Am i really going to be Rewarded by Online Survey Sites
Thinking about online paid surveys as a means of making some cash? Want to know how to distinguish between the legitimate, reputable Market Research sites that do reward you for your opinion, and the rest? Read on to discover how.
Search Engines will display a myriad of so-called “Paid Survey Sites” but, unfortunately, only 100 or so will be sites that you can trust - even less outside the USA, and less again that reward with cash. In fact, most will want to charge you a joining fee, sell you something, or simply be a complete waste of your time, not to mention filling your email inbox with spam once you have given them your email address.
The key to identifying the "real" ones is having an understanding of the mechanics behind the legitimate sites. The majority of online paid surveys are conducted for market research, which many businesses and service providers undertake in order to improve existing products/services or to launch new ones. They research the market place by testing their ideas, their products, their services, or a present or proposed advertising campaign, on a small sample of the population.
To this end, they commission an Online Survey Panel, who in turn obtains this sample by inviting their panel members to participate by completing an online survey to express their opinions. A particular project could involve current or new consumer products or services, motor vehicles, healthcare, political affairs, the economy, cell phones, new movies, DVD releases etc.
The legitimate Online Survey Panels are generally a branch of a Market Research Company. Their websites are usually a reliable indicator of their authenticity. For a start, if you are asked to pay for the privilege of joining then leave that site immediately. You will NEVER be asked to pay a membership fee, or for anything else, by a legitimate Online Survey Panel site. In fact, you are more likely to receive some form of reward from the Panel as an incentive to join! . The website should be up to date, and provide contact details, terms and conditions, usually a FAQs (frequently asked questions) section, and a members helpline.
There are sites purporting to be Survey “clubs” or facilitators that charge a fee for providing a list of “Top paying survey sites”. This is totally unnecessary - you can obtain this information free. Apart from providing affiliate earning survey sites, they quite often pass on your email address, and other details they have obtained from you, to marketing outlets. Loads of spam follows!
The following sites can all be accessed to identify legitimate survey sites, without charge:
Survey Police
As the name suggests, Survey Police is a free site dedicated to providing a “community watch”overview of Online Paid Survey Panels. It lists 46 Panels that have been rated and ranked by its members as well as over 240 sites verified as being legitimate survey sites. It also lists 60 unverified sites.
The rated and ranked sites contain reviews from Panel members, offering a good insight into ongoing performance - from frequency of surveys to payment promptness. Other similar sites includeGreenbook(but it does not specifically focus on the advantages to panelists, in my opinion), andMySurvey123(too many ads, some from dubious survey sites, for my liking).
Annika’s
Annika’s is a very busy and comprehensive site. From the home page menu click “Over 1200 Surveys” and yes, you guessed it, over 1200 survey site addresses are listed. For each site, the geographical limits are stated, the incentives offered, and any other relevant facts the author knows about.
Obviously a broader spectrum of sites than Survey Police, with some unverified, but depending on your demographic, some rewarding little niche sites can be discovered. In addition, the home page is constantly updated with new opportunities.
Helium
It would be remiss of me not to include Helium as an option. For a start, you are already here anyway! Seriously, there are many great articles on all facets of Online Paid Survey Panels, from the names of sites, and which ones pay cash, to the most recommended by Helium members, etc. A good start would be “Best survey sites” and “Websites that pay you to take surveys."
Here are five legitimate sites that reward in cash or cash equivalent - Gift Cards or Online Vouchers.
www.globaltestmarket.com
www.lightspeedpanel.com
www.surveyhead.com
www.valuedopinions.com
www.pureprofile.com
I have selected these because they all accept members internationally. There are more legitimate sites restricted to the USA, Canada, and/or UK, but I will leave it to the locals to endorse those. All the above sites are self-explanatory as to what they are all about and are true to their statements. And as I said, I can confirm their legitimacy and payment record.
