In
1995, Craig Newmark started a small, innocuous email distribution list
to help his friends connect with one another. What began as a friendly,
supportive group of individuals quickly turned into what today is the 7
th most popular website in the world.
Craigslist
is the largest classified service available. Over 20 billion people
take advantage of this free service daily for all manners of incongruous
things– arranging romantic encounters, finding jobs, ranting about
politics or even
making money.
If you are looking to supplement your income from home and have
exhausted other options, you may be surprised to know there is
significant money to be made on the site.
Polish and Shine!
One man’s garbage is another man’s treasure.
Craigslist
takes this cliché one step further making one man’s garbage another
man’s income. There is an entire section on the site devoted to giving
away old or useless items that with a little effort can be refurbished
and resold. However, it’s crucial that you have the necessary repair
skills in order to make this profitable. For example, if you have no
idea how to reupholster a sofa, it’s probably not the best idea to spend
the time picking up and lugging a ratty old piece of furniture up to
your apartment. Be sure you match your skills with what you want to
repair. There’s nothing worse than a house full of junk that you plan on
polishing up one day…. when you get around to it!
Clear out your closets.
In
the same manner, if you are surrounded by items you simply don’t use it
is relatively easy to post your items online and profit from them.
In
fact, you may be astounded at what people will give you money for. How
often do you use your toaster oven? There’s a quick fifty dollars. Do
you have a shelf of video games you haven’t touched in a year? List them
as well. Because the service is free, you have absolutely nothing to
lose by offering your belongings up to the marketplace. It’s a quick
process and one that may help put some much-needed cash in your pocket.
Help those that can’t help themselves
As
previously mentioned, it is comparatively easy to post on the list.
Nevertheless, there are people out there that are lost when it comes to
both computers and the English language. There is surprisingly
good money
to be made helping others with this process. Many people are willing to
pay well to have someone else take photos of their items, write an
intriguing advertisement and submit it online. If you have a decent
camera and a working knowledge of writing, you can sell yourself just as
easily as your old bike. This is an excellent option if you’ve already
liquidated all your junk and are still looking for
a few extra dollars.
Be gainfully employed.
If you currently hold a steady job but have the need for more income,
Craigslist
has a section devoted to ‘gigs’ – low paying positions that offer more
experience than anything else. Obviously these jobs are not going to
make anyone rich, but what they can do is provide a bit of extra pocket
money as well as help you to gain contacts in your chosen field. This is
of greatest benefit to those with artistic leanings or people just
starting out on their chosen career paths.
Work within the system
Although Craigslist does not endorse it, affiliate marketing is another way many people choose to exploit the site as a source of income. Many affiliate programs
allow individuals free membership, allowing them to work to promote
certain companies and/or products. Each time a customer clicks on a
company’s link that you’ve embedded in your Craigslist post and buys a
product or signs up to receive a newsletter; the affiliate company makes
a small deposit in your account. The more links you generate, the more money you earn.
However, if you choose this route, be warned. If you make more than 3
posts in a day or post to more than 3 different cities you will be
‘ghosted’ – that is, your ad will be flagged and subsequently removed.
Although the CEOs of
Craigslist
refuse to divulge their company income, it’s estimated that they made a
profit of 150 million in 2010. It’s difficult to imagine that Newmark,
unassuming software engineer that he was, had even imagined that his
listing would become so popular. Instead of grumbling bitterly to
yourself, use his success as an inspiration. If he made that much from
Craigslist, there is an excellent chance that you’ll be able to generate some sort of income, however small.