You see these ads all the time. They tell you that you can earn $40 dollars an hour or more by filling out surveys. Should you start this new career? Don’t buy a mansion just yet.

Many companies use consumer surveys to test new products or marketing ideas. They will target certain demographics for certain products. The company will hire a third party business to conduct the surveys. You sign up with the third party business and they send you a survey if you meet their demographic requirements. Most people qualify for less than half of the surveys they receive. They "screen out" after a few qualifying questions. If you finish the survey, you are normally paid anywhere from $1 - $10. Some companies only pay you in points that are redeemable for prizes.

There are some surveys that pay up to $25 and sometimes higher. These are usually for people who have high positions in large companies or IT specialists. If you are invited to join a forum, you usually make more money than standard surveys. This will require more of your time, but will be worth it in the long run.

Here are a few tips to help you out:

1) Sign up with all the reputable survey companies you can find. A legitimate company will never ask you to pay money to do surveys or charge any fees for memberships.

2) Complete all the profiles on their websites as much as possible. The more information they have about you, the more likely a survey will be sent to you.

3) Take the survey as soon as you receive it. Some companies get all the responses they need within 24 hours and will close the survey.

4) Agree to participate in any forums you are invited to join. A forum is where you will interact online with other survey takers. It will normally take 30 – 45 minutes of your time. These will get you more money than just the ordinary survey.

5) Always keep your profiles updated. If you move or change jobs, this could effect the number of surveys you receive.

If you sign up for all the survey companies that you can find, you might receive 20-40 surveys a day. Fill out all the forms and profiles that they require. The more information the companies have on you, the more surveys you will receive. You will probably qualify for only one third of them at best. Realistically you would be looking at $10-$40 a day if you spent 2-3 hours day filling them out. You won't make a living doing this, but you can make some extra spending money.

Always remember – don’t pay for a list of the companies. You can find them on the internet with a little effort. It is always free to join these companies. Don't pay any company to take surveys.

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