Do you often participate in online surveys for expert market research companies? Or other forms of market research like CATI and focus groups? Or you want to learn more about participating in market research as a respondent and make some extra bucks? Then, this comprehensive guide to filling out surveys and making the most of your time and effort without compromising your data security is a must-read.

Learn the ropes of responding to online surveys the right way and make your 2024 more fun.

Tips to Participate in Online Surveys as Panel Members

#1 Create and Maintain a Robust Profile

 Create Clean Profile

The first step in maintaining a robust profile is to create a clean account with a panel you want to join. Add all your information correctly with a clear picture, if asked, that looks professional.

Also, create an email address dedicated to your survey panel. If you wish to participate in multiple panels, you can use the same email address, but make sure to keep your work, personal, and school accounts separate.

Do check for typos in the data you’ve entered. One wrong information because of silly typing issues can cost you your membership and rewards.

Deduplicate your data

Sometimes, you might have multiple records available across the surveys because your profile has changed. You might have data discrepancies because you created multiple profiles. Reasons could be a forgotten password or login name, a banned account, or others.

In all such cases, try to collect all your data and available profiles across the panels. Remove or delete accounts you don’t use or have wrong data.

The bottom line is to maintain a single profile for one panel. And don’t let discrepancies creep into that profile compared to your correct records. Also, ensure your profiles have the same data across all the panels.

For instance, if you recently changed the address, update it for all your accounts.

Complete Prerequisites

Most panels want you to complete fields that aren’t mandatory. Such fields might include (but aren’t limited to) hobbies, interests, physical health, your views on social issues, and much more.

While you’re not compelled to provide such information, offering data for those you are comfortable with is good. These fields help top market research companies gain better insights through surveys.

Say No to Fake Profiles

Creating fake profiles to bag more online surveys mars the agenda of market research consultants and brands, ruining your reasons to voice opinions. Also, you might get banned from panels for life. So, avoid creating duplicate profiles with slight tweaks in names or other fields or with different email addresses.

You must also refrain from adding data that doesn’t belong to your profile. For instance, you want to fill out surveys that need expert market research opinions from doctors, but you’re still an intern in a hospital. Posing yourself as a practicing medical doctor isn’t right at many levels. Your one wrong opinion might affect a healthcare brand’s critical decisions.

Here is a small list of FAQs for online survey respondents you might want to learn about while creating a profile for the first time.

Once you create your profile, it’s time to learn how to express yourself right in your responses.

#2 Write Responses to Make Your Opinions Matter

Follow the Instructions

Carefully read and follow all the instructions in the survey invitation to make your opinions count. If you misread or misunderstand a requirement, you might end up wasting your time. Ultimately, either you will abandon the survey or submit the wrong data.

In both cases, you will skew the results or make your profile vulnerable to blacklisting.

Sometimes, a form might ask you to fill out some of your profile information again. Or the data might come prepopulated based on your credentials. That might be crucial for the survey. So, don’t ignore these boring questions or the mistakes in the prepopulated entries.

Understand the Context

A survey might not have you in its target audience, and yet you might receive it for several reasons. You should proceed to fill out a survey only when you understand its context and target audience.

If the survey is not meant for you, you will only waste your time and twist the data the company needs. When you don’t understand the context, you again offer views that might not matter at all, resulting in the same outputs.

Do check the survey descriptions before clicking the form, and reach out to the company if you keep getting the wrong ones.

  Write Crisp and Clear Answers

For open-ended questions where you’ve to fill out your thoughts instead of choosing one or more options from a list, please be careful while writing your responses. Don’t worry, these questions aren’t there to scare you. They collect a better understanding of your views on a matter.

Since these questions need wordy answers, try to formulate your responses in succinct and clear sentences. Don’t repeat a point or be loud or rude in your response. Don’t retract your hands from being honest with your opinions.

Avoid jargon and slang, too many emoticons, acronyms, and texting language. Don’t use sentences with hidden meanings because reading between the lines in survey programming is difficult.

Be Honest and Authentic

You might get inclined to offer biased answers to be in the good books of the brand. But every researching brand wants your honest feedback.

So, share your genuine reviews. Don’t try to copy someone else, but be yourself while writing your replies.

Remember, a survey works in the favor of the public only when the input data to the survey is authentic. Otherwise, the very purpose of online market research is defeated.

 Proofread and Revise

You might think that your answers are correct. But because of a mouse slip or a distraction, you might have selected the wrong option in the multiple-choice questions. Or perhaps you were confused.

Imagine missing “not” from your open-ended answer. That will take the whole response in the opposite direction. So, proofread your long answers and review the choices you’ve selected.

Read 7 tips to learn the art of crafting great opinions that matter.

#3 Run from Committing These Mistakes

 You Got Scammed

The first red flag that you’re not doing it right with online surveys is being scammed. You can get duped in several ways.

Bogus companies might misuse your data or share it with unauthorized parties. They might get into your bank accounts. Or ask you to pay a tiny amount for registration, say $5. This small payment might seem fine when they make tall promises to make you rich in 6 months. Or even a few weeks.

You might get lured by the gifts they show in emails and web apps. Read how you can find legit paid surveys. One caveat: never pay. None of the top market research companies ask for a penny.

Don’t miss reading this post’s last section to learn about data privacy and security.

You Faked Data

Blacklist databases exist that can log your profile if you fake your data in any way. Created multiple accounts to bag more surveys; changed your demographics to fetch surveys that aren’t meant for you; or faked as someone else (identity theft). These are the way panelists fake their data.

Instead, start small and fill out genuine data, share your opinions in surveys suited for your profile, and use survey routers (Opinionest doesn’t offer this facility at the moment.).

We aren’t saying your data can’t go wrong. You might miss updating your profile after you change your career. You could mention the wrong location because the mouse played a trick, and you didn’t realize you were choosing an incorrect option.

So, review your demographic details after profile creation. Revisit your account demographics every quarter or 6 months and update it. Stay vigilant and honest so that you can earn rewards without worry.

You Aren’t Attentive

Top market research companies introduce trap questions, also known as red herrings. These questions check your attentiveness to a survey. They can be unrelated to the survey topic or related but irrelevant.

For instance, “This survey is for medical professionals” with options yes and no for a survey meant for medical professionals. Although related, it is irrelevant. Or asking about “which car you own”. These questions are meant to check how attentive the respondents are. So many bots and professional respondents participate in online surveys not to share views but to make money or skew the data.

You could be a genuine participant, but if you are not attentive, you might be thrown out of the survey, unable to submit it, or will be banned from surveys in the future.

 You Missed Bonus

If you’re not serious about your opinions or profile, you might lose out on making some extra rewards. For instance, no one asks for a registration fee. No genuine market research consultants team promises to relieve you from debts in months. But they offer tiny rewards such as discount vouchers and redeemable points.

You might not know that most platforms provide you with extra benefits for referrals and as loyal customers.

If you didn’t know these tips, use them now and never miss the brownie points.

Here is your in-depth guide on the common mistakes respondents make in online surveys and their easy solutions.

#4 Abide by Ethical Guidelines

 Value Privacy

Just like you want your data to be in safe hands, you must respect if they ask for privacy and confidentiality.

A brand might show you crucial information in a video or share it in a survey form. In case of a new product launch, they might want to keep their flagship products and USPs under wraps. If you’re a beta tester for a new product, they may ask you not to discuss it with your friends and family.

With CATI surveys and focus group discussions, such confidentiality matters even more as you might be their subject matter expert. Your input is valuable for product design or development.

In all such scenarios, you must honor their request.

 Avoid Biasing

Biasing taints the outcome of a survey. Never answer a question with biases. Your leaning towards one emotion might affect the brands’ survey altogether.

For instance, if a survey has only 2 participants. You are in the survey because you used one product but aren’t happy with that. However, the current survey is for another one. You choose options and write open-ended answers based on your previous experience.

We understand this is a possible scenario. However, your answers can distort the data by 50%.

In another scenario, you fill out a survey based on an ongoing rumor in the market. This way, you let your prejudices reign over your true experience.

Mind Your Words

Like biasing, a wrong word choice could twist your answer completely or be useless to the decision.

For instance, words such as “always”, “never”, “every time”, and “forever” give a wrong picture of your experiences. Avoid using lines or words with absolute meaning. “I hate this product” only tells your emotions and doesn’t help the brand with the reasons. Instead, “I didn’t like the product because it’s too bulky while traveling” makes more sense.

“Best product ever” can make a brand happy, but again, the underlying reason is missing.

 Don’t Share Unless Asked

Most panel companies are open to sharing the survey with friends and family to strengthen their panel. Also, references coming from a panelist are usually authentic. But if the company asks not to share the survey, they might want to keep it confidential. So, abide by the instructions.

Similarly, you might receive the outcome of a survey you participated in. But with the caveat not to share the results as the company might want to withhold the outcome for a certain amount of time. In such cases, respect their needs.

Stay Honest, Authentic, and True

We’ve already discussed these in section #2 while explaining how to write better responses.

Read more ethical guidelines you must follow as a survey participant.

#5 Secure Personal Data

Follow Opt-In and Opt-Out

When registering for a panel membership, look for the opt-in consent. The panel asks all the members to agree to receive emails, app notifications, and sometimes texts via SMS or WhatsApp. Allow opt-in only if you are comfortable receiving texts or any other mode of information.

However, if you feel you’re getting promotional emails or texts, immediately opt out according to the policy mentioned on the company’s website.

Also, as a panel member, your demographics, such as email address, physical location, age, gender, etc., are stored in some database. This strictly happens only after your permission. If your panel company doesn’t seek your consent while you create your profile, chuck the panel.

Protect Your Identity

At times, you might participate in sensitive surveys that might make people uncomfortable during the process or after the results are published.

In such cases, you might like to check with the company if you can only share your initials in the name section. Additionally, use an email address that doesn’t reveal your identity. However, refrain from creating a fake profile or filling out the wrong demographics.

We assure you no panel company or researching brand ever reports surveyed data based on individual identities but aggregates it based on location, age, education, and other unidentifiable parameter.

 Know About Data Sharing

Top market research companies sometimes share data with third parties by being inside the jurisdiction of cyber laws. For instance, a panel might share the collected data for data mining and reporting with an analytics tool for easy reporting and decision-making.

The panel and/or the research team should mention all such clauses in their survey conditions or on the website. They also share your data with advertisements and social media widgets for marketing. Make sure to only accept mandatory data sharing via website cookies.

Never share your bank details, finance-related information, and other sensitive personal information that could lead to identity theft or financial threats.

Read more on data sharing guidelines with panel companies.

Read the Policies

All your survey invitation emails must carry a link to the privacy policies and international security standards a company follows. Read them carefully before you start filling out surveys.

All the panel companies should mention how they use your data, their data collection, processing, retention, and archival methods. A survey should explicitly tell how the panel and the brand will use the collected data.

Remember, when you create a profile, the company mentions all the policies somewhere near the submit button, the opt-in section, or the checkbox that you click agreeing to their terms and conditions. If not, turn down the panel instantly.

Report Concerns

If you find anything that seems to breach data privacy or any global standards, you can report it to the company. The panel must mention a grievance policy and an email address where you can raise your concerns. If not, it isn’t the right panel for you to enroll with.

Likewise, if you feel your data is being misused at any instant in your survey participation journey, highlight the same to the panel.

Also, read about protecting your personal data privacy in online surveys.

Looking For a Legit Panel Company?

Have you followed all the mentioned tricks and tips to participate in online surveys and are still unhappy? Then, you need a team of market research consultants who value your opinions and the process as much as the survey outputs.

Opinionest is one such panel company where you don’t need to worry about your data security or scams. Register with us for free and start filling out surveys.