Your followers are your audience, and your audience is made up of contacts or friends that are part of your network.
The strategy that you use to amass followers on Google Plus is going to have to be different than the one you would use for Facebook or Twitter or social/business networking Websites.
The average Google Plus user tends to be older than the typical Facebook or Twitter user. A significant number are 20, 30 and 40-something business professionals. Keep this in mind as you think about appealing to your audience.
Here’s something else to remember: just because you’ve placed a contact within a “circle” it doesn’t mean that you are “following” them. The converse is also true: you can be in someone else’s “circle” but that doesn’t necessarily mean they are “following” you.
“Following” someone is an entirely separate action from making them a contact. To “follow” someone else (or for someone else to “follow” you) you (or they) must:
1) Go to your profile’s home page. Look to the sidebar on the left hand side of the page. At the top is your profile picture and underneath is the heading “Stream.”
2) Under the “Stream” heading, find the link that says “Following” and click on it.
3) You’ll be taken to a page that shows who you are following and any postings they’ve shared. On this page, look at the right hand sidebar marked “Following.” Here you’ll see people you are already following. Underneath is a field marked “Add to following.”
Type the name of a person that you want to follow and Google will pull up profiles matching that name. You simply click on the right one and you will then be following them. You can follow both people in your circles as well as people who are not in any of your circles. Others can do the same with you.
How to get People to Follow You
This is a bit trickier than following someone else, but you’ll need to pursue this if you hope to make money using your Google Plus profile. Here are a few suggestions:
* Follow everyone you know and personally ask them to return the favor and follow you back.
* Use your other social networking sites (Facebook, Twitter, Linked In, etc.) and to ask people to follow you on Google Plus. Be sure to include a link to your profile or to the Google Plus home page.
* Follow people who are of like-mind and ask them to follow you back. People who are in a similar profession or have similar interests as you are usually glad to return the follow.
* Make intelligent comments on the things people post. When others see you commenting on their material, or on material they are also interacting with, they are more likely to start following you.
* “Tag” people in your comments. When you do comment on the postings of others, you can “tag” a specific person. When you do, they’ll be sent an email notification which may eventually lead them to check you out and become a follower.
Basically, you need to “put yourself out there” in ways that get you noticed. By actively participating in conversations (respectfully, of course), you keep your profile at the forefront of people’s attention and hopefully gain followers.
Promoting Your Other Ventures on Google Plus
When you’re ready to try making some money, you can use your profile and your comments to promote any money making ventures you’re involved with. For example, a business owner might use Google Plus as a platform for promoting his Website. This might include him joining in on conversations that relate to the genre of his business, or simply posting updates on what’s new in his business with a link to his Website.
You can do the same, even if you don’t own your own business or have your own Website. One of the easiest ways to do this is through affiliate marketing.
Affiliate Marketing
You can use your Google Plus profile as a platform for advertising one or more affiliate products. Affiliate marketing is the idea of selling a product on behalf of a company and earning a commission fee on each one sold.
The first step is to find an affiliate to work with. Amazon Affiliates is one of the Internet’s most well-known affiliate marketing companies. However, there are lots of different ones to choose from.
Additionally, many product makers have their own private affiliate programs. If there is a particular product that you love, see if its maker accepts affiliates.
The key to success in affiliate marketing is finding a product or products that you actually believe in and have used yourself. It’s much easier to make sales pitches that sound genuine and attract buyers when you believe in the product. So choose carefully.
It’s best to stick with one particular “niche” if you decide to market multiple products. For instance, you could focus on cake-making and market different items related to cake making and decorating.
Here are the steps, in a nutshell, for affiliate marketing using Google Plus as a platform. These steps are generalized, because every affiliate program is slightly different.
1. Choose your niche. Start by thinking about what you enjoy or know a lot about.2. Choose your affiliate/product. If you don’t already have a specific product in mind, visit some affiliate marketing program Websites and peruse their products. Select one or more that appeal to you. (We suggest starting out with no more than one or two products.) 3. Sign up with your chosen affiliate company. This process is usually fairly straightforward. You’ll have to provide your basic biographical info, like name, address, birth date, etc. You’ll also be asked to select either a specific product, a type of product (i.e. books), and/or keywords that relate to the types of things you want to market. For example, if you want to market cosmetics, you should choose keywords like “cosmetics” and “make-up.” 4. Once you’ve completed the sign-up process, you’ll be given a unique URL that you can add to your profile and/or any comments that you make. Any time a follower clicks on the URL and buys the product, you receive a commission.
Posted in: FREE 11 Part Mini Course.
How to Become a Translator Online and Make Money.
What Qualifications do I Need to Become an Online Translator?
The qualifications needed to perform online translation work usually vary, depending on who the employer is. There are hundreds to thousands of short-term, contract-based online translation jobs available at any given time. Some of the employers require translators to have a degree, either in a language or in the subject area of the translation assignment.
Other employers and jobs have less stringent requirements and employers simply want to know that you are fluent and proficient in whatever two languages you’ll be working in. (You may be asked to provide some type of proof of proficiency, such as a writing sample, or filling out a short quiz.) Even if you don’t have a degree, you’ll probably find there are plenty of short-term translation assignments available which don’t require translators to have one.
How to Find Online Translation Jobs
Prospective employers who need documents translated typically advertise on freelancer’s Websites/forums. Some of these sites, such as iFreelance.com, are general freelance sites which accept postings for all kinds of different freelance jobs (writing, editing, translating, etc.), while others, such as Translatorsbase.com are freelance sites strictly for translation jobs.
Different sites are set up differently. However, most operate in similar ways. Here’s how they work: prospective employers who are looking for document translators post a job description on the site. The posting lays out the parameters and scope of the work and what they expect. Some employers will also post a firm price while others will invite translators to put in a quote (bid) for the advertised work. The employer also decides how long the posting will remain active and note the deadline for bids.
Translators can peruse listings of translation jobs available. They can bid on the ones that interest them. Once the bidding deadline arrives, the employer can look over the bids and choose a suitable translator. The winning bidder is notified by email. Then the winner can make a final decision on whether or not he/she wants to accept the assignment.
The key to finding steady translation work this way is to register with as many of these sites as you can. Then, check back often (daily is ideal) and bid frequently. It’s always best to bid on as many as you’re qualified for. You aren’t usually bound by any rules that require you to actually accept an assignment if you decide later on you’re too busy, or the job turned out to be different than what you expected.
Become a Certified Translator
Here we’ll go through the process of registering with two different freelancer’s sites. We’ll start with iFreelance.com, a general freelancer’s forum:
1) Go to iFreelance.com. Click on the “Sign Up” link, which is located near the top right hand corner of the home page. You may get a pop up box that asks you if you’re looking for work, or wanting to post a job. Click on the box indicating that you are looking for work.
2) You’ll be redirected to a new page where you’ll be asked to choose a Log-in name (this can be your real name or a nickname/handle), a display name (this should be your real name or the name of your translation business, if you have one) and your email address. You’ll also be asked to choose and then confirm a password. Once you’ve filled out all of these fields, click on the button marked “Create Account.”
3) Choose your payment plan. It costs money to join iFreelance.com (it will be money well-spent if you’re good at what you do and you bid fairly). iFreelance has three membership levels, ranging in price from $6.25 to $12 monthly. Each level/plan has successively more benefits and advantages. However, we would suggest that you start out with the least expensive plan. You can always upgrade later on. Click on your chosen plan.
4) On the next page, choose how you want to pay for your membership. You can be billed monthly, annually, or every two years. You can save even more money if you choose an annual or bi-annual plan. After clicking in the corresponding field, you’ll be asked to choose under what category you want your profile to be listed. From the drop-down menu, choose the “Writing/Editing/Translation” option.
5) Depending on which membership level you’ve selected, you’ll get to choose options to be listed within your profile. You’ll be asked to choose a certain number of “sub-categories” which you’ll work under. Choose as many as are applicable and as you are allowed, but make sure that one of your choices is the field marked “Language Translation.”
6) Once you’ve chosen all your options, fill out your bio information. Then choose your payment method. (iFreelance accepts PayPal and most major credit cards.) Don’t forget to agree to iFreelance’s “Terms of Service.” Finally, click on “Create Account.”
After you create your account, spend some time familiarizing yourself with the bidding process and perusing the jobs that are posted in the translation category.
If you prefer not to have to pay for a subscription, there are other freelancer’s sites, such as Guru.com which are free to join. Guru.com does offer subscription membership as well, which gives you extra benefits (such as priority bidding) not available with free memberships. You can always join for free and then upgrade to a paid subscription later on if you wish.
If you wish, you can join up with a freelancer’s Website that is specifically for translators and translation jobs. They are similar to other freelancer’s sites, but deal only with translation work.
One such Website is TranslatorsCafe.com. Basic membership on TranslatorsCafe.com is free, with the option to purchase a subscription membership which entitles the translator to added benefits (such as priority bidding). Here’s how to sign up:
1) Go to http://www.translatorscafe.com.
2) Hover your mouse over the tab that says “Home,” located near the top of the page in the left hand corner to see a drop-down menu. On that menu, click on the “New Members” link.
3) On the next page, read the terms of use and click on the button at the bottom of the page that says “I accept.”
4) On the next page enter your name and address, select your country of residence, and choose a user name, password and password hint. Click on the “Submit” button.
5) You’ll be sent an email registration confirmation. Open the email and click on the confirmation link. Once you do this, you’ll be able to complete your profile and add your language and any other specialties or training that you have. You’ll also be able to upgrade your membership at this time if you desire.
As we mentioned earlier, you don’t necessarily need to have any special training in translation in order to find freelance translation jobs online. However, it may help you win the confidence of potential employers if you have some kind of credible certification. You may want to consider becoming a certified translator.
There are lots of certified translator programs that you can take online. They may take a few weeks to several months to complete. Any certification that you can get will make you more credible to a prospective employer, so even a very short certification program will be helpful.
Posted in: FREE 11 Part Mini Course.
How to Sell Photos Online and Make Money.
Equipment Required
Before you get started, you need to make sure you have what you need. You’ll need a computer, or regular access to one. You’ll also need a camera.
Almost any camera will do, even a cell phone camera. However, it’s important to note a few things when it comes to your choice of camera.
First, the better quality your pictures are, the more likely you’ll be to sell them. Therefore, your photos are most certainly going to have more appeal if they’re taken with a higher-resolution camera.
This is not to say that you must own a very expensive, professional-type camera with multiple lenses and other costly features. Actually, you can purchase 12-15 mega pixel cameras that take satisfactory to excellent quality pictures for $250 and under. Even a cell phone camera with 10 mega pixels or higher is capable of capturing images that people will pay for.
The second important thing to note is that when it comes time to market your photos in the manners which we will describe shortly, there may be a minimum requirement with regard to mega-pixel count. Many photo Websites will only accept photos taken with cameras that are a minimum of 5-7 mega pixels. So make sure you pay attention to this small detail before you start shooting and selling.
What Kind of Pictures Can I Sell?
You can sell almost any images imaginable. Publishers of both online and hard copy material often look for stock photos to go with stories or articles, and they find many of these through stock photo Websites. (We’ll describe this in more detail later on.)
The most marketable pictures tend to be nature photos, animal pictures and everyday photos of people. As you become more proficient at marketing your pictures, you’ll probably come to discover what types of pictures sell well and you may decide to spend more time focusing on a particular genre of photography.
But even those silly holiday pictures of Aunt Maude wearing reindeer antlers or the burnt Thanksgiving turkey may fetch you some cash. (Just remember that if you sell pictures of people you must have their permission first. More on that later.) The more pictures you take and submit, the better your chances of making money.
The main thing to remember when it comes to the types of images that you sell is that you must adhere to the rules that are set out by the Website/stock photo company that you market your photos with. They will not accept pornographic images. Others may specialize in a particular type of image (i.e. nature) and won’t accept other types of images. So be aware of these things when you choose a place to market your photos.
How to Sell Photos OnlineHow Much Money Will I Make?
As we already alluded to, stock photos Websites accept pictures from the general public of images of all different types. A few of the Internet’s most popular stock photo Websites include iStockphoto.com, 123rf.com and Shutterstock.com.
Here’s how they work: photographers create a provider’s account with one (or more) of these stock photo Websites. (Note: Many stock photo Websites stipulate that you cannot submit the same picture to more than one stock photo Website so that only one site retains exclusive rights to a single photo. Be sure you check into this.) Once you create this account, you will be able to upload your pictures to the site, where they will be posted to users for sale.
Most stock photo sites allow you to submit as many pictures as you want (though there may be exceptions to this.) So the more pictures you submit, the more you’ll increase your potential for making money.
When a user selects one of your photos to purchase, your provider account will be credited with the agreed-upon price. Typically you’ll be paid out whenever your account reaches a minimum balance (again, this depends on the site so be sure to check this out before you sign up with a stock photo Website.)
Fee structures vary from site to site. Most stock photo Websites pay contributors a fee per image sold. This is generally a percentage of what the buyer pays for the image. Remember, you are selling rights to use the image, so the same photo can be sold again and again.
Some stock photo sites have other incentives for contributors to make money. Some pay referral fees when you get other photo contributors to join. Others may pay you to promote links to their site in Websites that you own.
How to Get StartedA Note About Copyright and Liability
In this section we will walk you through the sign-up process for an iStock Photo provider’s account. Most stock photo Websites will have a very similar process.
1) Go to http://www.iStockphoto.com.
2) Click on the link that reads “Sign Up.” It’s located on the top right hand corner of the page.
3) On the next page, fill out the sign-up form with your email address, choose a user name and choose a password. Choose your country of residence from the drop-down menu, and click on the Terms of Use box. Choose whether you wish to receive iStock’s various promotional emails by checking or un-checking the appropriate box(es). Then click on the box marked “Next Step.”
4) On the next page, check the box marked “I’m signing up to become an iStock contributor.” Then click on the box marked “Sign me up.”
5) On the next page, confirm that the information you submitted is correct, then click on the box marked “Confirm.” Your membership is complete, and you now have an account on iStockphoto.com.
Now you can apply to become a contributor of photos to iStockphoto.com. To do this, you must study iStockphoto’s contributor’s manual and then take a short quiz. You’ll also need to submit three sample photos. Your acceptance as a contributor will be based on these results.
iStockphoto.com is one of the stricter stock photo Websites when it comes to their contributors, although you don’t have to be a professional to meet their standards. Other stock photo sites, such as 123rf.com do not require contributors to take a quiz or submit work samples in order to sell photos. Here, a contributor simply needs to create an account (the process is similar to creating an account on iStockphoto) and then start uploading photos (be sure to read their standards of submission first).
How Do Users View and Purchase My Photos?
Purchase programs may vary slightly from one stock photo site to another. Generally speaking, potential buyers have two ways to obtain stock photos. Users must first sign up for an account, the same way you did.
The first type of purchase plan, which is available with a majority of stock photo Websites, is a subscription plan. Users pay a specified monthly or annual membership fee/subscription which entitles the member to download up to a certain number of photos each month or year.
There are generally multiple subscription “tiers” or “levels” to choose from. Some come with monthly fees, other with annual rates. Some allow the purchaser to download a limited number of photos from the stock site while other plans may provide the user with unlimited photo downloads. These kinds of subscriptions are ideal for publishers who use dozens or hundreds of stock photos monthly or hundreds to thousands annually.
The second type of subscription available is the pay-per-use (or pay-per-download) type. Generally, a user must deposit a minimum amount of money into his or her account via credit card or PayPal (10 to 20 dollars is typical) to purchase credits. After this, the user can simply download a picture as needed and use the credits in his/her account. The user can top up the account whenever necessary. This kind of subscription is ideal for users who only use stock photos sporadically.
Either way, anytime a user downloads one of the photos you contributed, it will be recorded on your account. When your account reaches a minimum, you can withdraw the money by requesting a check or a deposit into an online bank account (i.e. PayPal).
Choosing Tags for Your Photos
Of course, stock photo Websites offer users thousands of photos to choose from. So how can you help to ensure that users will actually see the photos you’ve contributed? First, as mentioned already, the key is submitting lots of pictures: dozens, or hundreds.
Secondly, you must be strategic about how you tag your photos. “Tags” are keywords that you think subscribers will use to try to find pictures like the ones you’ve uploaded. Let’s use the example of a photo of a chickadee eating at a bird feeder. Some of the possible “tags” or keywords you should use might include:
* Bird(s)
* Chickadee(s)
* Bird feeder
* Bird eating at a bird feeder
* Chickadee eating at a bird feeder
* Bird at a birdfeeder
* Chickadee at a birdfeeder
* Bird eating seeds
* Chickadee eating seeds
* Bird picture(s)
* Nature
* Nature picture(s)
Choose keywords that range from general (i.e. “birds”) to specific (i.e. “chickadee eating at a bird feeder”). You should also try to include as many keyword variations as you can think of (i.e. “bird feeder” and “birdfeeder”) to catch searchers who will use those different variations/spellings.
If you’re a professional photographer, you’re probably already familiar with the concept of copyright with regard to your photos. For those who are amateurs, copyright (with regard to photography) is the idea that any photo that you take is yours. You have exclusive rights to its ownership.
When you become a contributor to a stock photo Website, you are essentially extending your copyright to the site’s owner. Generally this does not mean that you no longer have any rights to the image(s). It simply means that you have also granted the stock photo site the right to display and sell that image for a profit for itself and for you. You are also granting anyone who purchases the image the right to use that image without paying any further fees for it.
However, generally speaking, you still maintain ownership of the image. This means that you can continue to use the image(s) yourself in whatever manner you want (as long as it doesn’t violate the stock photo site’s Terms of Use).
Nonetheless, you should always read carefully the Terms of Use for contributors of any stock photo Website you contribute to. Make sure you understand their copyright license agreement because not all stock Website’s are necessarily the same in this regard. A thorough understanding of these Terms of Use will help you avoid copyright problems down the road.
The other issue to be aware of is liability when it comes to the subject(s) of your images. Trees and wildlife are generally free domain, but you can’t contribute photos that depict images of human beings without those subjects’ knowledge and consent. Be sure that you inform people that you will be using their images this way, and if they decline then you must respect their privacy.
If your human subjects don’t mind having their images published and marketed to Internet users, it’s helpful to have them sign a simple release form. Signing a release form lets any interested parties know that your subjects have been informed that their pictures of them will be published and/or sold. It also lets buyers/users know that they’ve consented to this use of their image(s).
You can find release form templates online. (Microsoft has a good image usage release form template.) Always keep your release forms on file. You won’t necessarily ever have to produce them or refer to them, but it will be invaluable to you to have them if the need ever arises.
Posted in: FREE 11 Part Mini Course.
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