The online world moves faster than television, media, or radio – faster than any other medium we have. This speed brings incredible benefits – the use of Twitter during natural disasters has helped rescue teams and media providers better respond to the crises and the people suffering through them.
But as many people who have experience with online business know, the speed of the internet also makes it possible for people with scam business opportunities to get in, make a lot of money, and get out, leaving many innocent people broke and unhappy. That’s why Reviewopedia even exists: to identify these questionable companies and outright scams, and give people a place to help each other out when dealing with them.
What to Watch For Now
Currently there is a whole new market being accessed and targeted by entrepreneurs: mobile applications. In fact, cell phones are quickly becoming the most popular way to access the internet. Some quick facts on cell phone and internet usage:
- Almost 90% of adults own a cell phone, and nearly 60% of them use their phones on a daily basis to access the internet
- 1 in 4 young people say they are mostly cell phone internet users
- 50% of smart phone owners spend an average of one hour a day on the internet
Most people who live in well populated, metropolitan areas don’t realize that much of the United States and worldwide cell phone users have an easier time accessing the internet from their phone than from a home computer. This has made mobile applications the newest way for businesses and business opportunities to reach their consumers.
Money Making Apps
So far, most of the money making applications that are available are based on the concept of network marketing. This means that there is a product (usually the application itself) they want you to buy and to sell to others. You will make a commission on the sales you make to others, but once the people you have sold the app to also begin selling it, you can often earn a percentage of their commissions as well.
A good example of this is Solavei. This is actually a new contract free cell phone service that you can sign up for. But once you have signed up, you can use their app to share the opportunity with friends and family, and once you have recruited a certain amount of members, you will not only receive your cell service for free, but you can earn extra money each month as well.
Another app which claims to be a money earning opportunity is Rippln. This app says their users can play games for rewards, as well as have access to a host of different ways to earn money through sharing and promoting the application to new users.
But money making apps carry the same risks as traditional online money making opportunities. Generally they require some sort of fee, sometimes even monthly subscription fees, so if you are not successful at signing up a wide volume of new users, you often end up losing money on the deal.
In addition, there have been some money making applications appearing on the market that are just as unethical as many online scams. Apps which “promise” they’ll help you make money, but give no real details or explanation as to how their system works or what you’ll be doing. Regardless of whether you find a business opportunity online or in your app store, if they ask for money without giving you details it is probably an opportunity you should avoid.
Money Saving Apps
When people usually think of “making money” online, they imagine ways of generating brand new income. But the truth is that some of the best ways to “make money” is to find original and unique ways of saving the money you already have, and mobile applications are giving us many new and different ways to do that.
The best part of money saving apps is that many of them are free – since they receive commissions or payments from the retailers they partner with, their main goal is just to access the widest audience possible, and they do so by simply letting you download their application with no fees.
Money saving apps come in many different forms. Barcode Scanner, RedLaser, and QuickMark are all applications that let you scan the barcodes of items you are considering purchasing, and they will search their systems to let you know what other on and offline retailers have that same item and at what price so you can always get the best deal.
Shopkick is an application which acts similar to a loyalty rewards program. They are partnered with over 7000 retailers who will give you rewards points every time you visit their store, even if you don’t make a purchase, though you will get extra points whenever you do make a purchase. These points can eventually be placed toward the purchase price of an item at these same retailers.
And these aren’t your only options. There’s Ibotta, which will help you save money on groceries, and MoviePass, which help you save money on movies. There are also many apps which located the gas stations with the best gas prices in your area. Even some major retailers like Target are issuing their own mobile applications which will give access to special, limited time mobile coupons that regular shoppers won’t have.
The Final Word
Though money making apps can come with the same dangers and pitfalls of online money making opportunities, there is such a wide range of free and cheap money saving apps out there that it is almost silly to not take advantage of them.
While these apps can’t replace your day job, with very little effort they may go a long way towards helping you stretch your budget to pay down debt or to pay for those little extras you haven’t been indulging in.
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