7 Online Jobs That Can Actually Fund Your Big Lap
They say, “Do your big lap around Australia.” That’s fantastic, isn’t it? Except there’s one slight catch. How do you afford it?
And do you know the answer I see everyone always giving? “Well, just get some online work.” Easy. However, it’s not that easy. Just like everything, you can’t make money in your sleep. Sorry to break it to you, but it doesn’t work that way.
What we can do, though, is break down the top online jobs that I see. I’m an online worker myself (I guess you could say I’m a freelance writer, more on that below), and these are the seven jobs I keep seeing as I’m applying for work, hearing about from friends who work online, and doing myself. All right, let’s get stuck straight into this list!
– For planning the route once the work side is sorted: the Big Lap Bible from Hema Maps
1. Virtual Assistant: The Online Version of a Receptionist
If you haven’t heard what a virtual assistant does before, think of your receptionist. A receptionist answers phone calls, sorts out calendars, answers emails and works out the logistics for whoever it is they’re helping.
A virtual assistant is the online version of that. Virtually, it means you might help somebody with:
- their bookkeeping
- some standard data entry
- their social media
- answering phone calls
So basically anything from a receptionist point of view, you can move across to virtual assistant work.
2. Live Chat Support (Great If You’re a Bit of a Night Owl)
You know how you sometimes see those little chat boxes come up on the side of a website? They’re not always bots. Quite often they’re actual people, and sometimes they’re on the phone too. Live chat support helps with whatever the customer needs, whether that’s helping somebody make a purchase or troubleshooting a problem.
The idea here is that if you’ve got a little bit of expertise in a background, try and find work that fits within that area, or at least something you enjoy talking about. Then you can talk other companies’ customers through making a decision on a purchase, or help them troubleshoot something.
And the beauty of this with caravan and road trip life is that a lot of these companies need people to fill spots around the clock. So if you’re a bit of a night owl, you can jump on between, who knows, 8pm and 2am, get your work done, have a bit of a sleep-in and then go exploring for the day. Make something that fits around your life. That’s the whole idea!
3. AI Data Work: Where the Human Still Comes In
This one sounds a little bit contradicting, because we all know the world of AI at the moment. I use it in the world of data collection. (I do not believe AI should replace content like me talking to you, because I’m the real person, but that’s a story for another day.)
Most companies have data on everything, and they need people to analyse it. There’s only so much AI can do at this stage, and then what do you do with the data? That’s where the human comes in, because humans can think about things and solve problems. Things like simple spreadsheets, for example: once you’ve got the data, however it’s derived, you need to do something with it.
There’s also a lot of work to do with transcripts. Sometimes I put captions on our YouTube videos, and every now and then they go a little bit haywire when YouTube works out the transcript itself. I try really hard, but they’re not always correct, because again, you need that human to write the correct words. It’s not the most exciting job out there, but if you’re after something you can do in your spare time, awesome. Why not?
4. Social Media, From Scheduling Posts to Facebook Ads
This one does cross over with virtual assistant work, and pretty much everything on this list could, but these jobs are a little more honed in. A little bit more specialist.
If you post on Facebook at any time, I’m pretty certain you could work out how to be at least a social media curator: answer people’s comments in Facebook groups, or create and schedule posts. If that interests you, that’s all the world of social media. From there it can go even further:
- Facebook ads
- Google Ads and Google Analytics
- SEO and WordPress websites
And that’s a little bit of the realm that I tinker in myself, I guess you could say.
So What Do I Actually Do for Online Work?
Everyone likes to know what I do to earn money online. I’m an online writer. I write blog articles, that’s my main thing. If you jump onto this website, you’ll see that this is pretty much where it all got started, because it’s where I was testing a lot of things out.
From there I applied to some online marketplaces like Upwork and found some very simple, basic jobs, just to get that experience up. Then I branched out into email marketing and Facebook advertising, basically to get a holistic overview of the online business world. I’m also a bit of a spreadsheet nutter, and my spreadsheets are another way I earn money.
That’s how I’ve been able to travel, and how I’ve been able to raise a high-needs kid, because I’ve had to. So whatever your reason, the online way is awesome.
5. Bookkeeping Admin You Can Do From Anywhere
Bookkeeping admin is basically the data collection side of a business: the numbers, the facts and figures on profit and loss, in a very broad nutshell. It could be as simple as:
- chasing up invoices and entering invoices
- checking that customers have paid their bills
- following up on customers
- putting together profit and loss sheets
Back in the day, a bookkeeper generally worked for a company on the actual premises. Now, thanks to the internet, you can do it anywhere you feel like going, and a lot of the time you don’t have to work 9 to 5 hours either. If you know anything about Xero or MYOB or those sorts of software, that can all be used for online work.
6. Online Community Moderator for Facebook Groups
I touched on this a little in the social media section, but this one is more to do with moderating Facebook groups. If you’ve been in any Facebook groups, you’ve probably worked out that people go through and answer all the comments. Some of those are volunteer jobs, and quite often they’re paid jobs, so have a look into it.
7. Digital Content Creator
Again, this is a bit like social media, and a lot of these do overlap. Content creation is things like UGC-style work: going out and taking your own photos, or editing other people’s photos and YouTube videos. It’s all to do with getting content out there on social media.
Why It Helps That These Jobs Overlap
You’ve probably noticed that a lot of these cross over. The bonus is, if you can make them overlap and get that holistic overview, you’re going to do so much better, because you know how all the pieces of the puzzle fit together.
These seven always come up when I’m looking on Upwork, and even on seek.com.au. (I filmed the video for this one on a crazy windy day, and my camera blew over more than once, so if the footage wobbles, that’s why!)
Related reading
- From Airline Pilot to Freelance Writer: How I Got Online Work With No Experience
- Seek or Upwork? Where to Look for Remote Work Before Your Big Lap
- How to Upskill for Free and Actually Prove You Can Do the Job
Our Thoughts
Online work can absolutely help fund a big lap, but it’s work, the same as any other job. Pick the one that fits what you already know or enjoy talking about, and the one that fits the hours you want to keep on the road. Then you get to go exploring with the rest of the day 🙂
Are you already working online, or thinking about it? Which of these seven would suit you best, and is there one we missed? We’d love to hear what’s working for you.
👉Working out how much you actually need to earn online before you go? Our Big Lap budget calculator and planner is right here 🙂
