The internet has created more opportunities to earn than ever before. But that doesn’t necessarily make getting started easier. If you’ve ever searched for “ways to make money online”, you’ve probably come across hundreds of ideas: freelancing, digital products, blogging, affiliate marketing, print-on-demand, content creation, online businesses and countless “side hustles.” It can be difficult to know where you actually fit in.
The good news is that you don’t need to try everything. Instead, it helps to understand the different paths to earning online and then figure out which ones match your skills, interests, resources and goals. In this guide, we’ll look at six broad paths you can explore:
- Physical products
- Services & freelancing
- Digital products
- Print-on-demand
- Content creation
- Affiliate & referral marketing
And remember: these categories aren’t mutually exclusive. One skill or interest can lead to several different income streams.
1.Selling Physical Products
Make something → sell it
One of the most straightforward ways to earn is to create or source a physical product and sell it to customers. This could be something handmade, something you’ve produced yourself, or even a customized product made according to a customer’s requirements.
Some examples include:
- Handmade jewelry
- Clothing and accessories
- Baked goods
- Candles and soaps
- Handmade crafts
- Art and paintings
- Stickers and stationery
- Customized gifts
- Home decor
- Crochet and embroidery
This can be a great option if you’re someone who enjoys making things with your hands. For example, someone who loves baking could turn their hobby into a home-based baking business (like I did). Someone who enjoys crochet could sell handmade pieces, while an artist could sell original paintings or physical prints.
The trade-off is that physical products usually involve more logistics. You’ll need to think about materials, inventory, packaging, delivery and customer orders.
The basic model is:
Make → Package → Sell → Deliver
Start with something simple that does not require a lot of investment. Choose something that you love and you are already doing it. For example, I chose to sell baked goods because I love baking and I already used to bake at home so I had all the basic baking supplies at home. I only had to invest in some packaging supplies and some basic tools, most of the things I already had. As I sell freshly baked goods, I can only deliver within city which saves me a lot of mental fatigue that comes with dealing with courier services and nationwide shipping.
So my biggest tip is to start small, choose something that you love and it must require minimal investment. That way if it does not work out you can start over with something else. And keep in mind you will not only have to make your products but also market them which means a lot content creation is involved in the process in order to attract the customers.
2.Selling Your Skills Through Services & Freelancing
Have a skill → offer it to clients
You don’t necessarily need a physical product to start earning online. If you already have a skill that someone else needs, you can offer it as a service.
Some examples include:
- Graphic design
- Writing and copywriting
- Video editing
- Web design
- Social media management
- Virtual assistance
- UGC creation
- Photography
- Illustration
- Voiceovers
- Translation
- Online tutoring
For example, someone who knows Canva well could offer social media design services (like I do….yes I’m crazy. I have multiple interests). Someone who is good at writing could work as a freelance writer. Someone who enjoys creating videos could offer video editing or UGC services. This is one of the most accessible models for beginners because you can potentially start with a skill you already have rather than creating a product first. And freelancing is essentially one way of delivering these services: you work with clients on individual projects or ongoing arrangements.
The basic model is:
Skill → Service → Client → Payment
You can offer your servives on freelancing platforms like Fiverr and Upwork but I know these platforms are extremely saturated but I’ll still suggest you to choose one platform and create gigs for the sevices you can provide. Next thing I’ll suggest is to keep your LinkedIn profile up to date and also create an online portfolio on Behance or any other platform you prefer. On Behance people can discover your portfolio which gives more exposure so I’ll suggest you don’t skip that.
Another important thing you will have to do is to post your work on social media accounts. You can either use your existing accounts or create new professional accounts with SEO optimized name and bio. Platforms i’ll suggest are Instagram, Facebook and Threads initially. You don’t even need to post seperately on these platforms before posting on Instagram just select the option to post on Facebook and Threads and voila your posts will go on all three platforms in one click. Later you can go on Tiktok and also on Pinterest.
You must be wondering what am I going to post on these accounts? Well that can vary from niche to niche. For example a graphic designer can post about design tips, helpful tools, resources, mockups of their digital designs, color combos, typography tips, design composition tips and any design related educational content. A virtual assistant can share tips about their journey, how they manage their tasks, tools and resources they use etc. Online tutors can share how they structure their day around classes, how they plan and teach, what resources and tools they use and much more. No matter what your niche is there is always something you can post about. The goal is to create an online presence so your potential customers can reach you.
Make sure to prioritize local customers as well. International is good too but sometimes local customers are the way to go. For example as someone living in Pakistan, you can target international customers through Fiverr and local customers through social media. But make sure to have both your Fiverr profile link and local services link (could be a google form or a landing page) in bio.
3.Selling Digital Products
Create digitally → sell online
Digital products are products that customers can purchase and receive digitally rather than as a physical item.
Some examples include:
- Printables
- Planners and journals
- E-books
- Digital art
- Canva templates
- Social media templates
- Notion templates
- Coloring pages
- Worksheets and workbooks
- Presets
- Fonts and graphics
- Digital stickers
One of the appealing things about digital products is that there is no physical inventory or shipping involved. For example, you could create a printable planner and sell the digital file. A customer purchases it and downloads it to use or print themselves. This doesn’t mean digital products are effortless or guaranteed to make money. You still need to create something useful, present it well, find the right audience and market it. (I also sell digital products….told you I’m crazy)
This model can be attractive for people who enjoy designing, writing, organizing information or creating resources.
The basic model is:
Create → List → Sell → Deliver digitally
This pathway is best for those who have a skill or knowledge but don’t want to invest too much. For this you will only have to create a digital file, it could be something as simple as a word document which you deliver in the form of a PDF that has all the valuable information your target audience needs. If you are someone who has a lot of knowledge about a certain topic you can create ebooks, guides, resources list etc. on topics you know well about. If you are a good chef or a baker you can compile your best recipes and tips and sell it as a digital cookbook or even a course. If you are a graphic designer you can design and sell a wide range of digital products from designs to templates and much more.
4.Print-on-Demand
Create the design → someone else prints and ships it
Print-on-demand, or POD, sits somewhere between creative work and physical products. You create a design, but instead of manufacturing and storing hundreds of products yourself, a print-on-demand company prints the design onto a product when a customer places an order.
Depending on the platform, products can include:
- T-shirts
- Hoodies
- Tote bags
- Mugs
- Posters and art prints
- Phone cases
- Stickers
- Notebooks
- Caps
- Home decor
For example, an artist could create an illustration, upload it to a POD platform and offer it on a T-shirt or tote bag. (You guessed it…I do this too)
The important distinction is: The design is digital, but the final product is physical. That’s why I have kept print-on-demand as its own category rather than placing it under digital products. The POD company generally handles the printing and fulfillment, while you focus primarily on creating designs and marketing your products.
The basic model is:
Design → List → Customer orders → Platform prints & ships
Even if you are not a graphic designer you can create simple text based designs on Canva, download and upload on POD platforms. You will have to use a thrid party free tool to remove background from your designs if you don’t have Canva pro. But you can also experiment with other design softwares to find what works best for you. The thing with this pathway is that it’s not something that you can rely on as a stable income source. It’s more like a side hustle specially for beginners and it might take a few months till you get a sale. Again it all comes down to social media marketing, how often you showcase your designs as mockups online and whether you are able to reach your target audience or not. Pinterest is the best platform to post your POD design mockups on as it is a visual search engine and people are already on the platform to explore and shop. So if you go down this pathway, i’ll suggest you to do it as a side hustle, post consistently specially on Pinterest and make sure you SEO optimize your Pinterest account and every single pin you post must link to the prodcut page.
5.Content Creation
Create content → build an audience → monetize
Content creation is another route, but it works a little differently from selling a product or service. Instead of immediately selling something, you create valuable, entertaining, educational or interesting content and build an audience around it.
You could create:
- YouTube videos
- Instagram Reels
- TikTok videos
- Blog posts
- Pinterest content
- Newsletters
- Podcasts
- Educational content
- Lifestyle content
- Niche/interest pages
Once you have an audience, there are different ways that content can potentially generate income. These can include:
- Ad revenue
- Sponsorships
- Brand collaborations
- Affiliate marketing
- Your own products
- Your own services
- Memberships
One important thing to understand is that creating content doesn’t automatically mean getting paid. Building an audience usually takes time. The content itself can eventually become the thing that helps you attract customers, brands, clients or buyers. As a multiple online ventures owner, I have to create a lot of content. Creating content and building an audience requires hard work, patience and a lot of trial & error. One of the examples is this blog, I write articles (content) but to earn from it I have to share affiliate links and my own products. In future I can connect AdSense to this blog and that will become another source of income. I can also do sponsorships with other brands once I grow my audience.
Think of it as:
Create → Build an audience → Monetize
This pathway requires a lot of consistency, time and patience. You will have to post quality content regularly and once you have an audience you can monetize through ads, affiliate marketing, referrals, brand deals, sponsorships, and selling your own products or services. It’s a long game but with consistency you can have great results. One tip is to stick to a specific niche as a beginner. You might want to do a lot of things as the same time but sticking to a specific niche or a micro niche is better as it helps you connect with audience that is interested in that topic. If you post about random stuff there are chances people might not follow/subscribe because they are not sure or they might even unfollow/unsubscribe because they don’t relate to certain topics you post about. You can experiment on a separate account later but I’ll suggest you start with one niche and stick to it.
6.Affiliate & Referral Marketing
Recommend something → earn when someone takes a qualifying action
With affiliate marketing, you don’t create or own the product you’re recommending. Instead, you share products, services or resources with your audience using a special tracking link. If someone makes a qualifying purchase or signs up through your link, you may earn a commission, depending on the program’s terms. The four platforms that I use for affiliate marketing are Daraz, Amazon, Fiverr and Digistore.
Examples include:
- Product recommendations
- Affiliate links
- Blog affiliate content
- Pinterest affiliate content
- YouTube affiliate content
- Software and tool recommendations
- Referral programs
- Course and resource recommendations
- Comparison and review content
This can work particularly well when you create content that helps people make decisions. For example, someone searching for the best tools for starting a small business might find your blog post or Pinterest content, click your recommendation and purchase through your affiliate link.
The important thing is to focus on genuine recommendations and useful content, rather than simply sharing random links.
The basic model is:
Discover → Recommend → Someone buys/signs up → Commission
Just like POD, Affiliate marketing is more of a side hustle than a stable source of income. The good thing about this pathway is that you don’t have to spend time, energy and resources on creating a product from scratch, someone has already done that. Your job is to find good products, tools, services etc. and promote it in a way that creates urgency and triggers impulse buy. The way you promote these products is very important. If someone does not buy something through your link as soon as possible there are chances that the tracking link might expire or they might open another affilaite link from someone else and then you won’t get your commission. All affiliate programs and tracking links work differently so make sure to educate yourself on that and create content accordingly. Another important thing is the platform you choose to share your links. For example, if you share product based links make sure to post on Pinterest as it’s a visual search engine and conversion rates are higher as compared to other platforms. But these things can vary for everyone, experiment with everything, remove what doesn’t work and keep on doing what works. You will figure it out, I believe in you!
You Don’t Have to Choose Just One
Here’s probably the most important thing I want you to take away from this: You don’t have to put yourself into one box. These paths can overlap. Your skills, interests and audience can become the starting point for several different income streams.
For example, an artist could:
Sell artwork → Physical products
Sell digital prints → Digital products
Take commissions → Services
Put their designs on T-shirts → Print-on-demand
Create art content → Content creation
Recommend art supplies → Affiliate marketing
Or a graphic designer could:
Freelance → Services
Sell Canva templates → Digital products
Create POD designs → Print-on-demand
Create design tutorials → Content creation
Recommend design tools → Affiliate marketing
The goal isn’t to start six businesses at once (like me…trust me it gets extremely overwhelming). It’s to realize that one skill, hobby or area of knowledge can potentially open several doors.
So, Where Should You Start?
Don’t start by asking:
“What’s the easiest way to make money online?”
Instead, start by asking:
- What can I make?
- What can I do?
- What do I know?
- What do I enjoy?
- What resources do I already have?
Your answers can help you identify a starting point.
And remember: your first path doesn’t have to be your forever path. You can experiment, learn, change direction and combine different paths as you grow. That’s what Strive & Earn is all about: exploring the different ways we can turn our skills, creativity and knowledge into opportunities to earn, one step at a time.
A last tip from me is to take it easy. If something is not working, leave it, move on and try something else. There was a point where some really amazing ideas were not working for me and with so much going on those projects were weighing me down, so after struggling a lot, I finally decided to give up on a few things and that made it easy for me to focus on projects that were actually giving me positive results. I still have a long way to go. I’m still learning and hopefully one day I will be able to share more knowledge and experience with you.
