5 Responses

1. Pinyo

   28|Aug|2007 1

   That’s good for you to turn down that type of sponsor. I turned down one myself because it goes against everything I believe.

   For extra money, I invest in the stock market and running web sites (used to bring in a few thousands a year with my old sites).

2. paidtwice

   28|Aug|2007 2

   Selling stuff and taking surveys. I sell stuff I don’t want/need any more (or try to!) and I take a lot of online surveys.

   I’m not making a lot of extra cash though lol.

3. David Robarts

   28|Aug|2007 3

   An second job is an obvious choice, but perhaps rather that just another paycheck job a hobby business is the way to go. There are often times when something you are interested in can be turned into a few extra dollars. While the money earned for the time spent may be considerably less than a regular job (especially at first), if you’re doing something you enjoy you may be able to escape the not fun, not pretty aspect of an second job. This seems to work especially well for stay-at-home moms who want to earn extra money. Two of my sisters have had successful party marketing businesses based on hobbies they love with minimal impact on their family life. It doesn’t lead to much income but has enabled them to have more resources for the hobby as well as some extra money for family vacations and new furniture/redecorating that they otherwise wouldn’t have been able to afford.

   For more immediate financial needs without taking a second job try to sell things you don’t need. This is often a difficult sacrifice, but it certainly would be a better option that slaving away on two jobs and not having the time/energy/health to enjoy the things anyway.

   As far as multi-level marketing goes, I would avoid it and advise anyone I know to do the same. Yes a few people do make money at it, they are either at the top or getting there by signing up people under them. Before the internet, there may have been some truth to the “cut out the middleman” idea behind these marketing schemes, but the internet allows virtually anyone to directly reach anyone else, so the multi-level organization is now obsolete. Two relatives of mine have had Amway businesses in the past and I believe that both were successful at earning a little money, but I don’t think either earned a return that was worth the work they put in. The only way to make significant money in multi-level marketing is having a downline that is working hard for less than they deserve.

4. mark

   28|Aug|2007 4

   Pinyo- Thanks for the encouragement for my decision not to sell adspace to those guys. The more PF bloggers who don’t let greed overtake them, the better off everyone is.

   Paidtwice- My issue with surveys is that eventually it seems like you have to sign up for something or in some other way spend money in order to win or get paid. Have you actually made money from surveys? If so where would you recommend others try?

   David- Excellent insight into the world of Multi Level Marketing. The thing I think complicates it further is the fact that for most people, the downline is friends and family.

5. David Robarts

   28|Aug|2007 5

   I’m subscribed to an online survey company that awards points that you can use to enter sweepstakes. I haven’t won anything yet. I don’t really expect to win, but I don’t mind taking surveys online and I might get something from it. On a similar note, I also use Blingo, a search engine that each search is a survey entry. I won $50 last month. If you invite others, you get awarded any prize they receive as well (my mom also got $50 as well as other prizes she’s won). As far as search relevancy goes, it’s powered by Google so you if you were using Google before you get the same results.

   Another thing that I have tried is secret shopper networks. The legit ones don’t charge you anything to sign up (nor promise making $50-100 per hour). The jobs I’ve seen don’t seem to pay very well (shop a restaurant and get reimbursed for the cost of the food, but not the tip) and require you to pay the upfront costs. I did complete a telephone shop (no purchase required) that I’ll get paid $10 for. It took me between 30-45 minutes to arrange the shop, make the call, and file the report, so that’s not too bad. The company I did the shop for is insanely slow (I expect to get payment almost 2 months after the work is done).

   Still, I think the best bet at extra money without the burden of a second job is a hobby based business - you can make some money doing something you enjoy. Surveys, Search, and Secret Shopping might get an odd dollar here and there, but not a real income.