10 Flexible Side Gigs to Bring in Extra Income

Nobody complains about having a little extra cash to spend, and this piece from DailyWorth gives you the easy side gigs you never even knew you wanted. Who said making money couldn’t be easy?

Making extra money is always a bonus. No contest.

Even better? When you can do it in your pajamas or while binge-watching Broad City. Whether it’s because you can’t currently expect to make more at your day job or need an extra few thousand to pay off debt (or make a splurge or invest!), there are some surprisingly easy ways to get paid.

Here are 10 simple side gigs to get you started.

Be a “Middleman” on eBay

“When people think of making money on eBay, they usually think about selling the junk in their garage and basement, which of course offer limited products,” says Nisa Schmitz, media relations manager at Doubledot Media, which offers drop-shipping on eBay.

The genius behind drop-shipping: You never actually ship anything — or handle the product. Instead, as Schmitz explains, “After you make a sale, the company ships the product directly to your customer for you.” And you get a percentage of the sale.

SaleHoo, an online wholesale directory of more than 8,000 prescreened suppliers (such as Gap and Playskool), offers a marketplace for those interested in serving as the “middleman” on eBay, meaning you act as the storefront selling wholesale products. The site explains all the details.

Capitalize on Your Car

If you own a car, you could be making money with it. As the concept of the sharing economy grows, more people are looking to rent other people’s cars rather than purchase their own. Sites like Relay Rides and GetAround can connect you with people who may be interested in renting your vehicle by the hour, day, week, or month.

If you’d rather keep your own keys, consider offering rides to others for a fee. Drivers for Lyft earn up to $35 per hour and set their own hours, according to the company’s website. Lyft currently operates in about 20 cities throughout the United States.

Become a Mystery Shopper

Sue De La Bruere started working as a mystery shopper with Jancyn to make extra money on a flexible schedule without committing to a regular job. Mystery shoppers frequent retail stores, restaurants, and other places of business and report on their experiences to help companies measure their customer service.

“Shoppers make their own schedules and take as many or as few assignments as they would like,” De La Bruere says. “Some shoppers take just a few assignments per week and make perhaps $100. Others consider this their full-time job and make closer to $500 per week.” For De La Bruere, the side project turned into a full-time commitment. She now serves as a project manager for the mystery shopping firm.

Start Affiliate Marketing

“Businesses are always looking for new customers, and some are happy to pay you for them,” says Jennifer Martin, a business coach and owner of Zest Business Consulting in San Francisco. “All kinds of companies, from Amazon to Starbucks to Weight Watchers, are looking for affiliates to help them reach out to new paying customers.” Many of these businesses will provide you with a unique URL (which includes a personal code) to share with potential customers. When a new customer uses that link to make a purchase, you make money.

For instance, Martin serves as an affiliate marketer for a Web hosting company. When people use her link and sign up for the company’s services, she earns a commission. You can find out about affiliate marketing opportunities through specific companies’ websites or affiliate consolidators such as Rakuten Affiliate Network. To learn more about affiliate marketing, visit Affilorama, an affiliate marketing training portal.

Read the full article on DailyWorth‘s site.

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10 Flexible Side Gigs to Bring in Extra Income