Is working from home REALLY living the dream? (The short answer is yes.)

Attention, working mums…

We spend most of our lives at work – but the truth is, many of us wish we didn’t have to.

Whether it’s the pain of the daily commute, the stress that comes with our jobs or the precious time we spend away from our families, there is a hefty price to pay for the ‘privilege’ of having job and for a lot of us, paying it can be a real struggle.

So how do you escape the daily nine-to-five grind but still manage to find a fulfilling career that will give you more freedom?

According to Net Savvy Mama founder Marie Santos, the answer could be working online doing Affiliate Marketing.

Marie is an award-winning ‘laptop based’ entrepreneur and has been working online since 2012. She says it’s not only allowed her to earn more than when she had a full time corporate job, but it has also given her the freedom to work part time hours around her family, and from any location where there’s an internet connection..

“The Digital Economy is upon us and it’s not going anywhere anytime soon. Online sales are predicted to rise to whopping 1.5 trillion dollars by end of the year and done right, Affiliate Marketing is a simple way people can get a good piece of that pie.” she says.

Marie says Affiliate Marketing is like being an ‘internet middle man’ where you make money connecting someone who wants to buy something online, with an online vendor who is selling that product. If a sale takes place because of your efforts, the vendor pays you an agreed portion of the price of the product.

She spoke to Mamamia about her career, and why she’s so passionate about it.

Q: Are people really making money doing this?

Yep, Affiliate Marketing is absolutely real and is the fastest growing industry online. Like anything real however, there is work involved and it needs to be done ethically. It won’t work for anybody looking for a get rich-quick scheme but taken seriously, it absolutely can make you a full-time income working part-time from home.

Q: How does someone make money?

To put some perspective, the way affiliate marketers make money online is very similar to a real estate agent selling somebody else’s property. They connect a seller with the right buyer and make a cut out of the sale. Except, they don’t get involved with the selling (as it’s done through websites), and through products and services that can be bought or consumed online (which means they have a whole world of options).

Q: Can people do it part time?

Yes, it’s actually how most people get started. Most people do it around their jobs until such time their business is making enough money to replace their incomes.

The thing about affiliate marketing and online businesses is that you can often set it on autopilot meaning you can make money well after you’ve stopped working.

Q: Do I have to spend any money to get started?

With affiliate marketing, you don’t need your own product, a shop front, staff or most of the things required to set up and run a bricks and mortar business. It is, however, still a real business which will need you to invest some money in. You will have an online business, so will require at least the online basics. It doesn’t have to be a lot of money, but you will have to pay for things like a good internet connection, Website Hosting (from $10 a month), an autoresponder (from $20 a month, domain names etc.)

When you’re getting started, you would also benefit from paying for proper training to teach you how to do it the right way rather than taking a stab in the dark. The costs of these vary depending on who you decide to go with, but it’s a worthwhile investment so that you don’t waste time, money and effort with trial and error..

Sounds tempting, right? It might just be time to trade in our day jobs…

If you would like to find out more about affiliate marketing and see if it’s something you could do, click here to get a seven-day introductory video training series (it’s free!).

These free videos explain how Affiliate Marketing works, the kind of work involved and how to get started in the fastest, simplest and safest way.

What do you think about working from home?

Want more? How about:

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