Frequently Asked Questions
Q: Why would a company want to pay me for my opinion?
A: Companies in
Understanding how people think, behave and shop helps them to improve existing products and services develop new products and increase their profit!
With the recent changes to privacy laws it is getting harder and harder for these companies to get your opinions so they willing to pay you money for your opinion, because they will come out ahead and increase their profit.
Q: What kind of work will I need to do to get paid?
A: Market research companies conduct their research in a few different ways.
Online surveys
The surveys are generally intended to get your opinions on various topics, such as what kind of products you buy, why you choose one product over another, what you think of certain products and how much they cost, how much you spend on various products, etc.
Most online surveys are between 5- 30 minutes and the rewards changes according to the length of the survey.
On average the pay is around AU$2.00–AU $75.
One little tip, at the start of every survey you will get the maximum time it will take you to fill up the survey. The length of the survey will depend on your respond to the questions. I found out that usually the actual time it does take to fill up the survey is less than half of the Maximum time.
Focus group
A focus group is a form of research in which a group of people are asked about their attitude towards a product, service, concept, advertisement, idea, or packaging. Questions are asked in an interactive group setting where participants are free to talk with other group members.
In the world of marketing, focus groups are an important tool for acquiring feedback regarding new products, as well as various topics. In particular, focus groups allow companies wishing to develop, package, name, or test market a new product, to discuss, view, and/or test the new product before it is made available to the public. This can provide invaluable information about the potential market acceptance of the product.
Focus groups are held in most capital cities and regional centres. They usually go for 45 minutes to 2.5 hours. The pay varies according to the length of the group.
On average the pay is around AU $75 per an hour but I have got paid up to AU $250.00 for 2 hours.
In most focus group if you required to buy a product to try before the group meet you will be fully reimbursed for your cost.
In most focus groups that held in the evening you will get dinner and drinks!
Read Emails
A lot of companies with some great product cant afford to compete with the big multi national in advertising budget and its much cheaper for them to promote their products via emails. You will receive emails from market research companies and once you click on the link that connect you to the advertised product website your account will get credited around 5 to 10 cents just for opening the email
I know it doesn’t sound like a lot of money but once you looked at thousands of them its all adding up.
I have to admit that at the start I never read the emails but after awhile I start reading some of them and I discovered a lot of great products that saved me a lot of money over the past 15 month.
Mystery shopper
Work and have fun at the same time!
You can become a Mystery or "Secret" Shopper and Earn rewards and cash for posing as a shopper and answering questionnaires and giving feedback about customer service, sales skills, products, procedures, and facilities!
Imagine earning cash or rewards for dining at your favourite restaurant, shopping at retail outlets, or doing other things you would typically pay money to do!
The average length of an assignment is 15 to 30 minutes and the average pay is AU $18-AU$45.
Phone surveys
No more of those annoying phone calls during dinner! From now you will receive an email that will offer you to participate in a phone survey at YOUR CONVINIATE TIME and the email will state the length of the survey and the reward for it.
If you think it’s a fair reward reply to the email and once you have done the phone survey you will get rewarded.
One on one surveys
You will receive emails that offer you to participate in a survey at your own house. A researcher from the company will come to your house at the time that suits you and will ask you few questions ant at the of the questioner you will get paid for your time.
It is up to you to decide if you want to participate.
Check the email for the length of the interview and the pay and if you like it organize a time for it. If you don’t like it simply just don’t reply. You will not get penalised.
Get paid to try new products (and you get to keep them)
Companies will contact you via emails and will offer you to come to a location where they will hold a product research. You will get to try new product and tell them what do you think of the product. You will get paid for your time and get to keep the product too!
Q: What kind of questions they ask?
A: The surveys are generally intended to get your honest opinions on various topics, such as what kind of products you buy, why you choose one product over another, what you think of certain products and how much they cost, how much you spend on various products, etc.
Click here for an example of a hypothetical survey.
Q: How many surveys can I take and how much money will I make?
A: There are no limits to how many surveys and focus groups you can participate in.
The number of surveys you'll take depends on the number of companies you register with, the amount of information you provide them, how many companies you register with, how much work you want to do and your personal profile.
You do have the choice to work as often or little as you wish, the more you work, the more you’ll earn.
Q: Do I need to fit a certain "profile" to take surveys?
A: Everything about you - where you live, whether you have a job or go to school, what kind of car you drive, whether you are single or married, etc. - makes up your personal "profile".
And this profile is what market research companies use to match you up with the surveys and focus groups that are most applicable to you. After all, there's no sense in wasting any one's time by sending you a survey about things you have no interest in or experience with.
While your "profile" is one of the most important factors that will determine the type and number of survey invitations you receive, there is no such thing as a "good" or "bad" profile. Each and every person simply has a different profile, as everyone in the world is a little different.
It doesn't matter if you are single or married, have a job or stay at home with the kids, drive a car or ride a bike, flunked out of school or have a Master's degree - because every one's opinions are valuable to the market research companies and the clients that hire them.
So the short answer is "no" - you do not need to worry about fitting a certain profile in order to get paid for your opinions. If you are 16 years of age or older, this is for you.
Q: Can I do this whenever I want?
A: Yes! That is probably the best part about surveys and why it's the easiest way for the average person to make some extra cash. It's perfect for everyone because you decide when and how much you want to "work" at any given time. You can do it at your own pace.
There is NO minimum work you have to do and you can do this whenever you want.
Q: Do I need any special computer knowledge or software to participate?
A: Absolutely NOT! If you are reading this now it means you have an Internet connection, software and enough computer understanding to join and take surveys.
It will work with windows or Macintosh.
Q: Is my privacy protected?
A: We will NEVER give your personal data to outside parties without your permission! Your privacy is valued and protected. There are two very good market research companies that not recruiting people online. They only take new people by recommendation from an existing member. Sadly they are also two of the best paying companies going around. Once you will become a member of our site I will get those companies to send you an invitation email to join their panel. The companies in my database are legitimate, further to that; they want you to keep offering your opinion to help understanding the market.
Generally they ask you to provide basic information about what you do for a living, your gender, your age, your shopping habits, etc. in order to build your personal "profile". This is how they know which surveys to send you. But you never have to provide any information you are not comfortable giving out.
Each market research company have their own privacy policy to learn more about how they use your information, please read each company’s privacy policy.
To check our privacy policy click here.
Q: Can you tell me when, by whom and how I will be paid?
A: Each time you participate in a survey, focus group, or other paid opportunity; the particular company that is giving or sponsoring the opportunity will pay you directly.
These are often market research firms hired by other companies - both large and small - to do various types of market research on their behalf. That is just how the industry works.
For participation in focus group you will get paid at the end of the session cash in hand!
For online surveys some will pay instantly online via PayPal, others will send you a check in the mail, etc. Just remember, you'll always know the exact details up front, and you pick the ones you like.
Some companies will pay their reward with vouchers, fuel vouchers, Coles Myer vouchers and many more vouchers to some of the major retailers in
I have used these vouchers many times and never had a problem.
Some of the companies have a point system. You will get points for every survey you do. The longer the survey, the more points you get. Those reward points can be redeemed to product online (I got an I pod, coffee machine and much more) or alternatively you can change them to cash (Australian dollars).
Some companies will offer you in return for your opinion an entry into a prize draw.
It is not my favourite choice but as they say ‘you got to be in it to win it’.
I do now one person from
Q: Do I have to pay to join the companies who offer the work after I paid you?
A: Absolutely NOT! They will pay you once you start taking surveys and participate in focus groups.
Q: You mentioned PayPal – do I need to have a PayPal account?
A: Definitely not. There are only a handful of companies that only pay via PayPal. If for one reason or another you can't or don't want to get yourself a free PayPal account, there are still plenty of survey opportunities for you to participate in.
Q: Are you a survey company? What exactly does XtraCash.net.au do?
A: No, we are not a survey or market research company. What we do is provide you with access to my database that lists the best-paid survey companies and opportunities in
Unlike many other similar sites I have only listed companies that pay Australian residents.
No company will make the list until I received a payment from them!
Unlike other sites, who provide you with hundreds of market research companies that will only allow Australian to register but will not pay you because you live outside the mainland USA, I provide you with a list of companies that will pay Australian residents.
You don’t need to register with Hundreds of companies, just register with the ones that will pay people who live in
Q: Are you a legitimate business?
A: Absolutely yes! AAA Gold runs Xtracash.net.au, an established business based in
My ABN is: 85466423150. You can check the ABN and the company status at the Australian Government Website, business.gov.au. Click here to see my details.
Q: 3. How is XtraCash.net.au different from other similar membership sites?
A: Unlike many other similar sites I have only listed companies that pay Australian residents.
No company will make the list until I received a payment from them!
I will add up more companies to the database but only once I’ll receive a payment from them.
Unlike other sites, who provide you with hundreds of market research companies that will only allow Australian to register but will not pay you because you live outside the mainland USA, I provide you with a list of companies that will pay Australian residents.
You don’t need to register with Hundreds of companies, just register with the ones that will pay people who live in
Unlike many other companies that say they are catering for Australians (only because they put a little image of the Aussie flag), Xtracash.net.au is based in
Unlike many other sites that will charge you a ‘special’ price of only $45 - $70 for a database that is useless for an Australians, I only charge AU$29.95 for a list that is relevant to Australian residents.
Q: How soon after I sign up can I get started and make some money?
A: Once you sign up you can get started immediately. This is not to say you will be offered surveys or make money within an hour after joining, but there are several things you need to do in preparation of taking surveys - and you can do these things immediately upon joining us.
Some people start receiving surveys within a few of hours, but the average wait is usually at least a few days. It really depends on your "profile", and which companies you register with.
Please keep in mind that many market research companies only send out 1-2 surveys a month. With these it will take at least a few weeks before you are entered into their system and start receiving surveys from them, depending on when you register.
It's crucial to register with as many as you can - you will NOT make a lot of money from any one company. I will introduce you to enough companies, and the more you register with the more surveys you can take. It's that simple. Once you get going you can do surveys every day.
Unfortunately I can't tell you which companies are "best" for you, because it really depends on you - who you are, where you live, what you do for a living, and all of the other things that make-up your personal "profile" which is what determines the surveys you'll be offered.
... But don't worry, because before not too long you'll know which ones are best for you. Most people end up favouring a handful of 10-20 companies that send them the "best" surveys.
What I can tell you is that I have personally registered with about 65 Australians companies and I receive more survey invitations than I can handle. And there are a lot of people who make substantial money every month from surveys and focus groups. It's entirely up to YOU!
Q: why do I have to pay you a fee? Is it a recurring fee?
A: The most difficult part about making money with paid surveys is finding and sorting through all the market research programs out there. And some of them are "scams" - they don't pay as promised, they bombard you with more advertising, their telemarketers call you during dinner, etc.
It would take you months to find, evaluate, and keep track of all the good opportunities! It took me 15 month to get it right!
The service I provide will save you a tremendous amount of time, hassle, and "trial and error" versus trying to do it all yourself. I have allot of experience with paid surveys, and my members only section lists only the best-paid survey opportunities - and it's updated regularly.
It took me 15 month, hours a day online to sort out the “good” from the “bad”. The ones that will pay Australians vs. the ones that will let you register and will never pay you.
You pay only a one-off registration fee of AU$34.95. This is for unlimited access to the Private Members-Only website, which is updated regularly and always details the best and most up-to-date paid survey opportunities, plus tips, tricks and strategies. You do not have to pay any other fees, to us or anyone else.
Q: What are the different payment options available when registering?
A:
1. Pay now with a credit card online- instant access secure payment
Simply fill up the registration form, click the Join Now button below and you’ll be taken to a secure payment-processing site(PayPal) to enter your card details. It’s 100% safe and secure and you’ll get instant access to the details you need to get start making XTRACASH straight away. You do not need a PayPal account to use your credit card.
2. Direct from your pay pal account- instant access secure payment
3. If you don't have a PayPal account or Credit card and you would still like to join our site, please email us at Info@xtracash.net.au and we will consider any other payment option.
Q: I changed my mind, can I cancel my account and get a refund?
A: You can cancel your membership at any point but we will not offer any refunds. please see our terms and conditions.
Once you gain access to the members area you can get all the information you want and I cant get that back from you. Whilst many people do extremely well at this, I can't offer refunds because I can't actually guarantee the amount of work you will get. Bear in mind that you probably only need to attend one focus group to pay for you initial outlay.
Q: What about taxes?
A: Money earned from focus groups is TAX FREE!!!
Q: I live outside Australia, is there any similar website available that will cater to my region?
A: Yes!