Passive Income Ideas For Digital Marketers [2024]
Interested in earning passive income as a digital marketer in 2024?
We put together a few of the best passive income ideas you can start as a digital marketer today. These will help you increase your quality of life by bringing in more income for yourself or your business.
For each income idea, we’ll show you real-world examples, revenue expectations for each idea, plus some things you might need to know before you start your passive income journey as a digital marketer.
Here's the full list:
1. Make passive income with an affiliate marketing business ($77.5K/month)
If you're a digital marketer looking for a side hustle to boost your income, starting an affiliate marketing business could be a great fit. Affiliate marketing involves promoting products and services from other companies and earning commissions for each sale you generate. Given your skills in digital marketing, you could leverage your knowledge of SEO, content creation, and social media strategies to effectively promote these affiliate products, making it a natural extension of what you already do.
To get started, you could research and find the right products and brands to align with your audience. For example, you might consider becoming an affiliate marketer for an eCommerce store or partnering with a manufacturer whose products you trust and believe in. By integrating affiliate marketing into your existing marketing efforts, you could create a steady stream of passive income over time.
How much you can make: $500 — $773,000/month
How much does it cost to start: $700 (?)
How long does it take to build: 60 days (?)
This case study explores how Spencer Mecham founded Buildapreneur, an affiliate marketing business, and has made over half a million dollars in profit with no employees, relying solely on content marketing through platforms like Facebook, YouTube, and TikTok.
2. Make passive income with an online course sales business ($85K/month)
If you're a digital marketer, starting an online course sales business could be a great way to supplement your income. You could create courses that teach others about what you know best, whether it's digital marketing strategies, SEO, or social media management. With your skills in reaching and engaging an audience, you are already a step ahead when it comes to marketing your course.
Creating an online course allows you to turn your expertise into a product that can generate passive income. Once the course is created and launched on an online learning platform, you could start earning money even while you sleep. Given that the e-learning market is projected to be worth over $645 billion in the coming years, there's enormous potential for financial gain.
How much you can make: $100 — $300,000/month
How much does it cost to start: $2,000 (?)
How long does it take to build: 180 days (?)
A multipreneur shares how she built a successful print on demand side hustle, generating $120,000 per year through multiple brands spread over various platforms.
3. Make passive income with an email marketing tool ($992K/month)
Creating an email marketing tool could be a great side hustle for digital marketers because you already have the skills and knowledge to understand what makes an email campaign successful. An email tool helps businesses create, manage, and automate email campaigns, allowing you to efficiently generate leads and drive sales. Given your existing experience, you could design features that address common pain points you've encountered in your own campaigns.
The demand for email marketing tools is rising, with the market expected to grow to $2.53 billion by 2028. This means there's a large and expanding market of entrepreneurs, startups, and small businesses that need user-friendly email solutions. By tapping into this industry, you could create a steady stream of passive income while providing valuable services to other businesses.
How much you can make: $120 — $20,833,333/month
How much does it cost to start: $1,000 (?)
How long does it take to build: 180 days (?)
H-supertools founder Hasan developed a set of free SEO and digital marketing tools generating $2k per month in profit using Google Adsense, affiliate marketing, selling ad spaces, and email, plans to launch a membership option, and has attained over 80k registered users and 300k monthly visits in less than two years.
4. Make passive income with a niche blog ($31.5K/month)
Starting a niche blog could be a great idea for digital marketers looking to supplement their income and earn passive income. By sharing your expertise on a specific topic, such as fashion or film reviews, you could engage a passionate online community and create unique and informative content like articles, how-to guides, and product lists.
By monetizing your blog through affiliate links, brand collaborations, or even speaking at events, you could gain visibility and grow your followers. Engaging consistently with your audience and producing high-quality content would be key to your success in this venture.
Passion for your chosen topic, coupled with your existing skill set, could make this a rewarding side hustle or even a secondary career.
How much you can make: $100 — $650,000/month
How much does it cost to start: $650 (?)
How long does it take to build: 60 days (?)
Starter Story grew to 1.4 million monthly visitors and millions in annual revenue by sharing the stories of entrepreneurs. Pat breaks down the early days and how he grew the business into something that changed his life.
5. Make passive income with a lead generation tool ($108K/month)
If you’re a digital marketer, developing a lead generation tool could be an effective way to supplement your income. This tool can automate the task of finding new clients for businesses, freeing up their time to focus on converting those leads into customers. By integrating with websites, social media, and other digital channels, you could create a system that captures valuable data such as email addresses and interests, making it easier for businesses to reach potential customers.
The demand for streamlined lead generation is growing, as many businesses look to optimize their marketing efforts. With your background in digital marketing, you likely already understand the pain points and needs of these businesses. This insight will be invaluable in creating a tool that meets market demands, making this venture a potentially profitable side hustle for you.
How much you can make: $1,000 — $400,000/month
How much does it cost to start: $600 (?)
How long does it take to build: 90 days (?)
Dux-Soup is a LinkedIn automation tool that helps business owners and sales & marketing professionals generate more leads, increase efficiency, and save time; with over 70,000 users and revenue of nearly $5 million, it offers automated top-of-the-funnel LinkedIn outreach activities, targeted LinkedIn campaigns and multi-touch & personalized LinkedIn drip campaigns for lead generation.
6. Make passive income with a web scraping API ($34.2K/month)
As a digital marketer, you could supplement your income by developing a web scraping API, which helps businesses automate the collection of valuable web data. This tool would enable companies to gather insights for market research, competitor analysis, and content aggregation, tasks that might otherwise require significant manual effort.
Considering your existing expertise in digital marketing, you'll understand the demand for actionable data to drive marketing strategies. By offering a web scraping API, you’ll provide an invaluable service to various industries, starting small with a niche focus and expanding as demand grows. With the increasing reliance on data analytics, this side venture could become a substantial source of passive income as businesses look for efficient ways to access and utilize web data.
How much you can make: $50 — $125,000/month
How much does it cost to start: $900 (?)
How long does it take to build: 105 days (?)
PlanIt is a travel recommendation and planning platform that has seen compelling growth in database coverage and user growth, covering every country in the world with several thousand users and a large SEO focus as well as a growing interest from travel and lifestyle businesses to list their details.
7. Make passive income with an AI writing tool ($255K/month)
Creating an AI writing tool can be a smart move for anyone in digital marketing looking to supplement their income or start earning passive income. By developing a tool that generates accurate and engaging content automatically, you could provide a solution that saves businesses, bloggers, and students significant time. Imagine offering a product that can produce high-quality, error-free content at the click of a button—this could be highly attractive to many in need of constant, well-written material.
This AI tool could become an indispensable asset in the modern content creation process, reducing the workload for writers globally and boosting their productivity. As the demand for quality content grows, your AI tool could stand out by helping users create content more efficiently. Venturing into this space now could not only set you apart as an innovator but also open up lucrative business opportunities as more people look for advanced solutions in their content creation efforts.
How much you can make: $4,000 — $1,000,000/month
How long does it take to build: 52 days (?)
Rytr, a new AI writing assistant developed by a startup platform and business incubator, has become a market leader, serving over 300,000 customers across the world and doing seven figures in ARR.
8. Make passive income with a niche website ($107K/month)
Building a niche website could align perfectly with your skills as a digital marketer. You'll get to explore a focused topic you’re passionate about, creating engaging content that speaks directly to a specialized audience. This project allows you to apply your expertise in SEO, content marketing, and traffic generation, setting the stage for long-term success.
You could monetize your site through various channels like affiliate marketing, placing ads, or selling digital products, all of which can turn your specialized content into revenue. While it requires an initial investment of time in research and content creation, your efforts could lead to a reliable stream of passive income. If you’re entrepreneurial and ready to dive deep into a specific subject area, a niche website might just be your next financially rewarding endeavor.
How much you can make: $400 — $250,000/month
How long does it take to build: 60 days (?)
DPW (Digital Procurement World) is a fast-growing conference and community in procurement that has more than tripled in revenue since launching in 2019, capping out the year at €1.8 million, with 95% of their growth coming from inbound traffic leveraging LinkedIn and applying social selling techniques.
9. Make passive income with a YouTube channel ($72.1K/month)
Starting a YouTube channel might be your next big move if you have a knack for creating compelling video content. You could share your expertise, passions, or hobbies and potentially earn revenue through ads, sponsorships, and merchandise. Whether you focus on how-to guides, vlogs, educational content, or entertainment, YouTube offers a versatile platform to showcase your creativity.
While building a successful channel requires consistent and quality content, a good understanding of SEO for videos and social media marketing could drive traction. Engaging with your audience regularly is also crucial. Despite the hard work involved, the potential for financial reward and the flexibility to share your unique voice can make this a fulfilling venture for an entrepreneurial-minded digital marketer. If you're ready to dedicate the time and effort, starting a YouTube channel could be a worthwhile endeavor.
How much you can make: $2,000 — $333,333/month
How much does it cost to start: $5,250 (?)
How long does it take to build: 30 days (?)
This case study follows the journey of a young entrepreneur from Nigeria who started a profitable blog generating a monthly revenue of $1,500+ through sales of advertising space, sponsored posts, and information products, and shares his strategies for success including a Twitter growth challenge and guest post pitches.
10. Make passive income with a podcast ($97.9K/month)
Starting a podcast could be a great way for digital marketers to supplement their income and make extra money. By creating audio content on topics you're passionate about and that resonate with your audience, you could attract listeners who are interested in your insights and experiences as a digital marketer. This can help you build a loyal audience over time.
With some basic recording equipment and a free or affordable hosting platform, you could share your podcast online. Promoting your podcast through social media and online communities could help you grow your audience. As your audience grows, you may attract sponsors or advertisers, which could turn your podcast into a source of passive income.
How much you can make: $400 — $1,020,000/month
How much does it cost to start: $2,000 (?)
How long does it take to build: 60 days (?)
Time commitment per week: Min. 2 hours/week
A successful podcast production company that grew from one client making $15/hour to a team of 10 contractors producing over 30 shows per week with revenue of over $10k/mo, primarily through referrals and with a focus on providing high personal touch and being picky about working only with clients who are a good fit.
11. Make passive income with a wordpress plugin business ($33.4K/month)
As a digital marketer, you are already familiar with the importance of WordPress plugins in running successful websites. By creating and selling your own WordPress plugins, you could tap into a large market of fellow website owners who are seeking solutions to common problems. This could not only supplement your income but also position you as an expert in your niche.
You could develop a plugin that addresses a specific challenge you’ve noticed in your digital marketing work. For example, if you find a gap in analytics or SEO capabilities, creating a plugin to fill that gap could be highly valuable.
You could sell your plugin on popular online platforms like CodeCanyon, on your blog, or create a separate website for it. With minimal ongoing effort, your plugin sales could become a source of passive income that grows as more people discover and purchase your product.
How much you can make: $120 — $120,000/month
How much does it cost to start: $5,000 (?)
How long does it take to build: 120 days (?)
Time commitment per week: Min. 5 hours/week
Wheely Sales CEO Josh created a lucky wheel popup that has grown revenue from $0 to $600/month in just 4 months since getting started and has attracted over 1.1 million users to his customers’ websites, all while proving that when it comes to creating a product, competition is validation.
12. Make passive income with a stock photography business ($14.6K/month)
Starting a stock photography business could be a practical way to earn passive income if you're a digital marketer. You already understand the high demand for quality images in marketing and advertising. By creating and selling stock photos, you could tap into this market, leveraging your existing skills to build a steady revenue stream.
You could start by investing in good photography gear and learning the essentials of stock photography, such as taking photos that appeal to a wide audience. Over time, by building an impressive online portfolio and promoting it effectively, you could turn your side hustle into a significant source of income. Plus, your marketing expertise would help you reach potential buyers more efficiently, maximizing your earnings.
How much you can make: $1,200 — $45,000/month
How much does it cost to start: $3,500 (?)
How long does it take to build: 60 days (?)
Pro Photo Studio founder Tsour Lee Adato shares how she turned a $5k investment into a business that services over 500 clients annually and makes approximately $350k per year with plans to expand and become a 7-figure business while offering advice to fellow entrepreneurs to always be innovating, learning and growing, and not to undervalue themselves.
13. Make passive income with a helicopter transportation service
As a digital marketer, you could leverage your skills to promote and grow a helicopter transportation service by effectively reaching niche markets. With your expertise in online advertising, social media, and SEO, you could create campaigns to attract high-end clients, such as business executives needing quick travel options or tourists seeking unique experiences.
By using your marketing knowledge, you could develop a strong online presence for the helicopter service, optimizing for search engines and creating engaging content that showcases the benefits and luxury of helicopter travel. This approach could help generate steady leads and bookings, turning an initial investment into ongoing passive income, especially if you partner with other businesses or utilize booking platforms.
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Download the report and join our email newsletter packed with business ideas and money-making opportunities, backed by real-life case studies.
Download the report and join our email newsletter packed with business ideas and money-making opportunities, backed by real-life case studies.
Download the report and join our email newsletter packed with business ideas and money-making opportunities, backed by real-life case studies.
Download the report and join our email newsletter packed with business ideas and money-making opportunities, backed by real-life case studies.
Download the report and join our email newsletter packed with business ideas and money-making opportunities, backed by real-life case studies.
Download the report and join our email newsletter packed with business ideas and money-making opportunities, backed by real-life case studies.
Download the report and join our email newsletter packed with business ideas and money-making opportunities, backed by real-life case studies.
