by Daniel J. Gansle

Created on: January 26, 2009

Can you really make money on the internet? Website after convincing website would have you believe the answer is yes, and you need to send them your hard-earned cash to find out how to make money through the web.

If you want to work at home and make money online, don't fall for all those scams and ripoff websites. The first thing you must realize is that there is no such thing as easy money, whether in the real world or on the internet. In this article, we'll take a look at five ways to earn income legitimately on the web.

Make Money on eBay
If you want to make money selling on the popular auction website eBay, you need to keep in mind two cardinal rules to be successful. First and foremost, you need to be aware that in setting up shop on eBay, you're essentially becoming a retailer. You're responsible for selling your wares, taking returns, accounting, taxes, purchasing, packing, and shipping.

The other secret if you want to make money on eBay is to sell niche products that people can't find anywhere else. This is a sort of mind-bending exercise. You'd think one could make a fortune selling Blu-ray disc players or digital cameras. But interestingly enough, you may become a millionaire selling a niche product in hot demand such as figurines, memorabilia, or collectibles.

Make Money Writing
Writers should pay heed to this money making opportunity. In recent years, numerous websites have launched that allow members to share a cut of the advertising revenue generated from the site. These are called revenue sharing paid content websites. You won't get rich overnight, but given time and a lot of dedication you can earn residual income by writing content on the web. Paid content websites include Helium, Associated Content, and eHow.

Make Money Blogging
If you aren't placing Google Adsense ads in your blog, you could be missing out on a potential revenue stream. Simply point your web browser to http://adsense.google.com and sign up with an Adsense account. From there, all you need to do is copy the Adsense code and place it into your blog.

Apart from placing Adsense ads in your blog, other websites allow you to make money simply by writing blogs on their site. These include ZestBit and Xomba, both following the aforementioned revenue sharing model.

Make Money Reviewing Products and Services
If you're analytical by nature and you have something to say about that new iPhone you just bought, you may enjoy writing a review of that slick new smartphone on Ciao.com. While its business model is pay by review rather than revenue sharing per se, Ciao is becoming popular amongst consumers as well as companies for marketing intelligence purposes.

Make Money Completing Surveys
While it's not quite as easy as they make it sound, paid survey websites offer the chance for you to make money filling out survey forms for products and services. Companies need this marketing intelligence in order to tailor their products and services to the public. One such website is SurveyScout, which claims you can also make money by shopping, testing products, playing, reading, and driving. SurveyScout also offers leads to work at home jobs in customer service, data entry, and transcription.

If you want to make money on the internet, plan on multiple streams of income coming from a number of these websites. Just remember the cardinal rule: making money on the internet legitimately takes lots of time and dedication, and riches never come overnight.

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