It's easy to think that investing in the stock market means just buying and selling stocks. The truth is, a stock market is a diverse place that gives you access to trading and investing in stock futures and options. There's more! The stock market also gives you access to ETF investments. ETFs or Exchange Traded Funds are mutual funds that trade like stocks on an exchange. Not to forget, shares of a company are issued for the first time via an IPO which also happens on the stock market.