What Do You Want? (yougov.com)

Member Name: raehippychick

Product:	yougov.com
Date:	09/01/08 (269 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: money for old rope!

Disadvantages: takes a while to get enough credit to cash in

A few years ago when I first had good access to the internet I signed up for every possibly money making offer my little mouse could click on. Over time I realised that the majority of these amazing offers and fantastic opportunities weren't worth the virtual paper they were written on and were just stuffing my email account with rubbish and junk mail

One name kept appearing in my inbox for a long time was YouGov, mostly I would delete their emails along with the dross, then one day a few months ago I read an op saying that they actually paid 50p for most surveys completed and they did pay out. Drat... all those emails I had cheerfully consigned to the waste bin with a cavalier click of my mouse

I toddled off to look at the YouGov website and found it actually looks quite professional. Founded in 2004, the news archive shows that the media at least seem to take them seriously. So I decided that for the sake of a few clicks now and again and being prepared to answer an assortment of questions regarding my spending habits, perception of brand awareness and the like I may as well see if I could make a few pennies

Joining is as simple as it is for most member only websites... go to http://www.yougov.com/ then, on the bottom left corner of the page is a link for new members click it and fill in your email address and name. Once your account is activated you are asked to fill further information in such as address, what type of work you do etc... the usual things consumer panels want to know so that they can build as accurate a picture as they can for their customers who want surveys carried out

After that you just sit back and wait for their emails to turn up in your inbox. I find the survey requests come in fits and starts, sometimes I will get a load in a week and other times I could go for a few weeks with nothing. The majority of surveys pay 50p, some pay nothing other than an entry into a prize draw, but some are worth up to £2.00, although the best I have had is £1.50

You can clock up money quicker by time honoured method of referrals, YouGov will give you the same amounts of credit as the person who signed up via your link for the first three months of their membership. Personally I am far to embarrassed to ask any of my mates to do that, not sure why but I really hate asking people to sign up via a referral link for anything, I would rather tell them of a good offer and they get it the 'normal' way rather than me profiting from them. I know I have missed out on the odd few quid here and there over the years but I'd rather not gain money from friendship. But hey, that's me!

Now, compared to some surveys that only offer you a chance for a prize or points that can be collected and exchanged for goods that you may not even want very much this sounds a pretty good deal for a few minutes of mouse play. Well, it is and it isn't. I have been a panel member since June 2005 and because I did not bother to complete any surveys for months on end it took me along time get a decent balance in my account and bearing in mind they will not let you cash in until you have earned £50.00 I can see that a lot of people would give up before reaching the cash-in amount. On the other hand, it really is money for old rope, you receive an email with a link, you click the link, you answer a few questions for about 10 minutes and another 50p (or more) is added to your account. Cashing in is as simple as it is here on Dooyoo, same principle really and about the same time for the money to be in my grubby little mitts

The surveys are time limited so you will need to get them done fairly soon after receiving the request, but each email will state when the cut off date and time is. The surveys themselves aren't terribly exciting; mostly they seem to be about brand awareness and politics. I have noticed that when they have questions about football they now have an option to reply "I am not the slightest bit interested in football" which is good for me as I used to struggle to think of anything to reply to those questions before!

So there you go, not a get rich quick scheme, but if you are on the internet anyway via broadband rather than dial-up-pay-for-every-second-and-it-costs-a-fortun e, you may as well sign up and let the 50ps quietly add up for you. After all, if someone offered a cheque for fifty quid once a year or so would you say no?

Summary: get paid for being opinionated