...there's always a catch...

Some things very few others are willing to tell you about free online surveys, or any "work from home" gigs, so here it is....

Taking paid surveys, taking part of a telephone interview, talking with a focus group - it's actual time and effort, or something slightly resembling, dare it be said, work! Granted, it's not the same as driving an hour back and forth from the office everyday, but the online surveys don't take themselves. That's why the research companies are paying you good money and expect honest, timely results! It's not so much to ask for. Where else do you get the chance to freely volunteer to get nicely paid for something as easy as giving your honest opinion? Can you name one? Paid surveys rock!

And, best we can determine, THAT'S the big deal about all of this get paid for surveys stuff, and why you see so much "information" out there. Paid surveys are real, legit, easy, and the potential to make money online can be made to sound "oh so grand!"

There seems to be high rates of fraud attempts with online survey respondents (don't do it) and turnover for this sort of thing. Lot's of people see the bold faced free online surveys ads and blinking lights, want to sign-up, sit-back, and start raking in cash with pajamas on. When they're not shopping for a new Ferrari in a few days, most drop-out, or even worse, attempt multiple registrations to maximize their income (don't do it).

To combat this opportunistic mentality, research firms that host online surveys for money are now forced to weed out the bad apples and the quitters. And they've gotten pretty good at it. Control measures are in place that determine a myriad of factors, but namely, who's going to try and defraud them with falsification of information and whipping through online surveys (don't do it), who's going to stick with it (not dropping out after a few weeks), and who's going to be a quality respondent (giving quality, thoughtful answers on their online surveys).

There's no way around it, you'll have to spend a bit of time doing the profile questionnaires (talk about free surveys!) and initial online surveys, which at first may, not be all that impressive paying. From some companies. Some companies ONLY run paid surveys that pay a few dollars - period. Other companies may instantly start sending you work that's definitely worth your time.  When you sign-up, some of those companies may have taken on several projects who's payouts aren't all that great when you compare them with ritz-and-glitz online surveys ads you see everywhere, but it doesn't mean that they're not going to be picking up some better paying projects at some point down the road. Which should translate into some nice paying survey invitations for you. But only if you stuck around to see how all of this "paid surveys junk" works. Which means you probably need to give the whole paid surveys thing some time.

Bottom line? You just have to stick to it, develop a strategy, and figure out the industry as it applies to you specifically, as an individual cog in the market research machinery. Your demographic will be in higher demand than others (and vice-versa) at various times all throughout the year, and besides election time, there's really no way to predict which paid online surveys company is most lucrative for you. It's up to you to to participate and establish a solid reputation as an honest and timely survey respondent. The more you respond, and the better your answers, the better your chances of starting to regularly receive the best survey invitations reserved for the best respondents. That's what the "best paid surveys online" junk is all about.

Q: So how do you start actually doing these free paid surveys for money?