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getagrip
Joined: 20 Feb 2006
Posts: 2073
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#1 · Posted: 1 Jun 2009 17:50
On Saturday, I went to a little "fiesta" at my friends house and helped her put together this backyard game set. She told me she got it for free...by winning it after taking surveys online. She then indicated that it took her about 3 years to accumulate enough points to win it. Needless to say, I wasn't surprised.
Sure, you can earn a little bit of money and have "sucess" with paid surveys, maybe even win a nice prize...but it will likely take a lot of your time. In all of the time I invested with paid surveys, I only earned $5, and a lot of people don't even make $5 or ever win a prize!
Where am I going with all of this? For the vast majority of people, taking paid surveys is a waste of time and effort - I'd suggest investing your time in something else that will bring in real profits, rather than miniscule sums of money or cheap backyard prizes.
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anitahd
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Joined: 15 Mar 2009
Posts: 29
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#2 · Posted: 2 Jun 2009 10:01
I have to agree with you Getagrip. I have done surveys for many years. At first I thought I would make a lot of money. That never happened. I do still do some of them but not very many. It is time consuming and you can get a good portion of the way through one and boom, you are not what they were looking for.
I used to get a few products to try but that stopped a long time ago. They aren't scams though because they will pay you your money, just not very much.
I hate to see people pay for a list of survey sites too, when it can all be gotten for free.
Anita
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sitefrontcom
Forums Member
Joined: 2 Jun 2009
Posts: 3
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#3 · Posted: 2 Jun 2009 10:35
I agree. Your time is better spent in learning other methods of making money. Participating in paid survey is like working 1cent per hour.
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happygal
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Joined: 3 Nov 2005
Posts: 310
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#4 · Posted: 2 Jun 2009 11:00
The deal with surveys is that you won't know if you don't try them. And I agree, real surveys are always free to join and free to participate it. So all you are "out" is the time you take to sign up, really. Think a survey is too long for the reward offered? Don't do it.
But if I were to have taken the advice of someone like you when I started out 5+ years ago, I wouldn't have ever known if they would work for me. And, as you know, they do.
My success story isn't winning a yard set. But I have won anywhere from $50 to $1,000 doing surveys.
And better yet, I just get paid. Plain and simple. Last month, I made $875 all of which came from online surveys (or online surveys that led to an in person focus group).
Are there guarantees that anyone else will have the same success? Nope. But no one will know if they just assume it won't and don't try.
It's a personal decision.
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getagrip
Joined: 20 Feb 2006
Posts: 2073
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#5 · Posted: 2 Jun 2009 12:28
anitahd: It is time consuming and you can get a good portion of the way through one and boom, you are not what they were looking for.
That was my experience with a lot of them. I probably invested 20-30 hours or so to earn $5 doing paid surveys. I know that a lot of other people have has similar bad experiences, including many people from this forum. In my opinion, those who actually earn money doing paid surveys are the exception, and not the rule...
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mlynn
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Joined: 10 Jun 2007
Posts: 170
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#6 · Posted: 2 Jun 2009 14:10 · Edited by: mlynn
I am little tired of people bashing paid surveys on this forum... Can you count on taking surveys to pay your bills?? Of course not..Can you make lot of money taking surveys, of course not. Paid surveys is never mean to be a way to make anyone rich, it is just a simple easy legit way to make EXTRA money!!!
How much can you make has lot to do with someone's demographic - who you are, what you do, what you buy etc..but as long as you are a ordinary consumer like everybody else, do grocery shopping, go to restaurants, buy clothes, buy pet foods, watch tvs (such as American Idol!!)..simple every day things like that, you will have chances to be able to give your opinion and get paid.
There are lot of people doing well (or very well in happygal's case) with paid surveys...The key is to sign up with as many legitimate surveys sites as possible and be persistent. Don't give up too early..Just take surveys during your spare time, and if you can make some extra bucks giving your opinion while watching tv/surfing net, why not?
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getagrip
Joined: 20 Feb 2006
Posts: 2073
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#7 · Posted: 2 Jun 2009 16:22
Unfortunately, it doesn't work that way for everyone. A lot of people have tried them out and gotten no where with them. Personally, I've spend a lot of time researching paid surveys - both in terms of what other people have experienced, and through my own experience - and for me, they are not worth it.
Sure, it increases your chances to sign up with as many survey companies as possible, but it also increases your chances of getting spam emails from fake survey companies (which happened to me), and it also increases your chances of wasting your time.
Furthermore, there are literally hundreds and thousands of people that paid surveys companies have to choose from because so many people have signed up with them. This decreases the likelyhood that you will be chosen, and given the fact that most surveys are aimed at a certain demographic, this decreases your chances of being selected even more.
I think my friend's experience pretty much sums up where most people end up, but I think that the majority of people who try paid surveys out don't even get a prize - they get nothing for their time, and that is why I don't recommend paid surveys.
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anitahd
Forums Member
Joined: 15 Mar 2009
Posts: 29
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#8 · Posted: 2 Jun 2009 17:30
Sorry, I didn't mean to offend anyone and I am not bashing surveys. Just for me it is too time consuming and I don't get very much for it.
I had to laugh though, I have made more money with surveys than google adsense. It is a personal decision and anyone who wants to do it should know that it is legit and you do get your money.
The thing I object to is people that don't know any better pay for a list of survey sites when you can find them all for free.
That is great happygal that you have made so much. Actually, that is awesome!
Anita
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mlynn
Forums Member
Joined: 10 Jun 2007
Posts: 170
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#9 · Posted: 2 Jun 2009 21:47 · Edited by: mlynn
getagrip: I think my friend's experience pretty much sums up where most people end up, but I think that the majority of people who try paid surveys out don't even get a prize - they get nothing for their time, and that is why I don't recommend paid surveys
I don't know if majority of people end up nothing, as you suggested, but I know these:
1. Those who are "successful" making some money with surveys are the ones who know what to expect and are patient enough to stick to it for at least a few months (some actually just need a couple of months to figure it out it works for them.)
2. There are lot of people give up paid surveys for different reasons. I don't mean to sound harsh but many simply don't know what they are doing - they get fake surveys, get spammed and scammed. It is unfortunate that there are too many scammers on the Internet telling people that you can make $$$$ taking surveys and then give you junk information that leads people to nowhere but disappointment and frustration.
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getagrip
Joined: 20 Feb 2006
Posts: 2073
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#10 · Posted: 2 Jun 2009 22:59
Well, I think that 2 - 3 years of taking surveys and ending up with only a prize is a pretty good indication of what paid surveys offer a lot of people. And don't forget, I've experienced this my self through my own research and efforts, and thousands of others have echoed the same sentiments, so I think there is plenty of validity to the idea that paid surveys is a waste of time for most people...
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happygal
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Joined: 3 Nov 2005
Posts: 310
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#11 · Posted: 3 Jun 2009 10:49
Whatever. I have no interest in debating this with anyone. It's, like I said, a personal decision if people want to try it or not. But like anything, I have no interest in bashing the entire concept. Are there bad sites out there that call themselves paid surveys? You bet! But are there some great ones, too? Yes.
It's like saying "I sent out 500 resumes and only got two interviews so I think job hunting is a waste of time." Or saying "I tried to work as an engineer and it didn't work, so it must not be a real career."
No one can make blanket statements like that. It didn't work for you. That is fine. Share that experience. It does work for me. And I share that. But just like I can't guarantee that it will work for anyone, you can't guarantee that it won't.
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getagrip
Joined: 20 Feb 2006
Posts: 2073
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#12 · Posted: 3 Jun 2009 12:07 · Edited by: getagrip
happygal: But just like I can't guarantee that it will work for anyone, you can't guarantee that it won't.
No is is guaranteeing that paid surveys won't work for everyone. Unfortunately, however, many of us have discovered that they are a waste of time.
happygal: It's like saying "I sent out 500 resumes and only got two interviews so I think job hunting is a waste of time." Or saying "I tried to work as an engineer and it didn't work, so it must not be a real career."
This is a bad analogy. It would be more accurate to say that there are 10,000 applicants for a job interview, with only 10 spots available, except that the company is only looking for people with master's degrees, and there are other secret qualifictions that they won't reveal until after you apply. If you don't have a masters degree, it would be a waste of time to apply, and even if you have a masters degree, your chances of getting the job are very slim, because there are a large number of applicants, and you don't know if you meet their other qualifications.
happygal: No one can make blanket statements like that. It didn't work for you. That is fine. Share that experience.
If I was solely basing my conclusions on my own experience, I suppose your statement would be valid, but the truth of the matter is that my conclusion is based on my experience, research of paid surveys companies, and the experiences that other people have reported with paid surveys. With that information, I was able to conclude that paid surveys are a waste of time for most people.
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mlynn
Forums Member
Joined: 10 Jun 2007
Posts: 170
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#13 · Posted: 3 Jun 2009 13:43 · Edited by: mlynn
getagrip: Well, I think that 2 - 3 years of taking surveys and ending up with only a prize
Seriously, How did you do it? No I am kidding, never mind. LOL.
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pinkyparrot
Forums Member
Joined: 23 Feb 2009
Posts: 115
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#14 · Posted: 4 Jun 2009 09:31
As we all know.... Surveys are not for everyone. Some people just don't like them, some don't like the time it takes, some don't like the small payouts.
But you'll never get the larger payouts if you don't start somewhere. Think of it like a new job ( you start on the bottom of the ladder ) then after some time you start climbing that ladder. It took me a while but now it's moving right along.
Just don't mock them because you didn't give the effort.
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trevorblack
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Joined: 5 Jun 2009
Posts: 6
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#15 · Posted: 5 Jun 2009 04:33
I think paid surveys are good and a great way to make money online. I do paid surveys to earn a passive income and it works out really well for me I can easily pick it up in my spare time and find that I get through no end before I even realise it. I love paid surveys and I make money online really easily, I also use different methods to make money but this is one of the easiest
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