16 Ways to Make Money as an Online Freelancer

Introduction

You’re on the lookout for a way to make some extra cash, and you understand freelancing is an option. It certainly is an option, and there’s various freelancing options you can choose from.

For those unfamiliar with how freelancing works, here’s a brief description of the freelancing process.

1. Companies are on the lookout for workers in specific fields of industry, so they post jobs on freelancing websites.
2. As a freelancer yourself, you are a self employed worker.
3. You can create a profile of your work experience and skills, and upload it to freelancing websites.
4. When jobs become available in your field of expertise, you will be notified.
5. Alternatively, search current jobs that have been posted to see if they suit you skill set.

Basically, you’ll be presenting yourself to employers who need specific jobs completed. If these jobs match your skills, you can apply to complete the work.

There’s a large range of jobs available for freelancing, and here’s a list of 16 ways to make money as an online freelancer.

#1 Web Development and Designing

​If you have web development or design skills that you’ve picked up, then you can put this to good use helping out companies that require this. The great thing about website development, is that it’s in high demand just about everywhere in the world. I mean, who doesn’t require a website.

Keep in mind that web development is more about the coding side of things, and web design is more graphical interface based. Often companies will outsource this kind of job rather than do it in-house. Understanding various coding languages will be a big advantage, and more so if you’re good at both design and development.

#2 Photography

Photography is such an enormous part of the internet, basically because more people are visual by nature. Long gone are the days where images were not recommended on website because of their large data size, nowadays they are a must.

If you’re an experienced photographer with a great portfolio, you’ll have a good head start to becoming a photography freelancer. Not only will you require photography skills in terms of taking photos, but also editing and retouching images through software programs such as Photoshop or Polarr.

#3 Graphic Design

If you’ve had experience creating graphics for any kind of promotional activity, then maybe a freelance option will be up your street. You certainly require knowledge as a graphic designer, and familiarity with software’s such as Adobe Illustrator or Sketch.

There are lots of Graphic Design freelance opportunities, but it’s also a competitive field. Once you gain a good reputation in this industry, you’ll be much better off. Get a good portfolio together, and work on your skill set to gain an advantage.

#4 Copywriting

Maybe you have the ability to write great promotional content. If this is the case, you could do really well as a freelance copywriter. You will be responsible for writing the associated content for billboards, brochures, Flyers etc. Maybe even press releases or speeches, which are more specialized.

You will need to have a passion for writing and an ability to achieve quick results. Again, experience and proof of your work are going to be required. You want your previous work to be good so that you can present it with pride.

#5 Writing

Similar to copy-writing but instead of specific promotional or professional media, you could be writing for blogs, articles or eBooks. It’s still great to have a collection of works so potential employers can see your output.

So many companies are searching for writing freelancers, and this can be an easier activity for you to get into. This is the case because you only require skills in terms of writing decent content, and knowing common software such as Word, Excel etc.

#6 Data Entry Jobs

​The easiest job you can get as a freelancer is a data entry in-putter. Although it’s a fairly mundane choice of freelancing, it’s also popular and widespread. Simply put, you’ll be transferring information from one source to another.

Data entry jobs will not pay as much as other freelancing options, but it’s better than filling out online surveys. The only experience you’ll require is typing, and the quicker you can do it, the more free time you’ll have to yourself. This is a great entry level job for many people searching for some extra cash online.

#7 Human Resources

It’s possible that you’ve been a human resources manager in the past, and now want a break from going into the office. And yes, it’s possible to get human resource jobs as a freelancer, but not as common as other fields.

You will certainly require experience in this field of work, and constant contact with other HR managers to keep up with industry practice. The human resource position has become imperative in most industries, so these opportunities will become more popular.

#8 Logo Design

If you have a passion for logo design then this niche could be your ideal freelancing solution. This could be considered part of graphical design, but it can also be a position in it’s own right.

You will need experience with logo design, and the accompanying software packages that are required. Photoshop, Illustrator or CorelDRAW are some of the more common softwares that you’ll want to use for creating logos. Not online logo tools.

#9 Teaching

It’s not always possible for teachers to be available full time, and many would like to work remotely. Freelancing can be a great option because it allows you to login with students online. It also allows you to dictate the times you want to work, possibly giving you more time to yourself.

Obviously, you’ll still need to be a qualified teacher in most cases. You will also need to be proficient in online meetings using software like Wattsapp, Skype or Facetime. Luckily for us, these companies make it extremely easy to visually connect nowadays. You will require good social skills and educational skills.

#10 Mobile App Development

You may have noticed that more app marketplaces have been popping up recently, along with the more common Google Android and Apple app markets. For this reason, app development has become extremely popular.

If you’re good at creating apps for mobile devices, then you could earn some good coin from becoming a mobile app developer. Having said that, app developers only want to employ the best in the business. It’s becoming a competitive field of work, so you really want to make sure you have good experience and are well versed in the app development field.

#11 Search Engine Optimization (SEO)

Many companies possess a website, but they don’t know how to rank their website. These companies can do with a helping hand with SEO, search engine optimization factors that store owners have no idea about.

Put your SEO skills to good use by accepting positions from the large array of companies that need help getting website traffic. You cannot bluff your way through this though, so make sure you do know what the Google algorithms are searching for, and what factors make websites rank.

#12 Admin Support or Assistance

I’m sure you heard the term ‘VA’, which stands for virtual assistant. Being a freelance administration manager is basically the same thing, assisting company management remotely.

For this, you will need to have great organizational skills to manage meetings, deadlines and appointments on behalf of management. Other tasks can include managing and replying to emails, typing documents, paying invoices, data entry or several other activities.

#13 CAD Technician/Draftsperson

I know this one well, because I used to be a CAD draftsperson myself, before seeing the light and working for myself as {an affiliate marketer}. CAD work can be an ideal job as a freelancer, but you will need to make sure you have a valid licence for each of the CAD software you’ll be using, such as AutoCAD.

Obviously you need to be proficient in the software packages you’ll be using, and you won’t get results for your clients without this knowledge. You can be rewarded with a good freelance pay rate as a CAD technician.

#14 Researcher

As a research freelancer, your job will involve organizing, cataloging and reporting on correct information that you have researched. If such things were easy to research, there would be no need for a researcher position.

You will use your knowledge and creative capability of sourcing information from sites that are not straightforwardly obvious. This will also be found offline as well as online, and you’ll need to present the researched information in a professional manner.

#15 Social Media Manager

A client has a website and social media channels setup, but they just don’t have the time or knowledge to keep these social channels active. As a social media manager, your job will be to post and engage in your clients social company affairs.

You will post relevant company imagery and engage with those that make comments. Your experience will be to understand how Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, Twitter or any other social channels that a client have use.

#16 Legal Services

If you have a background in legal services, you may consider working as a freelancer rather than directly for an employer. This reduces the stress involved because you can pick and choose the jobs that come in.

You will still find this challenging work, and you’ll get paid well to do it. A legal degree or similar may be necessary, as will substantial experience. Work can involve contract review, trademark and patent information, paralegal services and much more.

The Pros and Cons of Freelancing Work

As with many online opportunities, there are pros and cons of becoming a freelancer. Here’s some things to consider weighing up.

Freelancer Pros

• It’s Your Choice – You have the ability to choose jobs that suit you. Some clients can be better to work with, and you can choose to work with specific clients and not others.
• Work Remotely – Because these are online freelancing jobs, if you can complete the work from a simple laptop, you can basically work anywhere.
• Time Freedom – The amount of work you choose to complete is totally up to you. This can give you more time freedom than chained behind a desk working for an employer.

Freelancing Cons

• Work Benefits – When you work for an employer, you get holiday pay, sick pay and other benefits that the employer will pay for. Because freelancing means you’re self-employed, you will not gain these bonuses.
• Dried Up Work – The chances are that most of the time there will be lots of work available. However, from time to time you may find that work dries up, which means your income dries up. Employers can hold onto employees longer, possibly until the slow period gets back on track.

Where To Find Freelancing Work

Of course you’d like to know where to find these freelancing positions. Here’s a list containing various freelancing job sites that will offer opportunities.

• Upwork
• Freelancer
• Flexjobs
• Crowdsource
• 99 Designs
• Freelanced
• People Per Hour
• Media Bistro
• Hirable
• Behance

Most of these are global based freelancing sites, but don’t limit yourself to just these. There are local sites also, and many more global freelancing sites.

Wrapping Up

Yes, there really are lots of freelancing options to choose from. I suppose freelancing subconsciously brings to mind data entry or writing articles. While these are freelancing options, the opportunity is available to so many more fields of work.

As an alternate to freelancing, you could do what I do. I’m an affiliate marketer, and sell products online to earn commissions. If you’d like to learn how to do this, read on below.