“Sites that pay”… Hmm… Well, if you perform an online search with exactly that searching query you’ll find a bunch of “WOW” sites with infinite amounts of texts (just scroll-scroll down and “be amazed” how you could start making money in seconds!!!) and no real value, for they are nothing else but Ponzi and pyramid schemes. You don’t need that, do you? I mean: you don’t need to lose your money or waste your time on a scam!

What else don’t you need? Oh, yeah: any work at home scam. Let’s take a look at some of the most popular:

- Assembly work-at-home scams. An “employer” ask you to buy instructions and materials needed to “assembly” toys or other objects. You buy them, use them, have the job done, but… your work doesn’t meet the quality standards of the company that hired you, so they don’t pay you and you’ll get stocked with some impossible to sell goods!

- Envelope stuffing. Some companies (let’s say cosmetic companies that make most of their business through home delivered catalogues) do need employees that “stuff envelopes”. But these companies will give you all you need: envelopes, stamps, fliers and so on and will never ask you to pay a single cent for instructional materials. SO stay away from any envelope stuffing job offer when it comes from a company you don’t know or from a company that asks you to pay for any material.

- MLM schemes. Some work. Some are really legitimate. Which ones? Well, those that imply direct sales. That means you are an independent distributor and sell the products of reputable companies to your co-workers, family and friends. Have you ever heard of AVON? Yes, this is a MLM company. But, when it comes to solely recruiting people to join a MLM program – where no sales are involved, but you just need to invest some money to join the system (let’s say purchasing a software or an e-book) you are dealing with a scam.

- Online jobs scams: involve type at home, data entry and so on. Too much to write about this! Just remember: as long as you have to pay a fee to get access to the information that will make you rich over night, you deal with a scam.

Now, is there a legitimate way to make money online? Are there real sites that pay? Yes, there are. Now let’s say you are a freelance writer and would like to make some extra cash in your free time. If you are anything like me, writing is your life. I write for business, I write for pleasure, I write day and night. Why not making some money out of it?

The first site I’ll recommend belongs to MgrCentral – an Australian company. This website will teach you how to earn an income online with a bit of hard work. You’ll always get support from the members of the program. Yes. That’s the trick: it is a program. You’ll need to join. But, to ensure this is not a scam, call your local Fair Trading or equivalent government organization and check out the company. After you join you’ll have, for one month, free access at many courses and lessons that will help you start an online business. Check them out. If you don’t like the program you can delete your account at any time. But, after the trial month, you’ll need to pay a small membership fee: $ 29.98. Don’t let this scare you. Among the income streams available there is one called “writing articles”. You’ll earn $ 5 for each article you write for MPAM. As soon as the article is approved, the money is credited to your MgrCentral account. With 6 articles per month you cover this monthly membership fee. Write more articles and keep the winnings. No, you don’t need to recruit people; you don’t have to purchase anything from MPAM. This is no MLM and no pyramid scheme! The affiliate program will make you $ 10 monthly for each paying member that signs up through your affiliate link. You can request payments when your account reaches $ 50 or more. You need a PayPal account to get paid. Yes, I’ve got paid. And I made a few new friends (Tina Stephen, the leader of the design team and Liz Canham who proofreads the submitted articles have been of great assistance).

My second, and most important “free time” income source is my blog. I make enough each month with this free blogger blog (pamil-visions.blogspot.com) to cover my phone bill and my DSL flat rate. I have some Google AdSense ads and I post, occasionally, blogs sponsored by Blogsvertise.

Another nice income source is Associated Content. No, I am not getting paid here, I am not an US resident. But if you are (my American friends make money every day this way), there are many income streams there, and Associated Content is a serious moneymaking opportunity that changed the life of many content producers. I do publish on Associated Content though. It brought me enough traffic to consider it worth. And who knows? Maybe one day they’ll open for international content producers.

If you are good at essays, consider joining Essay Writers. There’s enough to do there and you should be familiar with at least one official writing style: APA, MLA or Harvard. You’ll need a PayPal account, or to specify another payment preference (check).

Posting in forums could bring you some money as well. I recommend Paid Posting Tools. This is a site that will pay you at least $ 0.15 per post (post should be original, not copied and pasted from other websites). You’ll write as little as you like and get paid for every post. You’ll get paid every week if you reach a verified account balance of $ 15. You need a PayPal account to receive payments. I am making more than double each week and I am having lots of fun with it. It takes me one-two hours per week to complete the posts.

Last but not least, if you are a blogger, check out PeyPerPost. My blog is not old enough to qualify (as a matter of fact it is, but in the last 90 days I had a gap of over 30 days – a long holiday) so I’ll need to wait one more month to join. Yet, I know for a fact that this is a great moneymaking tool. Well, if you have a blog that qualifies you have nothing to lose if you give it a try. Good luck!