This article will show you how you can make money online in Africa.
Most of us dream of making it big and becoming a millionaire, but living an expensive lifestyle without solid financial backing is next to impossible.
While the internet presents you with opportunities to make money from home, teach you how to become rich, or even start your own business, some hurdles might discourage you from moving on and exploring some of these opportunities.
Knowing how to make money online in Africa is the first thing you’ll need to do to build a solid business or expand your wealth. Besides, it will help you avoid pitfalls that might ruin your chances of achieving financial freedom.
I decided to write this article – to show you how to make money online in Africa. I know internet penetration in Africa is still low, which might be a problem. Still, the internet penetration rate in Africa is growing faster than that of other continents, and we can expect it to increase drastically.
So let’s stop wasting time and get straight to business.
How to Make Money Online in Africa
There are ten ways you can make money online as an African:
1. Make Money Online through Blogging
The first way to make money online in Africa is by blogging. It’s a proven way to earn some good cash from the comfort of your home.
Your blog must have a lot of visitors, and your content should be original, insightful, and at times controversial.
Many more requirements will ensure your blog’s viability as a source of income for years.
Here are just a few of the requirements:
- Your blog must be related to your profession or expertise in some way. For example, if you are an accountant with five years of experience, you can start a finance-related blog to share financial advice and answer questions.
- You can also become an authority by creating a blog on a well-known topic. For example, if you know about online sports betting, start a blog to share your knowledge and experience with others.
- You should be able to answer any question about your niche or expertise. Visitors will look at your blog as the go-to website for reliable information on your topic of expertise.
- Your blog should have a lot of visitors, at least 200 per day. That way, your chances of making money are better.
2. Affiliate Marketing
Another way to make money online in Africa is through affiliate marketing.
You can promote the products and services of other companies, and if someone buys the product after clicking your link, you get a commission for it. You could start this type of business in any niche. Just find something you are passionate about or anything you know well, and create an affiliate site for it.
If you successfully refer a customer to the company, the company will pay you a commission of up to 75% of what that new customer pays them! It’s a fantastic way to make money online in Africa and worldwide.
Affiliate marketing requires you to have your website or blog on which you can promote products or services of other companies. It could be a fashion blog, fitness blog, lifestyle blog, travel blog – anything – as long as you can create content around it and promote products related to your niche.
It would be best if you also had many visitors to your website or blog to increase your chances of making money through this method.
Here’s a bonus tip: you can create your product and sell it online.
You will need to know how to write good sales copy for this one. If you don’t, learn how by reading books or taking courses.
3. Selling Digital Products
You can build a profitable online business through digital products if affiliate marketing is not attractive to you.
It’s easier than creating physical products, and many people already do it. It’s also another good way of making money in Africa.
You don’t need any product or service to sell to start this business in Africa. You must know what your target audience needs and create a related product.
There are many types of digital products you can sell through your online business:
You can create e-books, white papers, how-to guides, video courses, etc.
Once you know what these products are and how people buy them, hire an expert to help you design and package your digital products.
You can also sell ready-made products in online marketplaces like Clickbank.com, JVZoo.com, etc.
4. Driving for Uber
To make money online in Africa by driving, you must first register as an Uber driver. You can register to become an Uber driver in less than 48 hours in cities where Uber is available.
Note: Uber is available in a few African countries
5. Make money online by becoming a Freelancer
The Gig economy in Africa is growing, and so is the number of people who want to work as freelancers.
If you have the expertise, you can monetize it by becoming a freelancer and making money online in Africa. You can do anything:
- Programming/coding
- Graphics design and animation
- Writing and translation
- Web Design and Development
- Customer Support
- Virtual Assistant (VA)
- And anything that you can imagine.
Many young talented people in Africa are already working as freelancers. They use different online platforms to list their skills, portfolios, etc. and wait to hire other people who need these services.
Some of the most popular websites you can use to find work as a freelancer in Africa are:
- Fiverr
- Peopleperhour
- Upwork
You can also find freelancers through social media. You can look for people to hire or hire others and earn money online in Africa.
6. Running an Ecommerce Business
Many Africans are already using ecommerce to make money. They sell different types of products through their online stores.
You can create an online store to sell digital, physical goods, or both. It all depends on what you want to do and how much effort you will put into it.
The opportunities for making money with ecommerce are endless. The most common ways are:
This type of online business is more common in African cities than in rural areas.
You can create a popular online store and expand it to more cities and countries worldwide.
7. Creating & Selling an Online Course
If you have expertise in any field – business, finance, health, technology, or anything else – you can monetize your knowledge by creating an online course about your subject and selling it through your online store or marketplace.
Creating an online course that people will pay for is not easy. Creating one requires time and effort, especially if you make it from scratch.
Before creating your online course, you need to know your target audience, how they want to learn the subject, what makes them buy online courses, etc.
8. Offer Digital Marketing Services
Another good way of making money online in Africa is to offer digital marketing services.
You can do this online business on its own or in combination with any other kind of ecommerce business.
You need the right skills and knowledge to offer digital marketing services effectively; however, if you succeed, you will get your reward in no time.
The most common types of digital marketing services you can offer in Africa are:
- Search Engine Optimization (SEO) and Search Engine Marketing (SEM)
- Social Media Marketing (SMM) and Social Media Advertising (SMA)
- Email Marketing
- Mobile traffic advertising/marketing/monetization
- Blog Traffic & Conversion Tracking
Digital marketing in Africa is growing as many Africans join the digital space and use the internet to earn an income.
You can offer digital marketing services through various online channels, including freelancing platforms, job sites, local classifieds, etc.
9. Start Dropshipping
Since many African products are sourced abroad, many local African entrepreneurs are starting to sell online.
One of the most effective ways they do it is by dropping their products in a specific country with a significant demand for them and having a third party ship them from abroad.
Dropshipping allows retailers to offer low prices to customers because they don’t need to keep the products in stock.
You can start your own dropshipping business in Africa or create an online store to sell other people’s drop-ship products.
To find out which countries are suitable for dropping shipping, check whether they have a significant demand for the product you want to dropship. This way, you’ll know how much money you can make with dropshipping.
Click here to learn more about Dropshipping.
10. Start a YouTube Channel
YouTube is Africa’s second-largest search engine, and many people use it to make money online.
You can become one of them by starting a YouTube channel about any topic that interests you or your audience. It can be as simple as teaching people how to do their hair differently or creating new recipes for your favorite dishes.
The most important thing here is to pick a unique topic and research it properly before starting your YouTube channel.
It will take time for people to find your YouTube Channel on Google or YouTube, so make sure you explain why they should subscribe to it.
You can even sell your products and services if you become successful at this online business.
Conclusion
In conclusion, Africa is an emerging market, and millions of Africans join the digital space daily.
This means you can quickly start making money online in Africa. You must choose the methods outlined in this article, identify your target audience, and start working on them.
Remember that it will take time for you to be successful in any way mentioned here. So patience is key to your online success in Africa.
