With so many people struggling to find work nowadays, with there being too many people, not enough jobs, businesses going into liquidation/administration and some of our favourite high street stores going in a world where there’s too much competition, it’s easy to see why so many people are looking for online and alternative work to work from home.
From surveys to tutoring, virtual assistant jobs to writing, mystery shopping to proofreading, there is so much to do, and one search of working from home will bring in thousands of results, but many are too good to be true, or want you to join the debatable world of M2M - something I personally would avoid like the plague.
Another thing that seems on the rise at the moment is stocks. The stock market is a complex place, and when films show stock brokers rushing around an office in suits, shouting numbers down their phones and throwing their papers in the air, it’s not all too surprising that the majority of us think that engaging with stocks or shares isn’t a route we want to take. It looks too high pressure, it looks too complicated, it looks like something only a specialist could succeed at.
When actually, this isn’t necessarily true. In fact, the majority of us could easily make a profit from stocks if we just took the time to get to grips with how they work and had the confidence to try our hand at them. So, if you fancy making some relatively easy money and aren’t afraid to try something new, them stocks may be the answer for you. For now, we’ll focus on how to make money through ETFs.
Stock Market Basics
Let’s start with the basics: stocks are shares of companies. When you buy a stock, you purchase a share of the company that is selling it to you. The more successful a company is, the more your stocks will become worth. People sell stocks when they’ve increased in value, so they’re making a profit. So, when you purchase any kind of stock, you want to acquire it at the cheapest price possible and sell up at the right time.
What are ETFs?
ETF stands for “exchange trade fund” and is a specialist stock that you can buy or sell through brokerage firms on a stock exchange. An ETF can be an investment in anything, from commodities to currencies. It is important to remember that you don’t just have to purchase ETFs that are local to you. All kinds of individuals are investing in this type of stock, and it is estimated that there is now over £1 trillion invested in the area. Here are a few key types of ETF that you might want to consider.
• Market ETFs - the focus of these is on a particular index.
• Foreign market ETFs - these include top japanese etfs working on the Japanese Nikki index and Hong Kong etfs which operate on the Hang Seng index. They are designed to track non-US markets from around the world.
• Industry Sector ETFs - these focus on a particular industry. For example, you could invest in technology, or pharmaceuticals.
• Commodity ETFs - these will see you investing in a particular commodity, such as gold, silver, or oil.
• Bond ETFs - when investing in these, you invest in bonds, such as corporate bonds, bonds in the treasury, and municipal bonds.
Practice Makes Perfect
If you feel a bit hesitant to put money into this venture before you’re entirely comfortable in your understanding of it, remember that you can always use online simulators. These allow you to invest fictional money into the market. You can see how much you would have made or lost if it had been real money. Once you’ve got plenty of practice in, you can start investing real money! While you might never have heard of ETFs, nevermind considered investing in them, hopefully now you can see that they are a viable way to make some easy money!
Until next time,
Jada.
Until next time,
Jada.
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