How about making some money from online surveys?

At this time of year many of us are starting to feel the pinch. You may have overspent this summer, what with trying to keep the kids entertained and then Back to School. And now the colder weather is here you also have to think about energy bills. And that’s even before you add Christmas into the equation!

So yes, some extra cash would be very handy right now.

Have you ever thought about earning a bit of extra money doing online surveys? There are many opportunities out there waiting, and with a bit of time and effort, you could boost your finances this autumn.

In this article we take a look at:

Who uses online surveys and why?
How to sign up for online surveys?
How much could you get paid for doing online surveys?
Is this all too good to be true?

Who uses online surveys and why?

Many large companies use online surveys as part of their market research, for example Starbucks, Apple, McDonalds and LEGO. They are a very effective way to obtain feedback from customers and potential customers about what they do and don’t like, either about existing products and services or the business sector in general. Survey results are then used in various ways, for example launching new products and services, improving existing ones, and offering better customer experience and service.

Online surveys are also used by national organisations such as Yougov to gather opinions about political and social issues, public affairs and commercial products.

How to sign up for online surveys?

It is very easy to get started. The best thing to do is to sign up on a reputable online survey website.

Some of the most popular are:

As part of the registration process you may have to complete an online survey to provide information about yourself. Sometimes at this point you will be rejected by the survey company, which is nothing personal against you, but simply means that for now the survey company has enough people of your demographic. They need to have a representative balance of different people answering their surveys, so will filter their recruitment at any given time. If this happens, it is worth trying another website instead and perhaps coming back to your original one at a later date.

You should not need to pay anything to register with a survey company, so don’t part with any money in the process. If you are asked to do so, look elsewhere. You may even find that when you do sign up with a company they give you a small welcome bonus for joining, and also for recruiting others to do so.

Once you have been accepted, you will start receiving survey alerts by email. So make sure you check your email regularly: the survey will close once enough people have completed it so it can be easy to miss out. You may want to set up a separate email address for your survey activity so that email alerts don’t get lost amongst the rest of your emails.

You will receive some kind of payment for every survey you complete. Usually this will be a cash payment through a payment mechanism such as Paypal, but some survey companies may operate a voucher or points system instead. Make sure that you understand the payment system when you sign up, and that it is something that works well for you.

How much could you get paid for doing online surveys?

Payment for surveys varies greatly between companies and types of survey. In general you can expect to be paid around 75p-£1.00 per survey and spend around 10-15 minutes on it.

Most survey companies operate a threshold payment system, which means that you only get paid when the value of what you have earned reaches a certain amount, say £5. So there may be a slight delay before you get your money, but the more surveys you do, the quicker you will be paid.

In theory, it’s possible to make a few hundred pounds a year if you do surveys regularly. Once you get into the groove of doing them quickly, perhaps when you’re watching TV, it will probably not feel that time consuming.

Another option similar to online surveys but with more commitment and effort involved is to become part of a focus group. These are small groups of people that meet either face to face or online to discuss specific topics in more detail and/or to test out products and services. You may be able to earn up to £350 from being part of a focus group.

To find out more, check out sites such as Paid Focus Groups and People for Research.

Is this all too good to be true?

If the above information is new to you, it may all feel a bit too good to be true. But many people have found it works well for them. There are only a few slight snags to be aware of, most of which we have already covered. These are:

You may not be accepted by one or more survey companies or focus groups if they already have enough people of your demographic.
You usually have to be very quick off the mark to sign up for an online survey. The company will only need a certain number of people to participate so, if there are lots of others who are also interested you need to respond quickly to secure your place.
There may be a minimum amount of money that you have to earn before you actually receive payment. So there will usually be a bit of lead time before the rewards start coming.
If you earn more than £1000 per year from surveys (as with any other money-making activities), you need to declare this to HMRC. Even if you take payment in gift vouchers this counts towards this £1000 threshold as well. If you are a taxpayer, your earnings will then count towards your income for the tax year, so you could end up paying tax on your survey earnings.

We hope that this article has provided some helpful information about how to earn money from online surveys and focus groups. Good luck if you decide to give it a go! In the meantime, if your family finances do need a slight boost this autumn, remember that Loans 2 Go offers online loans that may be able to help.

Do visit us here again soon for more lifestyle and financial tips from Loans 2 Go.