How to Make Money Online
Working moms are the rule rather than the exception. Seventy percent of moms with kids under 18 work, and more than 75 percent of those moms work full time. In fact, mothers are the primary or sole earners for 74 percent of U.S. households with children under 18. Making money while you’re parenting requires work that accommodates the demands of your busy life. Many moms need jobs that allow them to work from home.
Entrepreneur.com has culled suggestions on ways to make money from home. While the majority of these ideas require computer and internet access, the majority of these suggestions have low to zero startup costs and require little to no additional schooling. Check out the next 16 slides.
Virtual tutoring is a good way for moms to create convenient schedules and use their expertise in subject matters or test preparation from the comfort of their own homes. Virtual tutors use FaceTime, Skype, Google Hangouts and other technologies.
Tutoring doesn’t require in-state teaching certification, but the majority of companies hiring ask for a bachelor’s degree and some sort of demonstration of expertise in a subject through an exam or other type of assessment. Many tutoring companies offer convenient online training modules. If you already have some experience either in teaching or tutoring, that’s an excellent start and experience you want to emphasize.
The median hourly wage for a tutor is $23.23. Do a quick online search of tutoring wages in your area to manage your expectations and set your price.
Tutors in math (all grades, as well as the math used on the SAT and ACT) are always in high demand, as well as in physical science subjects (physics, chemistry, earth science) and English (critical reading and reading comprehension for test taking), writing (essays) and ESL (grammar, test preparation and English for Specific Purposes, e.g. specific occupations).
We’ve all gotten calls from telemarketers, possibly trying to sell a bundled internet and cable package or alternative electricity and gas. Telemarketers often get phone hangups. But the upside of telemarketing is that it’s an excellent work-from-home option and the hours come in shifts that may work for your life demands as a mother. Also, you don’t need a bachelor’s degree or a lot of training, so the entry barrier is relatively low.
What you do likely need for this job, which requires making multiple calls to sell products, conducts surveys and solicit donations, is to be articulate, friendly and thick-skinned. If you have any sort of sales experience, that can work for you.
A transcriber types out a script, and while that sounds simple, the work requires fast and accurate typing skills. Other things you will need for the job are good headphones, a computer and word processing software, such as MS Word. A foot pedal that controls the audio recording or video can be helpful. Transcription work can be a good for a mom’s lifestyle, because it can be done remotely and doesn’t require a long ramp-up period to train or get to work. However, be aware, transcription may seem like it’s just typing, but it definitely requires concentration and time. This job can suit a parent who has children in school, or with relatives close by willing to look after the kids.
A virtual assistant performs remote tasks across a number of fascinating industries, but the core of the job is administrative. Most of us have booked travel, arranged catering for meetings, done expense reports, maintained a calendar, performed general research and other administrative tasks -- these are among the skills you want to emphasize for the job, along any other organizational or administrative experience you possess.
A job as a babysitter encompasses various roles, such as picking up a child from lessons or school, helping with homework, making dinner and giving baths. In other words, responsibilities that any parent is already familiar with. While working as a full-time babysitter would be a tough fit for the life of a stay-at-home mom, working as a part-time babysitter may work, depending on your schedule and the age of your child or children.
While you can always go the route of running a daycare business from your home, that would require ramp up time and the proper state licenses and permits. (Researching the National Database of Child Care Licensing Regulations can help you figure that out.) However, if you wish to skip the hassle of running a daycare business, then stick to babysitting and make sure that you’re not mistakenly running a daycare business. For instance, in New York State, “Any child day care program planning to serve three or more children for more than three hours a day on a regular basis must obtain a license or registration.”
You can offer your childcare services through word of mouth as well as through social media and personal networks. Put up flyers or signs where parents would be, such as at schools and local stores that carry children's products or specialize in kid activities. Get permission first.
This hourly position has a relatively low barrier for entry, which is helpful for moms or dads who want to work from home and don’t have the time for too much additional training and education. The job of a call service representative is typically taking inbound calls and helping customers. The work is in shifts, and because you’ll be interacting with a lot of people over the phone, some who probably are frustrated or upset, having a knack for staying calm, friendly and solution-focused is a plus.
The gig economy and freelancer marketplace have opened an online market for moms who can sell their expertise from home. Moms with professional degrees in a variety of high-skilled areas, such as accounting, law, medicine, social sciences, grant writing, marketing or veterinary medicine, can create their profiles on expertise marketplaces, where clients can either select you for your services or where you can bid on work.
Among the places where you can get started is on the consulting and coaching platform Clarity.fm, where experts get paid by the minute to talk to clients over the phone or online. Or offer your expertise on JustAnswer, where potential clients post questions online and registered experts (e.g. doctors, lawyers, antique appraisers, engineers, essay experts and many more) bid to answer the question.
Some other gig platforms where you can sell your expertise may take you out of the house: Fiverr (the marketplace is geared toward services required by the lean entrepreneur, e.g. digital and video marketing), TaskRabbit (household and errand services), Amazon’s Mechanical Turk (mostly menial repetitive computer tasks), Amazon Home Services (handyman services) and Upwork (another marketplace also geared toward services needed by lean businesses). These marketplaces vary in the range of required expertise and pay per assignment.