Offer a Service

(From the tutorial, A Frank Comparison of Money-Making Options)

Description: Many people make money by offering services online, from web researchers to graphic artists, virtual assistants to programmers and more.

Advantages:

Potentially faster start-up time and a smaller learning curve. Many people offer services in an area for which they already have the necessary skills.
Repeat business. If customers are happy with your service they're likely to come back. For example, let's say you're a graphic artist and you promptly create a wonderful set of graphics for me at a reasonable price. The next time I need graphics work done I'll go straight back to you.
Customer referrals. Encourage happy customers tell their friends about your service. You can help them along by offering a discount for their next order for every new customer they refer.

Disadvantages:

Your income is limited by your time. Services tend to be customized. For example, when designing a logo you have to take into account the suggestions of your customer, his or her site design colors, any wording or special images she'd like to include, and so on. You also need to be prepared for all types of customers -- some will naturally insist on more personal attention than others.
You have to take care of all the technical and logistical details. For instance, how do you take orders and fulfill them? How much should you charge? Most people want to offer competitive rates... but there are some very successful service providers that deliberately charge very little for their services - and on the opposite end of the spectrum, those that charge more for something unique that they can offer (fast service, experience, a high profile, etc).
Some businesses start off by offering their services either for free or for discounted rates. This helps them to establish a client base and testimonials, which can be used in their marketing materials.

How to Get Started:

If you have a specific marketable skill or talent, you may be able build an online business around it. Remember that your service needs to be something that benefits the customer, whether that's in time-savings, earning or saving more money, entertainment, self-esteem, and so on.

Freelancing is one way to try to build a reputation. A heavily-marketed website centered around your chosen service will also help you to generate more clients. You'll need to do some research into how much to charge for your services. If you browse the freelance marketplace you can get an idea of the "going rate" for your particular service.

Some examples of freelance project areas include accounting & finance, administrative support, graphic design, software, and writing & translation. Two of the better known online freelance sites are eLance and Rent-A-Coder. You could also offer services to a local market (such as busy university students who need someone to type up papers) or post your services on a site like CraigsList.

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