Generating passive income allows you to have a supplemental income that falls into place every month. Whatever the initial investment and the amount, this additional income protects you in case of hard times, periods of inactivity or unemployment, especially in times of crisis and uncertainty.
If you are employed and have a full-time job, a passive income allows you to generate money without compromising your main activity. Indeed, a passive income does not have to take up much of your time each month, that's why it is "passive". However, passive income doesn't fall from the sky, it requires work that represents a diligent effort, especially at launch.
Generating passive income also fulfills lifestyle aspirations: it gives you more time, freedom and flexibility. And why not leave the subway-work-sleep to start your own business, convert to another activity, work from home, or become a digital nomad... This article gathers passive income ideas for 2023 that will help you generate money while keeping your main job, or converting to another activity.
Having a passive online income is often mentioned in examples of passive income, because the Internet is a great way to start a lucrative business that you can control at any time, without too much logistical or budgetary investment. These online businesses that make money on a regular basis even have their own trendy little name: they're called "muses". It's time to make your dreams come true and earn passive income, or find your muse!
What is passive income?
Before we dive into these different sources, let's start with a quick definition. First of all, active income is income that you get in exchange for your labor power. This is the most common form of income, such as wage employment. The problem: when you stop working, your income stops. Conversely, passive income continues to pay you once you've finished working. It's not about earning money without doing anything, but about making an initial investment in money, time or effort - and often all three at once - in order to make a regular and sustainable profit.
Don't be fooled by preconceived ideas
There is no need to quit your job to become an entrepreneur. Most people who take a LiveMentor training course to start their own business are looking to earn extra income, not to quit.
With that in mind, there are two important concepts to consider. First, the notion of systems: the goal is to have a ratio of time spent to sales generated that progressively increases from year to year. In parallel to the notion of systems, there is the notion of cumulative effect, described by the American coach Darren Hardy in his book of the same title: the more changes are repeated, the more their effects accumulate exponentially - this is also called the snowball effect.
Here are some examples:
- Doing thirty minutes of sport every day will give you more tone and strength after a few weeks.
- Putting aside a few dozen euros each month, and investing them intelligently, will result in several hundred euros of interest after a few years.
- Dedicating time to write monthly articles on your company's blog or to create new videos for your YouTube channel will significantly increase the loyalty of your audience.
We live in a society of immediacy, which encourages us to look for immediate profit; however, developing a passive income requires patience, and especially perseverance. But we are all capable of it.
Example of calculation
A simple example allows us to understand the power of these two concepts applied to passive income. In parallel with a salaried job, generating an extra $300 per month becomes $3,600 per year, or $18,000 after 5 years. And you can imagine the result if this amount is invested intelligently, for example on index funds (the famous ETF)Passive Income Ideas:
Selling photos and videos:
If you have the soul of an artist and you make photos and videos, why not sell them on the Internet to earn money?
The images you find on Google cannot be used and are often protected by rights.
For example, if you decide to create your own website, you won't be able to pick your visuals directly from Google images: you'll have to go through specialized platforms that offer "royalty-free" images in exchange for a fee, such as Shutterstock, to be able to download them and use them as you wish.
However, these platforms are companies that are constantly looking for images.
If you are a photography enthusiast and you make beautiful pictures, don't just display them at home anymore. You could simply offer them for sale and take advantage of their popularity to make new income.
Of course, photography and video are activities that cannot be improvised and that require a high level of experience, advanced knowledge in image control and the acquisition of adapted equipment.
So, if photography is already your greatest passion, take advantage of it... It could well become the source of an additional income!
Programming an application or tool.
This is a passive income for developers. For example, you can create mobile applications, or plugin-type tools. Then, either sell them or put them online with a freemium offer; that is to say, free but with some paid features. This is the case of many downloadable games on mobile, Google search page analysis tool
Creating graphic products:
If your talents are more graphic, a good way to generate passive income is to combine your artistic sense with an e-commerce approach. You can create digital products and put them on sale on an online platform, the most famous of which is probably Etsy. It can be for example :
Greeting cards
Wall art, posters
Calendars, organizers
Decorations
Invitations, letters
Selling digital products to generate passive income:
If you're thinking about creating your own products rather than selling other people's, you could create digital products. Shopify can help you sell your digital products online. Digital products cover all kinds of content: ebooks, online courses, PDFs, graphics, image banks or any other dematerialized good. Selling these types of products is ideal for making money since the entire process can be automated on Shopify in seconds.
selling of digital products:
selling of digital products online is another lever that allows you to create important sources of income.
But what does "digital products" really mean?
Digital products are non-physical items that users can download directly from the Internet. For example, if you specialize in a particular field, why not create online courses, an ebook or a podcast to sell on your site?
This system of selling digital products offers many advantages:
- The seller has no stock to manage since they are not physical products;
- He does not have to worry about shipping and delivery;
- The customer can buy the item at any time of the day or night, no matter where he is in the world;
- The download is instantaneous. The buyer does not have to wait to receive the purchase.
Very often, digital products are related to expertise sharing, education or training.
With this process, everything is done directly online, quickly and easily. The only limit? To have an area of expertise and to make it attractive.
Write an ebook :
The ebook or white paper is a popular content medium, and a great passive income generator. There are still plenty of people earning passive income from a book they wrote years before. Of course, this is a very competitive market. But if you have good writing skills and know how to find popular topics through SEO or Google Trends, you could earn a regular income supplement.
By creating how-to ebooks on popular niches or compelling novels, you could develop a fan base or loyal readers. Similarly, you can sell your e-books to businesses on topics that interest their prospects.
E-commerce :
E-commerce projects are exciting, and inspire entrepreneurs every day to embark on the adventure. What could be more inspiring than to see entrepreneurs create their sales platform from scratch and, through their work and their sense of commerce, reach several tens or even hundreds of thousands of euros in sales?
If an e-commerce site varies according to its market, the main principles are invariably to :
- Create your site, focusing on visual identity and customer experience. Creation platforms, such as Shopify, will help you in the first step. Then you will have to choose the manufacturers and suppliers you want to work with. With e-commerce, you won't be forced to manage inventory yourself: you can design your platform so that the product goes directly from the manufacturer to the customer's home.
- Develop your customer base, through marketing and/or advertising strategies - even if word of mouth remains the best ambassador: it proves that your model is popular. To do this, you will have to ensure the quality and the origin of your products: the role of trust is key to undertake on the Internet, and it is essential to develop an ethical and transparent activity. But once your site is launched, if your sector is promising, you have chances to generate nice passive income. Waking up in the morning and receiving a notification that a sale was made while you were sleeping is a very rewarding experience!
Crypto-currencies :
First introduced in 2008 with bitcoin, crypto-currencies are an investment that is both coveted and distrusted - which is understandable given the high volatility of these virtual currencies, which can gain or lose 20% of their value in a single week. However, in the medium term, crypto-currencies are mostly following upward trends, and are increasingly recognized by traditional financial players; banks, investment funds, and even some governments. Above all, these virtual assets offer unparalleled opportunities for returns.
Be careful, though: like other forms of investment, cryptocurrencies require patience and careful monitoring. We recommend that you start by buying a small amount of crypto-currencies (focusing on the strongest ones that remain affordable, such as ethereum or solana), the same amount each month, and not giving in to the urge to sell as soon as the price drops. Short falls are normal and should not push you to give up your values; but a progressive and constant devaluation is a warning signal. As with the stock market, choose reliable platforms to invest: we can mention the reference Coinbase, crypto.com or the English neo-bank Revolut.
Create YouTube videos:
YouTube is an ever-changing catalyst for passive income. From sponsored videos to advertising revenue, you'll soon discover that you can make money from your YouTube channel. The secret to maintaining a successful YouTube channel? Create content regularly and over the long term.
Develop websites to have a passive and regular income:
Do you know how to develop websites or online stores? If so, you have found another source of passive income because you can sell them. And the money gain can be very positive and exceed your known business income. You will probably need to wait for your first sales (to show that your stores are up to snuff). So if you're looking for a place to sell your website, try out Shopify's Exchange Marketplace. On the platform, you can sell your freshly developed store or even a very complex store, at a rate you set. It is a platform that is suitable for all kinds of sites.
Launch your website for passive online income:
Launching your own brand on the internet can be a reliable source of money making. Some people create marketing agencies and outsource freelance work. Others, like some of the entrepreneurs on this list, create online courses to share their knowledge and train others. You can also sell products, physical or digital. But the advantage of having your own website is that you have more control over what you sell and how you make money.
You are the guarantor of your own success and free to take your brand as far as you want. It's a way to make extra money while still being very free in your choices and organization.
Affiliate marketing:
Affiliate marketing is one of the most popular ways to generate passive income today. The advantage of affiliate marketing? Most major brands have an affiliate program, so you can sell popular products and earn money. The only downside is that you only get a commission on sales. Some programs like the Shopify affiliate program, allows you to earn up to $2000 per link, which is astronomical. Some online retailers only offer a 10% bonus. So, we advise you to do some research to find the best affiliate programs before you start.
Blogging tends to be the most effective way to earn regular affiliate commissions, without having to spend money on ads.
Instagram sponsored posts
If you're an Instagram addict, you'd probably like to turn your scrolling time into posting time: a supplemental income idea we don't spontaneously think of! Isn't it the ideal solution to generate passive money without changing your pace too much? The great thing about Instagram is that you can create content on absolutely any topic. Travel, fashion, beauty, decorating or something very specific like dog grooming for example... you will always meet an audience.
What's the secret to having a lot of Instagram followers? You need to be very consistent in the type of your content. So be sure to respect the interests of your audience so that people who follow you will find the content that interests them. Consider putting your email address in your Instagram bio.
As your account grows, you'll receive offers for sponsored posts, which will allow you to earn money on Instagram. But also get free branded products! The more Instagram likes your posts get, the more people will contact you. So make sure you create engaging content.
Create a passive income by creating your own course
Selling online training is one of the best passive income ideas in 2023. With the rise of telecommuting and freelance infopreneurs, there is a significant increase in demand for online training and, as a result, an increase in sales for online course creators. Whether you decide to sell training on your own website or on a platform like Udemy, you'll always find customers who want to learn your professional tips and tricks.
Selling your training on your website can help you control the volume of your passive income. On the flip side, it will be easier to gain online fame right away if you sell your training on platforms like Udemy. However, you will have to pay a commission that may fluctuate.
On the other hand, to keep your training running and earning regular passive income, you will need to update it from time to time with new data depending on your topic.
Selling your designs with print on demand
Since e-commerce remains one of the most popular ways to generate passive income these days, it makes sense to try your luck with print on demand. This system allows you to sell your own printed graphics on products such as clothing, mugs, pouches, phone covers, bags and more. You can develop a real brand image. You will need to limit your graphic design budget, however, because the commissions will usually be too low to get a large margin.
On the other hand, you can create many different designs and import them to your Shopify store. The advantage of Print on demand is also the low initial investment. The choice of your Print on demand provider is strategic, as they will manage the printing, manufacturing, packaging and delivery to the customer. You take care of the graphic design, sales and digital marketing. If creating a POD online store and generating traffic on it is too time consuming, you can also sell your print on demand creations on specialized marketplaces like Spreadshirt or Merch by Amazon.
Selling designs online:
If you love making designs, you can also start your own business. Simply turn your designs into a stable source of passive income by creating designs for clothing, mugs, hats, jewelry and more.
Here at Strikingly, creating your own online business to generate passive income has never been complicated.
All you have to do is create your amazing designs, build a stunning website that you can use as your online store, upload your most amazing artwork and set your preferred selling price.
Once you're done, all you have to do is be patient and in no time you'll have the passive income you want in your pocket.
Sell your videos
Who says videos are only for entertainment? With the right tools and the right concept, you can now earn your own passive income online.
How do you do it? Create and sell your videos. It may seem unlikely, but videography has become a trend in the business world over the past few years. Many businesses have started to use video marketing as their main source of revenue and make a name for themselves in their industry.
People prefer to watch videos instead of reading, which leads to an increase in demand for video professionals. If you are one of them, we recommend you to start your own video website today and bring the passive income to your bank account.
Selling your art:
It's not only photos you can sell: you can also offer audio, videos, designs, etc.
If you don't have an audience, you can sell your info-products on specialized platforms. Here are some marketplaces to start selling your creations:
https://www.etsy.com/
https://services.amazon.com/handmade.html
https://creativemarket.com/
https://submit.shutterstock.com
https://contributor.stock.adobe.com
https://www.bigcartel.com/
https://www.fait-maison.com/session/new
Buying and selling collectibles:
Many objects increase in value over time, and can then be resold at high prices to collectors: wines, liquors, Pokemon cards, stamps, figurines... You can, for example, invest in one of the collections issued each year by the Monnaie de Paris, and then resell them later on an auction market.
Buying and selling domain names:
This practice consists of buying domain names at low prices, which companies would like to buy in the near future. It will then be enough to resell them at a profit. At the beginning of the Internet, in the early 90's, investors with a hollow nose bought domain names such as auchan.fr, darty.fr, to resell them to companies when they started e-commerce. Even today, there are domain names that can be bought and then resold at auction, for example on the GoDaddy site. But be careful, all the same, not to cause harm to small businesses that simply do not have the means to protect their domain name.
Amazon KDP:
Amazon kindle direct publishing is a service created by the e-commerce company to allow authors to self-publish their books. Amazon takes care of everything, i.e. publishing, printing the book, collecting the VAT and others.
How does it work?
To publish your book on Amazon, you will have to use the software provided by the American giant. This software is called Kindle Create (free). With this software, you will be able to format your book in ebook and paper format.
Once your book is ready, you will have to put it online on Amazon. You will have to add a description, a title, tags and more. But the most important thing will be the choice of the royalty. The royalty is simply the percentage you will receive on the sale of a book
On Amazon KDP, you can write about any topic. However, among the people who make money from this service, there are two main strategies.
Stocks:
Stocks, or shares of ownership in a company, have a higher risk/reward ratio than index funds because you are buying shares of a single company (not a collection of holdings).
While they are riskier than index funds and bonds, they should also be a part of your passive income portfolio.
Most financial advisors tell you to manage risk by holding a percentage of stocks in your portfolio equal to 100 minus your age.
So if you are 30 years old, you should hold 70% in dividend stocks/equities and 30% in bonds and safe assets.
If you have an emergency fund and can handle more risk, see if you can increase that percentage.
Other forms of investment:
You can also introduce automation into your passive income generation with Robo-advisors. These AI-based platforms balance your portfolio and manage risk for you.
Certificates of deposit (CDs) are also a good opportunity for those looking for safe, low-risk residual income. The fact that CD interest rates are locked in, regardless of interest rate volatility, makes them more attractive.
Although not widespread, the use of loan club brokerage offers excellent investment opportunities.
Short-term business loans, peer-to-peer lending sites and social media trading platforms are worth looking into.
Here, you may be able to help borrowers with the money you have available.
In exchange, they make your dreams of passive income as a lender a reality.
When it comes to investing, always think about which financial institution you should go to in your state.
For example, always keep the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) in mind before making any type of investment.
Using a High-Yield Savings Account:
The right high-yield savings account will give you extra money simply because you have a positive balance in your account.
Making gains on your bank account is a great passive activity to consider.
Also, some credit card companies offer incentives when you sign up for their cards, so it pays to do your research well.
