Income Earning Ideas

• 7 Ways To Sell Your Stuff

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  After months of looking at your packed closets, shelves, kitchen cabinets, your garage or any other storage space in your home, you’ve finally had enough and are ready to clear out the clutter.

  Congratulations for getting the motivation for getting rid of things you no longer use! Not only will you make more room in your home and make it easier to find things, but you can turn your unused items into cash.

  Following are 7 ways that you can sell your unused stuff.

  1. Free Online Ads Over the years I’ve sold many of my old items online. Everything from electronics & clothing, to furniture & household items – I sold them all online. There are numerous places to post your items online for free, but two of my favorites are: - Craigslist - Kjiji Both sites are extremely easy to use. You can post pictures, add a short description and list your asking price, too. All of this can be done in less than 5 minutes per ad. Craigslist and Kijiji are the most popular places to sell your things online, and both offer great exposure. 2. Local Newspaper Classifieds Many people opt to post in their local newspaper to reach a target audience. Typically bigger items are listed, such as furniture, appliances and cars. There is a small fee associated with listing your item, but depending on the cost of your item, the fee may be worth it to you. When searching for a place to advertise, consider the listing fee and features offered, such as number of words allowed and whether you can include a picture or not (pictures really help you to sell, so use them if you can). Also, don’t forget to ask if they include a free online listing with your print ad. 3. Yard Sales One of the most traditional ways to sell your stuff is through a garage sale. It’s easy to setup and there is no cost to do so. If you don’t live in a house, discuss with your family or friends about possibly holding a joint garage sale at their home. For those who live in condominiums or townhomes, ask your local management about a community garage sale. Most condo properties hold once a year community garage sale. Street garage sales are also gaining popularity. Get together with some neighbors and throw a street garage sale and watch your items sell effortlessly. It’s easy to have a successful yard sale and make some extra cash when you have a large audience – and you get large audiences by having lots of stuff for sale. 4. Online Stores Online stores work the best if you have multiple items of something in good or very good condition. This can be collectibles of books, movies, music, trading-cards, and memorabilia. There are fees associated with online stores, which can be up to 15% of the selling price of your item. This type of selling is not for your average Joe, as it involves more time and commitment, but in return you get extensive exposure. Good online stores to inquire at would be: - Alibris - Amazon - eBay 5. Local Stores Most local grocery stores have a free bulletin board, typically located near the exit of the store, where people can advertise their small business or sell their items. Create a nice ad on your computer (or by hand if you are good at that type of thing!), list your phone number in tear pads at the bottom of the ad, and post it on the bulletin. This is a great way to get free exposure for your sale goods. 6. Pawn Shops If you have more valuable items to sell, such as memorabilia, silverware or anything unique, another option is to sell your items at a pawn shop. Keep in mind that the price you get may not be what you are looking for, simply because the pawn shop has to resell the item and make a profit as well. Approach with confidence and don’t be afraid to walk away from the offer. 7. eBay Consignment Stores You can find these stores in your local yellow pages or via eBay’s Trading Assistant. Selling via this route works best for a small amount of items which you don’t have much time to sell. You take your item or have it picked up (if offered), agree on a price to sell and have the store sell it for you. Once the item is sold, they will take a commission from the sale.

  Since you’ve finally had enough of all the excess stuff in your home and took on the big step of purging, you now have to find the best method or methods to sell your stuff.

  Selling your stuff is one of the most simple ways to make some extra cash. Have fun with it! Get some friends or family members to help you out and keep it easy and stress-free.

  Any cash you make is better than your old items sitting around, collecting dust, right?

  What’s your favourite way to sell your stuff?

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• Make Money Online: How To Use Ebates

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  If you’ve been reading MrsJanuary.com for any length of time, you have probably noticed a link to Ebates at some point or another. I usually add this link to a post that is outlining a great online deal.

  Using Ebates, you can save money on your purchases made online, and receive those savings in cash.

  It really does work. I have received many cheques from them myself and continue to receive them every few months. Ebates is a great way to earn cash back from stores that you were planning to make purchases at anyway.

  What is Ebates?

  Founded in 1998, Ebates is an online cash back shopping site. What this means is that every time you make an online purchase from any store in the Ebates directory, you receive cash back. It’s as simple as that!

  Earnings are anywhere from 1% – all the way up to 10% (in Canada). When you make a purchase from a store on the Ebates website, you will earn a certain percentage back in cash. This cash is saved up until you have at least $5.01 in your account, and then you get paid.

  How do I join Ebates?

  You can easily join Ebates by visiting the Ebates website.

  Simply fill out the very short form with your email and password and you are logged in. Click on your name in the top right-hand corner of the page and you can edit your address and payment information.

  You will receive $5 for FREE, just for signing up (though, you do need to make a purchase of $25 or more in order for that bonus to be activated).

  Pick a store that you’d like to shop at and follow the link through your Ebates account. When your purchase is complete, you will receive cash back for that purchase.

  How and when am I paid?

  You can choose to receive payments either by cheque or through your Paypal account. The choice is yours.

  Ebates sends a payment to you every 3 months, as long as you have earned at least $5.01 in cash back (not including any bonuses, like the $5 you receive when you first sign up). If you have not yet earned the minimum amount, your balance will be carried forward to the next payment date.

  Do I receive any bonuses for referring friends & family?

  Yes! Ebates will pay you $5 for every single person that signs up to Ebates through your link. Just like you, though, they must make a purchase of $25 or more before you receive your $5 referral bonus.

  The more friends you refer, the better the rewards:

  • Refer 3 friends, get an extra $30
  • Refer 10 friends, get an extra $100
  • Refer 25 friends, get an extra $250
  • Refer 50 friends, get an extra $500 or the new iPad

  Here are some of the best cash back percentages on Ebates for Canadians:

  • up to 10% from Chapters/Indigo
  • up to 10% from The Source
  • 7% from Robeez
  • 6% from The Body Shop
  • 5% from Addition Elle & Penningtons
  • 5% from The Bay
  • 4.5% from Please Mum

  Ebates has other great Canadian stores available to purchase from as well, including: Babies/Toys R Us, Old Navy, Sears, Victoria’s Secret and The Gap!

  I know that 5, 6, and even 7% may not sound like much, but believe me, it really doesn’t take long to add up. I have earned over $50 this month without any referrals – just my own purchases!

  If you do a lot of online shopping, I highly encourage you to sign up for Ebates. If you’re already going to be shopping online, you might as well earn some cash for doing so!

  Do you use Ebates? If so, what do you think of it?

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• 6 Ways To Make Money Online In Canada

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  photo by Victor1558

  I am often asked how to make money online, and although there are many ways to do so, this is not something that is easy.

  There is no possible way to “get rich quick”, and anyone who tells you otherwise is lying. If you want to make money online, it’s going to take awhile to make more than a few dollars, and it’s going to involve quite a bit of work. Lots and lots of actual work. If you don’t treat your online endeavour as a job, you’re not going to make much money. It’s that simple.

  However, if you’re not afraid of working hard, you can earn a decent income online. Here are a few ways to make money online in Canada:

  1. Sell Stuff

  There are many places that you can sell things online, including Kijiji, Craigslist, Ebay, and Amazon.

  You can sell pretty much anything you want on these sites. It’s very easy to make money by getting rid of things around the house that you no longer need. My personal favourite website is Kijiji because it is free to list things for sale and the site is very easy to use.

  2. Sell Homemade Goods on Etsy

  Are you crafty? If so, you should really consider selling your stuff on Etsy – one of the best sites for selling homemade goods. There are a ton of members and visitors that visit this website every day to see what’s new, so you will have a large audience that you can sell your products to.

  Check out this great post to learn how to increase your chances of selling your goods: 12 Tips for Selling on Etsy.

  3. Become a Freelance Writer

  There are many websites out there that will actually pay you to speak your mind. If you are knowledgeable about certain things (finance, child care, housekeeping, etc.), there is likely a company that is looking for someone like you to write articles for their website, magazine or newspaper.

  About.com and Wise Bread are 2 companies that I would recommend looking into.

  4. Start a Blog

  Before I say anything about blogging, please note that you should NOT start a blog to make money. You should start a blog because you love to write and share with others. If you do this, eventually the money will come. It just takes awhile.

  There are many ways that you can make money with your blog: Google Adsense, private advertising, affiliate marketing (such as Amazon Associates), eBooks and more.

  Here are a few more tips on blogging for money.

  5. Use Swagbucks

  Using Swagbucks is a great way to earn “money” online. All you have to do is use their search engine and you will earn “bucks”. Once you have enough of those bucks you can trade them in for cash (through Paypal) and/or gift cards to local and online stores.

  Be sure to check out my article on how to earn Swagbucks faster.

  6. Complete Surveys

  There are many reputable survey sites such as Canada Talk Now, Opinion Outpost, and Cash Crate that you can work for.

  Don’t expect to make a whole bunch of money taking online surveys. You will often only be able to earn pocket change.

  That money can go toward a monthly treat (a specialty coffee, a new book, etc.), though, so it may be worth the small amount of time it takes to complete these surveys.

  Making money online is very hard. I didn’t start making much money myself until I’d been blogging for over 2 years!

  Although it does take time (like any other job), there is something so rewarding about being able to work online from your own home (or anywhere you can get an internet connection). Maybe it’s the fact that you get to live in your pajamas (not that you should!), take breaks whenever you want and be your own boss – those are some of the things I love about my job!

  The main thing to remember is that if you want to make anything more than pocket change online, you absolutely must treat your job as a job – not as a hobby.

  by Cassie Howard

  Do you have any online money making tips?

  If you found this article helpful, please share it with your friends and family by clicking one of the social share buttons below (or at the top-right of this post)!

  Related articles you may like:
  How to Make Money on Craigslist & Kijiji
  How to Make Money on Ebay
  How to Make Money From Home
  How to Have a Successful Yard Sale

  Cassie Howard is a stay-at-home mom living in Vaughan, Ontario. She’s what many would call an extreme couponer and saves a minimum of 50% off her grocery bill every week by using coupons. Read more about Cassie on the about page. Connect on Google+.

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• How To Make Money From Home

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  Do you want to be your own boss? Do you want to make your own schedule and work as much (or as little) as you want?

  The good news is that you can. It really is possible to make a decent income from home. It’s much easier to make extra money, rather than a full time income, but both are indeed possible.

  Here are some ideas on how to make money from home:

  Sell Stuff

  I don’t just mean sell all the stuff in your house that you don’t want anymore, because eventually you will run out of stuff to sell. What I do mean is to shop at garage sales and thrift stores (Kijiji and Craigslist are great, as well) for under-priced items and then resell them.

  For example, a few weeks ago I bought a collectible Disney DVD for $3 at a garage sale and then sold it on Ebay for $14.99. Before that, I bought a Little Tikes slide for $5 off of Kijiji and then sold it for $20. If you do this enough, it’s easy to make some serious cash.

  Child Care

  If you can manage watching a few kids every day, you can earn around $50 per child, per day (possibly more, depending on age and length of stay). If you want to open an actual daycare, you will have to get some certifications from the government, so keep that mind.

  Simply caring only for children of friends or family members would eliminate that hassle though. Ask around and see if anyone is looking for child care.

  Web Design

  If designing websites is a skill you have, use it to your advantage. Web designers are always needed. From what I’ve been told, the hardest part about being a web designer is finding the work. The best web designer gets most of their work from word of mouth. Treat your customers right and they will help you make money by referring you to their friends.

  When you start out, ask some friends or family for work. When you’re finished with their design(s), ask them if they could refer you to others. You can also sign up to sites such as Elance to find work.

  Make & Sell Stuff

  Are you crafty? Can you knit a gorgeous scarf? Do you make ceramic dishes? Cute jewelry? Etsy is a fantastic website that lets entrepreneurs sell their homemade items on their website. It’s a great way to make money from home.

  This is a great resource for Etsy sellers: Top 10 Tips for Selling on Etsy

  Start a Blog

  Starting a blog does not mean easy money at all. It takes years to build a blog large enough that it starts to generate an income you can live off of. It takes a lot of patience and a lot of time. If you want to make good money at it, blogging must be your full time job.

  Darren from ProBlogger is a fantastic resource for making money blogging.

  Working from home is great. Making your own hours, taking time off when you want to (without asking for permission) and doing something you love – it’s all wonderful – but it’s still work.

  I can’t stress enough that while working from home is great, it is still a job. You still have to wake up every day and do actual work. You just get to do it in your pajamas.

  Do you have any tips for making money at home?

  photo credit

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• CardSwap Canada – Sell Your Unwanted Gift Cards & Buy Ones You Want At A Discount

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  Have you ever received a gift card that you had no intention of ever using? I bet it just sat in a drawer, unused, until you finally come across it months (or years!) later – only to find out that the store has gone out of business.

  You don’t have to hold on to those gift cards any longer. You can sell your unused gift cards on CardSwap for up to 92% of the face value in cash.

  Of course, you can also buy gift cards on CardSwap. There are many cards available, including stores like:

  - Jacob
  - Mexx
  - Pier One Imports
  - American Eagle
  - The Keg
  - Applebees

  There is no fee to purchase a gift card. Once you pay, CardSwap will mail you your gift card.

  Note: I have not been paid by CardSwap to talk about their services. I just really, truly love the site. I have purchased many gift cards from them and it’s been a pleasant experience each time.

  Visit CardSwap and order discounted gift cards!

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• How To Make Money On Ebay

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  Selling on Ebay is just as great as selling on websites such as Kijiji or Craigslist. You can make some extra cash just by posting something on the internet. Fantastic!

  There are two things you need to be aware of when it comes to posting on Ebay.

  Fees

  You must pay to list your items on Ebay. The insertion fee depends on how much your starting price is. You also have to pay a “final value fee”, which is based on the final sale price of the item. Finally, if you want to make any upgrades to your listing, such as adding a picture or subtitle, you have to pay fees for those as well.

  Shipping

  With Ebay, you have to package your item and then take it to the post office to be shipped. This can be an annoyance for some people, so keep it in mind if you decide to post on Ebay.

  You will need to make sure you charge the correct amount for shipping. Most sellers have their own scale that they use to weigh their package and charge accordingly.

  Some items have a better chance of selling on Ebay as opposed to Craigslist or Kijiji, such as collectible items.

  If you decide to list something on Ebay, here are some tips:

  Research Your Item

  Before you list your item for sale, it’s a good idea to check Ebay and see if there is anyone else selling the same item and how much they are selling it for. This will give you a good idea of how much you should list your item for.

  Make Your Listing End on a Sunday Evening

  Many people are in a “buying frame of mind” on Sundays. I don’t know why, they just are. The best time for an auction to end is Sunday evening between 6pm-12am. Between 6pm and 9pm is best.

  Take a Picture

  A picture really is worth a thousand words, at least when you’re trying to sell something. It’s been proven that ads with photos have a much better chance of selling than an ad without photos. A description is not enough.

  Make sure that your photo is of decent quality. A bad photo is just as bad as no photo at all.

  Write a Good Headline

  You want people to click on your ad. In order to encourage them do this, your headline has to draw them in.

  Instead of saying “girls shirt for sale”, say something like “Tommy Hilfiger Girls T-Shirt, Size 5T, Like New”. Which ad would you click on? Exactly.

  Write a Good Description

  Your item description is just as important as your headline, so make sure you spend a bit of time on it as well. Sticking with the girls shirt example above, your description should look something like this:

  Girls Tommy Hilfiger Tshirt
  Size 5T
  Dark Purple
  Like New Condition
  100% Cotton

  Don’t forget if to mention if there is any flaws with the item, such as a small stain or missing button. It’s also a good idea to mention if your item has been in a smoke and/or pet free environment.

  Keep Your Shipping Charges Reasonable

  There are a few people who will post on Ebay and list an item for dirt cheap (think $1.99 for an iPad) and then rack up the shipping costs (think $199 for that same iPad). This is not a good idea. You will likely end up with a bad reputation – and reputation is everything on Ebay.

  If you plan on posting on Ebay often, I suggest purchasing a a small kitchen scale to weigh your items before you list them. This makes it easy to calculate shipping costs and charge the correct amount.

  Ebay can be a great way for you to earn some extra cash. There are many people who actually make a living buying and selling on Ebay.

  Just remember to follow the steps above and you will be well on your way to your first sale.

  Do you have any tips for making money on Ebay?

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