Being a wanderlust who wants to explore this beautiful world and earn millions at the same time is a dream for many. Imagine having a virtual office where there is no clock to haunt you about the deadlines and you have the freedom to move around anytime. Well, that’s not a dream! It simply means that it’s high time you become a Digital Nomad.
A Digital Nomad is a person who gets the chance to explore every nook and corner of this globe while earning bucks by working on the internet. A location-independent worker who can be a founder, freelancer, or employee. They can simply work with the help of a smartphone or a laptop along with a good internet connection.
“It was amazing to have the flexibility to build a temporary home anywhere in the world — as long as it had internet,” -Stephanie Lee.
The profession seems to be very alluring. In this article, we will talk about some Digital Nomad business ideas through which you can earn a lot of money and also the problems that a Digital Nomad faces.
Digital Nomad Business Ideas
Problems That Digital Nomads Face
Digital Nomad Business Ideas
Some of the best business ideas through which you can earn a lot of money while being a digital nomad are:
Get Yourself Free From Debts
If you have finalised to roam like a free bird then clearing all your credit card/debit card debts should be your priority. It’s not easy to earn when you have empty wallets. You must have enough to pay for your expenses in a foreign country. Imagine a scenario in which your wallet or phone gets stolen then how will you fight the situation being a digital nomad?
So before you start the journey of being a Digital Nomad get yourself free from all the debts. After that, your first step is to get a high-paying job. There are many jobs available which you can do anywhere in the world. So, learn some high-demand skills and start applying for jobs or projects.
Start a Blog
The principle phenomena to enter the digital business. Many bloggers with their quality content earn a good amount. You need to learn some basic skills in designing and maintaining a blog.
Before starting a blog you have to research a lot about the niche in which you will write. Many successful bloggers started their journey with no money and now they have reached so far because of their writing skills and creativity. You have to be enough creative to start a blog.
Travel blogging can allow you to make your passion into a career by expressing your travel experience to a group of audiences, across the globe. You can also become a part-time content writer or a freelance content writer. Many writers are getting paid a huge amount of money because of their writing skills and it is one of the greatest elements to improve your portfolio. So all you need is a good internet connection and a laptop and you are good to go.
Working Holiday Visas
A working holiday visa is a residence permit which allows you to travel, and work or study at the same time in the country issuing the visa to supplement your travel funds.
Australia, New Zealand, Ireland, Singapore, and Canada are the countries that offer foreigners, usually young adults, work on holiday visas. This is one of the best opportunities for you to earn while travelling. It helps you to stay in the country for up to a year, travel and earn at the same place.
Tour Guide
It is confidence and good communication skills that you need to become a tour guide. If you don’t have these skills you can easily learn them and after that, you can apply for a tour guide job in a company or you can also do this as a part-time job. If you have the art of engaging a group of people with a bit of humour and excitement, congratulations you can become a good tourist guide.
There are agencies that give you on-spot work and you can earn instantly from it. You can chit-chat with the people have fun with them and make their experience memorable and one of a kind. All you need is good research about a particular place and a few leadership skills.
Online Selling
The job of sales is quite lucrative abroad. Travellers can shop around the markets of the city and sell the stuff online. There are many platforms available where you can sell your items online. You can also do this through social media groups which are now on-trend in terms of social media marketing.
Other options include the middlemen jobs, where you sell and earn a commission. You can also make handicrafts, woollen garments, and accessories and sell them in the local market. If you are a real go-getter and unafraid of new people and places you can earn a good amount of money by sales.
Photography As a Career
Clicking pictures is so cool. Almost all of us like to click pictures and take videos of the places we visit and their majestic beauties. Well, for a fact that there are numerous people out there who can buy your pictures. If you have a professional camera and if you believe that you are a pro photographer, you can earn a good income from this work. You could create your website and sell your travel pictures.
There are many websites available where you can sell your photos online like Shutterstock, Getty images, etc. But you have to make sure that the quality of the image is too good. If everything goes well you can earn a lot of money passively.
Provide Professional Services
Are you a graphic designer, programmer, lawyer, or accountant? Then why don’t you extend your services online? Numerous websites provide a platform for professionals like you. You don’t need to tie yourself with anyone or any firm.
Build a portfolio that can blow people’s minds and try to build your network. You can also start your agency and attract new clients by providing a unique service. But here you have to have some unique skills which you can sell to the customers. You need to find a burning problem and a solution to that which you are going to provide.
Teach People Online
Have you thought of becoming a teacher? No!? But then you have a chance to earn some bucks easily. Online platforms like Unacademy, Coursera, and Udacity, are quite famous that giving a chance to everyone to upload their courses and earn money.
There are also many websites available where you can start teaching on an hourly basis. You just need to have good English speaking skills and you are well on your way to getting started. If you can manage to do online teaching while travelling, you can easily be a digital nomad.
Virtual Tutoring
Have a particular skill you can teach that would work virtually for tutoring? You can teach just about anything over Skype. This works especially well for teaching languages or subjects in school or even sometimes a musical instrument. You can search for virtual tutoring jobs on sides like Indeed and many others.
This is just like an online teaching job but here you have to find clients or students on your own. You can teach anything through video call but make sure you are the expert in that specific field.
Copy Editing
Are you aware of the AP Stylebook and The Chicago Manual of Style standards? Then you can work for print magazines and financial institution reports and non-profit newsletters. The job requires the skill of high accuracy and fluency in the English language. It is about reviewing the written material and rectifying grammatical mistakes. The standard rate is 30$ per hour in the U.S.
There are many startups where you can apply for a copyediting job. But before applying make sure you have excellent grammar skills and also creative thinking as is a part of this job.
Become A Web Developer
Website developers can be specific types of programmers. On the other hand, some website developers are simply digital artists who only need to know the basics of coding language to perform the job.
Web developers build, maintain, and fix websites. They either work using code with some sort of coding language or via a more intuitive content management system like WordPress. These people take an internet-based idea and, well, develop it.
They create and build the style, layout, look, and various functions of a website. They also take care of any bugs that make a site slow, unstable, or unusable in some way. This kind of digital worker is responsible for building, testing, and maintaining the proper functionality of a website. There are many courses available that you can take to become a professional Web Developer.
If you don’t know how to make a website, no worries!! You can easily learn it within one or two weeks. There are many online courses available on the internet where you can learn all the programming skills like HTML5, CSS, JavaScript, PHP, etc. You will need to learn these in order to become a web developer digital nomad.
Become An App Developer
The work of an app developer is similar to that of a website developer. But because the coding styles and languages are different, the skill sets needed are also different. As a web developer, an app developer takes an idea for an application—either a phone or computer app—and develops it.
They build the layout, functions, and features of an application. They test it, analyze its flaws, and fix any bugs that could hamper its usability. Some developers are responsible for making sure the app functions as it should for peak performance and user experience.
Again, as the digital age continues to reach new heights, the demand for talented app developers will continue to increase. Maybe you’ll become inspired by your travels and create an innovative app for fellow nomads!
Social Media Marketer
Nearly all major brands have a social media presence. They need someone to build, refine, analyse, and manage that presence.
Social media marketing helps create and maintain a brand’s public face. They’re instrumental in getting everyday consumers interested in and engaged with that brand via social media.
These digital workers schedule social media posts, run contests on social platforms, and respond to comments, concerns, and queries on a brand’s social networks.
In this regard, sometimes the social media marketer can double as a community manager by ensuring the brand’s community stays happy. No one can deny the ubiquity of social media in today’s business environment. That’s why social media marketers are a necessary and treasured part of any brand’s core identity.
So, the job of a social media manager comes into play where you have the task of increasing the followers and subscribers. There are so many groups and communities available where you can get or apply for a Social Media managing job. You can also start your own social media marketing agency and attract new start-ups. Here you need no money to get started, you just need some high-quality skills.
Virtual Assistant
A virtual assistant performs remote tasks across many fascinating industries, but the core of the job is administrative. Some virtual assistant jobs last a day, some for weeks or months. The median salary for this position is $15.57 an hour, and like any assistant, virtual ones need to be good on the computer, well organized and deliver what is asked. Having good communication skills and email manners helps.
Like other online jobs here also you need to have some skill set to apply for the job. If you are an expert on something then apply for remote jobs in that specific niche. It will take time to get the job but once you will get some experience you will be able to complete more and more projects.
Data Entry
Data entry work is location-independent which means, perfect for a digital nomad. It also doesn’t require investment in equipment or skills training. Data entry work boils down to entering information on a computer.
While it doesn’t require previous experience or a bachelor’s degree, the work does require basic computer skills, such as knowledge of typing, accuracy, and speed, as well as installing and removing software, creating new folders, sending emails, and using the internet.
Problems That Digital Nomads Face
Medical insurance
Wherever you are in the world, medical insurance is imperative, and you need a policy in place in case of emergencies. Digital nomads need to buy medical insurance, and several insurers charge between $30 and–80 a month. Although, if you remain in a location for a long time, it’s typically cheaper to purchase medical insurance in that country.
Keeping Your Possessions Safe
Digital nomads depend on technology; it’s the main reason they can have their lifestyle in the first place. They need a reliable smartphone, battery chargers, cables, and a portable and flexible laptop. Plus, depending on your career, you may need other expensive gear to do your job — cameras, monitors, keyboards, and so on. Whatever you need, you’ll need to carry it with you wherever you go or need to leave it somewhere safe.
Whilst insurance can replace the financial loss of broken or stolen equipment; it won’t replace the time lost or help you meet your deadlines. Keeping everything safe is a constant challenge.
Travel Disruptions
Travel defines the digital nomad lifestyle. That doesn’t necessarily mean they’re continually on the road though. Digital nomads typically establish a home base and stay there for one to six months at a time. The travelling part is when they take trips to and from that base.
This is where travel disruptions can cause issues in meeting deadlines. Any traveller will tell you, that wherever you go from destination to destination, there’s the possibility of delays and cancellations. This means potentially losing days and not hitting deadlines. It’s bad enough on vacation, let alone in the middle of a working week.
Surviving Financially
Digital nomads are often freelancers and don’t have any ongoing employment contracts. As with anything in life, excellent jobs can end at short-term notice, and surviving financially can be challenging. It’s very daunting to consider how to replace this loss of income. Typically, freelancers never turn down work, for fear of not having enough money when work slows down.
Conclusion
In today’s world, it is all about consistency, passion, and dedication to what you choose. If you match your abilities, skills, passion, interest, and motivation to these jobs you can surely earn a good amount of income while travelling. The idea of working while travelling is not so new, but how today’s youth is carrying the activity is far better than it was in the past. It is not as easy as it seems to be but if you have the willpower and encouragement you will do it.
FAQs
Who are Digital Nomads?
Digital nomads are people who are location-independent and use technology to perform their job. Digital nomads work remotely, telecommuting rather than being physically present at a company’s headquarters or office.
What do digital nomads need?
8 things every digital nomad needs to get their work done:
- Hotspot.
- Travel Bag.
- Electronics Organizer.
- Headphones/Headset.
- Portable Charger.
- External Hard Drive.
- Lap Desk.
- Relaxation Items.
What skills do I need to be a digital nomad?
5 Steps to Becoming a Digital Nomad:
- Develop in-demand online skills. Many digital nomads work in fields like design, web development, and digital marketing.
- Create a portfolio. Start building your portfolio of work so you can market yourself effectively.
- Sell your services.
- Cut the clutter.
- Start your nomadic journey.
