Winnipeg Web Design

5 Ways for Web Devs to Make Extra Side Income!

Being a web developer is usually a pretty awesome, if not time consuming job. However, that doesn’t mean there aren’t things we can’t do in our free time to increase our income some. Let’s take a look at 5 legitimate ways a web developer can make some extra side cash in their free time. Note, all of these require some degree of work and dedication, but like all good things, it’s worth it in the end.

1. Sell Some Code!

One of the easiest options on the list, is selling some code or scripts you create as stock. This is a fantastic option as it allows you to make passive income over a period of time, instead of all at once.

Of course, you will need to come up with a nice idea, something that will sell well and appeal to many users. This will also require effort upfront, unless you already have a very nice software script that is already ready to be sold.

Where do I do this?

Luckily, Envato just launched a brand new marketplace, named CodeCanyon. All you need to do is register, take the authoring quiz, and submit your scripts for review.

At the moment, there are categories for: Javascript, PHP Scripts, Java, and ASP.net, though I don’t believe it is only limited to those categories. Over time, one can make quite a nice income from selling stock, just check out some of the testimonials from the top selling authors of CodeCanyon.

2. Blogging and Writing Articles!

Another one of the more simple options on the list, is blogging and writing articles on the web. There are numerous web sites, marketed towards web designers and developers, that pay pretty good money per article published.

If you’re not into writing articles for other websites, why not write some for your own? Writing consistent, quality articles not only allows the chance for you to make some nice side income, but also establishes your presence in this ever growing field. Quality articles keep your name out there and help establish you as an expert in your field.

How/where do I do this?

Start simple. Write about something you know well and have experience in. Write naturally and write for your readers, not for search engines, the rest will come with time.

If you are looking to publish articles on your own website, look into a quality advertising program, such as BuySellAds, which is a nice way to earn some passive income.

If you’re looking to get paid for submitting articles, look at websites like NETTUTS, SmashingMagazine, and Noupe. These are all well known websites that will pay for quality, well written articles.

3. Teach/Tutor Others!

If your an experienced web developer, and you have a knack for helping others out, then this may be right up your alley. There are fewer things more rewarding than giving back to the community and teaching someone how to program (or design or whatever it is you’re great at). Watching them become more skilled as they go along will make you smile, not to mention you can charge for it!

Tutoring others is a great, if not labor intensive, way of earning some side cash and doing some good.

How do I do this?

There are plenty of ways, this could even fall under blogging if you did video screencasts and made some money out of it! Try posting some flyers around your local stores in town, post open tutoring positions online, tell people you know about it, make it known!

You can also teach from home if you have a webcam and your student(s) have the ability to do so as well.

4. Write a (e)Book!

Out of everything listed so far, this option probably requires the most upfront work, with the benefit of offering the greatest payoff in the long run. Think there is no way you could get something like this done? Think again! My buddy and also friend of Brenelz, Jason Lengstorf, just recently publish his book on PHP, and it was a huge success. Jason started out as a web developer/designer like many of us.

Furthermore, many publishers online are very tech savvy and willing to work with the single web developer working from home, if you’ve got the talent and will. Look at companies like Apress and PacktPub. They are both very well known for working with programmers and developers all over the place to get books published!

Truth be told, in this day and age, you don’t even need a developer to publish a book. Take a look at How to be a RockStar WordPress Designer, an ebook that was a huge success, as people found it useful.

Great, so how do I do this?

I just told you silly! Start with a plan, find a niche topic and something you are absolutely skilled with, and outline the basics of your book.

Don’t try to make it perfect at first, just make it good and worth reading, you can go back and do editing and all that great stuff later. Keep working at it in your free time, and you could have a very, very nice way to make some passive income over years and years!

5. Start Freelancing or Subcontracting!

I’ll assume for this item that you’re not already freelancing or subcontracting for other freelancers and companies.

Freelancing is a wonderful and sometimes, truth be told, painful world. On one hand, it can earn you some very nice money, give you the ability to set your own hours, and work on projects that you choose to take. It also can come with some headaches and frustration, mainly when it comes to dealing with clients.

How do I do it?

First things first, do you have a portfolio setup that really emphasizes your skill sets? If not, you need to get one up before you do anything else. If you need more work to fill your portfolio, try working on some open source projects, releasing free scripts, or releasing free themes. All of these can still look very good in your portfolio. Show them you’ve done some work.

Next, develop a killer resume and keep it up to date. A site I really recommend is Emurse which will allow you to setup your resume all from a nice web application, and it will allow others to download it in over 5 different formats! You can check out a demo of my resume on Emurse at DrewDouglass.Emurse.com. Oh yea, it’s free too!

Lastly, start applying to those freelance or subcontracting jobs that look good to you. A few good job boards are found at FreelanceSwitch Jobs and Authentic Jobs.

Related posts:

1. Client-Side Javascript

Tags: Freelancing, web development

Written by Drew Douglass

Hey, I'm Drew Douglass and I'm a freelance web developer based out of Missouri. I love building sites and teaching others tricks dealing with php and WordPress. I work at Envato Support and also run Dev-Tips.com & CreatingDrew. You can check out my portfolio and learn more about me if you like.