Online Surveys

The Business Of Online Surveys

Online surveys are the source of collecting data from users and customers. It’s mostly businesses and brands asking a set of questions to a targeted audience to improve their service or revenue. For themes part, the survey participants receive surveys via email. However, participants can also actively take surveys on various platforms and websites. The target audience can complete the online survey from anywhere in the world. Businesses often encourage participants to complete online surveys by setting up potential prizes.

Brands and businesses use online surveys to gain a deeper understanding of their customers. Like traditional surveys, online surveys provide more data on customers. However, in contrast to traditional surveys, online surveys offer businesses a way to reach a broader audience at a lower cost.

Make Money Taking Online Surveys

Can you make money doing online surveys in your spare time? Well, I actually took the time to try out a couple of apps myself to find out whether you can actually make money taking online surveys. Online surveys are hailed as a great side hustle. Some people call it  an extra revenue stream, while others call it a scam. I can say from personal experience that both are true. There are a lot of scam apps out there just out to gather personal data and information on you. But, to be fair there are also some legit companies out there. However, it’s not an income stream you can count on and it’s absolutely not passive. Here are a few elements you should consider if you plan to succeed with this type of gig.

• Find out if the company or app is legit
• Find out how much you’ll get paid per survey
• Do you qualify for a specific survey
• Take the necessary time and pay attention when you complete the survey
• Check your e-mail frequently to make sure you get the best opportunities
• Always update your profile info
• Establish a routine

The Secret To Making Money With Online Surveys

There are many online survey gigs out here. But the ones that really pay well require a little more than iPhone access and an e-mail address. You have to be willing to win some and loose some to find the ones that actually are worth the effort. You will have to shop around quite a bit different surveys and find the surveys that will get you the most amount of money.


The Pros Of Taking Online Surveys

• Be you own boss
• Work from home
• Choose a niche you enjoy working with
• Demand is great
• Startup costs are minimal
• Work with your chosen clients
• Flexible schedule
• Freedom to work wherever you want

The Cons Of Taking Online Surveys

• Unstable salary
• Competition
• The work can be dull
• Repetitive work
• A lot of screentime

Is It Worth The Effort?

Just like other online gigs, the good news is you can actually make money by taking online surveys. Sometimes you can make a little and sometimes you can make a lot. But the key component in the value of online survey taking lies in how much your time is worth. Depending on your qualifications you have to ultimately decide whether this type of gig is good enough money for your valuable time. If you have CEO qualifications your time might be worth much more than $3 for every 10 hours. The return on investment might not be worth it for you. Then again, it might. Only you know.

If you’re unemployed, then the paid online surveys that might be a perfect fit. You can earn a few bucks and may eventually find the perfect survey gig. The flip side is that these surveys probably aren’t worth it if you’re looking to bring in a good bag of money each month. It can be a time commitment, but it’s fairly easy to do and doesn’t require any advanced knowledge. It’s a great way to earn extra spending cash.

The Truth About Online Surveys 

The cold fact is that survey companies exist to collect data from you and other people. They want to know all about who you are, but also what you think about products, services, advertising campaigns, etc. The survey companies can then take this data and sell it to whoever needs the feedback. In a nutshell, the survey companies pay you for your opinion, then they sell the opinions to researchers or businesses. 

How You Get Paid

The way you get paid with most sites, is by either making points that turn into cash or you earn straight up cash. The cash method is typically by way of PayPal. Point systems are by far the most frustrating part of the paid online survey game because they give a false sense that you are earning a lot. For example, if a survey pays 15 points, you might only earn $0.15 when it’s complete. Once you have earned enough points you can redeem them for gift cards or cash into a PayPal account. When is enough points? Well, depends on the survey. It’s important that you look into these numbers before you join a survey company.

You have to remember that 50 points might only be 50 cents. They let you know ahead of time the point value of a survey and clearly explain how much the points are worth. Other survey sites I have tried weren’t ever clear about the value of points, and point values often fluctuate depending on what you are redeeming them for. Don’t waste your time on sites and apps you feel might be scams. There are enough surveys out there for you to find a site that clearly states the earning rules. Look for survey companies that are clear about their points and earning systems. Both in the dollar value and how many points you can earn per survey or pr hour.

Expect To Get Disqualified From Some Surveys 

One of the major complaints with all those who venture into the paid online survey world are the disqualifications. The survey company itself collects a ton of personal information about you. But, before you even take certain surveys, they will ask for even more information. This helps them determine if your opinion is the one they are after. It’s a survey screener. 

The survey screeners take time. This is where the company checks whether you qualify for their surveys. You might spend a lot of time screening, yet get disqualified for the survey. Typically there is a time estimate for how long the survey will take, but these are often very wrong. For instance, a survey may claim that you will get $4 after completing a 20 minute survey, but it actually takes 40 minutes to complete. On the flip side, the survey screeners can be a good way to determine if the survey site is worth it or not. Sometimes you fill out the pre-survey without any rewards and not knowing if you will even be chosen. You can expect this to happen on any online survey site.

How To Protect Your Data When Taking Online Surveys 

Survey sites ask for a lot of personal information. They will also ask about your age, where you live, where you’re employed, your past, your presence, etc. It’s important that you protect yourself and your data when taking these online surveys. The first step is to make sure the company is legit. Be sure to check out their reviews before giving away any personal information. You should also check out their privacy policy to make sure they don’t sell your information to others and all of a sudden you get hit with tons of spam. 

Keep track of who you’re actually taking surveys with. Your inbox will be spammed after signing up to these things. Never ever pay the online survey company first. This is almost always a scam. They will take your money and run. Lastly, never ever give away info such as your social security number or full bank account number. If you do these things, you should be able to protect yourself and make some money with online surveys.