Online Opportunities a.k.a. Online Job

When someone asks me what an online job is, I usually launch into a one hour discussion on the types of online jobs. 

There are a lot of opportunities online and you just have to learn how to look. Everything depends on what you want because preparing for an online job will be different for each type of opportunity.

Top Online Jobs for Filipinos

Online Writer

This is the most common job a
Filipino can apply for. Most high school and college curriculum in the Philippines have subjects about writing in English. You will need to employ basic skills such as spelling, punctuation and sentence construction. Your knowledge on grammar, brevity and figures of speech will be useful.

These are the types of articles that you may be tasked to write:

• General information 
• News
• Product description
• Product review
• Product comparison

Employers hire writers to make unique content that can attract search engines such as www.google.com. Sometimes you need to follow specific guidelines in writing articles like word count, headings, keyword spacing etc. These are called search engine optimization techniques or SEO. Don't worry about learning SEO, your employers will understand if it's your first time.

Online writers enjoy flexible schedules as long as the quota or deadline is met. If you want to become an online writer or article writer, make sure that you are knowledgeable about the topic that your employer wants you to write about. If you have no idea about how to write real estate articles or medical articles, be sure to inform your employer via your application letter. If you're already employed, ask for some time to study on the topic to better arm yourself. 

Virtual Assistant

A virtual assistant or VA is like a secretary. As a VA, you will be tasked to answer emails, organize schedule, data entry or manage a team of online writers. VA's can also write articles like an online writer.

Virtual assistants usually need to be online at specific times especially during business hours of the country of origin of their bosses. The compensation is good which is why many still apply for VA jobs.

Data Entry

Avoid data entry jobs that ask you to
input CAPTCHA information

This type of job is relatively simple. All you need to do is input or write data in spreadsheets like Excel. A large bulk of data is sent to you and your task is to look for specific data and write it on a form given to you by your employer. Sometimes you will be given an audio/video file and all you have to do is listen and encode what you heard/saw.

There are some drawbacks to this job. The pay isn't that good, it's repetitive and dull and scammers take advantage of this job opportunity so you have to be careful. Scammers hire data entry employees bypass security checks of websites such as inputting CAPTCHA or bot checking forms. Exercise care when applying for this job. If you don't receive any explanation why you are inputting numbers, information and contact details then you might be working for an illegal company.

Social Media Blogger

Sometimes an employer will hire someone to post comments on youtube, facebook and online forums. It's called as social media blogging. The purpose of such a job is to generate interest or advertise a particular product or website. You might be paid for the number of posts you did or get a standard monthly salary.

Video/Graphics and Web Developer/Designer

This is a specialized field in online freelancing. Employers will sometimes hire a video/graphics designer or website developer. You will need a lot of training first to hone your skills. You can get education at various IT schools in the Philippines such as AMA or your local university, college and even TESDA. If you are really diligent, you can find tutorials/classes for free online.

These are just some of the many jobs you can find online. If you don't like to work for someone, you can still make money from the internet through various ways and I will be posting them soon.

~Laxus