Programs:
Swagbucks is my absolutely favorite program. Swagbucks is a search engine that pays you to use it. I have made $140 in Amazon gift cards since March '09. Click here to read all about swagbucks! Earn faster by getting friends to sign up under you so that when they earn, you earn up to their first 100 bucks!
Do you shop online? Did you know that you can get CASH BACK on your purchases? Well, there are several rebate sites out there offering a percentage of your purchase back as cash. My favorite is Shop at Home. You can print grocery coupons as well as get great coupons for hundreds of online stores PLUS get cash back! I currently have $8.50 in my account. Once I hit $20, they mail a check! If you join now, you get $5 in your account to start PLUS, if you get a friend to join, you earn $5 when THEY get their first rebate as well! All for free! Gotta love it!
Disney Movie Rewards. Even if you don't watch or buy a lot of Disney movies, this program is worth signing up for. Enter codes to earn points. Collect points. Redeem points for prizes. This is a great way to get free gifts for friends and family. Get codes in emails from Disney, from Disney movies and CD's, and through special Disney promotions. Also, get 20 points for each friend you refer that signs up.
Rewards 'R Us. Babies R Us and Toys R Us offer a rewards program based on in-store and online spending. Here are the basic details from the rewards r us website:
Rewards"R"Us enrollees earn a $5 reward certificate ("R"Us Dollars) for every $150 in qualifying purchases at Toys"R"Us and Babies"R"Us, in-store or online, (up to $1,800) during select promotion periods. Member is responsible to present their loyalty number at time of purchase in order to receive proper credit. Retro-credits for purchases made without membership number are not permitted. Members can receive up to $20 "R"Us Dollars per month, $60 per earning period. Qualifying purchases do not include gift cards, shipping and handling, reward eligible diapers, formula, and greeting cards. "R"Us Dollars are not earned on layaway purchases and furniture orders until items are paid in full and shipped. "R"Us Dollars certificates are mailed via USPS, arrive 8-12 weeks after they are earned and are valid until the date printed on each certificate.
Qualifying purchases do not include gift cards, shipping and handling, reward-eligible diapers, formula and greeting cards. Purchases of infant furniture, battery powered ride-on vehicles, video game hardware, select outdoor play equipment: swing sets, trampolines, playhouses, climbers, filtered pools and inflatable bouncers and waterslides, and all discounted items (in-store and advertised discounts, coupons and clearance) qualify for only $0.50 for each $1.00 spent. All other items qualify for $1.00 for each $1.00 spent. Purchases of furniture orders do not qualify until items are paid for in full and shipped. All earned "R"Us Dollars are mailed via USPS, arrive 8-12 weeks after they are earned and are valid until the date printed on each certificate. See additional Terms and Conditions.
Viewpoints Forum is a program that allows you to write reviews for products you own and use. You can earn great rewards during promotions. I did a promotion once and wrote 5 reviews and got a $25 restaurants.com gift card.
Trials:
Do you love product trials? I do! I love getting free stuff to try - sometimes even before it is released to the public! Check out some of these great ways to try new products!
General Mills offers a fantastic product trial panel called Pssst.... Click here to join! Every so often you will receive an email with information. Sometimes I just randomly receive products in the mail! There is a short follow-up survey after trying the product.
SheSpeaks was created by a woman just like you who wanted to give all women a forum to express their opinions and connect with others.
SheSpeaks gives you many ways to have a say, including... testing products to inspire the companies who created them, writing your opinions on our blogs and discussion boards, creating your own product reviews, or getting expert advice on a range of topics to keep you in-the-know. And the best part is... we promise to never charge you a penny.
Choose your city below to sign up and receive your free gift and occasional email filled with valuable content and information for Moms, as well as coupons, special offers and savings offered ONLY to e-mom reward members. To join now, click on your city on the map or select your city and sponsor from the drop-down menu below. Welcome to e-mom rewards!
ExpoTV/Tryology is a unique program. If you enjoy making videos and enjoy telling people what you think about products, this program could be for you. ExpoTV is a collection of video reviews. You can choose any product and create/submit a video review. Some products will earn you points by reviewing. Points can be redeemed for prizes such as gift cards. Tryology is a branch of ExpoTV. Tryology sends you products to try and review on video. Videos are generally just around 2 minutes long. If you have the technology, this can be a very lucrative program (I just don't make the time to do reviews before time runs out). Points add up quickly for prize redemption.
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General Survey Information:
Some people feel that it is ok to sign up for survey sites as someone from a specific demographic (say, an 80 year old man) when they are not the person they say they are. This is fraud. Most survey companies have ways to spot fraud and will remove that person without further compensation. Those who commit fraud give those who legitimately do surveys a bad name and make it harder for others to receive compensation. Please, be ethical in your survey taking. At time, a company will ask another household member to take the survey. I will take that survey for them, but only if they are in the room and can answer the questions themselves. I just do the typing.
If you are concerned about the validity of a survey site, check out survey police. It is a great resource to find the best companies out there and to avoid getting ripped off. One site to AVOID is VINDALE RESEARCH. Most surveys they offer require a credit card number. Ummm..... no thanks! I have also clicked on links thinking they were for Pinecone (see below) only to find, after reading very carefully, that it was for Vindale. SCAM!
The Survey Companies I Use:
- Opinion Outpost - This is by far one of my favorite survey companies. Check out the complete review I did a few months back for lots of details. Now, you can request payment in the form of an Amazon gift card which posts IMMEDIATELY! No more waiting 6 weeks for checks. You can also request prepaid debit cards instead of Amazon cards. As of 2/8/10, I have earned $104 in less than a year!
- Valued Opinions - This is another favorite company. There is no referral program, but the surveys come frequently and pay well. There have been a few computer glitches where for a short amount of time, the company has not let me take surveys, but each time those glitches were resolved promptly. I have earned $60 since June 2009.
- Toluna Surveys/Greenfield Online - I just recently started with Toluna and it is very quickly moving to the top of my list. There is a referral program, however it is strictly email based. There are paid polls each week that quickly add up. I have gotten product trials and have earned $60 since November 2009 and am halfway to cashing out for another $20!
- MySurvey - I have enjoyed my experience with this survey company. I receive short surveys that take just a couple minutes and get rewarded. If I qualify for the complete survey, I am offered more points. I have earned $30 since June. I have also gotten some GREAT product trials from them!
- SayNation! - This survey company pays in points. Each attempted survey pays 25 points so even if you spend a few moments and get disqualified, you still get paid. There is a survey each day on the homepage. I receive several invitations each day. This company seems to be a bit streaky. I will go a couple months and get/qualify for a lot of surveys and then have a couple months with hardly any. This company has a good referral program and even has a survey program for teens.
- epoll - This site has been great! The surveys are interesting. The points add up quickly. I don't get a ton of invitations, but qualify for just about every one that comes.
- Mindfield Surveys - This site offers a lot of surveys, but for most, you need to be QUICK to get them before the quotas are full! I check my account occasionally and am surprised at how the money adds up when it seems I don't qualify for anything.
- ClearVoice Surveys - Not the best paying site, but not a pain either. Increase number of surveys you receive by taking their simple daily poll on the website. Payout clearly listed on email invites.
- Opinion Square - This survey site has promise. Surveys aren't very long. You get a token for an instant-win game (where you win 25 points each time) for each survey you attempt but don't qualify for. Surveys generally pay 200 points each and take 5-10 minutes. Points can be redeemed for various gifts and gift cards. I am saving up for an iTunes gift card.
- Pinecone - This is by far my favorite site, but they do not often take in new panelists. The link I provided is simply for information. Be on the lookout for sign-up links - they come along every so often and don't last a long time! Pinecone pays $3 per survey and mails a check quickly (paypal deposit is now available). Pinecone has a lot of product trials as well. I applied about 6 times before I was accepted in (it mostly depends on what demographics they need). If you are able to join, make sure you read the privacy agreement carefully since breaking it could cause you to be removed from the panel.
- Insight Exchange - Take short surveys and earn points to redeem for gift cards. I get a survey every couple weeks.
- In-Home Product Testing - I have only gotten a couple surveys for this site (actually for Hubby who answers as I type), but both have paid well. He got a $15 gift card for answering a survey and now is participating in a product trial that will pay $25!
- Lightspeed Panel - I am new to this site. Many friends use it and are very happy with the payouts. I have been offered quite a few surveys, but I had problems with my first one and am waiting for resolution before I take any more time on surveys from them.
