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Questions about Paid Survey Scams

Tuesday, November 15th, 2011

Paid survey scamsSome of you who are thinking of making money through paid surveys might be wondering about the different paid survey scams. It always helps to be aware of scams so you know what to avoid.

Here are some more questions and answers about paid survey scams.

Question: I am new, and am still learning about paid surveys. To me, knowing how to avoid being scammed is the most important information I need. What can you tell me?
Answer: Be fully informed before going into a situation. Before you sign up for a paid survey company, read the small print (Terms and Conditions, Privacy Policy), and don’t accept offers that seem too good to be true. Know who you’re working for, and read feedback from actual users of the survey site you plan on signing up for before actually signing up.

Question: I am very hesitant to complete these paid surveys as I am concerned about scams and illegitimate companies. How can I put my mind at ease and rest assured the information I am providing is being used appropriately? I am also worried about providing my credit card information in case money is taken out that I have not given authorization for.
Answer: Always research a company before signing up with them. Most companies will not require any sort of fee, but every once in a while an honest company may have a fee. When it comes to your credit card, you should be able to contact your credit card company if there is any fraudulent charges that show up onthe card.

Question: I want to know who runs the paid survey sites and if they trustworthy.
Answer: Find out who runs a certain site by entering in the website address at www.whois.com.au, and the doing a basic Google search looking for consumer complaints.

Check back again for more FAQs on paid survey scams.

Learn more about the cheque cashing scam and the prize scam.

5 Tips To Make Money Taking Surveys

Saturday, November 12th, 2011

Make Money Taking SurveysYou can’t expect to be billionaires with online surveys, but you can expect to make money taking surveys. Making money through these surveys can help you cover any additional costs or save up for things you’ve had your eye on. Hopefully, with these tips, you’ll be able to reach your goals to make money taking surveys.

  • Join at least five quality online paid surveys. After you’ve familiarized yourself more with the workings of paid online surveys, gradually join more survey companies. The more you join, the more money-making opportunities you have.
  • Pay attention to how many surveys you qualify for per panel. Pay more attention to those that you frequently qualify for and set the others aside, to complete when you have extra time on your hands.
  • Check your email regularly (at least once a day), as survey slots often get filled up very frequently.
  • Keep a list of or bookmark all the paid survey panels you’re a member of. Some of them don’t send out email notices so you would need to check them regularly to keep up to date on the latest surveys.
  • Save your paid survey invites or anything to prove that you’ve taken a survey, such as screenshots, until you’ve been credited for it. These evidences can be helpful if the company gets technical errors and have no way of determining whether you’ve taken a survey or not. You can show these proofs if you need to contact customer service. If you’ve paid for the online survey company and think you’ve been scammed, you can still get your money back from online surveys.

Although the world of making money through online paid surveys might seem a bit complicated or even intimidating, the right guidelines can get you set. We hope that these tips have been helpful so that you can also be able to make money taking surveys.

Things You Should Not Forget When Taking Your First Online Survey

Thursday, October 6th, 2011

Paid surveyI already gave you tips and tricks to make money through online survey and how to avoid those online survey scams. Done discussing to you the essential information you need such as on finding legal survey companies, what focus group is, as well as it different types, about mystery shopping and being mystery shopper plus the supplies or material you need in the process of mystery shopping and a lot lot more.

Now, I will introduce you more to the world of online survey, specifically on the things you shouldn’t forget when taking your first paid online survey.

You have all the opportunity to take you very first paid online survey after you complete signing up with legal survey companies. The thing you should not forget are as follows:

  • Take your time. Surveys don’t have a time limit, so feel free to take as long as you need to complete them. Most surveys do tell you beforehand how much time you can expect to spent on each survey, such as 5-10 minutes, or 30-45 minutes. This does not mean you will get in trouble for taking more or even less time than expected.
  • Read each question carefully and completely. Sometimes there will be a question that is there only to test you. Survey companies want to make sure you are reading each question and giving your honest opinion, and they are paying you for your answers. Example question that may ask may be the same question asked to me when once I participated on an online survey: “As a quality assurance measure, we ask that you mark yes and continue on to the next question.” In this particular situation, you should follow the directions exactly. If you weren’t really reading the questions you may have just selected “no” and not realize this question was included. Marking no could disqualify you from completing the survey, and prevent you from earning money for your effort.
  • Be honest. Also be aware that some surveys had hidden timers that let those legal survey companies know exactly how much time you spend on each question or page. If you breeze through just selecting random answers, those legal survey companies may disqualify you based on there being no possibility that you actually had the time to read each question. Legal survey companies are paying you for your honest opinion, so you definitely need to give them their money’s worth.

My Last Tip on Earning Money from Focus Groups

Wednesday, October 5th, 2011

Focus GroupIn my recent blogs, I’ve posts several tips on earning money from focus groups. To completely gain most income, here’s my last suggestion to you.

Always arrive early! Arriving thirty minutes ahead of time will allow you to sign in and get settled without being rushed.  Do a little research, and try to figure out the topic of the focus group before you receive your pre-screening call. Frequently you will need to fill out a short online survey before you receive a pre-screening call. Based on the online survey questions, you should be able to get a pretty good idea of the topic. For example if the online survey asks you a lot of questions about sports drinks, you can reasonable assume that the focus group will be about sports drinks. With this information, you fit the answers you give in the pre-screening calls to give you a greater chance of being selected for the focus group. You always want to answer yes to the question, “Are you the main grocery buyer in your house”. If they ask you “How often you drink sports drinks”, you would want to answer “Every single day!” Most people don’t take the time to figure out with the focus group will be about. Doing so will give you a heads up and allow you to qualify for more studies.

Tip #3 on Earning Money from Focus Groups: Check Your Email

Tuesday, October 4th, 2011

paid surveys, money online, paid survey, paid online surveys, paid online surveyHere’s my third hint to help you on earning money from focus groups.

Check your email often. Surveys frequently tend to fill up very quickly, so I would suggest checking your email at least once or twice a day. I myself have missed out on several high paying surveys and focus groups because everyone else had snatched them up before I even opened my email invitation. Check your email settings and make sure your email program is frequently checking for new emails. Be sure to bookmark or keep a log of all the panels you registered with. While many will send you email invites, some require you to log in and check the website for new surveys and focus groups opportunities. Keep your email neat, tidy, and organized. Be sure to regularly go through your spam folder for emails that are not junk. Sometimes your survey invites end up there by mistake. You may need to add the email address listed with the survey companies to your contacts to guarantee they go straight to your inbox.

Know more about earning money from focus groups.

Tip #2 on Earning Money from Focus Groups: Complete Information

Monday, October 3rd, 2011

paid surveys, money online, paid survey, paid online surveys, paid online surveyTo help you make the most of paid focus groups, I’ve put together a list of tips and helpful information. Here’s my second tip about market research where you can earn hundreds of dollars.

Enter in your information honestly and completely. Legitimate companies will not sell or use your information other than to contact you or analyze demographic information in survey results. Entering in fake information could keep you from getting paid; a cheque could get mailed to the wrong address. Always register with your real phone number, and consider giving out your mobile phone number. You can get away with a fake phone number with most online paid survey companies; however it is crucial when signing up with focus groups that you use your correct contact number. When a company wants to invite you to participate they will need to contact you via phone for the final pre-screening questions. If they can’t get in contact with you, then you may have missed out on a great paying opportunity. Completely fill out your member profile with every company. While you usually do not get paid for doing this, it will allow you to receive and qualify for more surveys.

Know more about earning money from focus groups.

Tip #1 on Earning Money from Focus Groups: Market Research

Sunday, October 2nd, 2011

Market ResearchI’ve put together a list of tips and helpful information to help you make the most of paid focus groups. Implementing my number 1 suggestion about market research can earn you hundreds of dollars.

Join every market research company that offers focus groups in your local area. The more companies you sign up with, the better your odds are of getting called to participate. Keep up with how many focus groups you qualify with for each company. Many market research companies will not allow you to participate with their company if you have recently completed focus groups with any other company. As a pre-screening question, market research companies will ask when you last completed paid focus groups. Honestly is usually the best policy, as you don’t want to be disqualified from working with marketing companies. I will admit that I have stretched the truth once or twice about these questions with no known ramifications yet.

Supplies Needed For Mystery Shopping

Saturday, October 1st, 2011

Mystery shoppingI’ve already explain to you what mystery shopping is. I will now proceed and tell to you that basic need you need being mystery shopper.

Mystery shopping requires more than basic computer skills. Specific equipment will be required, but it can easily be found used. Usually purchasing the required items new is not that expensive, and you always have the option to borrow items and equipment from a friend.

Supplies and equipment you need include:

  • Computer (which you should already have)
  • Printer
  • Digital camera
  • Wristwatch or stopwatch that tracks both minutes and seconds
  • Scanner
  • Access to a fax machine
  • Scratch paper for notes
  • Ink pens
  • Vehicle
  • Money to make a purchase

Four Types of Focus Groups You Can Choose From

Thursday, September 29th, 2011

Focus GroupThere are several types of focus groups. It can be found online, in person, or even automated. It can take place in a single or multiple sessions.

One example is the Online Focus Groups. If you are invited to participate in online focus groups, you will be asked to access several minutes early and type in your name. Being late for this kind of focus group may mean that you can not access, therefore you can not enjoy an improbable pay. When it’s time to start, there is a moderator or in charge on the focus group that has a list of subjects or ideas by hand and begins to notice everyone regarding the subjects or ideas and those included aspects.

The online focus groups can take for about 20 minutes to several hours but most are around 90 minutes. Setting will be substantially the same as a chat room and may require that you have speakers to hear sounds. Some online focus groups require the installation of a free program in advance, which allows you to see a video or a presentation. Some groups of high-tech approach may require that you have a microphone and talk about your responses.

Another type of focus groups is the Automated Focus Groups. If you get very lucky you can get an instant focus group through one of your survey companies. You may be required to sign in and then participate in a focus group. After connecting, you are prompted for a username or nickname. You will be asked a series of questions and see answers that other people have already given. Note that this focus group is not direct and not live so there is no real moderator present. You are given about two minutes in each question.

Every automated focus group has its own participation requirements. You are expected to meet 90% answered questions to get paid. Although this type of focus group does not pay as well as online focus groups online or traditional focus group but still it can pay you a little better than paid surveys.

Third type of focus groups is the Traditional Focus Groups. It can feel a little intimidating to attend a focus group conducted in person, payment is generally well worth the butterflies in your stomach. The scenario of this traditional focus groups is that you’ll be sitting with a group of people in a circle or casual setting and discuss a product, company or idea. You will feel bit nervous at first but as time goes by, you are all talking like you are old friends. Remember that snacks and drinks are usually provided, atmosphere is friendly, and by the end of the session you have made a new friend or two.

You should arrive early to sign in and register. Delay may mean that you can not participate and will no longer be paid.

Last type is the Two – Part Focus Groups. Like online paid surveys, focus groups also have two parts. From the focus group type name two – part focus groups, this have two different sessions. One may be you would need to visit a certain store, buy product then try it at home or so (whatever setting that may come along). Since this type of work requires more time, two – part focus groups usually paid hundreds of dollars for full participation. Unfortunately, lacking either the first or the second session may disqualify you from receiving any payment amount so you should do both parts.

Top Tips for Making Money Online with Paid Surveys

Tuesday, September 13th, 2011

paid surveys, money online, paid survey, paid online surveys, paid online surveyThe following is a list of tips to help you achieve your goals to make money online from paid surveys:

  • Participate in top quality companies. At least 5 paid survey online to get started. When you become more familiar with paid online surveys, join more gradually. The more you join the more income for you.
  • Pay attention to how many surveys you qualified for each panel. Add more of your energy into them. Save the others so when you have extra time, you can work on them as well.
  • Check your email often. Paid online surveys normally tend to fill up quickly; I suggest you check your e-mail at least once a day.
  • Keep a list of all the panels that you’re a member of, or much better if you bookmark them. Some company may not send invitation via email thus you should check their website for updates.
  • Save your survey invitations and anything that proves you took a survey like screen shots, email messages (some companies may email you after answering a poll) and so on until you are credited for it. Sometimes there are technical problems and there is no way for the company whether you finish answering or not. This is useful evidence if you need to contact their support team.
  • Always provide truthful information. If you work with a legitimate company, they will not sell or use your information other than to contact you or scrutinize demographic information to the results of the survey. Survey companies are very good at detecting fraud. Not to mention, they won’t pay if the information is invalid.
  • Don’t rush. Take your time in answering each survey. Many have timers so they can ensure that you read and assume the questions given. In addition, many surveys throw in some tricky queries to make sure you’re attentive.
  • Fill up completely the necessary information on your member’s profiles. Companies will not pay for those but allow you to receive and qualify for further surveys.
  • Organized your emails. Also, check your spam folder habitually. Make sure none of your survey invitation end up there by mistake.
  • Choose for other types of market research such as focus groups, product testing and personal survey. All these are likely to offer much more money online.
  • Try to qualify for the surveys, even if it is only sweepstakes entries. Inline with this, many panels will see that you meet a lot of survey invitations and as a result, they send you lot of invites which may lead you to earn more money online.
  • Join local paid survey panels. They usually have surveys online and offline.
  • Some of those paid survey panels have their so called “referral programs”. Don’t hesitate to take advantage on those. They are also another way of earning a little extra.