The novel COVID-19 has led to many companies closing their doors and sending some of their employees home. The world has been brought to a complete standstill with many people finding ways to make money- especially while they are locked in their homes. If you are a professional who is looking for a legitimate part time opportunity and want to grow in your career, then this is the perfect read for you. Let’s take a look at how!

The Impact on the Economy and Jobs

One of the gravest side effects of COVID-19 has been total or partial lockdown in almost all countries of the world. As a result of the lockdown, multinational corporations, startups, and medium and small enterprises had to keep their office doors closed and face huge losses, leading to slowing down of the economy.

This ‘new normal’ has however led to the rapid adoption of digital services and a hybrid model of online and offline work. COVID-19 has inevitably forced workers to go digital, and in an unseen move, opened new money-making opportunities that are being grabbed by two hands.

COVID-19 and Making Money From Home

Before we dive into the realistic ideas with which you can make money online, let’s address some of the frequently asked questions regarding the same.

Does making money from home require any special skills or degrees? Well, no. You don’t need any extra degree to make money from home. However, you need to understand how the digital marketplace works. There are lakhs of pages/websites/videos online available for free to teach you this. Does making money online mean I have to pay someone to get me an online job?

Absolutely not. There are perfectly legitimate people who need hardworking people to help them online. You should never pay anyone to get an online job. Instead, you should be wary of such scammers.

5 Realistic Ideas to Help you Make Money During COVID-19So if you are one of the many who are looking for realistic ways to help you make money during COVID-19 right from your home and without having to compromise your health, then read on.

Become an Affiliate MarketerAn affiliate marketer is someone who is selling for someone else. It is a position where you sell/promote other companies’ products or services online and get paid a  certain commission for each sale. How does this work, though?

Let us take you through the process:

Sign up to be an affiliate marketer of any company having the program (like Amazon). Once you have your affiliate associate account, you can choose from a variety of products available on the platform (this can be electronics, fashion items, laptops), then add the affiliate link to your website/blog/Facebook page/channel and share it with your friends and family. Use your creative skills or seek the help of friends to design graphics, videos, and email invitation makers to generate more sales leads, and become better at selling the product. If someone purchases that product, you will earn the amount with an agreed-upon commission. You get to pick products from trendy catalogs as well as unique collections every week. The margin will be credited directly into your bank after the delivery of the product. A great way, isn’t it?

1. Become a Freelance/SEO ExpertFreelancing is when you work independently rather than for a company or an organization. This is a great way to continue your service online to whatever profession you were in offline. Were you in client servicing? You can offer your client servicing expertise online. An SEO expert? Offer your SEO expertise to agencies and digital companies via video or call conferencing. There are numerous freelancing websites (like Dormzi.com, Freelancer.com, Upwork.com) that offer great opportunities to make money from home. If you are good at a skill, you can use it to make some money. For example, if you are an SEO expert, you can provide your expertise to startups and enterprises to increase their digital footprint, and that will become your way to make money from home.

2. Become a Blogger/Content WriterLove writing? Or have a flair for writing? This is that one job that requires zero to no investment and is one of the most popular ways to make money from home. Either you can go for freelance writing or start your blog. You can write about anything, really; it can be about a topic that you are an expert about, or maybe an experience that you would like to share – what matters is that the topic should interest people because that is when they will read it. Blogging/Content writing will not only give you an opportunity to brush up on your skills but will also help you find other opportunities with different people and clients and encourage you to grow in your career.

3. Become a Fulfilment Expert by Amazon (FBA)Have you seen the words “FBA” on the Amazon website and wondered what they actually are? Well, the acronym stands for Fulfillment by Amazon and it exactly means that. You can become an expert- in a way, a supplier of sorts for Amazon.  How does it work? You could use FBA to sell your own products or sell clearance items. Much like an affiliate marketer. However, this is extremely hyper-focused and requires that you have an inventory. But, it doesn’t need any physical commodities to store. Basically, you send stocks to Amazon; Amazon stores the product. When a customer buys that product, Amazon sends it directly to the customer. Your products appear in the same listing as those provided by the company, and the more you sell on Amazon, the more is your profit.

4. Become an Online GamerCOVID-19, combined with lockdown, pushed a lot of people to pass time by online gaming. If you’ve ever wanted to make money out of gaming, this is truly a once-in-a-lifetime chance! Online gaming is on the rise and it is a fun and exciting way to make money from home. You can start by choosing a game you are good at. Then, simply download the game and play! There is a wide range of audiences who pay good money to watch video slideshows or fast cuts of the game walkthroughs. In this way, you can also create a YouTube gaming channel or a Facebook Page where you can show people your skills. Another way to help you make money during COVID-19 through gaming is taking part in online gaming competitions and doing well — if you are amongst the top performers, you can win cash prizes. No matter where your interests lie, you can be sure that there is an online game that you can use for making money from home.

5. Opportunities galore in the online world almost every major economic industry is dealing with the terrible effects of the COVID-19, and at this point, there is very little that one can do. But, the idea is to never lose hope. Just because you are at home doesn’t mean you have to be unproductive and can’t make money. In this article, we gave you 5 realistic and simple ideas to make money during COVID-19.

Planning for the future in uncertain times requires a little bit of out-of-box thinking and some change in personal strategies.

The key to making money from home is to have — 

• An active internet connection with good speed
• A fully functional laptop or system
• A zeal to keep working and deliver your best

And, in times like these, it’s always good to keep an eye on trends, rather than anticipate what might happen in the future. Act now!