Many people have already been hit by the pensions’ crisis and are turning to the internet, hoping to find a way in which to earn a residual income to support them in old age. As baby boomers worldwide start turning 60 and the number of young people entering the labour market decreases, governments, companies and individuals are realising that existing pension provisions are completely inadequate.
The British government is considering raising the retirement age to 67 and many companies have already stopped their final salary schemes for new or even existing workers, meaning that they will now receive a lower pension than originally anticipated.
For young people starting out, the prospect of putting money aside for retirement seems ridiculous. After all, who even gives pensions a thought at the age of 18 or 21? But with more of us experiencing an increase in life expectancy, the situation is grim. Will we be forced to work until we drop, or to settle for a life in which we just scrape by on state assistance?
If we can no longer rely on our employers or the government to provide a sum which will maintain our current lifestyle after retirement, what is the alternative?
Earning a residual income was once enjoyed only by authors, songwriters and others in similar professions, but the idea of working for a period of time and then reaping the benefits in the form of an ongoing income for life is certainly very attractive.
The internet has opened up a whole range of new opportunities for those who wish to build a second income, with many sales letters claiming that the writer has made a phenomenal sum, say $60,000 in 24 hours. This is usually true, but there is a big but.
What they fail to tell you, is that it took 2 or 3 years of very hard work to build up a list of subscribers and develop a relationship of trust with them. Then the advertised product was probably hinted at over several weeks before it was released. In addition, an affiliate programme may have been set up with other marketers who also have large mailing lists. Only then was the product launched to a large and very receptive audience. So, it is possible to make a lot of money overnight, but if you are starting from scratch, it is likely that you will have a few penniless years ahead of you before reaching that point. However, as long as you produce good products, there is a good chance that, once you’ve gained initial success, you will be able to repeat the process.
Creating your own products may seem like a daunting task, but it’s not the only way to build up an online income. Many ordinary people are setting up sites in which they share information about a hobby or interest. They earn an income from several different sources, for example, by selling other people’s products, putting advertisements on their sites or referring visitors to services.
Let’s look at an example: a travel site focusing on a particular region could attract advertising from local tourist attractions, refer visitors to hotels or car rental companies. Other people’s products, such as books, maps, clothing or sports equipment could also bring in another stream of income.
Once you have the site set up, you need to focus on marketing and adding new content to keep the visitors and the search engine spiders coming back. To start with, all this will be time consuming, as you learn what works and what doesn’t. But once you are established and have a list of subscribers who can be alerted every time you have a new product or service to offer, you’ll find you can work less and the income will keep coming in, even when you take time off.
When you reach this point, you’ll know which aspect of your site is the most profitable. You can use that knowledge to create your own E-book or audio book, a distance-learning course or CD, which you can sell on your site and create another stream of residual income.
This might take a few years, but choose a niche you enjoy and you could secure a comfortable retirement.
© Waller Jamison 2006
Waller Jamison is a freelance careers advisor, university lecturer and website owner.
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