Make sure you check out my list of FREE, legit paid survey sites. I only list companies that I have experience with and I give you the low-down on each one. And if that’s not enough, you can check out surveypolice.com for ratings and reviews.
Make sure to visit our updated post about Big Spot Surveys for additional information.
I have been seeing commercials lately, mostly on the channels that Jake watches, for a website called BigSpot.com.
I have taken notice because I am a big online survey taker and am usually “in the know” when a new one pops up and I had never heard of this one. They advertise it as a paid survey company, meaning they imply that you get surveys directly from them and receive compensation through them. I’m not going to go into great detail about how paid surveys work, you can read more about that here: free paid survey info; I have all kinds of posts about them.
So I finally got around to checking out BigSpot.com and I want to issue a warning to anyone else who may sign up there. BigSpot.com is NOT a free paid survey company in the sense that they do not appear to administer the surveys or pay you for participation. They collect your information and claim to send you information about other free paid survey companies but in the meantime they have your personal information. You do not need to sign up for any site that claims to collect your demographics in order to match you with paid survey or market research companies. I have links to many of the big survey companies and I don’t collect your information. There are also plenty of other online sources that have EXTENSIVE lists who also don’t collect your personal info. Free Paid Surveys.net is my all time favorite.
Now, I have no proof that BigSpot.com does anything with your personal info other than what they claim, in fact they do have a privacy policy, but why sign up for something that you don’t have to and risk handing out your name, email address and zip code to a third party company for NO REASON?
For more information on taking paid surveys:
About Kim
Thanks for that. Wish I had found it a bit sooner as I have signed up for a couple of survey sites that did collect my info. I was just looking for BigSpot because I saw the commercial and thought, “Hey, if they’re paying for a commercial, they must be legit!”
I regret handing out my info. now that I know some sites don’t require it. :(
ok so from everyone out there what is the best payout company you have used?
If you check out my other post I linked to, I listed some good ones. It’s not about a favorite, you really need to join as many as you can (of the legit ones) to maximize the amount of surveys you get every day.
Good luck!
I’m a say home wife that is looking for some type of income, this is very important to me i am trying to keep my home. my husband is only working four days a week, and is unable at this time look for work any where else, because he’ll lose his pension . I need a relable websit that will bring in the extra income with out any scams, and that will really pay! I’m not afraid to work. thanks
I wanted to comment on your claim that Market Research Companies do not need your demographic information in order to send you surveys. Unfortunately that is not correct. I’ve worked as a Project Manager for a survey company for years and surveying by demographic is a necessary practice. This is how companies are able to locate target markets. If this wasn’t in place then companies would not be able to monetize their traffic.
I like what you speak of about there being many false on line survey companies, which is true. But, I was a bit disappointed that you are providing advice stating demographic location and certain personal information isn’t necessary. Thats Marketing 101. I guess I’m a little baffled why you think companies do not need this info. Then I started to come to a conclusion.
Having said that, I visited your site. The first link I clicked on took me to a Market Research company I’ve done business with in the past. As a matter of fact, I know the Affiliate Acquisition Manager very well and she verified my following statements. With that particular company, I was immediately asked for the following:
Country, DOB, Gender and Postal Code…..clearly demographic and personal info.
So, I gave you the benefit of the doubt. I clicked on a 2nd link on your site. Again, I immediately was asked for Gender, Country and DOB…..demographic and personal info.
Once again, giving you the benefit of the doubt, I clicked on a 3rd link you promote. Again….Country, DOB, Gender and Postal Code…..and so on and so forth with a handful more on your site before I decided to quit.
Back to my conclusion….obviously you are running a review site to promote your own web survey site. By making the above claims you have the appearance of being credible. Therefore, people visit your page and sign up with the same companies they would with other sites you stage resistance against, thus driving your own EPC….Thats earnings per click for those of you not familiar with the biz. :) It’s common practice in the industry, not a huge surprise. I’m sure some of you are wondering why some one would do this…well, its because they earn money for every single sign up. Go figure, right?
I’ll be shocked if you actually post or keep my comment on your review site because of the issues I have raised. But, I’m very interested in receiving feedback and seeing your response on your site posted next to mine. I’m sure I’ll be able to counter, correct?
Thank you for taking the time to read my comment. I hope those of you out there have had a little bit of light shed on what is going on here.
Steve
Steve,
I think you need to re-read my post, and my other post about Big Spot. I never said the legitimate companies do not need your demographics to send you surveys. In fact, I say the opposite. The only way paid survey companies can continue to be successful is by providing legitimate targeted results to their clients.
Big Spot however, is NOT a paid survey company, they DO NOT need your demographic info because they are not providing anything to you that you cannot get without it. I personally don’t ask for demographic info in exchange for providing the links to the survey companies – the same companies Big Spot says they need your demographic info to give you.
And to top it off, in my other post, I clearly state that I get paid for sign-ups. And I also suggest that if people don’t want to use my links that they go ahead and Google the survey companies and sign up directly.
So, your conclusion is WAY OFF base. Oh and I don’t make money per click, it is per sign-up. $.50-$2.50 depending upon the company. I was clear about that in my other post. I was also clear about providing a link to 2 paid survey databases (that I have no affiliation with) that give ratings on the survey companies so people can be sure they are signing up with a legit company and not a scam.
So if you are going to accuse someone of something shady, make sure you read everything thoroughly first.
Shed some light on that.
Its good that your website can shed some light on companies like big spot .com
there are very few legit. companies around . To all that reads this don’t be fooled
by any of these companies read everything before you start up . I have done 1000
hours total on online fraud research and I can tell you from first hand experiance .
Theres not a one that doesn’t share your info in some way or another . I have found
100 companies over the last year that compile a list of e-mail addresses to send to
foreign hackers so beware . This website is safe and the advice is at your discrestion.
I have to tell you can not live off the money they say you’ll make . Every website has
at least 20 components that run on your computer at one time , some carry small viruses
make sure you have a site advisor on you firewall. Good job Whats that smell!!!
I saw your comment while looking into BigSpot….thanks so much. I’ve spent a lot of time looking into free paid surveys and haven’t had a lot of luck. Only accumulating points. Thanks for the links. Will try.
I ran across your website looking into bigspot.com and I wanted to thank you for your warning. I will check out the links you’ve provided instead. The world could use more people like you. :)
I am a stay at home mom and ran accross your site by accident. I hope this pays off as I could really use the extra cash right now. here’s hopeing.
i liek you website, and the info you said about Big Spot.com. I came across your website looking into Big Spot. thanks, and I will use the links you have above to resgester for surveys Thanks, and God Bless. I love the picture of the baby!!! LOL!!!
I thought you said that giving personal information was wrong like address. I hit several of the links on your site and they all ask for that. So explain to me what I should be looking for.
Thanks,
Will
Will,
The legit sites need your address to send your checks. What you have to watch for is giving your address to sites like Big Spot that are NOT the actual survey companies.
If you have any doubt, you could get a P.O. box.
Good luck!