Social media is here to stay, and it has changed the world as we know it. On the one hand, spending too much time socializing on sites like Facebook and Twitter can be an enormous waste of time and productivity.
But on the other, these connective technologies and communities can absolutely help you accomplish the things you’ve wanted to do this year.
And if making money is one of those things, you’re in luck, because we’ve organized five solid ways we’ve seen people using social media to make money!
1. Promote your existing business
Social media sites like Facebook have more than a billion users, and those people accepting light advertising. If you’ve got a business, you’ll definitely have a better chance of increasing your revenues by advertising it on social media sites.
2. Create something that you see selling well
Are you noticing that people are raving online about a hot new toy that is popular with their kids? Consider creating something similar, and selling it!
3. Ask your friends what they think you’d be good at
A great use for social media is to solicit advice from your friends and acquaintances on what they think you’d be good at, with regard to investing money in a career change.
4. Ask your friends if they know anyone who needs help
And by help, we mean paid help, not help moving furniture. Unless it’s paid, of course!
This step takes a lot of guts, but it’s quite simply the fastest way to get people thinking about how to help you, or keeping their eyes and ears peeled to notice hiring opportunities around them. Here are a few great ways to phrase the social media post or tweet you’ll send out:
— “Anybody know any companies that are hiring?”
— “I could really use a new project. Does anybody know of work that’s available locally?”
— “Any advice on how to find work, in this economy?”
— “Who wants to hire me?”
However you say it, do it the same way you’d do it if you were sitting at lunch with your friends. If it comes off as too formal or too desperate, you likely won’t get much of a response.
5. Ask for advice on your investments
If you’re lucky enough to have a little bit of money (or a lot) to invest in the stock market, then use social media to ask your friends for advice about investments. If they’re not heavily invested in a company (i.e., a majority shareholder), then they can give you all kinds of advice about what types of stocks they’re buying and why.
If the topic is their own company, however, you’ll want to be careful not to violate any insider trading laws. That’s when someone gives you information about their company that’s not available to the general public, and you buy or sell stock in that company using that information. Don’t do that, tempting as it might be!
Perhaps the best way to use social media to get advice on your investments is to ask your friends for their favorite blog posts about investments. They might refer you to a interesting article about how to predict stock market crashes or big surges and stock market booms, which will make you a more informed investor!
