As a serial entrepreneur, it’s clear that you are someone who enjoys making money. No matter how many business ventures you have, though, there are only so many hours in a day that you can devote to working. You may not be generating as much income as you would like, and you might feel limited by the amount of time you have to get everything done. By pursuing passive income, however, you can make the money of your dreams without spending every hour working.
We’ve all heard about the billionaires who make piles of money while they’re sleeping. Most of us have also dreamed of how amazing it would be to create that type of life for ourselves. With this list of passive income ideas, you can start living the dream for real!
Affiliate Marketing
Affiliate marketing allows you to earn money for referring customers to other businesses. All you have to do is share your affiliate links on your website, blog, or social media profiles. When one of your readers or followers makes a purchase using your link, you get paid. This option is especially great for serial entrepreneurs who are already seen as influencers in their industries. When you already have people who trust you, getting them to invest in products or services based on your recommendations is easy. Even if you don’t already have a following, though, it’s fairly simple to get started in affiliate marketing.
Ebooks
If you have always dreamed of writing your own book, self-publishing your work digitally is a great way to earn passive income. Whether you prefer writing fiction or nonfiction, you can publish your writing via a platform like Amazon’s Kindle Direct Publishing for free and get paid every time someone downloads a copy. There are other platforms out there, but many people choose Amazon KDP because it’s user-friendly, publishing takes only minutes, and you can earn royalties of up to 70%.
Online Courses
When you want to share your knowledge in a different way, creating your own course is a great option. Using platforms like Teachable and Udemy, you can design courses about just about anything. You can teach people about running a business, learning a new skill, or anything else you can think of. Like ebooks, once an online course is created it can be sold over and over.
Digital Downloads
There are all sorts of things that can be sold as digital downloads for buyers to print out or use online for their own needs. If you are good at web design, there is a huge market for templates for WordPress, Wix, Shopify, etc. You can also design and sell things like font sets, page backgrounds, and icon sets.
If you’d rather create digital downloads that your buyers can print at home, things like stationery, decorations, and planner inserts are always good sellers. You can also design things like coloring sheets, worksheets, and greeting cards. If you are familiar with a craft like sewing, knitting, crocheting, or cross-stitch, you can even create and sell patterns for people to download and use to make their own creations.
Stock Photos
Businesses are always in need of stock photos. They use them to add images to their websites, blogs, email newsletters, and more. Even if you are not an expert photographer, you can earn money passively by licensing them on sites like Shutterstock and iStock. There are also apps, such as Foap, that allow you to upload images directly from your mobile device. Every time someone makes a purchase, you get a cut of the profits. A good photograph can be purchased thousands of times, so this passive income stream can be quite lucrative.
Mobile Advertising
If your business ventures have you spending a lot of time driving from one client to the next, you could earn passive income by advertising on your car. Companies like Wrapify pay drivers for driving around with advertising wraps on their vehicles. There is no upfront cost, and you get paid based upon the amount of time you spend driving and your location. If you already spend a significant amount of time on the road, it could be a good way to earn at least a few hundred extra dollars each month.
Drop Shipping
E-commerce is absolutely huge. If you want to break into this growing industry but don’t want to deal with inventory and order fulfillment, drop shipping is the way to go. You build a website and list various items for sale. When a customer makes a purchase, their order is sent to the manufacturer of the product or a drop shipping service for fulfillment. Once your shop is fully up and running, this is a great way to potentially earn a lot of money without a lot of ongoing effort.
Vending Machines and Self-Serve Businesses
Buying vending machines or investing in a self-serve business takes a bit of money upfront, but once you have everything all set up, it’s possible to make more money than many people realize. As long as you keep your vending machines stocked and ensure that everything is functioning as it should at other self-serve businesses, you will earn money even when you are not there.
If you are looking for self-serve businesses to invest in, consider things like car washes, pet washes, laundromats, and automated coffee kiosks. They are all relatively simple to maintain, and the profits can be pretty impressive.
Conclusion
As a serial entrepreneur, you are probably always on the lookout for the next great way to boost your income. When you want to build wealth that is not tied to time, generating passive income is the way to go. With a few sustainable streams of passive income, you can save money, invest, and live the life you’ve always dreamed of. Get started today to break away from needing to spend every waking hour working.
