Beginners Guide to Online Survey Taking
Online Survey Taking is often described as an easy and fun way to supplement your income. Is that description really true?
Google online surveys and you can choose from vast array of survey sites and market research companies, which offer cash incentives for your opinion. Most are legitimate and do pay you for completing the surveys they provide, but which ones do you join and how do you avoid the less reputable companies.
Market research companies compile and distribute surveys to produce statistics about products and public opinions.
Survey sites hold lists of market research companies for individuals to join.
For eight months, I have participated in the Online Survey Taking phenomenon, spending hours searching the Internet for information and advice and registered with numerous online research companies. Although it is a genuine way to supplement your income, let me give you a realistic account of what this involves.
Filling in surveys day in day out, requires commitment and perseverance. While some of the surveys can be interesting, quick and easy to complete, others can be tedious, repetitive and long-winded.
If you are a member of numerous companies, (and this is necessary if you want to make a reasonable income for your time), your inbox will usually bulge with invitations but there's no guarantee you will meet the criteria for the surveys that they send you. Although you completed all their personal profile questions when registering you details and you've just spent five minutes filled in the survey screener questions, you may find that you don't qualify. Most days you will find that you are selected for very few and payment is only made for those you complete.
The financial incentives offered for completing surveys, can start from as little as 10p (15 cents) upwards, depending on the research company and length of survey, although most are usually in the 50p to 1GBP bracket. Bigger incentives come from more specialised surveys that require particular target groups i.e. health professionals. Product testing and larger multi part campaigns, requiring more time and commitment from the participant, also tend to pay well. Focus group involvement is probably the most profitable.
Some research companies offer a points system. These points are accumulated and can be exchanged for cash or/and gift vouchers. Most also offer entries into their monthly sweepstakes or prize draws, as well as their other incentives. Payout minimums tend to be low but it still can take time to amass the points.
Let's talk a bit more about cash payments. While some companies send you payment after you have completed a survey, (usually between 4-9 weeks after the campaign has ended) most have a minimum payout of around 15GBP - 30GBP. You request payment after you've reached the minimum but once again this can take some time to accumulate. Therefore, you may complete a dozen surveys each week but they will probably be from a range of different companies, so it takes time to reap the benefits.
Therefore, to summarize, survey taking can be tedious, time consuming, frustrating and you need to persevere before you see any the profits. However, if you show commitment, most people can make enough funds to help with extra expenses like Christmas, Birthdays, etc.
With that in mind, if you decide you're going to give it a go, how do you get the best out of joining these research companies?
1. What should you avoid?
My advice would be to take care when joining free survey web sites. Although they hold a list of some top market research companies, they seem to make money by directing you to lots of hard sell advertising in the guise of free offers. Beware of the survey sites that bombard you with tick lists full of special offers as part of their registration process. You usually have to accept at least one of their offers. You details are most likely passed on and you will end up with an inbox full of spam mail. Always check the terms and conditions when you sign up for anything.
It goes without saying; you do not need to pay for the privilege of joining any research company and any survey sites, charging you membership, have no special privileges with the research sites on their lists and can't guarantee you higher financial incentives. Their quotes of earning up to 75GBP for completing surveys probably refers to high paid focus groups, which don't happen that often.
You can find everything you need to get you started by do a little research on the net.
2. Where do you find the best online research companies?
These are many helpful websites which give general advice about earning money online. With a little research you can find what you are looking for.
One very informative website isAnnika'swhich holds lots of advice, help and an extensive list of research companies for you to join, as well as a black list of companies best to avoid. Her site is free to browse or join, but you have the option to make a paypal donation if you wish. She also holds great information about Pinecone research, which is an invite only Survey site that pays promptly.
3. You've got your list of contacts, what do you do next?
Before registering with any Market Research Companies, here are a couple of things I would recommend.
1. Open a new e-mail account, specifically for your surveys. It saves your personal correspondence getting lost in a sea of surveys and possible junk mail. Yahoo mail is the one I use.
2. Download RoboForm, an automatic form filler that saves time when filling in your details and keeps note of your username and password. It is free, but the trial version has limited capacity so it is recommended that you purchase the update.
3. Open a paypal account attached to your e-mail account.
4. Internet Explorer seems to be the most compatible web browser for taking all surveys, but Firefox and Safari for Mac users do load most of the forms.
4. Tips for enrolling
Each research company has its own terms and conditions which I strongly advise you to read through when registering.
I would recommend tackling only half a dozen new registrations a day and take time to explore their web sites and fill out all your profile pages. Completing your profiles pages should give you a better chance of receiving surveys that fit with your profile but unfortunately, this isn't always the case.
With each Survey Company that you join, open a new e-mail folder to save their correspondence and any details of completed surveys.
It is also helpful to compile a document to update details about your accounts for quick reference. Outlook express or Microsoft Works Tasks both have this facility but word document would suffice.
After registering with a company, I recommend you add them to you e-mail contact list, to prevent further correspondence and surveys being sent to the spam folder.
5. Tips when completing surveys.
1. Take time to read over each question carefully and answer the surveys as honestly as possible. They sometimes pop in obscure little questions just to check are really taking care with the questionnaire.
2. I recommend you attempt all survey invitations on offer to being with. It shows your commitment, even if the financial incentives are very low. You can always pick and choose later.
3. Most research companies send e-mail notification when new surveys become available but a few post the invitations directly into your survey account on their web site. Keep note of which accounts you need to check daily for the latest invitations.
4. Check your inbox regularly as the surveys don't stay open for very long, they usually get their full quota of participants fairly quickly.
In conclusion, although survey taking does require some effort and you may need to lower you financial expectations, with perseverance and commitment you can add a useful little allowance to you income.
