Work-from-home jobs are already a popular option in many parts of the world. The number of people working from home is growing, and remote employment no longer just for writers and graphic designers, but other lucrative professions too.
This is why a lot of professionals are considering getting a part-time, full-time, or a hybrid WFH job, like an office job that allows one to two, or even more, days working from home. It’s also getting easier to find one of these jobs as technology enables pretty much any space to be a work area.
Of course, if you’re looking for a WFH job, there are many websites that can help you out. Just look at Outsourcely, Upwork, Freelancer, SimplyHired, and many other similar websites. You can find high-paying jobs for various kinds of professionals out there.
However, there are certain risks involved when applying for WFH jobs. Even though there are many legitimate work-at-home opportunities, scams may still exist. It’s up to you to find them and steer clear, and it’s not always easy to tell the real deal from a scam.
According to the National Consumers League and Fraud.org, there are steps you should take and signs to watch out for when you’re starting your search for a work-at-home job:
- Research: It’s important to know exactly who you’re working for. When you find a job posting you’re interested in, take special care to research the company hiring. Check them out with the Better Business Bureau and conduct a web search for any complaints or less-than-stellar reviews.
- Ask for references: Any company that’s hiring workers to work at home might have other people working for them as well. Ask how many and find out if you’re able to contact any of them. If they are unwilling to provide references or contact information, it might not be a good sign.
- Think long and hard before shelling out any money: Some work-at-home jobs require you to purchase materials or equipment to get started, and while that doesn’t mean they’re not legitimate, it should be a red flag. If you are asked to pay for equipment, make sure you understand what you’re buying, and from where. Also ask about the return policy for your equipment if your new gig doesn’t work out.
If you’re tired of looking for a traditional job, WFH might be for you. Now, here are five of the best paying WFH jobs available online:
Virtual Assistant
With a lot of businesses operating mostly, or even completely, online, the time to hire virtual assistants to help keep businesses organized has come. By definition, a Virtual Assistant (VA) is a highly-skilled, independent professional who remotely provides administrative, technical, and/or creative business support services. They are basically off-site administrative professional.
Although virtual assistant jobs vary drastically, tasks can include composing and responding to emails, creating and distributing business-related documents, responding to media and business inquiries, writing and creating content, and more.
Medical Transcriptionist
Medical transcriptionists listen to voice recordings that physicians and other healthcare professionals make and convert them into written reports. They may also review and edit medical documents created using speech recognition technology.
Transcriptionists interpret medical terminology and abbreviations in preparing patients’ medical histories, discharge summaries, and other documents. Since their tasks involve transcribing recorded medical dictation, a computer, desk, and earpiece are generally the only requirements after completing a post-secondary medical transcriptionist program.
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), medical transcriptionists have earned a national median annual wage of $35,490 in 2013, or $16.63 an hour. Although many medical transcriptionists are self-employed, a lot of them find jobs through their local hospital, physician, or community college.
Web Developer
Web development always finds its way onto the list of the most high-paying jobs for WFH employees. Though the demand for these professionals is high, the competition among service providers is right there with demand. Most of the time, employers don’t care if you have a degree, as long as you can do what they ask. The biggest advantage for those who want to pursue web development as a career is that it’s fairly easy to build your own website if you take advantage of the many free learning opportunities online.
A big chunk of the population isn’t equipped to build their own sites, or doesn’t have the time, which is why so many people make a living building websites and blogs for others. According to the BLS, around 25 percent of web developers were self-employed in 2012. The vast majority are able to work at home, or anywhere with a laptop and speedy internet connection.
Even better, the national median wage for Web developers reached $63,160 in 2013, with the top 10 percent earning an average salary of $110,350. As mentioned before, you typically don’t need an advanced degree to begin working in this field. All you need is some post-secondary education, applicable experience, and a portfolio of successful sites you’ve built and managed. There are even intensive coding boot camps designed to teach programming skills in just a few short months.
Freelance Writer
We’ve already entered the era of online journalism, blogging, fiction writing, and many other genres. More than ever, writers are needed to formulate news articles, create content, and come up with the creative ideas that fill the pages of the internet. Although many bigger sites have in-house writers, a growing number of sites outsource their content and hire freelance writers and content creators. Writing experience is very helpful, but what you really need to get started is a combination of passion, ambition, and the ability to find a unique angle on events that happen every day.
Sites like Upwork.com list online freelancing positions, as does Freelancer.com and Mediabistro. To get hired, you most likely need to have a portfolio of solid work or a few writing samples you can submit together with your resume.
The usual pay grade for online writers may vary from different types of writing. Then again, you can expect a rate of $25 per hour if you’re a good writer. Most employers pay writers per article or per word, which could mean that the per-hour rates of writers aren’t always reflective of the amount of salary writers could get on a regular basis.
Social Media Manager
Social Media Management or Community Management is a career that’s quickly booming with the rise of different social media platforms. This virtual profession has been created out of marketing necessity. Almost every big business has gotten on the social media bandwagon as a means to reach their customers directly, and without paying heavily for television, print, or radio ads.
However, not every big business has someone to manage its social media accounts. This is why more individuals have begun marketing themselves as social media managers to help businesses grow their online following and expand their reach.
Although very little data are available for this work-at-home job since it is relatively new profession, thousands of listings for social media managers can be found on many sites. If you have a demonstrated command of social media and a sizable following, you might even be able to get started by reaching out to companies directly and asking if they need help. WFH Social Media Managers can get a median salary of $10,000 per year.