While there really are online jobs out there, there seems to be more confusion involving them and outright lies to be had than real and substantial information. Admittedly, there seems to be more in the way of outright scams than real work when you take a look at listings, however there are ways to tell what is real from what is a scam.

Below are quick points to look out for:

• Promises of huge earnings: Let’s face it no job is going to be giving you any kind of huge sum if you don’t have experience.
• The Words ‘Data-Entry’: Data entry is real work, BUT it is something you need to  train for.  Most of the ‘data entry’ jobs online are surveys which may or may not pay out.

To find legit work online jobs, you do need a definable set of skills.  Considering the largest growing portion of online jobs is blogging, writing is a must.  While you may be able to find jobs for coding or art, typically you need more experience than the ability to code.

No matter what you would like to look into, you need a way to back up any claims.  Anyone can claim to write or code, but claiming something won’t get you jobs.  Create a portfolio or a blog (there are tons of free areas to get set up, WordPress and Blogger being two of the best) and get to work showing your skills.

Any website you create doesn’t have to be insanely popular to get jobs from, it’s just to show that you really can do what you say you can.  It should have at minimum 10 or so posts or examples (fairly arbitrary number, but you need a good amount up to show what you can do).

So what can you expect?

• Rejection.  You will be rejected and ignored more often than you get a declined offer.  It may or may not be anything against you, often you just won’t know.  The important thing is to keep trying.
• Low pay.  You more than likely aren’t going to get much, especially if you are just starting out.  If you are brand new at writing online (and the same can be said about other areas of online work) getting more to add to your resume may be able to help more with early gigs, so it may be worth taking lower paid jobs for a while.
• A lot of work.  You will work, a lot.  Often the hours invested at first may not seem to be worth it, and often you may not want to work on a certain day.  Yet, you are expected to so if you are serious about working online you have to work even if you ‘aren’t feeling up to it’.  It will get better, and those long hours will be worth more in the end, and as you keep it up, it does become a lot easier.
• Topics you may not be interested in.  Most of the time you don’t get to pick and choose what you are writing about.  At times you may find a topic boring, or downright dreadful (admittedly some of us do get lucky).

It’s not a job field for everyone, and you really need a lot of time to invest and dedication to the work.  When you are looking for a source of income online, remember the adage: If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.

Anyone can start a business.  It’s easy; write out a few things, set up a website and domain and you are good to go.  Really, even the out of pocket expense is minimal.  One can easily find $10 hosting with a domain, and with that comes a large abundance of business ventures.

Due to this easy nature, there are of course a lot of business out there vying for customers.  Most will sink quickly, and others may falter a bit but still succeed, or maybe if there is a lot of luck at play they will succeed right off the bat and keep growing.

Having a good business, is a huge undertaking. One may be tempted to buy into one of the many fly by night operations or even employ some shady business practices, but that would signal the death knell fairly quickly. Especially considering that many of the shadier practices will do little more than alienate any customers you already have.

While there is no ‘secret’ to a business’ success, at least nothing guarded by armed men and only told to a select few, a surprisingly large portion of people will quickly become frustrated and turn to a fairly shady avenue that they may hope will bring them success.

So, what is the solution?

Patience:

It takes time to get a business to grow.  If your product or service is worth it, it will be able to last, of course you do need good marketing methods in place and some tenacity as well,

Effort:

The more effort you put into your business the more you are giving it a chance, don’t simply ‘set it and forget it’ but work on it, write up blog posts and refine your overall networking, social, and marketing approaches.

Customer Service:

It don’t take too much to lose customers and faith in your business.  Heck, a simple search can reveal a lot.  Good customer service and an approach based on the customer and their satisfaction can help you get further than anything shady can.  A good customer will stick around and come back.

1) Answer your phone.

2) Don’t make promises unless you WILL keep them.

3) Listen to your customers.

4) Deal with complaints.

5) Be helpful – even if there’s no immediate profit in it.

6) Train your staff (if you have any) to be ALWAYS helpful, courteous, and knowledgeable.

7) Take the extra step.

(Source: About.com)

I’d like to add in: Believe in your product. No matter what it is, if it is something you aren’t sure about yourself, you shouldn’t be selling it.  No matter if it is anything from furniture to eBooks, if it isn’t of any actual use- avoid it.

In a nutshell: If it is something you wouldn’t use, or even believe in- don’t push it to others.

What would you like to see in a business?  Is there something that should be avoided (or even encouraged) that isn’t mentioned? Tell about it in the comments!

Before you continue, please be sure to check out my article on what you should do before applying to any writing jobs.

There are a seeming endless supply of websites claiming to have online jobs available.  Many of these are scams, and the old adage of ‘if it sounds too good to be true, it probably isn’t real’ applies here. 

Some rules of thumb to think of before applying to anything:

• If they are offering you a high amount of money, more than likely it is not real.
• Don’t give out personal information.
• Be suspicious.

Keep in mind that at this moment, you are technically inexperienced so you will be making money that is in line with that (not much).  At first especially, you won’t be making nearly as much as you would from a typical 9–5 type of job, so if you have a day job- don’t quit it yet!

Also consider your strengths and what you are passionate about.  If it’s art, crafting, scrapbooking, parenting, technology, or something else.  Chances are, you will be able to find a gig that is related to that.

There are also some terms that you will need to pay attention to.

• RevShare/ Revenue Share/ Network/ Blog Networks:  These aren’t inherently bad at all, but they do mean less money.  All of them typically mean the same thing, that you will get a ‘cut’ of the advertising revenue from your articles.  Some will also pay you on a cost per thousand basis.
• CPM:  CPM really just means ‘cost per thousand’, with M being the roman numeral for one thousand.  In a very typical case it will be about $1 per thousand hits.

Where to look:

If you are looking for a blogging gig, the below are pretty good for finding them.  Many companies and networks are always on the lookout for new talent, and these are the two they tend to go to.

ProBlogger Job Board: While there is a high portion of  revshare type of ‘jobs’ listed, you can find more ‘typical’ blogger and writing jobs there as well.  I actually found my first writing job there a couple of years ago.  It’s updated constantly as well with new jobs, so check it regularly.

Blogger Jobs: This is similar to the above, with about the same mix of revshare and more ‘typical jobs’.  It’s another good resource when you are looking for a blogging gig.

Craigslist: Craigslist has a huge amount of gigs when it comes to writing.  I also have used it with luck, try looking in your local area for ‘freelancer’ or ‘blogger’ and you may find something good, be careful though as there are a surprising amount of scammers there as well.

Freelance Switch Job Board: Again, similar in set up to the ProBlogger Job Board.  There are still a fantastic amount to choose from.

You may also find some luck in searching through the more standard job oriented websites, I’ve heard of people getting gigs through both Monster.com and Career Builder, but that isn’t exactly typical.

Having your own writing to show off will help you out a lot, I used my personal blog (Not Quite Cookie Cutter) originally as a show of my writing ability, but it was relevant due to the parenting theme.  While I do have actual ‘paid writing’ now to show to potential employers, back then that was the best I had.  While now I wouldn’t do that, if you are just starting out, you do need something to show to anyone you are applying to.

For someone just starting out without a whole lot of back work, it can seem beyond impossible to get work coming in.    You need your foot in the door, and have no clue how to get it there.  Starting out writing or designing online is a great way to work, and the job’s hours are unbeatable but if you can’t find the work it’s just another dream.

Be honest with yourself before you continue- can you really hack it? 

Generally, when working online you need a few things, and to be able to do a few things. 

This goes for both writers and designers, and to be perfectly honest, if you don’t have much to offer- you aren’t going to get far.  Someone with a better understanding will get the job.  While the term writing is used below, the same goes for design as well. 

Fluency: If you are applying to a gig, and you don’t speak the language- you aren’t getting that job.  More and more companies are wanting a writer than has a good grasp on the English language.  If you really don’t have a clue about grammar, spelling, and punctuation you won’t be getting far.

Time Management Skills: If you can’t be arsed to finish your work in an appropriate time span, you aren’t keeping any jobs you may have gotten. It’s not going to happen.  While sure, things come up- it happens and that’s life- being constantly late isn’t going to do you any favors. 

Start Up Money: Before you start, make sure you have some extra money in your bank account.  You will need it for living expenses.  Better yet, don’t quit your day-job quite yet.  While in some cases you get lucky, or forced into the same luck- more often than not you would be just royally screwing yourself over if you quit and can get any new work.

An Ability to Handle Disappointment:  On average you aren’t going to get the gig.  Depending on your credentials, and prior experience you will be applying to jobs that you more than likely aren’t going to get. Especially if you are brand new.  It sucks, bad.  If you can’t handle that, don’t freelance.

A Blog:  You need somewhere to send perspective clients to show you can write.  Starting your own blog is the absolute easiest method.  You need something that shows you can be engaging and are capable of writing properly.

Patience: It takes a while before you may be seeing anything coming from your writing.  By a while I don’t mean two days or weeks- try anywhere from 6–9 months or over a year.

In addition to the above, don’t be afraid to take lower paying positions.  It’s a good way to work up to the area you want.  A good deal of those will also help you work yourself into the position itself.  Just don’t be an ass and burn that bridge.  Never leave a website or gig on a bad note, besides it just not being ‘polite’ it’s a good way to get yourself blacklisted.

Think of that (now cliché) ‘You will never work in this town again!’ today, anyone can actually make that happen.