So you want the flexibility and freedom to work online, remotely, and with flexible hours where you can take time off when you need it and maintain a healthy work-life balance?
You’ve come to the right place.
I’ve been working remotely online for the last 4 years in the SEO and content marketing space and have met plenty of people who make a living online while allowing for a quality work-life balance.
In this guide, I’m going to detail the online skills, job roles, and opportunities available for people who are looking for an online job that offers flexibility.
Table of Contents
Different Types of Job Classifications
First, it’s important to understand the different types of job roles that people obtain in the workforce so that you can understand how an employee job role is different from working as an independent contractor.
Independent Contractor
- Self Employed
- Operates as a sole proprietor with the business under their name
- Has to conduct marketing to obtain new work
- Sets their schedule and hours
- Provides tools
- Must submit invoices for payment
- Determines their salary or pay rate with a contractual agreement
- Can refuse or cancel work
- Pay their own taxes (the company does not take taxes out of pay)
- Must pay for their own health insurance and benefits
- Receive 1099 forms from companies who pay them
- Also called freelance workers
Employee
- Perform services that are controlled by a business owner
- Earnings are not subject to self-employment tax but subject to income tax
- Employer provides work-related tools
- The work schedule is determined by the employer
- Gets training and supervision
- Works full or part-time hours for the employer
- Does not have to do marketing for work
| Employee | Independent Contractor/Freelancer | |
| Pay | Salary | Wage |
| Contract Period | Indefinite until either party decides to terminate | Project by Project or Contract Time Range |
| Project Scope | Short and long term goals of the company | Short and long term goals of the company |
| Benefits | Includes benefits | No benefits |
| Taxes | Taxes taken out of paycheck besides some income tax | No taxes taken out need to pay on own |
| Business Expenses | Company covers | Tracked and written off at tax time |
| Business Registration | Don’t have to register | Register as a sole proprietor or corporation |
Basically, if you are an employee you work a typical 40-hour workweek where you are required to clock in, you get paid a set salary or wage, and you get benefits and expenses covered by your employer. You have less freedom to create your own schedule and increase earnings but you also have the benefit of the structure offered by the company.
If you are an independent contractor you basically operate your own business as the sole worker and are required to market yourself, determine your pay rate, pay your own taxes, and manage the organization of your work. You have to pay for your own benefits like health insurance and are responsible for your investment allocation. It requires more effort and organization but allows for personal schedule freedom and the ability to increase earnings.
Types of Online Jobs & Skills
Below are the most common online jobs that are in demand.
Writing & Editing
There are different specialties and niches in the writing job space such as sales copywriting, SEO writing, business blog writing, email copywriting, editing, content management, book publishing, and more.
Usually, copywriters, editorial managers, and other specialized writing roles make the highest pay while average freelance writers make an average amount of pay per word or article.
Skills Needed:
- English
- Writing Skill
- Sales & Marketing
- SEO knowledge
- Basic online software tool proficiency
Resources to Improve Your Writing Skills:
Web & App Development
Development is a more technical skill but it is a very in-demand job since most businesses are run online using websites, apps, and other software.
There are a few different types of developers including web developers, app developers, and Shopify or eCommerce store developers.
A lot of business websites are run on WordPress so WordPress development is a high-demand skill as well as helping eCommerce store owners with their websites.
Skills Needed:
- Coding skills (HTML, CSS, javascript, PHP, etc)
- WordPress
How to Learn Web & App Development:
Digital Marketing & Sales
Digital marketing is a booming industry due to the fact that most businesses have moved online and most people shop online more than ever now.
There are a number of different specialties in digital marketing:
- SEO– Search engine optimization is a job that involves optimizing web content and putting together a strategy of content, link building, and technical SEO improvements to increase organic traffic from Google searches
- CRO– Conversion rate optimization is a job that involves optimizing web pages to sell more products by changing copy, design, and conducting A/B tests to determine which variations perform the best and how much increase in clicks and sales has been generated from the changes
- PPC or Paid Ads– This is a marketing job that involves managing and spending money on online advertising channels such as Google ads or Facebook ads and optimizing campaigns and copy to get the best return on investment
- Social Media Marketer– Creating and sharing content on social media to achieve marketing and branding goals
- Email Marketer– Creating email sales letters, copy, and tracking conversion and open rates to hit marketing and branding goals
- Virtual Assistant– a digital assistant who does numerous different task for the business including marketing and miscellaneous duties
- Strategic Consultant– Someone who advises businesses on the right digital marketing strategies and business strategies to move the needle forward. These roles usually require a good track record of success to charge a high rate per hour for advice.
- Sales Rep– Typical sales jobs can now be done online on the phone and over zoom meetings so as long as you are able to be on a certain timezone where your clients are this job can be done remotely
Skills Needed:
- Analytics skills
- Business basics
- Marketing Math basics
- Basic web skills (HTML, CSS, WordPress, software tools)
- Excel, google sheets, software tools, basic digital literacy
How to Learn Digital Marketing:
- Clickminded
- Coursera
- Udemy Digital Marketing
- Udacity Digital Marketing
- Blueprint Training for SEO freelancers and agency owners
- Ahrefs Academy for SEO
- CXL Conversion Rate Optimization Course
- Hubspot email marketing course
- Traffic Think Tank SEO
Design
Designers are digital artists who create digital art, brochures, sales pages, and more. Below are the different types of design roles that are in demand.
- Graphic Design– Creating unique visuals for online businesses that need help with logos, branding, or brand designs for their business and are willing to pay a little more for higher quality work
- Web Design– Web Designers are more focused on the design aspect of a website as opposed to a web developer who focuses on the more technical aspects of a website
- UI/UX Design– This is more focused on the design alongside conversion rate optimization where someone tries to understand the users experience very well the create designs that are based on optimizing for this experience
Cryptocurrency-Web3-Blockchain
The cryptocurrency and decentralized finance industry is a growing market and there are plenty of new jobs and opportunities in this space. The jobs and skills in this niche are the following:
- Blockchain Data Analysis
- Blockchain Development
- Blockchain Finance
- Blockchain Marketing
- Blockchain Operations
- Blockchain Sales
Accounting & Bookkeeping
As the accounting and bookkeeping industry continues to become more digital these types of jobs that just require reconciling someone’s QuickBooks account, tidying up their online finances, or doing business taxes or accounting can be done pretty much anywhere.
Foreign Language
If you’re someone who enjoys traveling and wants to embrace the local cultures and work a rather easy job for a native English speaker teaching English or getting a foreign language job is a good option to make money.
- Online Language Teachers– Getting a job teaching english or another language you can speak fluently is a great option for people who enjoy teaching and interacting with people online.
- Freelance Translators– Becoming a translator for businesses or people who need help understanding a foreign language to do business can be a decent job
Video Editing
If you’re a good video editor and either create a name for yourself on freelancing platforms or start a small service-based business that offers video editing this job can be done totally remotely online.
Video production is continuing to grow and everyone needs a good editor to clean up and produce awesome video content for their brand.
Coaches, Teachers, Counselors
Any type of job that can be done online by consulting with people or teaching them a certain topic is able to be done remotely.
Examples of jobs like this:
- Business coaching
- Fitness personal training coaching
- Medical/Health consulting
- Therapy or Counseling
- Meditation Coaching
- Online Yoga Teacher
- Online tutor (math, science, language)
- Online recruiter
- Sleep coaching
Other Online Jobs
We’ve mentioned most of the typical online jobs but below are a few more that came to mind when thinking of work that can be done online remotely.
- Online moderators or Discord managers
- Voice over production
- Data entry
- Stock photography
- Transcribing
- Customer service rep
- Website testing
- Chat agent
- Music reviewer
- Online poker
- Photography
Where to Learn Online Job Skills
Besides the links above in the specific job role sections, there are many other online course platforms and education hubs that allow for online skills learning.
- Udemy
- Udacity
- Coursera
- Edx
- Pluralsight
- Codeacademy
- Teamtreehouse
- LinkedIn Learning
- Skillshare
- Masterclass
- YouTube
- Online Blogs and experimenting
Where to Find Online Work as a Contractor
If you’re someone who is providing an online service such as SEO, PPC, web development, or copywriting where and how do you market your services so that you can find work and make money from clients?
The goal if you are providing these services either by yourself as a solo freelancer or as a service-based business is to find a consistent stream of clients and income so that you have a solid revenue stream to live on.
Below are the best online freelance marketplaces and marketing channels for building a client base:
- Word of mouth and personal online network
- Upwork
- Fiverr
- Flex Jobs
- Start a blog and share valuable content
- LinkedIn profile and marketing
- Facebook groups
- Join a business group, coworking space
- Ads to a landing page or funnel
Where to Find Real Online Jobs
If you want to find an online job and have one of the skills mentioned above then the below platforms are some of the best places to look for remote jobs that you can do online with an internet connection.
Conclusion
Whether you’re looking for a remote online job or to work as a freelancer providing services to businesses on your own, the skills and job roles mentioned above are some of the most in-demand online job skills on the market.
By learning and providing value in online marketing, sales, development, design, crypto, writing, or other roles you will be able to earn a solid income while allowing for location freedom and more job flexibility.
