Self-Employment Ideas that Aren't Scams

Apr 25, 2011
KC Morgan

Self Employment Ideas - Money 3 - xenxen

It's so hard to find real opportunities on the Internet these days. Learn how to locate legitimate self-employment ideas that aren't scams.

With the economy in a slump and unemployment at a peak, many professionals are looking for legitimate self-employment ideas that aren’t scams. Here’s the problem: all the scammers know that. Every day, scammers get a little more clever and come up with brand-new ways to lure professionals through bogus job ads, websites and e-mails. But, there are plenty of legitimate self-employment ideas that aren’t scams—it’s all about learning how to recognize them.

Spotting Self-Employment Scams

Finding legitimate money-making self-employment ideas that aren’t scams starts with learning how to identify all the false opportunities out there. Follow some simple guidelines to avoid getting tricked, and get that much closer to finding real jobs:

By invitation only. Don’t expect real opportunities to come in the form of unsolicited advice. Scammers love sending e-mails that sound perfectly reasonable, but any unasked-for opportunity is extremely suspect.

Buying in. When self-employment ideas cost money, be wary. Real jobs pay employees; employees should not be paying for their jobs. Scammers are out there to take money from others, so being asked to pay for membership fees, special materials or other dues from any so-called job opportunity should be an instant red flag.

Being a nuisance. Some self-employment scams are extremely clever: they do pay their employees, often to perpetrate the scam. For example, some companies pay employees very small amounts of money to illegally advertise on websites by creating original, link-heavy forum posts and comments.

Legitimate Self-Employment Ideas

Finding legitimate self-employment ideas and turning them into viable opportunities is about a lot more than scam-dodging. Inspiration doesn’t always strike simply because it’s desired, and great new business ideas aren’t likely to come falling out of the sky. Start with a few basic ideas that may inspire new money-making opportunities:

Watch online shopping trends. Look to sites like eBay and Etsy, where money-minded professionals sell products for profits on the Internet. Etsy has opened up a wide marketplace of hand-crafted items and artwork. Peruse popular items to see if any inspiration strikes, and build a home-based business by providing needed, highly-desirable items that aren’t already widely available.

Fill a service need. Interested in cooking? Photography? Doing portraits? Many hobbies may be turned into viable self-employment ideas that will make money. Caterers, photographers and other service professionals are highly in demand for weddings and other events. Market existing skills and interests to discover money-making opportunities.

Search for jobs. Look for freelance and self-employment jobs online to find new ideas and potential opportunities. Many job boards use safeguards to protect job seekers against the scams that give self-employment a bad name.

Legitimate self-employment ideas that aren’t scams are easy to find, but sometimes professionals have to do a little digging before finding the real gems. There are lots of scams out there, but with common sense they can be easily avoided.