Online paid surveys are probably the easiest and the most time effective way of generating extra money online. This can be a side activity that generates a steady income of more than $200 that will definitely help you and your family in the current weak economic conditions. Joining online survey panels do not require any upfront investment, experience, or long-term commitment. Online paid surveys would be an ideal situation for housewives, unemployed people, part-time workers, college students, retirees, or anyone who can commit at least 40 hours per month. However, the internet has hundreds and may be thousands of websites that are actually scams. This article describes some tips and advice on selecting the legitimate survey panels that are right for you and avoiding scams.
How much Money can you make from Online Paid Surveys?
That depends on your free time, survey length and compensation, and your strategies for maximizing your potential earnings. Compensation for taking a survey can range anywhere from $1-$8 or even more depending on the topic, product, or service under evaluation. A survey generally takes around 5-45 minutes to complete, the longer it is the higher is the compensation. Many surveys offer $2 incentive for 20 minutes length which seems to be the standard. You will probably spend 10 minutes to get qualified for a survey, so you can complete two surveys in one hour. Assuming you can commit 60 hours per month, then you can earn about ($2 / survey) x (2 surveys / hour) x (60 hours / month) or an average of $240 per month from the comfort of you home. This figure may increase knowing that some online survey panels pay more than others, and that hot topics such as new technology and internet usually pay an average of $5 for 20 minutes length surveys. Other advantages of taking online paid surveys are discussed in another article entitled “Pros and Cons of Making Money with Online Paid Surveys“.
Tips for Joining Online Survey Panels
Tip #1 – Be aware of Scams
- Many survey websites are scams just to get your information to sell to third parties.
- You should never pay a fee to join an online survey panel. Most sites that require payment to join are usually scams.
- Remember that “if it sounds too good to be true, then it probably is a scam”.
Tip #2 – Join Legitimate Survey Panels
- Join only legitimate online survey panels that pay, and that don’t deceive their survey takers. To spot a legitimate survey site, look at their privacy policy and make sure that they will not release your information to a third party.
- Most respected legitimate survey panels are members of the Council of American Survey Research Organizations, CASRO, which requires members to adhere to the CASRO Code of Standards and Ethics for Survey Research, which is a tough, internationally-cited set of standards that has long been the benchmark for the industry.
- The CASRO code allows survey panels to ask for personal information such as name, age, marital status, number of children, address, annual income, hobbies, etc., in order to build a database of people and their demographic information, so that they can match potential survey takers with the product or service being under evaluation or study. However, the code requires survey panels to keep personal information strictly confidential.
- Other survey panels adheres to the principles set forth in the Safe Harbor framework as established by the United States Department of Commerce regarding the collection, use, and retention of personal data provided from the European Union.
- Legitimate survey panels will never ask you to purchase a product, service, or a trial offer that requires using your credit card.
- Legitimate survey panels will never ask you to provide your credit card or bank account information, Social Security number, or your PayPal password. They will never try to recruit you via unsolicited e-mail or pop-up ads with survey questions. They will never contact or seek personal information from your children under 13, or ask them to take an online survey without your prior consent.
Tip #3 – Use a Separate Email Account
- Do not use your personal or business email accounts when signing up for online survey sites.
- Use a separate email address specifically for taking online surveys.
Tip #4 – Add Panel Email Address to your Safe Sender List
- You may not be getting survey invitations in your Inbox folder as your email provider filter may be flagging them as Spam and deleting them, or moving them to your Bulk or Junk folders.
- To ensure that you receive all survey invitations, add the email addresses of all survey panels to your list of trusted senders, address book, or contact list.
Concluding Remark
Taking online paid surveys can be a side activity that generates a steady monthly income if you can commit 40-60 hours per month earning $200-$300 at the comfort of your home. The internet has hundreds of websites that are actually scams which charge you a fee to send you a list of survey panels or sell your information to third parties. However, you can join top online survey panels listed on free websites reviewing legitimate panels.
