Surveys are a great way to make a little extra cash, but you have to know what you are doing.  Not all survey sites are the same.  Some do exactly what they say, and some are nothing but time wasters.

Some send you surveys, you take them, and you get paid.  Others have you spinning your wheels.  You could spend all day on the bad sites and never make a dime.

How do you know which ones to sign up for and which ones to stay away from?  Which one is Esearch?

What is Esearch?

Esearch is a survey site in the truest sense of the word.  Many survey sites are classified as “get paid to” sites, meaning they have several options for things to do to make a little cash.

You may be able to earn points by completing short tasks, shopping with certain retailers, or even playing games.

That’s not the case with Esearch.  It is surveys only.

They were founded in 1995 and were one of the first online research panels.  That makes them a pioneer in this field.

Their professional memberships include the American Marketing Association and the Marketing Research Association.  They are also CASRO compliant.

Their website lists the following PO Box for their address:

PO Box 4356

Palos Verdes Peninsula, CA 90274-9586

Though they have been around for over 20 years, they are not BBB accredited or rated.  They have no complaints and no reviews on their Better Business Bureau file.

Sign-Up

The sign-up process is a little longer and more detailed than I am used to with survey sites.  They asked a few more questions and asked for my mailing address, which I don’t usually have to give.  In addition, they require a confidentiality agreement.

This is because their surveys are often related to new products that they do not want you to discuss with others.  This is for the purposes of their clients who may not want the public knowing about their new products yet.

You can join regardless of what country you are in, but most of their surveys are geared toward U.S. markets.

Surveys

I have not had the chance to take a survey with Esearch yet.  There is no place to take surveys from their website.  Instead, when they feel your profile matches with a current study, they will send you an email invitation.

The email will include a description of the survey, an estimate of the time it will take to complete it, and how much the incentive is.  If you choose to take the survey, you will click the link included in the email to get to it.

Others who have taken their surveys say that they are different from other sites.  They describe them as engaging, interesting, and fun.  I am excited to try one just to see what all the fuss is about.

They say generally participants get a survey email once a month.

What about the Money

Ah, the reason you are here, right? You want to know if you can really make money taking surveys for Esearch. The short answer is yes.  It’s totally different than almost any other site I have seen too.

Some of the surveys pay out in entries to sweepstakes, but the majority pay between $1 and $5 cash.  That’s right.  No points or other strange form of currency.  They pay in plain old American USD.

Here is the main difference.  There is no account that your money accumulates in until you cash out.  There is no minimum balance to cash out.  In fact, Esearch does not track your earnings at all, and there is no way to do so on their site.

As soon as each individual study closes, your payment will be sent to your PayPal account.  Keep in mind this is not as soon as you finish the survey, but rather they pay all study participants when the entire study closes.

This means it could take a while.  Most studies close in 10 to 14 days.  It could take a little longer to validate all the data, then all the payments have to be processed.  However, the use of PayPal does speed things up a little.

If you are absolutely opposed to PayPal, they can send you a check.  The preference is to use PayPal however, to cut down on processing fees. You have to request it, and it is not recommended.

If you want to track your earnings, it is suggested that you save your emails and initiate your own tracking system so you can remember.

It can take a while to get paid after finishing a survey, and you may forget which payments you still have hanging out there if you do not keep track.

Specialty Panels

In addition to the general panel, Esearch offers these specialty panels.

• Ethnic groups
• Moms
• Small business owners
• Teens and young adults
• IT and Business Professionals

You must be a part of the regular panel before you can be invited to join a specialty panel.  Invitations are based on profile and need.

Esearch vs. Other Survey Sites

It is hard to make a real decision until you compare a site to other, similar sites.  There are several things that set Esearch apart from the others.  The most obvious is the lack of need to cash out.  They pay you automatically when the survey closes.

I like this, but others may not like that they can’t see what they have earned on their account.  You have to track it yourself.

Another difference is the use of cash only, rather than points or even gift cards.  Again, I find this simple and refreshing, but others may prefer the gift card option.

Lastly, they only send survey invitations by email.  While that isn’t a negative in itself, the fact that there is not a consistent list of surveys to try at will on the website is kind of a bummer. It makes it seem that there may not be as many survey opportunities on this site as there are on some others.

Privacy

Esearch does not send spam, and they never share your information with anyone.  They do not work with third parties, and they only send you emails about surveys.

Is Esearch Legit or a Scam?

Despite the lack of information on the BBB file, this isn’t a scam.  They are fully accredited and have all safety measures in place.

I cannot find any inclination that they do not pay as promised, and they never ask for payment or even credit card information.

That said, there are some PayPal survey scams floating around out there.  I cannot find anything that connects them to Esearch, and I do not believe they are connected.

You need to be careful, however.  If you receive an email that looks like it is from them but you haven’t signed up, beware.

If you regularly get emails from them, check the address each time to ensure it really is them.  Scammers can be very tricky and make everything look almost the same as those they are trying to imitate.

Conclusion

This is definitely a site to add to your paid survey list.  While you won’t earn as much here as you may on other sites due to a smaller survey pool, the automatic cash payout makes it worth it.

You will be paid for all surveys you take without having to wait to build up enough to cash out.  That makes this one a winner.  There is no fear of not ever reaching the minimum.

If you are looking for other sites to add to your list try SurveyJunkie and MySurvey.

Remember, the more sites you sign up for, the more you can make.