Josh Elledge - Chief Executive Angel
We all have opinions, whether good, bad or even ugly, but how often do those opinions convert to dollars? Probably not often.
I'm sure you've seen banner ads promoting the money you can make based on taking surveys and sharing your opinion. We, here at SavingsAngel, have thrown some caution to the wind and have followed some of those offers to see if there is any money to be made.
As I conducted a bit of research myself, 3 particular websites seemed to be among the most legitimate of those who work hard to lure new survey participants:
First is, Pinecone Research. Pinecone Research is an invitation-only survey panel. It conducts on-line interviews with consumers from all walks of life to obtain their opinions about new products.
At this time, this site is especially looking for recruits that are male, Hispanic, African American, or in the 18-24 age group. Even if you don't fit one of these categories, you won't necessarily be eliminated from receiving an invitation to participate.
According to the reviews I've read from SurveyPolice, Pinecone Research panelists seems to really like this particular site and report quick payouts.Members may request payment via PayPal, or select other rewards from a product catalog. Reviewers seemed to agreethat they spend approximately 15 minutes to complete a typical survey that earns $3. This equates to $12 and hour, not bad. However, over the course of a month you may only be asked to do a survey or two each week. So a monthly income may only rake in $15.
Next is Springboard America
. Springboard America gives us Americans the opportunity to speak up on what affects our daily lives – from products to politics. I think most of us would like to speak into politics and have it make a difference. Generally their rewards pay between $0.50 and $5.00. The downside of this particular site was that you have to reach $50 in your virtual Survey Dollar account before you get paid.
Again, the reviews from SurveyPolice shed more light on this survey site. Current reviewers seemed happy with how they were doing despite the slow payout. Earlier reviews indicated that, although they liked the surveys themselves, it took way too long to accumulate enough Survey Dollars to cash out.One reviewer said they made $350 last year . . . not bad, but did not report how many hours it took to earn that amount of money.
And last but not least, is Opinion Outpost. Opinion Outpost conducts surveys from businesses, governments, public 
bodies, and similar organizations. They claim that by giving your opinion you can shape the future. Rewards include cash, Amazon gift cards, game points, donations to your favorite charities, and more. Plus, everyone is also automatically entered into a $10,000 sweepstakes by joining and taking surveys.
SurveyPolice had pretty mixed reviews on this one from being the very best to the very worst. One happy reviewer claims they made $120 in less than 2 months. Impressive! But another reviewer said that it took about 10 minutes for every $1 she makes and that seemed to be the norm for her for this site. Not so impressive!
If putting aside a few extra dollars here and there sounds good to you, here are some important tips:
1) Do your homework before signing up for one of these survey type sites. Check reviews to make sure you're working with a legitimate site.
2) Be prepared to put some time in to the pre-qualification questions before you even get invited to complete a survey.
3) This is not a quick way to earn. Gauge what your time is worth because most people report making just a few dollars to maybe $12 an hour once they were proficient at it.
4) There is no guarantee on the number of surveys you'll be invited to participate in no matter what site you choose to try.
Lastly, the best approach may be to register with more than one site, stick with it for a while, and see which is most advantageous to you.
