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Yahoo
4 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Can you still make money with Bitcoin?
(NewsNation) — Bitcoin is often hailed as digital gold, and on social media, it can feel like a modern-day gold rush. On TikTok, crypto-influencers hype up lavish lifestyles, interviewing self-proclaimed Bitcoin billionaires surrounded by luxury cars. Bitcoin, a form of digital currency that can be traded online without relying on traditional banks, has skyrocketed in value since its humble beginnings in 2009. One Bitcoin is currently worth around $110,000 — roughly quadruple its value just two years ago. So is it too late to get in on the action? Here's what to know. 'Why It's Not Too Late To Buy Bitcoin' (YouTube) 'Bitcoin: The Ultimate Wealth Storage!!' (TikTok) 'Meet the Youngest Bitcoin Billionaire $100,000,000 car collection' (TikTok) When it comes to cryptocurrency, Bitcoin is the biggest name in town and it's not even close. With a market cap of over $2 trillion as of this writing, Bitcoin is more valuable than Costco, Walmart and Netflix combined. Like stocks, the value of Bitcoin fluctuates from one day to the next. Are ChatGPT-written children's books an easy side hustle? Buying and selling Bitcoin is fairly straightforward. You can purchase a Bitcoin (or fractions of a Bitcoin) with U.S. dollars through an online cryptocurrency exchange like Coinbase or a more traditional investment broker like Robinhood. That transaction is recorded on the blockchain — a decentralized, secure digital ledger that isn't controlled by banks or governments. 'There is truly revolutionary technology underlying these cryptocurrencies, including Bitcoin, that allow money and value to flow outside of a government-sponsored fiat currency,' said Jennifer Schulp, director of financial regulation studies at the Libertarian-leaning Cato Institute. That said, Schulp worries influencer buzz could do more harm than good for digital assets in the long run. 'Viewing it all as, 'how do you make a buck in the quickest way possible' is not beneficial to the long-term innovation that can be seen from this space,' she said. The price of Bitcoin could go up or down. Nobody knows. That's true of other investments like stocks or gold, but Bitcoin has a few additional risks. Historically, it's been more volatile than traditional asset classes. Bitcoin has gone up over the long run, but price swings have been the norm, not the exception. If you bought Bitcoin at its November 2021 high, your investment would have been worth roughly half as much about three months later. On the other hand, buying in early Feb. 2024 would have resulted in a significant gain after only a month — about 60%. At times, those fluctuations have been more a reflection of crypto-enthusiasm than so-called 'market fundamentals,' the tangible economic indicators investors use to gauge the stock market. In that sense, Bitcoin requires investors to pay attention. Making fast money on vending machines: Is it that easy? 'I don't think it's just a set it and forget it investment because of its volatility, because of all the different macro factors influencing it,' said Bryan Armour, director of passive strategies research at Morningstar. It's worth noting that Bitcoin has been less volatile than many individual stocks, even popular names like Meta, Nvidia and Tesla, according to a Fidelity Digital Assets analysis in 2024. Bitcoin has only been around for 16 years, while the New York Stock Exchange dates back hundreds of years. With time comes information. Investors can look at previous economic cycles and know with some confidence where stocks are headed in the future. Since its introduction in 1957, for example, the S&P 500 has delivered an annual average return of around 10%. Bitcoin has done even better over the past decade, averaging an almost 50% annual return, but there's no guarantee that success will continue. 'Predicting where [Bitcoin] is going to go when there's an economic shock, I think we just don't know yet,' Schulp said. And unlike stocks, which represent ownership in real companies, Bitcoin isn't backed by physical assets. Its value comes from scarcity, hence the comparison to 'digital gold.' But even that analogy is imperfect. Gold is something you can hold and the world's most powerful governments keep it in strategic reserves. That could happen with Bitcoin, but it hasn't unfolded in the same way yet. The U.S. doesn't have a clear regulatory framework for digital assets, though several cryptocurrency bills and regulations are in the works. 'Part of the risk of it is that it's unknown how these things are going to be regulated five years from now versus one year from now,' Armour said. Is meme coin crypto the key to get rich quick or another scam? Bitcoin investors are optimistic that the Trump administration will be positive for the crypto industry, with Trump poised to be the most pro-crypto president ever. Even so, the ongoing uncertainty makes crypto a risky investment. Ray Dalio, a prolific investor, called Bitcoin 'one hell of an invention' back in 2021, but cautioned: 'I suspect that Bitcoin's biggest risk is being successful, because if it's successful, the government will try to kill it and they have a lot of power to succeed.' In 2023, Dalio said he has 'a little bit' of crypto in his portfolio but acknowledged the risks: 'I've seen people get very rich and I've seen people get very broke with it.' Other big-name investors, like Warren Buffett and Jamie Dimon, have been vocal critics of crypto over the years. Most Americans remain skeptical for now. Roughly six-in-ten (63%) say they have little to no confidence that current ways to invest in, trade, or use cryptocurrencies are reliable and safe, according to Pew Research. Overall, just 17% of U.S. adults have ever invested in, traded or used a cryptocurrency, Pew found. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
14-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Making money on your social media posts: How does it work?
(NewsNation) — Social media has made it easier than ever for content creators to show off their favorite products, and some claim they're making thousands in 'passive' income doing so. It's called 'affiliate marketing,' — an arrangement that allows creators, or 'affiliates,' to earn a commission for generating sales, often by convincing viewers to click the 'link in the bio.' 'Back in the day, TV shows could run ads, but now even a small influencer — or just anybody — can basically participate in the ad economy,' said Dina Mayzlin, a marketing professor at USC's Marshall School of Business. U.S. affiliate marketing ad spending is expected to grow from $9.5 billion in 2023 to nearly $16 billion in 2028, according to EMARKETER, a market research company. Some creators are capitalizing on the rising interest by posting 'how-to videos' that explain how others can become affiliates and make money with minimal effort. Making fast money on vending machines: Is it that easy? But is it that easy? Here's what to know about affiliate marketing. Some TikTok videos might sound too good to be true, framing affiliate marketing as a 'passive,' even 'lazy' way to make extra money: Affiliate marketing = the best side hustle (TikTok) How I made $100k last month without a job (TikTok) Laziest way to make money online for beginners (TikTok) In a TikTok video with over 1.8 million views, a 24-year-old influencer claims she made $114,000 working just two to three hours per day doing affiliate marketing. In another, a 14-year-old creator says he bought a Rolex with the money he made, calling it the 'laziest way' to generate income. Affiliate marketing lets content creators earn a commission by promoting products or services. It's perfectly legit, but that doesn't mean it's easy. Are ChatGPT-written children's books an easy side hustle? Here's how it works: Affiliates partner with a company and share custom links that track where a user came from, encouraging their audience to visit an online store. When a referral leads to a sale, the affiliate earns a commission. The more sales they generate, the more money they make. Commission rates vary based on the industry. Low-price, high-volume products in niches like pet food or skin care might earn an affiliate 5% of each sale, according to Shopify. High-ticket affiliate programs in sectors like software can offer affiliates more than 20%. Many affiliate programs, like the popular Amazon Associates Program, are free to join but require you to apply and be approved. Building an audience isn't easy Affiliate marketing can be a great way to monetize your social media audience if you have one, but gaining a following isn't that simple. It's a point side hustlers tend to gloss over in their 'how-to' videos. 'What they're failing to mention is how much work you're going to have to do,' said Aaron Dinin, who teaches entrepreneurship and social marketing at Duke University. Dinin said most 'overnight' success stories aren't overnight at all. Creators often spend several years crafting and publishing content before making a regular income. For every creator that makes it big, many more give up, deciding it's not worth the effort. Credit card travel hack loopholes: Can you really fly for free? If you do start to gain traction, it can be risky to monetize too early. Most people aren't on social media for a sales pitch — they're looking for value, either through information or entertainment. 'Your audience is there for the content, it's not there for the ads,' Mayzlin said. 'You can't overdo it.' It can take A LOT of clicks to make serious money Growing an audience is one challenge, but converting views to clicks and clicks to sales is another. 'Getting people to click on your link turns out to be really, really, really, ridiculously hard,' Dinin said. In some cases, affiliates get paid per click, while others only earn a commission for each sale. Regardless, don't expect to pull in millions of dollars simply by telling people to click the 'link in bio.' Click-through rates vary from influencer to influencer and across industries, but think about the math like this: You have a YouTube channel and make a flat $1 commission for every sale made through your affiliate link If your video gets 1,000 views and 1% of viewers make a purchase, then you'll make $10 At 10,000 views, that jumps to $100 For perspective: Almost 90% of YouTube videos have less than 1,000 views In other words: if you think 'passive' is going to cut it, think again. 'To make enough videos, to get enough content out, to get people to it, is going to be a full-time — and then some — job,' Dinin said. According to a survey from Influencer Marketing Hub, most affiliates (nearly 60%) make less than $10,000 a year. It's not a free-for-all, and you can lose your audience's trust Affiliate programs generally have rules that restrict how products can be promoted. Amazon, for example, has guidelines around advertising prices, using the company's logo and disclosing your affiliation. Run afoul and you could get banned from the program. Transparency, or lack thereof, also presents a risk. Social media audiences are built on trust, and if followers feel misled or deceived, the consequences could tank your engagement. Something else to consider: Not all products are worth promoting, even if they come with a hefty paycheck. Affiliates become extensions of the brands they represent, and that risk goes both ways. Is meme coin crypto the key to get rich quick or another scam? 'You don't want to send anyone to something that's going to give them a bad experience because that's your community that you've worked very hard to cultivate,' Denin said. Affiliate marketing is low-risk and easy to start compared to other side hustles, making it extremely competitive. Amazon's program has over 900,000 affiliate partners — and that's just one company. According to Forbes, 83% of marketers use affiliate marketing programs to drive brand awareness, and the market is expected to grow. In 2023, TikTok Shop launched in the U.S., enabling creators to sell directly through their videos. If you enjoy making content, have built a loyal audience and identified a niche, then affiliate marketing could be a great way to generate extra cash. But don't believe everything you hear on TikTok: It's not easy or passive. 'Don't start with the premise of, 'I want to do affiliate marketing.' Start with the premise of: 'I want to see about building a meaningful audience on one of these social media platforms,'' Denin said. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
The Hill
04-05-2025
- General
- The Hill
People believe karma rewards them and punishes others: Study
(NewsNation) — New research shows that, much like Taylor Swift, most people believe karma is on their side while also punishing others. A study by the American Psychological Association asked more than 2,000 people to write about their experience with karma. Participants were from different religious backgrounds and included nonreligious individuals. When writing about themselves, 59 percent talked about being rewarded for good deeds while 92 percent talked about negative consequences for bullies, coworkers, friends and ex-partners. Are ChatGPT-written children's books an easy side hustle? The idea of karma comes from religious traditions such as Hinduism and Buddhism but has also taken root in Western consciousness and new age spirituality movements. However, the understanding of what karma is and how it works can vary between cultures. The study included participants from the U.S., Singapore and India to get a broad range of backgrounds and found different results in Western and non-Western respondents. Non-Western respondents showed less of a tendency to think of themselves in overly positive ways but still followed the general tendency to attribute karmic punishments to others and rewards to themselves. Researchers say the results give a look into how we form mental judgements about ourselves and others. The belief that one deserves good fortune can promote self-esteem but can also lead people to fail to recognize other factors in their success. The belief that other people's suffering is a punishment comes from the desire to believe that the world is just, researchers said, which can help people make sense of the complexity of the world. Future research is expected to explore how beliefs about karma affect decision-making, particularly when it comes to policy-making, the justice system and social prejudices, which often function on the premise that 'inferior' groups are lower in status because they are being punished in some way.
Yahoo
03-05-2025
- General
- Yahoo
People believe karma rewards them and punishes others: Study
(NewsNation) — New research shows that, much like Taylor Swift, most people believe karma is on their side while also punishing others. A study by the American Psychological Association asked more than 2,000 people to write about their experience with karma. Participants were from different religious backgrounds and included nonreligious individuals. When writing about themselves, 59% talked about being rewarded for good deeds while 92% talked about negative consequences for bullies, coworkers, friends and ex-partners. Are ChatGPT-written children's books an easy side hustle? The idea of karma comes from religious traditions such as Hinduism and Buddhism but has also taken root in Western consciousness and new age spirituality movements. However, the understanding of what karma is and how it works can vary between cultures. The study included participants from the U.S., Singapore and India to get a broad range of backgrounds and found different results in Western and non-Western respondents. Non-Western respondents showed less of a tendency to think of themselves in overly positive ways but still followed the general tendency to attribute karmic punishments to others and rewards to themselves. Researchers say the results give a look into how we form mental judgements about ourselves and others. The belief that one deserves good fortune can promote self-esteem but can also lead people to fail to recognize other factors in their success. These 2 things in your diet could help lower inflammation: Study The belief that other people's suffering is a punishment comes from the desire to believe that the world is just, researchers said, which can help people make sense of the complexity of the world. Future research is expected to explore how beliefs about karma affect decision-making, particularly when it comes to policy-making, the justice system and social prejudices, which often function on the premise that 'inferior' groups are lower in status because they are being punished in some way. Those views can impact how people treat others and how willing they are to help them. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
