5 blue-chip tips to help you invest your money wisely

The key to invest money wisely is to do your due diligence. Begin by assessing performance history and establishing a risk tolerance. To help get you started, here are five blue-chip tips.

Since there are a multitude of choices as to how to invest your money, it can’t be stressed enough that step number one is to do your research. Do you want a fast return on your money or are you looking for long term investments for your retirement? Are you planning to retire soon or do you have a few years for your investments to grow? Any money-investing tips you want to leverage will depend on what you want to get out of your investment.

Another popular way to invest these days is in metals, such as gold or silver. Both offer a secure way to invest your money. If you are looking for an additional, secure investment then bonds may be the way to go.

Consider hiring an investment broker, an individual, or firm who will meet with you and discuss the possibilities of returns on your investments. They will discuss the different stocks and bonds and may suggest investing in a CD (certificate of deposit) that has a promised return rate over the years of your investment.

With e-trading or trading online, you pick the site you want to join and then you can trade in stocks, bonds or different types of investments. You are in control when you invest online. As such, you decide which stocks to buy and when you feel it is time to sell or buy a different one.

Whichever way you choose to invest your money, you need to be informed on investing beforehand.

• If you choose stocks, then look at the current trends; is the stock rising, do forecasters see the stock continuing to rise, or do they feel that the stock has reached its peak and will start to fall?

Another important money-investing tip is to ensure you make choices that you feel comfortable with:

• Are you willing to let a third party decide how to make these investment choices, so that they can share in the profits? Are you going to invest your money in metals and hope the price of silver or gold rises dramatically, giving you a return on investment?
• What's more, are you going to research online to find ways to invest your money, and control the buying and selling from your computer? Will you watch the stock market reports, with little comprehension of what is being said? Or are you going to research and investigate all options on how to invest your money.

These are important questions to consider when investing money. Being well informed, acquiring the right professional advice and knowing your financial goals should help you follow a more secure route for your financial future.