If you’re considering entering the field of work-from-home data entry jobs, the first thing to understand is that it’s not going to be easy. Anyone can make it in this field, but you have to be willing to work harder than the competition, and the competition can be stiff. There are literally thousands of people around the globe trying to get into this field at the same time as you are, and you have to be able to present yourself as a better worker than they are. Needless to say, there are some challenges to this, but with a smart approach and persistence, you can do it.

Not sure how to get started? Here’s a quick step-by-step guide to the process of getting involved in online data entry work.

Step 1: Build your resume

First, you need something to show to your prospective employers. Granted, when you’re looking for online data entry jobs, a lot of your job hunting will involve posting online portfolios and submitting bids for projects. But whatever methods you end up using, having a clear resume will help you. It will make the information about your experience and qualifications organized and easy to digest, which makes it easier to paste into your profiles and bids. Plus, many of your prospective clients will ask for a resume even when they’ve seen your online portfolio. It’s important to be prepared.

When it comes to building your resume, the most important thing is to highlight the skills, experience, and education that are most relevant to the job that you’re applying for. Thus, you may want to put together two or three different versions of your resume so that you can present yourself in the most relevant manner for different kinds of work.

Step 2: Sign up for online services

Next, you’ll need to go to sites that specialize in connecting data entry professionals and other freelancers to employers. There are many sites like this; some specialize in data entry and related fields, while others cater to all independent contractors and freelancers. When you sign up for one of these sites, you’ll be asked to create a profile. This is where you will refer to your resume and enter the most relevant information.

Some online services will ask for a subscription fee, and others are free. There are advantages and disadvantages to both, and neither is inherently better or worse. You might want to consider starting out with the free services just to see how easy it is to get work. And if you find it more difficult than you had hoped, consider moving to a paid service. However, keep in mind that the paid services are designed for very serious workers who can truly benefit from making connections with employers looking for reliable workers.

Step 3: Bid for projects

Once you’ve set up online profiles on the services you’ll be using, it’s time to start looking for work. Many people starting out in this field make the mistake of thinking that the more jobs they apply for, the more likely they will be to find work. There is certainly some logic to this, but the fact is that prospective employers like to see that you’ve taken the time to really read and consider their job postings. If you submit boilerplate bids to everyone and don’t put any care into what you say, then employers will immediately dismiss your bids.

It’s much better to look for those specific jobs that you think match up with your skills and experience, and then to put real care into trying to get these jobs. Show prospective employers that you have read their ads, and make your proposals and cover letters as professional and articulate as possible. Remember, there are real human beings behind these job listings, and they will respond positively to professional and careful communication from you.

One of the most difficult things about applying for data entry jobs is deciding how much to ask for. Unfortunately, when starting out, the only way to find a good amount of work is to underbid the competition. This may mean working for less money than you’re used to, but you can begin to raise your rates after you gain experience.

Step 4: Don’t give up

The people who find success in data entry jobs are the ones who persist through the hard times. At first, you can expect to have a great deal of difficulty finding your first few data entry projects. Everyone goes through this, and many people give up after a couple of weeks. But giving up is not the way to succeed. If you find that your resume, proposals, and cover letters aren’t getting it done, then make adjustments. Don’t panic; instead, try to get to the bottom of what employers are looking, and work to give it to them. Eventually you will get that first project, and things will improve from there.

Finding data entry employment starts with having a good resume. For some of the services that you will use to find work, the resume may take the form of an online profile, but it’s the same idea. Whether you’re presenting a resume or an online profile, the object is to show that you are the best person for the job. Even if you don’t have a ton of experience in data entry or related fields, a well-made resume can still present you as the best candidate without even having to stretch the truth.

The idea is simple: Know what your prospective employers are looking for, and give it to them. When it comes to data entry, most employers are looking for a few specific qualities—for example:

• the ability to follow directions exactly as written,
• good communication skills (preferably familiarity with the employer’s first language),
• the ability to meet deadlines that are often demanding,
• the ability to stay on target with large, often repetitive work,
• experience delivering satisfactory results to multiple employers.

Prospective employers not only want to see that you have these qualities, but they also want to see that you’ve performed work that demonstrates and uses these qualities. So make sure you include any of your past jobs that have given you these skills. Feel free to drop any jobs from your resume if they are completely unrelated to data entry, and instead play up your most relevant experience.

You might be surprised by the types of jobs that may qualify as relevant experience for data entry employment. For example, if you’ve worked in a desk job before, this will say to potential employers that you’re comfortable working long hours in front of a computer performing tasks that may be repetitive. Meanwhile, you can also get ahead of the competition if you’ve worked on any jobs that require cooperation with others. Most data entry employment is relatively solitary work, but it’s always beneficial to have experience with people.

But of course, there is more to a resume than simply naming your skills and listing your experience. These are what appear on the surface, but there is much more that goes on underneath. Here are a few things to keep in mind:

• Clear information: Make sure all the information on your resume is easy to pick up within seconds. A potential employer doesn’t want to have to dig to find what he or she is looking for. Make everything apparent, and also make sure that your contact information is immediately visible.

• Good organization: If your resume looks like a disorganized mass of text on a potential employer’s computer screen, it’s not going to have much impact. Make sure your resume has bullet points and subheadings that organize the information in an intuitive way. Otherwise, employers are just going to immediately disregard your application.

• Multiple versions: Since there are probably many types of data entry employment that you qualify for, put together a few different versions of your resume to cater to all the different types of work that are out there. You may not be able to do this right off the bat, but as you get into the field and learn more about the types of jobs that are available, you’ll get a better sense of what to include on the various versions of your resume.

• Be different: Many job applicants think that they can get ahead simply by setting themselves apart. But the real secret is to be different while also conforming to the standards of the application process. Employers are looking for people who stand out, but they also want people who know the rules and are able to conform with the standards of business. Try to find a balance between being different and meeting expectations.

Data entry jobs are among the fastest growing career opportunities in the world right now. Thanks to the explosion of the web and the rise of digital technology, all types of industries need a growing number of employees to help them digitize and process information of all kinds. With each leap forward in technology—and these leaps happen all the time nowadays—companies go through another round of information updating, and people like you can get paid to do this for them.

But not all data entry work is so technological. In fact, there are many types of data entry work, and some have been around for a long time. As you explore this field, here are a few types of data entry jobs that you’ll find.

1. Pure data entry

Many data entry jobs involve the most basic forms of this category of work. There are many types of pure data entry work; for example, you may be asked to transcribe lists of information or spreadsheets into a database or web-based entry form. Companies regularly update their information systems, and every time they do so, they need someone to reenter the information. This work can be quite repetitive and, frankly, boring, but if you don’t mind these qualities than you can really get ahead in this field.

2. Word processing

If you are skilled in Microsoft Office or related software packages, then there are companies that can use your abilities. Companies sometimes need workers who can create documents for them—for example, reports, letters, mailing labels, spreadsheets, templates, and so on. Your job will be to follow your employer’s instructions to create documents that meet certain criteria. For this type of work, it helps to have strong grammar and spelling as well as a good design sensibility.

3. Research

Modern companies rely on information for everything they do, and it’s important for all the information they act upon to be accurate. A misquoted fact or a bit of bad research can mean the difference between profit and loss. Many companies outsource this work to reliable data specialists who are good at fact checking and finding appropriate information for various purposes. For example, a company may need you to find email addresses for a certain type of professional. In some cases, a company might tell you that they need, for example, 300 email addresses of CEOs, and it will be your job to come up with these email addresses by whatever means necessary.

4. Transcription

Another category of data entry jobs involves transferring information from audio and video media into written form. For example, many companies like to have transcripts of their meetings, or they may want written forms of talks and seminars that they can use for marketing purposes. In order to be a good transcriptionist, you have to be able to type very fast, and it also helps to have a strong familiarity with the language in which you will be working. Of course, one of the problems with getting into transcription work is that it’s a specialists’ field, meaning that you’ll have many professional transcriptionists competing with you for the work.

5. Information updating

Other data entry jobs involve going through information that already exists and making sure it’s up-to-date. For example, companies that track corporate earnings need people to go through corporate reports and track the trends. In data entry jobs such as these, you will mostly be working with existing data systems and updating fields of information. For this type of work, it’s helpful to have skill with research, and you may also have to call around to confirm that data is up-to-date, which means that people skills are crucial.

6. Product descriptions

There is a growing number of online retailers in all types of product fields. Each of these websites needs somebody to enter the information about the products and to make sure that everything is accurate. That’s where data entry pros come in. When writing product descriptions, you will get the basic information about the products, and it will be your job to enter the information into the data fields, usually through an online data entry system.

7. Fact checking

If you have substantial experience in data entry and are good at finding accurate information, then you might be qualified to become a fact checker. Fact checking is a highly specialized field that usually requires some degree of relevant education, but it is certainly something to strive for since these data entry jobs usually pay pretty well. The job is simple: you will be required to go through documents and all types of texts to make sure that every piece of information is accurate. Companies’ reputations are sometimes staked to the accuracy of their information, so this job is important for the company’s success.

Most online data entry job tips focus on the basics of finding data entry job through the web, but too often they skip the practical things that you need to know not just to find work but also to excel in this field. If you’ve never even had a data entry job, then many of these online data entry job tips can be nonsensical and unhelpful. What about people who are just starting out? Here are some online data entry job tips to keep in mind as you learn the ropes.

1. Have the stuff you need. As you’re looking for data entry work, one of the things that many of your competition will have is up-to-date equipment for the various data-entry-related tasks. If you don’t have these things, you will be at a huge disadvantage, and it will come across in the quality and timeliness of your work. So if you are serious about getting an online data entry job, start by updating what you have. Have a computer manufactured in the last couple years, make sure you have the latest word-processing software, and get all the communication software that your potential employers may use.

Of course, it’s possible to go overboard with this. Don’t spend thousands of dollars buying all the latest gadgets. Instead, just get the things you know you need and stop there. You can always get additional things later if you find that you need them.

2. Temper your expectations. There are many websites that talk about data entry as if it’s a way to make money without having to do work. But these assertions are misleading. Data entry is a real job, and the only way to make money through this type of work is to put some real time and effort into it. Sure, there are definite advantages to being able to work from home, but you will have to actually work.

3. Don’t expect exciting work. Everyone knows that data entry isn’t the most exciting type of work in the world, but still, it’s important to be prepared to do work that is so boring and repetitive that it may try your patience. If you don’t think that you will be able to handle the long hours in front of a computer screen, then you might want to rethink whether this work is right for you.

4. Work on your typing. Even if you’re not going to be doing transcription as part of your data entry, it’s a good idea to have great typing skills. Consider taking a class or reading a book about the best typing techniques, and make sure you give yourself plenty of practice. If you can get your typing WPM up to 90 or beyond, you’ll be among the best in the field.

5. Spruce up your resume. The hardest part of data entry work is actually finding the work. Many websites offer online data entry job tips that pertain to things like equipment, skills, and where to find work, but the one thing that many forget is the importance of having a strong resume. This is what your potential employers will use to determine whether you are right for their projects, so don’t skimp on it.

6. Don’t waste your time on worthless jobs. Unfortunately, the internet is full of scammers and misleading ads. In fact, it’s so bad that it can be difficult to find the data entry job listings that are actually legitimate. At first you may have some difficulty sorting out the good ones from the bad ones, but after you’re in this field for a little while, you should get a sense for which types of job listings to focus on. Meanwhile, you’ll also get a feel for what you can expect to make for certain types of work, and this will help you weed out unappealing jobs.

Anyone looking for online data entry jobs quickly discovers that the vast majority of so-called “job opportunities” online are either misleading or outright scams. Some people are able to recognize these fraudulent job listings right off the bat, but unfortunately many people do get tricked. Too often, the person who gets scammed is a well-meaning individual who just wants to be able to do honest work at home. In fact, if you’re reading this, there’s a good chance that you’ve fallen for at least one of these tricks yourself.

While many of these scam job listings are pretty easy to recognize, others are a little more tricky and require some savvy to spot. If you want to protect yourself from being scammed in the future, here are a few things to watch out for.

Bait-and-switch

The most common scam when it comes to online data entry jobs is the classic bait-and-switch routine. A person will post a job listing asking for qualified professionals to perform a certain task, and then once you apply they will get in contact with you asking for something, usually money. Many of these listings are copied from legitimate job sites, which makes them tricky to recognize. However, you can usually tell when there is just something off about the person who calls or emails you. And if they ask you for money, it’s a dead giveaway.

Asking for money

Most bait-and-switch scammers ask for money, but there are other ways that people do this. Some might just ask for money outright, saying that they need an investment of a certain amount of money for you to show that you are truly interested in the job. More often than not, when you see a job like this, the person is just going to run off with your money and you’ll never hear from them again.

Of course, there are some legitimate websites that ask for subscription fees in exchange for helping you connect with potential employers. This is perfectly fine, but before you sign up for a site like this, make sure that it’s actually a good site that people have had success with. Otherwise, it may not be a scam, but it will be a waste of money.

Asking for free work

Another sign that a so-called “employer” is up to no good is if they ask you to do some work for free. You probably would never consider doing any real work without pay, but many people get suckered into these things by scammers who ask for samples, mock-ups, or trial work. If you see any of these buzzwords, go no further. Chances are that it’s a scammer just trying to get free work. Keep in mind that you are not the only one looking for this work, and a wily crook can probably get several different people to do a little bit of work each, which can add up to a full job, all for no pay.

Fishing for information

Some scammers put ads online just to get people’s information, which they can then sell to advertising companies or more nefarious entities. When you’re putting yourself out there to try to get jobs, you are of course going to have to give some basic information, but under no circumstances should you provide anything that you consider to be private or potentially sensitive. Obviously, don’t give out your credit card or banking information, and keep everything that is not pertinent to your potential jobs out of your resume, cover letters, and job bids. If you don’t follow this rule of thumb, don’t be surprised if you start getting spammed via mail, phone, and email.

Adults nowadays who used to be teenagers a few decades ago may like to tell tall stories of how they earned money through odd jobs: the harder the odd job, the greater the bragging rights. But teenagers nowadays have more than just odd jobs to look at as ways to earn money. With the rising availability of income generating opportunities online, even teenagers can benefit, and online surveys are one way for teens, especially younger ones, to earn money online.

With much of the Internet targeting children and teens in a negative way, you need to understand one thing: why are there online surveys targeted at teens? Are they legitimate, or are they simply ways to grab the attention of teenagers with some possibly negative intention to harm them?

First, you need to understand what online surveys are for. Surveys are part of a market research process that takes into account consumer comments and responses about a given product or service. Then, the results are used to analyze consumer behaviour and provide important insight for companies in many of their plans, such as in offering new products or services, pricing these products and services, and even the way they can advertise them. This is why information gathered from surveys is actually valued very highly by companies, and also why they are willing to pay for these results.

So how do teenagers earn from online surveys? The key to remember is that there are some products that are specifically targeted to teens. Although adults can also try to answer these surveys for teens, it is really different when it is the actual user that gives the comments. It may take a few days or even weeks for the first surveys to be sent in, but when they start coming, kids can enjoy having their opinions valued so highly while also earning a little income on the side. Many sites offer surveys for teenagers as young as 13 years old, and these sites even have other ways through which teens can earn, such as through playing games or watching videos.

The advantage of online surveys is that teens can earn income safely from the comforts of their home. However, teens need to be properly equipped with how to detect scams and avoid them. One good thing to remember is that online surveys should not charge a fee to respondents, because they are essentially buying the information provided to them. If your teenager asks you for your credit card number to enter into an online survey site, take it as a warning sign. There is absolutely no reason for any survey site to demand payment of any kind.

Another way to earn from online surveys is that some sites give a referral fee when teens refer their friends. This kind of payment scheme is also legitimate, as survey sites aim to have as many respondents as possible. If you are a teen and enjoying a certain survey site, you can actually get your friends in on it, too.

Online surveys are a great way for anyone, both young and old, to earn extra income from the comforts of home, as long as you know how to steer clear of scams or other illegitimate sites.

More and more people are discovering and enjoying the ability to earn money online in the comforts of their own home. These kinds of jobs are not even limited to those who are highly skilled in any given field, such as writing or internet marketing such as search-engine optimization (SEO); there are also jobs available that only require basic skills like word processing and data entry. Data entry jobs online are essentially secretarial or administrative jobs that are similar to office-based jobs with the only difference being that you are dealing with your employer on a remote, virtual basis.

What are the things you need to remember when applying for data entry jobs online?

1. Be ready to submit several applications. Just as in regular office-based jobs, just because you submit your application to one company does not mean you will automatically get hired. You will need to be ready to submit several applications. The rationale in this is that you may or may not be given an offer by all the companies you apply to, and the more choices you have, the greater your chance of getting the pay and work arrangement you are looking for. Alternatively, if you are only applying for a part-time position on all the companies, it increases your chances of earning more, as you can juggle several part-time jobs at once.
2. Improve on your data entry skills. If you feel that you are not really a fast typist, while you are waiting for your applications to be screened, it is a good time to improve on those skills. Perhaps you can find online resources to help improve your sight-typing, or you can spend some time each day practicing to get your speed up. This is a valuable resource for data entry employers, because speed and accuracy will always be of the essence.
3. While waiting, try to get short-term experience. If you are aiming for a full-time position as a data entry employee and nothing seems to work at the moment, do not hesitate to accept short-term projects. Not only will these give you extra income during the waiting period, the experience you gain will prove to be priceless, and can go into your resume as an added bonus. This way, you will have already learned something by the time you get to the formal full-time positions.
4. Check all necessary equipment. Essentially, the only equipment needed for a data entry position is a good computer and a good Internet connection. For transcriptionist jobs, you will also need a good set of headphones. While waiting for your applications to be accepted, it would be a good idea to make sure all your equipment is in good working condition, so that you are ready any time you are hired.

These steps should help improve your chances of getting a good data entry job, and even the application process will prove to be a learning and rewarding experience for you, so that no time is wasted on your clock.

With the rise of availability of online surveys for extra income, many people are eagerly jumping into the bandwagon. After all, if it will only take a few minutes each day, anyone can spare the time, especially if it promises to deliver big money. You have probably come across an advertising feature of someone who claims to earn several thousand dollars a week just answering online surveys. While a part of you wonders at the truth of the statement, another part of you wishes you could earn the same thing yourself.

The difficult thing about online surveys is that there are, sadly, scams out there. And the best thing to be able to detect them is for you to understand first what an online survey is all about, so that you can smell something fishy as soon as possible.

Simply put, a survey is a series of questions about a certain topic that respondents give their opinion on. Typically, surveys cover products that the respondent may have used or come across, including advertising, movies, and consumer goods. Falling under the market research industry, a survey can be done as a street interview, a telephone interview, or an online format, which is what has soared in popularity.

After the market research firm or department gets answers to the set questions, they usually quantify the answers and convert them using statistical analysis in order for the data to make sense for the party needing the results. For example, a survey about favorite cola drinks may have questions listing down reasons why people choose a particular brand, such as price, availability, or taste, and the market research firm would collate the data and show, for instance, that 50% of the respondents decided based on taste, while only 20% based their decision on price. They may even go as far as to analyze that women tend to decide based on price while men tend to decide based on taste. This gives you the groundwork for why companies would be willing to pay you to take surveys for them.

With that in mind, you have a few important clues to weed out the scams from the legitimate survey sites:

1. Legitimate online survey sites would not need any of your financial information, such as social security numbers, bank account, or credit card numbers. Truly, part of their analysis would be to know your age, race, and gender, but that’s about as far as it should go. Understand that asking questions about lifestyle and preferences will help them make analysis, but social security numbers have absolutely nothing to do with it.
2. Legitimate online survey companies may ask you to join their database, but not with a fee. Truly, the database is how they get in touch with you whenever a survey comes up that fits your profile, but if they ask for a fee, something is fishy. Online survey companies benefit when there are more people joining their database, and they have absolutely no reason to ask for a fee. The same goes for companies that start sending you subscriptions for sale.

These top two things to remember should help you steer clear of online survey scams. Remember, online survey companies need you, not the other way around!

Applying for an online data entry job may not be exactly the same as applying for an office data entry job. But the process of hiring an online employee still simulates much of the process of hiring an office-based employee, with the necessity of good resume and application letters and a successful job interview.

Data entry job interviews for online employees are almost always virtual in nature. After all, it is not possible for employers halfway across the globe to make telephone or face-to-face interviews with employees, as is the case with office-based positions. Some employers would conduct the interview with video call via Skype, others would just opt for Skype audio call, while a small percentage would be satisfied with Instant Messenger chat sessions. Given this nature of data entry job interviews, how do you make sure you make a good impression and eventually wind up hired?

1. Show up on time. Although the virtual world has the complication of having different time zones and no exact time to adhere to, punctuality is still important. When your employer asks you to show up in, say, Skype, at 9:00A.M. your time, make sure you are there at least fifteen minutes before that time. This will at least give you leeway just in case you are operating at a slightly different time from what is expected.
2. Be professional. The problem with chat interviews is that sometimes a person gets so used to using emoticons during casual chat conversations with friends that it seeps out during a job interview. Although there are some employers who do not mind, it is always best to be as professional as possible right at the start, so that you do not wind up in an awkward situation where you get told to act professional.
3. Be honest. Sometimes interviewers will ask you about your past experiences or skills. If what they are asking you is something you are not familiar with, do not hesitate to admit it, as it will show up in the future anyway. You do not want the uncomfortable situation of saying you know how to do something and then getting assigned that task for your job description and having to admit later on that you actually have no idea what to do. Be as honest as possible. If you are concerned about not getting hired because you have had no prior experience, expressing your willingness to learn may spell all the difference.
4. Express realistic expectations. Sometimes, employers would ask you how much you expect to earn for how many hours. It would be a good idea to get some information beforehand about the going rate for the job you are applying for; that way you can give a figure that is realistic and manageable for your prospective employer.

With these tips in mind, you will very well on your way to acing the interview for the data entry job you desire. Remember, though, that the job interview is just the starting point, so you will have to live up to the impression you have set on your employer, such as staying punctual even when it comes to work submissions. After all, just because you got in does not mean you can treat your new job lightly. Just treat it as you would any office-based job, and you will surely soar in the eyes of your employers.