These folks are wrong. Flat-out, misinformed, silly as can be, off-track WRONG.
Here's the deal... There are bad surveys out there, I'm sure. There are market research firms who'll solicit opinions and then disappear before the cut a promised check. That happens. There are a few bad apples in the massive (and growing) online paid survey barrel. I get that.
Those exceptions to the rule, however, don't mean that free online surveys and scams go hand-in-hand. Based on my experience, the good really outweighs the bad in a big way.
Besides, if you go about things the right way, you can insulate yourself from any risk with respect to the occasional bad guy. All you need to do is pursue legitimate survey opportunities (sites like Express Paid Surveys can deliver high-quality leads right to you in a heartbeat), read the actual terms of the offers, and keep your wits about you.
If you're not a complete goober (that's a scientific term, by the way), you probably aren't going to get ripped off by anyone. Oh, and let's say that you do have a bad experience. What's it really gonna cost you? If you're pursuing good surveys from leads provided by a top paid survey site, you're just going to lose a few minutes of your time before moving on to the next paying opportunity.
I look at it this way. I know someone who hired a roofer to take care of an old, decrepit shingling job on a house. The guy climbed up on the roof, hammered away, said it was done, collected his check and disappeared into the ether. It turned out he did a lousy job. So, my friend hired a better roofer and lived happily ever after in a drip-free house.
Get it? She didn't decide that every freaking roofer in the whole wide world was a scam artist because she ran into one bad apple. Here in Paid Survey Princess Land, we call that common sense.
It's just as silly to believe that free online surveys and scams go together like strawberries and cream. They don't. The bad situations aren't common and you can avoid them.
Oh, and unlike my friend with the rotting shingles, it isn't gonna cost you a fortune in roofing fees if you do fall into a trap--it's just gonna take a few minutes of your time. Sheesh.
I just can't understand why people are so resistant to the idea of making money with paid surveys. Thousands and thousands of people get paid every day to share their opinions. You can be part of that crowd or you can be a "scaredy cat" who sees elaborate scam conspiracies everywhere.
Me? I like getting paid.
