Greenfield Online adds PayPal and Other Improvements
March 13, 2008 Guest Blogger - Jim DI have been a member of Greenfield for about a year. Apparently there was a time when Greenfield was rated at the top by survey takers. But about the time I joined, the survey site took a nosedive. Cash paying surveys were few and far between, with the best you could hope for is a sweepstakes entry in a contest it seems nobody ever wins. And if you ever did earn any money, good luck in trying to collect in a timely manner. To add insult to injury customer service was virtually non-existent. The only good thing Greenfield had going for it was the interactive surveys that paid $25 to $35.
Then for whatever reason, about six months ago Greenfield initiated a community forum and allowed panelists to post complaints and recommendations about why Greenfield had gone from first to worst and what needed to happen to keep the panelists from bailing. And the panelists were brutally honest in their justified criticism of Greenfield. Over the past two to three months Greenfield has listened to the community and implemented recommendations to make the survey site more attractive. Now panelists know in advance how much a survey pays and how long it takes to complete. Greenfield offers PayPal, another recommendation, and has improved timeliness of payment. And just recently, and even though it is a very small step, Greenfield has replaced many of the surveys traditionally offering a sweepstakes entry and pays $.25 per completed survey. Of course the other cash paying surveys remain along with those very attractive interactive sessions. To their credit Greenfield has listened to panelists and made improvements. They still aren’t perfect and hopefully even more positive changes are ahead. I am encouraged by what I have seen so far and I certainly recommend them as a survey site to be added to your portfolio!
—————————————————————————————-
Want to join Greenfield Online Panel? - Click Here to Join - US and Canada Only
Already a member? Leave your comments about this blog entry below.
March 23rd, 2008
I’ve been a member with Greenfield for about 4 weeks now. I completed the 12 profiles within the first few days of joining.
Every day I get numerous surveys requests that only offer a sweepstakes entry. They range in estimated time of 5 to 50 minutes. I did not do the one for 50 minutes. Much to long for a sweepstakes entry.
Currently, I get about 1 to 2 paying surveys every other day. So far I have been rejected from everyone of them. Either I was to slow in responding to the request or did not meet their requirements for the survey.
This companies survey requests are the last I look at. This might change once I get accepted for a paying survey.
I do not wish to disagree with your recommendation of this survey site. It could just be I am the the Odd Man Out.
March 30th, 2008
I must be another “Odd Person Out” with this company. I have been a member of their company for a few years now and have only earned chump change. I have wasted a lot of time doing their surveys and really don’t even bother anymore.
I think the biggest lesson is that sometimes things can be very lucrative for some people, but not for others. You have to really try it out and see what is best for you. Some sites you love may be my worst paying site and vice versa.
March 30th, 2008
Yes, Carrie thats a good point. Some survey panels just seem to work better for some than others. Thats why its great to get more than one point of view on any one given survey panel.
That’s the point of having blogs like this one! Thanks to everyone for all of the great feedback.
March 30th, 2008
That’s another great reason I recommend this site to everyone I can! I love it here!!!
March 31st, 2008
Obviously I can only speak from personal experience. Greenfield is not the best site but then again it is far from being the worst. They still have far too many surveys for a sweepstakes entry. My account shows over 2500 surveys attempted in a years time and I am guessing about only 15 percent paid a cash incentive which is ridiculous. I have been one of Greenfield’s most vocal critics in their community forum but I have to give them credit for implementing changes I and other recommended. They still have a long way to go but they do deserve some praise. Just to prove money can be made with Greenfield here is my payment history since November. I received $45 in November, $118 in January, $50 in February and am currently awaiting $105. Most of that money came from participating in the interactive sessions. If it were not for those I would have abandonded Greenfield long ago. I appreciate the comments Carrie Ann and David made in response to my original post, even though we disagree, because sharing our experiences only helps all of us in the end. I have read reveiws of other survey sites and am amazed when some are recommended and it is a site I crossed off my list because of a bad experience.
March 31st, 2008
Thanks for the follow up Jim D. Yes, I agree there are better survey sites out there, but the fact remains you can earn cash from participating in Greenfield’s surveys. In fact, Greenfield is one of the first Survey Sites I joined and received payment from several years ago when I started taking surveys online. I think it was $20 or so, but since then I have been able to earn more from them by taking technology related surveys, my specialty.
I have to admit that Greenfield is not my favorite either, but I still think its a good panel, and that is why we include it on this site.
April 13th, 2008
I have been a member for two months now and do not know a whole lot about Greenfield yet. I have taken lots of their surveys and feel that they are slow to post earnings or even to send payment. Maybe it is too early to tell. Have done some interactive surveys but payment has not been posted yet. Should I keep going or give up? Any advice would be appreciated.
April 13th, 2008
David, I suggest you hang on a little longer. Yes, Greenfield is sometimes slow to post earnings. It can take several weeks sometimes, but they have always paid me in the past for studies I have completed.
April 13th, 2008
David, only you can decide if Greenfield is worth your time and effort. I have about 15 sites I belong to and Greenfield is one of them. My biggest compalints about them are too many sweepstakes entries for surveys and slow pay. But the interactive surveys, which pay well, make being a member worth the hassle. I would give it a good six months before deciding whether or not to move on.
May 26th, 2008
i joined greenfield about 4 months ago after seeing the name of the company everywhere on the net as been one of the best,but i have been thoroughly , disappointed in them all the surveys i qualified for were sweepstakes and i only get to qualify for 1 in about 25 surveys.After spending quality on a survey i am usually told i dont qualify,and the few i qualified for were sweepstakes.Personally i think they are a bunch of crooks ,i dont respond to their invitations again ,i am fed up with them.
May 30th, 2008
To all of you, QUIT WASTING YOUR TIME!!!!! The only ones making money off the survey scam are the companies themselves. There is no such thing as working a few hours a day to make thousands a week! Unless you are performing brain surgery! Wake up like I had to. Sorry to be blundt, but I have spent countless hours researching this and it is just not possible to make a living enough to pay bills, etc. doing it.
May 31st, 2008
Sandra,
I think you have missed the point of this site, and online surveys in general. Its about market research on new products and services, and that has been going on well before the internet ever existed. Gathering information via online survey panels is just a new way to collect that information, and is definitely not a scam.
True, there are sites that make exaggerated claims about how much you can earn by participating in online surveys, but these are third party sites and not the actual market research panels. If you would take the time to see the literature on our site, you would see that we are one of the few “third party survey sites” that give factual information about online market research panels and the type of income you can expect to make.
Yes, I will agree you will not make thousands a week taking surveys, but again that is not the expectation we have set on this site. Online surveys are meant to be a way for consumers to share their opinions and help shape the directions of new products and services. In exchange for their time and effort, many survey panels will reward their members with cash and prizes.
Are online survey an interesting way to earn extra income in your spare time and is the time spent worth the rewards? Well this of course is a personal preference, but speaking for myself and judging from the comments of many of my readers, I would say yes.
May 31st, 2008
I agree completely with Jim. I do not make enough money to ‘pay all the bills”, but I certainly make enough money to cover our cable and internet bill each month, so every little bit helps.
This site is amazing, so I will still recommend it to everyone I know!