One of the most frequent questions I receive as a financial advisor is, “How can I earn more money when I don’t have the time to take on a second job?” Then there are others with lots of time on their hands, like the college graduate who can’t get a job, or the worker who’s been laid off, who will ask how they can find viable ways to generate income.

There is a remarkable money-making opportunity that’s open to practically everyone – young or old, university-educated or high-school dropout – which doesn’t require huge amounts of start-up capital or specialized knowledge to succeed. What is needed to take advantage of this new age money-maker is a little creativity and the determination to learn the tricks of the trade.  

This opportunity is called Internet marketing.  

I recently attended Peak Potentials’ The World’s Greatest Marketing Seminar, where participants were exposed to cutting-edge techniques of marketing. Speaker after speaker showed how making money on the Internet was more accessible than ever before to anyone, anywhere, in the world that wanted to take advantage of it. We heard tales of people who were earning thousands of dollars monthly, weekly and even daily by marketing products and services online. 

To make your mark on the Internet you have to take advantage of most or all of the various mediums of presenting your product or service to the world. Here are a few of the possible things you can do: 

1. Make a simple and useful website

If you have a product or service for sale, then you need to have a presence online. Don’t limit yourself to what you may think the Jamaican market can handle- there’s millions of people out there in cyberspace who may want what you have to offer. You don’t have to spend a lot of money making it high-tech or fancy, just present the bare essentials of what you do and how it can solve someone’s problems. The next step is to utilize some of the many techniques of driving interested consumers to your webpage. 

2. Express yourself by starting a blog

According to www.answers.com, a blog is short for web log, an online, regularly updated journal or newsletter that is readily accessible to the general public by virtue of being posted on a website. Blogs usually report on topics of interest to the author, but readers can also post their comments. A blog can help you to promote your product or service by containing a link to your website, and by allowing you to establish yourself as an expert in your field. You can start a blog in minutes free of charge by going to a blog publishing site like WordPress or Blogger. 

3. Let your voice be heard with podcasting

Many people react with more emotion to the sound of a voice than just to words on a paper. To get your message to stand out from the crowd, you can create a recording called a podcast that people can listen to on your site or play back on a portable media player. The term was derived from combining broadcast and iPod (the Apple brand of the media player). Podcasts allow to you to continually reach your audience whenever you update your content. 

4. Put your best face forward with online video

If a picture is worth a thousand words, then video broadcasting is the whole book. Think of how successful you could be if you could speak directly to lots of people about the benefits of your product or service. Video podcasting can be done on your site, or you can post something related to your offering on a website such as YouTube which is viewed by millions. For example if you sold natural hair care products could post a video demonstrating hair care tips. 

Now many of you might be thinking that online marketing is only for computer geeks and ‘techies’ who are very familiar with the workings of the Internet. This is definitely not the case, because how-to information is available to anyone who searches for it online. There is also a level playing field as you can have access to millions of people who may be interested in what you have to say, or to sell.  

The following is an example of an unlikely Internet marketing success story: A 90-year-old great-grandmother in Australia was bored with retirement and wanted a way to share her love of quilting with the rest of the world. She received some basic Internet training and learned how to publish an E-book on quilting. She now earns over US,000 monthly selling her E-books online and has thousands of devoted subscribers to her site. 

If a ninety-year old retiree can make money on the Internet, don’t you think you could too?

© Cherryl Hanson Simpson

Cherryl is a financial columnist, consultant and coach. See more of her work at www.financiallyfreenetwork.com and www.financiallysmartonline.com. Contact Cherryl.