How to Determine A Legitimate Survey Site

1. Search online and type in the search engine box of your internet browser "national consumer opinion panel" or "global consumer research panel". Select one and read their policy as well as terms of service before signing up. Be sure that your privacy is assured when you participate in any paid survey sites and other marketing research that you are joining as a panel member. The person in-charge of the site should not make any personal information of any of their panel members available to any online user without their knowledge except in limited instance that is required by law. The personal information includes your name, address, email address, and phone number. You should read thoroughly what is the survey site's privacy policy.

2. Look for any safety, security or privacy seal like BBB (Better Business Bureau), TrustE (ensures web privacy) or VeriSign (secures your private information) because a legitimate survey site will usually have at least one of them. There are also other safety, security or privacy seals out there so whatever type of seal a paid survey site or marketing research group will have, check whether it is really working and up-to-date. You can also download a Web Of Trust (WOT) as an add-on in your internet browser or other kind of add-on protection because they can help you in determining whether the paid survey site or marketing research company is handling their survey takers or panel members well by just looking at their ratings. A paid survey or research marketing site which has a dark green circle rating from WOT usually means a positive grade and therefore it's also a good site.

3. Make sure that when a paid survey site or other marketing research will conduct studies with their partner companies which may operate under another policy, they should notify you via email about these research opportunities as well as provide a complete description of what is being involved. Take note that participation in these studies is completely voluntary and informed because this is one of the signs that they are a legitimate paid survey site or marketing research company. They should also provide a good link to the partner's site policy pertaining to the particular study. If some legit paid survey sites or other marketing research groups will not give you an email notification, the information should be included in the survey introduction so that you'll be informed prior to your participation. They should also give you an easy option whether to participate or decline in any of the study at any time.

4. Check whether you can easily contact them in case you may have privacy concerns via email, regular mail or by calling their toll free number especially on weekdays because a legitimate marketing research group or paid survey site will always have this information available online. They should provide customer service hours, for example from 9 AM to 8 PM (Eastern Time) generally on weekdays. Survey takers or panelists should also be given links on how to easily withdraw their membership by clicking on the unsubscribe link found on their site's contact page in the member's area as well as on the bottom part of every email that members receive from them. A valid paid survey site or marketing research group will usually process all unsubscribe requests within 10-15 days and generally within 48-62 hours of receipt.

5. Read the paid survey site's or marketing research company's privacy policy. It is important that you know it in case they will use your personal identifiable information in a way different from their stated privacy policy at the time of collection, the paid survey site or other marketing research company should notify you via email or through an acceptable manner that they may choose to use. You should be given an option as to whether or not they will be allowed to use your information in this unlike manner. You should also be given instructions in the email on how to make that particular choice. Whenever the paid survey site or marketing research group make any material changes to their privacy practices even if it doesn't affect user information already stored in their database, they should post an eye-catching notice on their website notifying their survey takers or panel members that there is a change and a revised privacy page.

6. Check whether the paid survey sites and other marketing research groups keep on sending you unecessary emails in your inbox. Take note that if they are really legitimate, they will not sell you anything and will not also sell your name, email address, and phone number to anyone else who may want to sell you something. Every now and then, they may contact you only to validate responses and that's it. Observe how the paid survey site or other marketing research respect your decisions without more inquiries about responding to their questions, participating in a study, or discontinuing your participation.

Tip:

If you want additional amount of money then you'll also need to join more legitimate survey sites and research companies so that you'll receive a daily number of surveys in your email's inbox.

Warning:

If a company requires you to pay in exchange for survey benefits then this is a scam. Signing up for this type of paid survey site or other marketing research group will only get your email address, and sooner or later your inbox will be filled up with a lot of spam.

A valid survey site or marketing research group should know how to respect the decision of survey takers or panel members. They will never try to dissuade them to respond to a survey that requires them to download something from their computer. If you do not want to complete a given survey then you don't need not do so.

Comments (10)

mobilityadvocate said:

	... Thorough and well written article. There are so many of these survey sites around, it's hard to make heads or tails of which ones are legit. Thanks for the prudent advice!
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November 01, 2009
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djeff37 said:

	... very good article, I wish that I had ran across it earlier.
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December 05, 2009
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goodselfme said:

	... A1 article with great info all around.TX
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January 23, 2010
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DenaBolton said:

	... Thanks for this info.
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April 13, 2010
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jswana said:

	... You are absolutely right on this. I did some surveys from Focus groups recommended by my niece. She participated in many (but not on the net), the forms were sent. I was promised a 'discreet' payment in the mail, not much only 10 bucks on each one but obviously there are some good ones out there. Well structured and informative article.
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April 22, 2010
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ShirleyP said:

	... Very concise info. Sounds like you have lots of experience. Thanks for the in-depth considerations!
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April 22, 2010
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alohagems said:

	... I've tried surveys last years but it does not work for me. Your article is very helpful for everyone. I wish I have read this before I joined surveys. I should have not wasted my time. Thanks
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April 22, 2010
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Bailey4 said:

	... Detailed article about how to research survey sites. 5*
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May 04, 2010
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Joan Haines said:

	... Excellent specific steps to take. I appreciate the information, and will use it.
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May 10, 2010
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Peggy H said:

	... Great resources and tips for signing up with legitimate sites and steering clear of scams.
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May 19, 2010
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