Shaun Connell is the webmaster of Learn Financial Planning, where he writes about everything from the finding the best online savings account to making money online.
Ever since my friends and family learned that I earn a full-time online several months ago, they’ve peppered me with questions. “Is it sustainable?” “Is it easy?” But lately, the most common question is, “Is there any way I can start my own website without spending any money?”
With the recession in full-swing, finding a way to make money without having to spend money up-front can be essential for some individuals to get started with a website at all. You can’t spend a hundred dollars that you don’t have.
Let’s talk about how it’s possible to build a website without spending money, consider whether it’s worth the tradeoff, and then analyze a way of paying for a website before you start it. Interesting? Read on.
The “Free” Website
You can certianly get a free “website” over at Blogger.com or WordPress.com. The problem is that you get what you pay for — not much. Here are a few problems with such a free service:
Authority. Call me paranoid, but I prefer having complete control over my website and domain. Having the ability to have complete autonomy is extremely important to me and to many others. If you want to have the “last say” regarding your website, a free service probably won’t work for you.
Security. A free service can be ended abruptly — your success is dependent upon your free service’s existence. In the past, several hosts (like Geocities) have been shut down, taking many users with them.
Branding. It’s harder to remember a long URL like JustMakeMoneyOnline.blogspot.com — it’s easier remember a straight-up domain like JustMakeMoneyOnline.com. This is a huge part of repeat traffic — making your website harder to remember can undermine your marketing.
Limitations. This is perhaps the biggest concern I have with free hosts — they severely hinder your ability to operate. Owning your own website allows you to make any change you want (so long as it’s legal), such as building forums, directories and other tools that can help you in the long run.
There are more problems with getting a free website, but this will suffice for this post. To read about more concerns regarding a free host, check out Want to Create a Free Website?
So what does this mean? If you don’t have money, does this mean you shouldn’t get a website? Far from it.
How to Get a Website Without Losing Money
This section of the article is specifically for individuals who simply don’t have the money to get a “real” host and domain.
Several days ago, I set out to prove that someone could make a $100 in one day by doing “cheap” online labor. I achieved my goal, though I didn’t exactly have a ball getting there. I used TextBroker.com, and wrote extremely short articles for a few dollars a piece.
As Shai as explained over and over, there are many ways of making money online, though most of them won’t exactly make you rich. But that’s okay — right now the goal is just to make enough to cover hosting and domain costs so you can have your own website instead of using a freebie.
Make your goal to earn $100 — just enough to purchase a website. I used TextBrokers.com, and achieved this goal in one afternoon, though the level of fast-paced writing certainly wouldn’t be something I would want to do for the long haul.
Browse Shai’s archives — find a way to earn $100, even if it takes a few days of working at it part time. Once you receive payment, instantly buy a “real” domain and host. It won’t actually “cost” you anything that you wouldn’t have been without before hand — and you’ll end with your own website.
Last Thoughts
Though a $100 isn’t much to me now, when I first started, it seemed like a fortune. Don’t let that stop you from building your own website and making money online. Use the “nickel and dime” approach to get your web foundation, and then go for a real income. Good luck!
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{ 13 comments… read them below or add one }
Hi Shai, when I first started blogging I wrote a piece called Can you put up a website for less than $100? that a lot of your readers might get a kick out of. These days, I’m also keen to help young bloggers get started and will gladly set people up with a free website if you’d like to know more there’s a post at http://www.thisismyurl.com/posts/get-a-free-wordpress-web-site/ that explains it all.
Good site, found many interesting posts here. I’m keep visiting your site.
If you need help making money just say out loud now Jesus I believe and I receive you in my heart please help me I know a really good website you can go to at leroyjenkins.com
IMO the nickel and dime approach is similar to Growing DreadLocs the beginning is a grueling process but it’s also the development of strong foundation. i’ll continue to check in for more tips…..and additional Praise lol.
testivar.com
Yes, getting a reliable site for next to nothing is very important these days. I found one host called Weebly that is free and you can buy a domain directly through them. It’s really reliable, and there’s a good blogging tool you get as well. Definitely a good option for people who want to get cracking without having to fork out much at all.
Thanks for sharing this useful information.
Great post,I will have a look at your other posts and add your blog to my favorites.
Hey you have an interesting site. I was just browsing and stumbled upon your website. So far this post got my attention but now I think i’ll keep browsing some of you other posts
i can’t believe that i made more money on this website than going to work!
http://cashcrate.com/1330735
thanks, MARK! you can actually make a lot of money on this website!
http://cashcrate.com/1330735
thank you, Mark! I tried the website and can’t believe how much money i made in 5 minutes.
i would recommend the website to anyone!
http://cashcrate.com/1330735
Hi Man,
Ohh yes!! There is soooo many ways to make money online. It is some good once and some that are not good at all. I have walked the long way to find out what did work and what did NOT work.
Do Not Chase The Money – Give Value & Let The Money Chase You. That`s how it works!
But it is true though, the good ol`cliche: “The Money Is In The List”.
List building is something you should NEVER skip in your efforts to make money online.
I have written a cool free guide how I build my list quite fast and effective.
I have got some really great feedbacks from it… It`s definitive worth a read.
Thanks for the advices
All the best
André Tomassen
“Failure Lies Not In Falling Down – Failure Lies In Not Getting Up”
Hello Shai, lucky that I found your blog here. I have to say, that ‘though I am not against what you said, but I can’t fully agree with it. If anyone thinking about being successful blogger or internet marketer, having paid website doesn’t really the main key there. I have found a lot of free user in term of hosting or blog platform and yet, they manage to earn quite big number. For example people can check out at : Money Making Blogspot to give them lil insight on how to start making money with a zipped capital.
As a newbie myself, $100 seems a lot of money. I know, it’s far from what you guys actually earn in online marketing world. But this $100 it’s a freebie. You earn it without any money to invest in the beginning.
Creating website might hassle beginner lil bit. Not to mention maintaining and optimize it for search engine. It’s not something you can say as piece of cake. So any other way? Being rich without need to build single website or blog? Oh yes there are. This is why netpreneur exist in the 1st place. Hopefully I have time and skill to write all the ideas and opportunity out there to give people platform to start their endeavor.
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Can You Make Money Without Starting a Website?
This seems to really have potential. This is the way the original post appeared when I first found it. Read it all then decide for yourself. It works for me! I found this on a bulletin board and decided to try it. A little while back, I was browsing through newsgroups, just like you are now, and came across an article similar to this that said you could make thousands of dollars within weeks with only an initial investment of $6.00! So I thought, “Yeah right, this must be a scam”, but like most of us, I was curious, so I kept reading. Even though the investment was a measly $6, I had three questions that needed to be answered before I could get involved in this sort of thing. 1. IS THIS REALLY LEGAL? I called a lawyer first. The lawyer was a little sceptical that I would actually make any CASH but he said it WAS LEGAL if I wanted to try it. I told him it sounded a lot like a chain letter but the details of the system (SEE BELOW) actually made it a legitimate legal business. 2. IS OK WITH THE POST OFFICE OR IS IT MAIL FRAUD? I called them: 1-800-725-2161 and they confirmed THIS IS ABSOLUTELY LEGAL! (See 18, h sections1302 NS 1341 of Postal Lottery Laws). This clarifies the program of collecting names and addresses for a mailing list. 3. IS IT RIGHT? Well, everyone who sends me a buck has a good chance of getting A LOT of CASH … a much better chance than buying a lottery ticket!!! 4. WHAT IS THE BUSINESS? You are in the business of collecting mailing lists and recruiting new list developers. These questions answered, I decided to proceed. The instructions said that you have to send $1.00 to each of the 6 names and address stated in the article. You then place your own name and address in the bottom of the list at #6, and post the article in at least 300 newsgroups. (There are thousands) No catch, that was it. So, I invested the measly $6.00. Well GUESS WHAT!! Within 7 days, I started getting money in the mail! I was shocked! I figured it would end soon, but the money just kept coming in. In my first week, I made about $25.00. By the end of the second week I had made a total of over $1,000! In the third week I had over $10,000.00 and it’s still growing. This is now my fourth week and I have made a total of just over $42,000.00 and it’s still coming in rapidly. It’s certainly worth $6.00, and 6 stamps, I have spent more than that on the lottery!! Let me tell you how this works and most importantly, why it works. Also, make sure you print a copy of this article NOW, so you can get the information off of it as you need it. I seems likely to me that if you follow the directions exactly, that you will start making more money than you thought possible by doing something so easy! Suggestion: Read this entire message carefully! (print it out or download it.) Follow the simple directions and watch the money come in! It’s easy. It’s legal. And, your investment is only $6.00 (Plus postage) IMPORTANT: This is not a rip-off; it is not indecent; it is not illegal; and it is virtually no risk – it really works!!!! If all of the following instructions are adhered to, you will receive extraordinary dividends. PLEASE NOTE: Please follow these directions EXACTLY, and $50,000 or more can be yours in 20 to 60 days. This program remains successful because of the honesty and integrity of the participants. Please continue its success by carefully adhering to the instructions. You will now become part of the Mail Order business. In this business your product is not solid and tangible, it’s a service. You are in the business of developing Mailing Lists. Many large corporations are happy to pay big bucks for quality lists. However, the money made from the mailing lists is secondary to the income which is made from people like you and me asking to be included in that list. Here are the 4 easy steps to success: STEP 1: Get 6 separate pieces of paper and write the following on each piece of paper “PLEASE PUT ME ON YOUR MAILING LIST include your mailing address, the date and your signature.” Now get 6 US $1.00 bills and place ONE inside EACH of the 6 pieces of paper so the bill will not be seen through the envelope (to prevent thievery). Next, place one paper in each of the 6 envelopes and seal them. You should now have 6 sealed envelopes, each with a piece of paper stating the above phrase, your name and address, and a $1.00 bill. What you are doing is creating a service. THIS IS ABSOLUTELY LEGAL! You are requesting a legitimate service and you are paying for it! Like most of us I was a little skeptical and a little worried about the legal aspects of it all. So I checked it out with the U.S. Post Office (1-800-725-2161) and they confirmed that it is indeed legal! Mail the 6 envelopes to the following addresses
1.) Brian McKeon
1101 County Route 12
Pennellville, NY 13132, USA
2.) Terry Joe Sundwall
269 Park Ave # 1
Rochester, NY 14607, USA
3.)Brett Kerkman
4408 Carter ave Unit2
Cincinnati Ohio 45212, USA
4.)Justin Saldivar
6427 s. Hildreth ave
Tucson, AZ 85746, USA
5.) T. Dunn
722 Hopital Rd.
Dawson Springs, Ky 42408, USA
6) Kelsi Frazier
304 Red Tailed Hawk Dr.
Pflugerville, TX 78660, USA
STEP 2: Now take the #1 name off the list that you see above, move the other names up (6 becomes 5, 5 becomes 4, etc…) and add YOUR Name as number 6 on the list.
STEP 3: Change anything you need to, but try to keep this article as close to original as possible. Now, post your amended article to at least 300 newsgroups. (I think there are close to 32,000 groups) All you need is 300, but remember, the more you post, the more money you make! This is perfectly legal! If you have any doubts, refer to Title 18 Sec. 1302 & 1341 of the Postal lottery laws. PLEASE REMEMBER that this program remains successful because of the honesty and integrity of the participants and by their carefully adhering to the directions. Look at it this way. If you are of integrity, the program will continue and the money that so many others have received will come your way.
NOTE: You want to retain every name and address sent to you, either on a computer or hard copy and keep the notes people send you. This VERIFIES that you are truly providing a service. (Also, it might be a good idea to wrap the $1 bill in dark paper to reduce the risk of mail theft.) So, as each post is downloaded and the directions carefully followed, six members will be reimbursed for their participation as a List Developer with one dollar each. Your name will move up the list geometrically so that when your name reaches the #1 position you will be receiving thousands of dollars in CASH!!! What an opportunity for only $6.00 ($1.00 for each of the first six people listed above) Send it now, add your own name to the list and you’re in business!
DIRECTIONS FOR HOW TO POST TO NEWSGROUPS———— STEP 1) You do not need to re-type this entire letter to do your own posting. Simply put your cursor at the beginning of this letter and drag your cursor to the bottom of this document, and select ‘copy’ from the edit menu. This will copy the entire letter into the computer’s memory
STEP 2) Open a blank ‘notepad’ file and place your cursor at the top of the blank page. From the ‘edit’ menu select ‘paste’. This will paste a copy of the letter into notepad so that you can add your name to the lis
STEP 3) Save your new notepad file as a text file. If you want to do your postings in different settings, you’ll always have this file to go back to.
STEP 4) Use Netscape or Internet explorer and try searching for various newsgroups (on-line forums, message boards, chat sites, discussions.)
STEP 5) Visit these message boards and post this article as a new message by highlighting the text of this letter and selecting paste from the edit menu. Fill in the Subject, this will be the header that everyone sees as they scroll through the list of postings in a particular group, click the post message button. You’re done with your first one! Congratulations…THAT’S IT! All you have to do is jump to different newsgroups and post away, after you get the hang of it, it will take about 30 seconds for each newsgroup! **REMEMBER, THE MORE NEWSGROUPS YOU POST IN, THE MORE MONEY YOU WILL MAKE!! But you have topost in a minimum of 300** That’s it! You will begin receiving money from around the world within days! You may eventually want to rent a P.O. Box due to the large amount.