How I Make Money Online
First of all, thank you to those who participated in the poll for future Frugal Pinoy topics. Your votes will help me decide on what personal finance topics to blog about. You can still vote in case you haven’t. I’ll probably keep it running for the entire month of July. If you want to vote, click here.
So far, there have been some votes for passive income and making money online. Instead of a textbook discussion of these things, I’ll give real-life examples from what my partner and I do to make money online. If you want a more detailed explanation on these income sources, simply ask me a question via the comment box.
Affiliate programs. Basically, with affiliate programs, you’re trying to sell other people’s products and you get a commission for each sale you make. The way this usually works is that you place a link on your website to the product you’re selling, and when you make a sale through that link, you get a commission.
There are some networks for affiliate programs such as Commission Junction and E-junkie, which collect several programs for you, and you just select from their database. Here are the affiliate programs I make some money on:
- Zazzle.com. Basically, you create designs for shirts, mugs, and other items and make money from each sale you make. Three people have bought the shirts I designed. Alternatively, you can also sell other people’s designs, but the commission you get will be less (since the creator gets a bigger percentage). What I like about Zazzle is that they pay you via PayPal. You can receive payments monthly (if you earn more than $25) or yearly (if you earn less than $25).
- E-Junkie.com. The payout rate for E-junkie tends to be higher, and I usually select affiliate programs with at least 40% commission. Like Zazzle, they also pay via PayPal.
Since we’re not yet that serious about affiliate marketing, we only make a few dollars here and there for various affiliate programs. But if you add up these few dollars, they’re enough to pay for some yearly domain renewals.
Advertising networks. If you have a website, you can have some space where you’ll put advertisements and you can get paid per click or based on time (per week or per month). The pay per click ads are usually from networks like Google Adsense or Linkworth. The ads based on time are often private advertisers who contact you and say something like “I’d like to place an ad on your website for one month”.
We get a nice amount from Adsense each month, especially after we’ve used it on a wide variety of websites.
Contract work. The bulk of my income comes from contract work, where I do various online jobs for companies abroad and I get paid for them. It takes more time than the above methods, but only roughly 9 to 15 hours per week. Mainly, my partner and I are online writers, but we also get some design work. Here are the blogs I write for:
- Pimp Your Work. This is my main blog. The payment structure is that I get a base pay each month, with a traffic bonus of $1.65 per 1,000 page views. My traffic bonus is roughly just as much as my base pay. The topic for this blog is workday efficiency.
- The AppGap. This is another blog which pays me per post. It’s about Web 2.0 and the future of the workplace.
- Web Worker Daily. This is a blog aimed at web workers like me, like The AppGap, it pays per post.
Among these online moneymaking opportunities, the affiliate programs and advertising networks tend to be more passive. However, the set-up will take up some time and money.
I’m going to talk more about these online income opportunities through Frugal Pinoy. So if you want to know more, just stay tuned 
Have you tried making money online? How’s it been so far? If you haven’t tried it yet, is it something you’re interested in? Please leave a comment and share your thoughts.
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5 Money Lessons I've Learned from Freelancing
I’ve been a freelance writer for the past four years, making money almost exclusively online. The corporate world is definitely not for my personality, so I did everything I could to avoid it. Along the way, I’ve learned several useful money lessons that I wouldn’t have learned otherwise.
Bill early, pay late. This took me a while to learn, and it’s more important especially if you have very busy clients who remember to pay you only a week after you send your invoice. Now, I bill them on the 1st of the month, while I pay for business expenses (contractors, web hosting, subscriptions, etc.) mid-month. By practicing this, you’re making sure that you already have enough funds when it’s time to pay for business expenses.
Diversify skills and sources of income. I didn’t just depend on my writing, especially when I was starting out. I also did a lot of design work, search engine optimization, edited videos, some data entry jobs, sold some of my artwork, and joined ad networks such as Google Adsense. Having various sources of income ensures that you always had an alternative venture in case your main gig ran a bit dry.
Also, as a freelancer, the diverse skill set allowed me to upsell services to clients (“Do you want some new graphics to go with the articles I’m writing for you?”), and I would become their go-to person for most of their web needs.
Be frugal with your time, not just money. One of the big problems I had with my first years of freelancing was that I let it consume so much of my time. I would work longer and harder than 9 to 5 ‘ers, thinking that this was the only way for me to make enough money. Eventually, I became a productivity blogger over at Pimp Your Work, and had to learn some time management skills. Now, I have made myself efficient enough to only work 9 to 15 hours a week, and can now enjoy the freedom that freelancing promises.
Have a padded emergency fund. I probably sound like a broken record since I talk about emergency funds over and over. But it was a real lifesaver during those months when I would earn only P12,000 and had to feed and pay for a household of 3 people, and my tuition too.
Don’t undersell yourself. I used to charge $5.00 for a 500 word article. That’s okay as a starting point just to build up your folio, but I stayed around that price range for one or two years, even after I was getting so many happy testimonials from clients who kept referring me to others (meaning: my work was worth more than $5). Hindi ka talaga mabubuhay kung $5.00 per hour ang singil mo. Especially since I had dependents. It took me a while to realize that people aren’t just paying for the words I write, they’re paying for an hour of my life and the unique insight I bring to the table. Does that really just cost $5?
Competing with others on the basis of price alone isn’t a sound business model. Someone will always be cheaper than you! So I competed on quality and experience, and can now turn down work that I don’t find interesting.
Every job title, every industry presents its own unique money lessons. What are the money lessons you’ve learned as a result of your work? Please share them with other Frugal Pinoy readers
Before you buy anything, do some internet research!
In the previous article on How to Spend Less on Gas, MoneySmarts blogger Salve Duplito left this comment:
someone once demo’ed to me a gadget put on cars to reduce gas expenses. do you think that’s safe and effective?
While I don’t know exactly what kind of gadget she was referring to, I did stress out this point: Before buying a product, do some internet research. In fact, the more expensive something is or the larger its effect on your life, the more you should do research on it. By doing some research, you’ll get to know a product’s price range, as well as its quality/effectiveness.
Here are some real life examples:
- If you want to buy a new appliance, you can look at prices and models from the Abenson website, the SM Appliance website, BX Appliances, and the Makro website. After finding some units within your price range, simply type in the model’s name into your favorite search engine (such as Google). For example “Sanyo SW-75ST washing machine”. Odds are, you’ll find out more about the product this way (such as dimensions, more detailed specifications, etc.). If you don’t find much about the model, research the brand, type of appliance, and add the word ‘review’ . For example, type ‘Sanyo washing machine reviews’ to find existing customer reviews on Sanyo branded washing machines.
- If you want a new cellphone, research the web for reviews. Again, just type the model name, followed by the word ‘review’. For example, I typed ‘Nokia 3220 review’ into Google and got this very helpful review as the first result.
- For a new car, motorcycle, or scooter, you can also use the same technique above. Except, personally, I love hanging out at MotorcyclePhilippines. People there are very friendly and helpful, plus their classifieds section lists some used vehicles.
- For tech gadgets such as cameras and computer gear, you can go to the Digital Photographer Philippines forum, ReviewRoundup, or TipidPC. The Digital Photographer Philippines and TipidPC forums are filled with several users who can give you their opinion of different products. ReviewRoundup, on the other hand, is a collection of magazine reviews of various tech gadgets.
Here are some additional ways to do online research before buying something:
- Go to online forums and ask people. Most of the time, you’ll find that many people online would be more than happy to tell you what they think of a certain product. Just go ahead and ask. I’ve already mentioned a few forums above that you can start with.
- Research “How to buy” that product. For example, if it’s your first time buying a vacuum cleaner or a refrigerator, you probably don’t know what to look for. By typing “how to buy a vacuum cleaner” or “how to buy a refrigerator” into Google, you can make a more educated purchase (if you’re curious, here are the results: how to buy a vacuum cleaner, and how to buy a refrigerator).
- Look for existing product reviews from consumers. I know I already mentioned this, but it’s very important. Try to read at least 3 product reviews, if possible.
Doing your research online takes less than 30 minutes. (Unless you’re on dial-up, that is!) This is the difference between making a good purchase and buying something you’ll regret. By simply doing some research int he beginning, you’ll be saving yourself some money and headaches in the long run.
For some reason, doing internet research before buying something isn’t uso in the Philippines – even for people who are online everyday! But doing this is so practical and useful, and takes so little time. There’s no excuse not to do it. With all the information available to us for FREE, there’s no reason why we should spend thousands of pesos on an appliance or device that will give in within a month or so.
Have you ever tried doing some online research before making a purchase? What was your experience like?
Read MoreHow to Spend Less on Gas
Ever notice how your money doesn’t go as far anymore when it comes to gas for your car? The rising cost of petroleum is all over the news lately, and it’s not a surprise that many people want to know how to spend less on gas.
In a previous post, I recommended walking or biking to a location. But there’s more you can do to save your gas money. Here are some additional gas-saving tips:
Go slower. By going slower, you reduce the gas needed by your car to go from one destination to another. With all the traffic jams in Metro Manila, this won’t be hard to accomplish.
Take public transportation. If you’re going to an area that’s easily reachable by commuting, and it’s a beautiful day outside and you’re not planning on buying large bags of groceries or something like that, why not take public transportation?
Telecommute or move closer to your office. If you can get a telecommuting agreement with your employer, that will cut down a lot of expenses – not just gas. You don’t have to buy your lunch outside or dress in office clothes all the time. However, not all employers look at telecommuting in a positive light (even if it saves them money as well). If that’s your case, you can opt to move to an apartment nearer your office.
Don’t become picky when it comes to parking spaces. Park in the first space you find, unless you have compelling reasons not to do it (your car won’t fit, for example).
Find out where cheaper gas is sold. Gas prices aren’t constant all over the Philippines, you can save some money by finding a station that sells gas at a more affordable price. The next time you go around the city, be aware of the prices that gas stations are advertising and make a mental note of which ones are cheaper and within your usual route. AngGAStos is a website that aims to record how much gas costs in different areas in the Philippines. You can look at it as a reference (and don’t forget to share your own information as well).
Make your car weigh as light as possible. The less your car weighs, the less gas it requires to run at a certain speed. Inspect your trunk, back seat, glove compartment, and other nooks and crannies of your car and remove all the unnecessary things.
Get a map or plan before you go to a new place. When visiting a new area or going to a building/resto/house you’ve never been to before, it’s best to check out a map first so you’ll know how to get there and you won’t spend hours circling the place, getting lost, and consuming gas unnecessarily while you’re at it.
Don’t park in hot areas. My friend Nikki reminded me to keep my scooter parked in the shade because gas can easily evaporate if I park it under direct sunlight.
Get a tune up. If your car isn’t in great shape, it usually uses up more gas. Make sure all your car’s parts are working at optimum performance.
Check your tire pressure. This tip, I got from a reader over at Inquirer’s MoneySmarts blog. Apparently, you can get more gas mileage if your tires are properly inflated.
Read additional resources from other websites. If you want to read up on more gas-saving tips, check out these articles:
What do you do to save money on gas? How much does gas in your area cost?
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