Surveys 101

I've never heard of anyone making a full time living taking surveys. But for just a few hours of work per week, you can stash away enough to get the little "extras" for your family. In this economy, that sure comes in handy! Surveys allow me to:
~Completely pay for Christmas.
~Take my family out for free restaurant meals 8+ times per year using gift cards I earn.
~Get free stuff from amazon.com.

Sound good? Read on!
Each company has it's own "system" which I have outlined below. Some will award you with points which are redeemable for gift cards or cash, while others will set a dollar amount for each survey you complete. First, here are the basics:

1) Since your survey invitations will come via email, it's a good idea to get a separate account just for this purpose. Yahoo, Hotmail and GMail all offer free and easy email set up.
2) Download the free version of Roboform. Roboform automatically fills in forms for you with the click of your mouse, saving you lots of time and headache. A must for serious surveyers!
3) Maximize your earnings by joining them all. Some companies will offer several surveys per week and others only offer a few per month. Joining them all ensures you'll have the largest number of invitations. If you end up with too many surveys and too little time, you'll have the luxury of choosing which ones to do and which ones to delete!
4) After you join, take the time to fill out the prequalification surveys. These are unpaid surveys the company uses to determine the demographic you fall into so they can match you up with the appropriate surveys.
5) Try to take the surveys the same day you get them. Some surveys fill up fast, so you'll earn the most by getting them started ASAP.

Remember if you come across other survey companies, never join if you are asked to pay a fee. This is a big red flag! All of the companies reviewed here are legit and free, and ones I myself am a member of.

EARNINGS
As I mentioned earlier, there are some companies that I like to use for free amazon stuff, others I use for Christmas savings and others that help me get free restaurant meals. You usually have a variety of ways you can choose to be paid, this is just how I do it. I've catagorized them below to give you some idea of what you can do too!

Christmas For Free:
If you are going to be using this income to pay for Christmas, I recommend getting a High Interest Account to use exclusively for this purpose. Mine is through ING - no minimum $$, no fees. I get the checks in the mail, and immediately deposit them so they begin earning interest. This is my version of a Christmas club. I don't miss the money because I never see it! Below I've listed the companies I use for this purpose:

SurveyHead - Lots of survey taking opportunities, great pay and very reputable company. You'll get a $5 bonus just for signing up! I've been very happy with this one. Accumulate $25+ in earnings and you'll be paid via Paypal.

Opinion Outpost - I have great success with this company. I've even been chosen to participate in a few product tests that have resulted in free full size products in the mail. Opinion Outpost will offer you several surveys each week, and you can cash out once you reach 50 points ($5). Most often, surveys take 5-15 minutes and are worth 20-30 points.

Ipsos I-Say - is a great way to earn. When you register for this panel (it's free), you'll get 2-5 survey opportunities per week. Each completed survey earns you points that you can redeem for cash. 50 points = $5. Other perks: you'll earn an entry into a $5,000 drawing for every survey you complete. You can also occasionally qualify for product testing. Free products are sent for you to try, and then you earn points to share your opinion of them.

Send Earnings and Inbox Dollars - Get paid to read emails and take surveys. Each day you can participate in a new survey that generally pays $.50 and takes 3-4 minutes. Today, I participated in a Send Earnings survey about a new movie. I was asked to watch the trailer and give my opinions.
~You get a $5 bonus when you sign up.
~Refer your friends and you get 10% of their earnings.
You’ll receive a check by mail each time your account reaches $30. Super easy.

Toluna - Earn points that convert into cash payments by writing opinions, participating in polls, inviting friends and taking surveys. This one is lots of fun because it is set up more as a community where you can interact with other members and get paid for it.

YouData - Create a MeFile at YouData.com, and sell your attention directly to interested advertisers, for real money. Get paid via paypal every Friday for the ads you watch. Simple as that!

American Consumer Opinion Surveys High pay $2-$10 per survey.

Global Test Markets 100 marketpoints = $5. Abundance of survey opportunities each week so lots of chances to earn!

MindField - Moderate amount of survey opportunities. You can request a check with a minimum of $5 earned. When you refer a friend and they register and complete a survey, you earn $1.

HCD Surveys Earn $1-$5 per study and $.50 for referring a friend. Not too shabby. Redeem when you reach 1000 points ($10).

Your2Cents Fewer survey opportunities, but good pay. You'll earn the equivalent of $1-$5 for each study. 3000 points = $1, and you can redeem your points when you reach 30,000.

My Survey - This one has yielded me more goodies than any of them. I’ve gotten product testing opportunities and high paying surveys. Most recently, my teen was asked to fill out a daily log of the hygiene products he used. At the end of 7 days they credited us with $10! I'd say it took a total of 20 minutes.
This highly regarded company has been responsible for the Conference Board Consumer Confidence Survey, every month for more than 40 years. These results are regarded as a leading economic indicator and are routinely reported in publications such as The Wall Street Journal, USA Today, and The New York Times. How it works:
100 points = $1, and you are able to redeem them when you reach at least 1000 ($10).
Get 10 points for joining and up to 1500 points per survey. You’ll also earn 150 points for referring a friend.

With Survey Savvy, the key to getting the most survey invitations is to complete your member portrait. This is a series of short questionnaires that help fit you to the proper demographic and increase the likelihood of your being chosen to participate. The less they know about you, the fewer invites you will get.

One thing I really like about this company is that you can cash out your account with as little as $1 earned!

Panel Polls - This site is sponsored by Nick Jr., Noggin and ChildResearch.com. It’s the most fun I’ve had taking surveys. It’s a site for parents and kids ages 6-17 to share their likes, dislikes and opinions. I have listened to unreleased music tracks, watched videos of future television shows, and have been sent DVDs to watch with my kids. You may need to have Nick Jr or Noggin as one of your television channels to qualify for most of these.
Most surveys pay 1000-10,000 points, with 1000 points worth $1. Once your account reaches $10, you can cash out. At present, they do not offer points for referring your friends.

Kids Opinions - Surveys for kids and adults about things like: movies, video games, online games, music, toys, TV shows, web sites, clothing, food/drink, etc. Paid by check when your account balance reaches a level equal to $10.00.


Springboard America. This survey group offers survey dollars in exchange for your opinions. Once you have accumulated 50 survey dollars you can redeem it for $50 cash.

Free Restaurant Meals:
These companies allow my entire family of seven to eat out for free several times per year! As a rule, I save my points and only cash out 2-3x/yr. per company. That means 8-12 free meals! Just remember it will take a little while to get rolling because you'll be earning points and saving them. But stick with it and in a few months, you'll be able to treat your family on a regular basis:

Lightspeed Panel - I just love this site. Everything gets two thumbs up. Plentiful survey opportunities. High pay. And best of all, you can opt to be paid via paypal or (my favorite) restaurant gift cards, including Cracker Barrell, Chilis, TGI Fridays, Applebees, Red Robin and Olive Garden.

E-Poll Surveys - Well paying but infrequent surveys. Redeem points earned for a variety of restaurant gift cards.

Daily Survey Panel - 4-6 survey opportunities per week. Each survey is worth 120 – 400 points, and they have generally been fairly quick and easy. Here’s how it works:
~Redeem your points for Paypal cash. 200 points equals $1.
~Redeem your points for gift certificates to: Olive Garden, Amazon.com, Target, Disney, WalMart, Starbucks and Home Depot.
~Refer a friend and earn 200 points each and every month they actively participate in surveys!

MyPoints - hands down, my favorite. It's been so easy for me to earn free gift cards with almost no effort here. You can earn by completing surveys, printing coupons, using their search toolbar...but my favorite way is by reading MyPoints Bonus Mail. I get 3-6 emails per day (on average). Each time I read one, I earn 5 points. Sometimes the mail will take me to a page where I can earn another 20-30 points. I have never spent a penny on MyPoints and I earn a $10 gift card about every six weeks. Effortless.

Free Stuff From Amazon:
Having free amazon money comes in handy for so many things. With my survey income I've purchased birthday presents, lawn equipment, clothes, toys - you name it. Join these companies and start shopping online for free too.

Valued Opinions - For each survey you complete, you will receive a reward, typically between $2 and $5 and occasionally up to $50! When your account reaches $20+, you can redeem for any number of gift cards. Including Amazon.

Reward Port will reward you for taking surveys, signing up for offers and shopping online. Daily surveys are worth 100 points, earn 1000 points for referring your friends. Earn up to 2000 points for signing up for things like Home Depot newsletters, free samples and more. You can also earn by shopping through Reward Port. Old Navy gets you 8 points per dollar, Target gets you 3 points per dollar. Choose from dozens of other merchants too.Redeem your points for gift cards. 4500 points gets you a $10 Amazon gift card. Other gift cards include Barnes & Noble, Starbucks, Blockbuster, Babies R Us, Target, WalMart, Old Navy, AMC Theatres, and Boston Market.

Consumer Village is a unique spin on survey taking. When you join this community, you have access to a forum where questions and discussion topics are posted by moderators. You earn points redeemable for Amazon gift cards based on the number of times you reply to these topics.Earnings are calculated at the end of every calendar month and gift cards are dispersed via email by the 15th of the following month.

Not a survey site, but another Amazon moneymaker:
Swagbucks - I love Swagbucks. It's so easy. And since I'm online a lot, it's the perfect money maker for me. I use Swagbucks to do internet searches and win digital bucks redeemable for gift cards or merchandise. When I reach 45 Swagbucks, I redeem them for a $5 Amazon.com gift card.
Plus, when I refer a friend, I get a Swagbuck each time they earn one for the first 100 "bucks". This means that for each referral, I can earn $10 in Amazon.com gift cards. That really adds up! By referring 6-10 friends and doing searches, I estimate that I will be able to earn $100 in time to use it for Christmas 2010!