It’s a good bet that plenty of people have used Craigslist before. Maybe they were looking for places to rent, stuff to buy, or even looking for love. Craigslist does it all. You can really use Craigslist to start a side-gig and make a bit of extra money. The problem is, you have to know where to look.
Like any website that connects people and allows anyone to make a post, Craigslist has its fair share of scams and perverts looking to take advantage of desperate people. You’ll most likely come across an unsavory character, but that doesn’t mean you can’t find some really good ways of making money yourself using the site.
Let’s look at five ways you can safely make money using Craigslist:
1) Craigslist One-Off Quick Jobs
Life is unpredictable. Sometimes businesses and companies could use a little help. Maybe their busiest night of the year is coming and they’re offering $14/hour to come in for a day to help prepare. That’s a quick $100 you can make (depending on the number of available hours needed). If you have that day off and nothing to do, why not throw your hat into the ring? There are plenty of smaller jobs that need done, like house cleaning, pet or house sitting, and so much more. If someone needs to get something done, but doesn’t have the time, they might put up an offer.
2) Manual Labor
This sort of goes along with one-off quick jobs, but there are a lot of seasonal jobs out there that need to get done. Maybe an older person can’t get out to rake their lawn. Someone needs help to mow the lawn while they’re out on vacation. These are quick jobs, but sometimes people are just too busy. You can step in and make a few extra bucks in the process.
3) Remember that If It Sounds Too Good to Be True, It Probably is
Many of the scams go out of their way to make it sound too good to be true. No one is going to pay you $100 to take a survey. They might ask you to upload your driver’s license or other forms of identification, which is a clear sign of an attempt at identity theft. Be careful and watch everything you do. Other scams famously include data entry or jobs that seem really easy that don’t need a lot of work, but with the promise of a high hourly wage.
4) Focus Groups
Focus groups can be a great way to make a few extra bucks. Definitely be careful to make sure the company offering to pay for your insight at a focus group is a legitimate company. You’d have to call the company directly to see if the focus group is a real opportunity to a scam. Always double check.
Another way to keep yourself safe from scams is to Google every company and opportunity. There are plenty of websites out there that warn of scams. And always remember: if it’s too good to be true, it is. Don’t waste your time.
