The Secrets of Spotting a Good Money-Making Opportunity

There are a lot of really good ways to make money from home. I’m talking totally legit and very profitable business models. But the problem is, all of these legit businesses get drowned out in the noise coming from bad business models and outright scams.

If you’ve been looking for way to make money online or otherwise from home, then I’m sure you know exactly what I’m talking about. There are so many promising opportunities floating around, but after a little investigation you figure out they’re not going to work. Maybe they won’t make a lot of money, or maybe they’re outright scams. Either way, you need to protect yourself.

So here’s what you can do: when you run into an intriguing money-making opportunity, ask yourself these questions…

Are you providing real value to others?

This is the very first question to ask yourself. Simply put, are you providing a valuable product or service to others? If not, then ask yourself exactly why you’re even being paid. Chances are, it’s some sort of Ponzi-style scheme.

For example, have you ever seen those lists of names and addresses floating around, where you’re supposed to send everyone on the list $10, and then replace the bottom one of the names on the list with your name so that you get paid too?

This is a Ponzi scheme, as those who start the list tend to make money, while everyone else is lucky if they don’t lose money. Plenty of people don’t even pay the others on the list – they simply add their name to the list and pass it around in hopes that people will pay them.

There is no value here. The people on the list aren’t exchanging goods and services for money. That’s why this sort of scheme is not only considered a scam, it’s also illegal in many jurisdictions.

Another example: the Ponzi style schemes that masquerade as network marketing opportunities. The people who get in early make the most amount of money. The goal seems to be on recruiting others into the “business,” as often new recruits need to pay money for a starter kit (and the profits from these kits go to the upline).

So again, ask yourself – are you providing real value? Are you selling real products or services? If not, then run far and run fast from any of these opportunities.

Which brings us to the next question…

Do you have to recruit others or buy products yourself to get paid?

Some network marketing companies actually do sell products or services, and they’re generally thought of as legitimate companies. One example of this is Avon, where people can sell beauty supplies and get a cut of the profits. In fact, the person can make money even if they never recruit another person into the business.

Not every network marketing opportunity works like that, however. Many of these MLMs (multi-level marketing companies) put an emphasize on recruiting others into the business. Some of them not only encourage it, but make it mandatory to the point where you can’t get paid if you’re not recruiting others.

Worse yet, some MLMs make it mandatory that every sales person also needs to be a customer. So if the company sells health supplements, then you’re probably required to buy $50 or $100 worth of the stuff every month. That ensures your upline makes a profit off of you. And it ensures you make a profit off of your downline. What a racket.

Listen, you shouldn’t have to recruit others and you shouldn’t have to buy a bunch of products yourself every month in order to make money with an “opportunity.” If you see something like that, turn around and high tail it in the other direction, as there are a lot better ways to make money.

Next question…

Do you have to pay for a kit?

Sometimes you run into a business opportunity, but you’re required to purchase a “starter kit” in order to take advantage of the opportunity. That should be a big red flag for you.

Now, keep in mind that I’m not referring to you purchasing tools, guides or other resources. For example, if you decide to become a freelance writer, you might purchase a few books and other resources that show you how to make money offering your writing services to others.

But here’s the thing…

You don’t NEED to buy these books in order to be a freelancer. You could go to eLance.com right now and start bidding on jobs. The difference is that the books make it easier for you to become a freelancer by shortening your learning curve. So while most people would choose to buy them, you’re not required to buy them before you jump into the field.

Another example: if you decide to start up an online business, then of course you’ll need to purchase a domain name and web host. But the thing is, no one is making you purchase the domain name and hosting from any particular company. People may recommend certain companies – and that’s cool – but you aren’t required to purchase from those companies.

Now compare that to some business opportunities where you are absolutely required to purchase training or even products from them in order to start the business. It doesn’t matter what you know how or how much experience you already have, they still require you to purchase training before getting into the business opportunity.

If you see something like that, run. No one should be forcing you to purchase anything from a specific company. That’s just a sign that the company makes its money by recruiting newbies into the ranks who’ll be forced to buy training, products or services.

Next question…

Are you building assets?

Here’s a pretty good question that will clear things up fast. Or another way to ask it is this: are you building a business?

If you’re not building assets, then you have yourself a job rather than a business. In that case, you’re likely building assets for someone else. And that’s okay, if that’s what you want to do and if you’re getting compensated well for it. 

However, if your goal is to build a business but you’re not building any assets for yourself, then you’re going to be spinning your wheels. This could be the sign of a bad opportunity, or it could simply be the sign of a poor business model.

Let’s take the example of affiliate marketing. This is where you sign up with a company like Amazon.com, promote their products, and then you get a cut of the profits whenever someone buys through your affiliate link.

Some affiliates direct all their traffic straight to their affiliate link. For example, they might optimize an article for the search engines, and then include their affiliate link at the end. Or maybe they purchase a banner ad on someone else’s site, which again directs to their affiliate link.

Problem is, the affiliate isn’t building any assets with this model. He has to hustle every day just to make ends meet.

A better model is to build a mailing list first. That is, all traffic goes to a lead page. Then once you have people on your list, you can send them to all sorts of affiliate offers. Now you’re building an asset – a list of prospects and buyers – which is extremely valuable. And when you start building assets, that’s a sign of a good money-making opportunity.

Conclusion

There are a lot of money-making “opportunities” floating around the web, and they can look mighty enticing when you’re looking for a way to bring in extra cash or even replace a full-time income. If you ask the questions above, you’ll quickly eliminate the worst opportunities.

So what are the GOOD opportunities? What can you do online to make an honest income?

Here’s your answer: Web Profits Club.

Check it out – because if you’ve ever wanted to make money online, the link above will show you the surest ways to do it.