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With the credit crunch having really taken hold and the economy on a downward trend 2009 will be the first year since the internet became mainstream that we’ll be in a recession.

However, as people become increasingly price-conscious and receptive to money-making schemes a number of opportunities could open up, with previous unattractive niches suddenly becoming more lucrative and new income-generating concepts having the potential to go mainstream.

With this in mind here are 6 types of websites which will prosper in 2009:

1) Price Comparison Sites

Consumers now want the best deal more than ever and with online fraud now less of a worry many consumers are now willing to purchase from non-brand names, as long as they offer lower prices.

2) Discount Code Sites

It’s becoming an increasing trend… as consumers see the discount code entry box at checkout they pop onto Google, find a relevant discount code, and save 10 or 20%.

If you own a website in a consumer product niche now is the time to add merchant voucher code pages to your site. Then optimize your internal linking and generate a few high quality external links and you could earn a significant amount in affiliate income.

3) Cashback Sites

These sites were being squeezed by the discount code sites but they could see a comeback in 2009.

The big question will be whether they can create and transmit a real advantage over discount code sites to consumers. Perhaps exclusive membership communities offering even greater discounts could work…

4) Money-Saving Advice Websites

People are increasingly looking at ways to save money so websites offering advice and money-saving communities and forums will see a big uplift.

Over in the UK MoneySavingExpert.com is the market leader, making a small fortune through affiliate sales.

5) Starting a Business Websites

Starting up a business… a strange choice perhaps considering the downturn? However, it’s not always a bad time to launch a business and with the number of people losing their jobs many will choose either through choice or otherwise to start up their own businesses.

This presents an opportunity for sites specializing in anything related to business startups to prosper. You don’t need a fully-fledged business portal to tap into this market. There are many niches surrounding the services required to start a business which can be tapped into, whether it’s general marketing and advertising advice, business banking, email marketing providers or business hosting comparisons.

6) Make Money From Your Home Schemes

Not to be confused with ‘make money from home’ sites which have been around since the inception of the internet, instead ‘make money from your home’ websites are likely to see real growth in 2009.

How can you do this? Existing ideas include renting out a spare room to earn an extra income or renting out a parking space, driveway or garage that may be lying empty throughout the day. No doubt there are a number of other untapped ideas still out there.

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