e-Rewards is Scam
Read on to find out more
Thanks for checking out my e-Rewards review. One of the most frequent questions I get when it comes to making money online is related to doing paid surveys. If you’re looking for extra money because a health issue is keeping you at home or you’ve got young children to look after, online surveys can be helpful.
Of course, when it comes to making money online, you must also be careful of scams.
So, in this e-Rewards review I’ll explain how it works, what you can expect, and of course… is e-Rewards legitimate or simply another online scam?
Disclaimer:
Please note, I am not a member or an affiliate for e-Rewards. This review has been researched with information and/or testimonials that are available online in the public domain. Any recommendations and/or conclusions are strictly opinions and may not apply to, or agree with, all persons or situations.
What is e-Rewards?
e-Rewards, also referred to as e-Rewards Opinion Panel, is a market research company that rewards participants for taking paid surveys and sharing their thoughts and opinions online.
Founded in 1999 and based out of Texas, e-Rewards is owned by Research Now Group and is among one of the older survey sites online today.
The way survey sites work is as you’d probably expect. Companies who want to learn more about their audience or customer base, pay market research companies like e-Rewards to conduct surveys and act as advisors when it comes to analyzing the data their surveys produce. .
But not all survey sites and companies who hire them are created equal.So is e-Rewards legit?
As a way to generate extra income, paid surveys and market research companies like e-Rewards are growing more popular by the day, but it’s true…not all survey sites are worth your time, and e-Rewards has some significant issues you should be aware of.
I’ll get to those problems in a moment, but first…
How Does e-Rewards Work?
Like many paid survey sites such as Opinion Outpost and Vindale Research, e-Rewards works together with big brands such as Best Buy and Twitter who are willing to spend their money for your opinions and feedback.
In reality though, the process is not so easy…
The e-Rewards Opinion Panel program is an invite only site, so to join, you’ll need to be asked by one of their partner companies (Best Buy or Twitter as examples).
Of course, surveys don’t pay enough to provide a full-time income online so if you’re at home because of health issues for example, young children to look after or a poor job market… an online business might be what you want.
With so much false information out there though, knowing how (and where) to start is what you need in order to get what you want.
If you have received an e-Rewards invite, registration is straightforward (and free). Once you click the verification link (in your email) you’ll create your profile by adding your name, birth-date etc., followed by an enrollment survey that you have 30 days to complete.
For me, this step is a little intrusive, and when you consider the privacy issues companies are having today… it’s a legitimate worry.
However, giving up some personal information is necessary when doing online surveys because they need to identify your specific demographic and match you with relevant surveys.
Having said that… if answering a few personal questions doesn’t bother you, it may not be an issue.
Who Is e-Rewards For?
Let’s face it… you’re not going to get rich by doing online surveys, but you can earn a few extra bucks. Surveys can also be a good way for new online entrepreneurs to make their first dollar or two online and experience what it’s like to make money from home.
Who It’s Not For
If significant money online is what you’re looking for, e-Rewards will probably not be for you.
The real advantage to making money online is that the web gives you leverage. It enables you to produce something once and get paid over and over for it. You can earn true passive income…
But paid surveys like e-rewards are zero-leverage activities. You only get paid once for the work you do, and even then, it’s not much
No matter what your financial goals are, you can’t beat the “compounding effects” of doing something once but getting paid for it multiple times.
If you’re looking for more time and freedom to do the things you love… an online business might be what you want.
With so much junk and misinformation out there though, knowing how (and where) to get started properly is what you need in order to get what you want.
Is e-Rewards Legitimate?
To be honest… I’m not sure how to answer that.
I’ll get into the details of how e-Rewards pays, what the rewards are and so on… but first, as I mentioned above, e-Rewards has some significant issues you need to be aware of.
Does that make them a scam? No… (so by default I would have to say yes they’re legit)
But the first problem is common to all online survey sites…
You take your time submitting a survey only to see a message popup half-way through or near the end saying, “you don’t qualify”. This is usually because your answers reveal you’re the wrong candidate (or demographic) for that specific survey.
It’s frustrating, but it’s normal (and even necessary) for surveys to do this for accuracy.
Also, you may find repetitive questions in the surveys to see if you’re paying attention. A lot of people cheat by running through the questions quickly and choosing random answers. So, if you answer these answer these similar questions differently throughout the survey, they’ll possibly disqualify you or even suspend your account.
And of course, if you don’t qualify, you don’t get paid. At least not the full amount.
e-Rewards does offer up to 25 points for disqualifying surveys… but if there’s one reason that people call online surveys a scam, this is it. The accusation is that they get your information and then kick you out of the survey so they don’t have to pay.
I’m not saying e-Rewards is guilty of this, it’s just a common complaint among all survey platforms.
The second problem is a much bigger issue though, and you discover it once you start digging into the many e-Rewards reviews and complaints…
e-Rewards Reviews and Complaints
To be clear, e-Rewards has been known as a good survey site for many years, and again, they are legit.
I’ll get into some of e-Rewards’ problems in a moment, but to be fair, you can find positive reviews as well…
Unfortunately, there are some negative reviews too…
One big problem they are currently having, are hundreds of complaints from members claiming they are not getting paid. And some of them have accumulated hundreds of dollars in rewards.
In fact, there are so many complaints that the Better Business Bureau has issued a warning.
There is no bigger breach of trust than not paying those who work for you.
e-Rewards is receiving money from their partner companies for YOUR opinions and efforts… and withholding your share. This is serious.
It’s no different than your employer not paying you, and then dodging your phone calls when you try to find out what’s going on.
If it were one or two complaints you could justify it as a simple error or oversight.
But when there are hundreds of complaints you begin to wonder if it’s deliberate. I’m NOT saying e-Rewards is knowingly scamming people, but I also can’t say they’re not.
I won’t speculate and I’m definitely not making any accusations against e-Rewards, this is just what I found on the Better Business Bureau website.
And, I’ll give e-Rewards credit for responding to many of those complaints. Some were resolved to the customer’s satisfaction (including an $800 payment below) and some were not.
The other complaints about re-Rewards are common to most survey companies… like the disqualifying issue mentioned earlier, and other common problems like not getting a response when you send emails.
Not good… but not deal breakers.
Among the positive reviews, members say e-Rewards pays higher than average for an online survey company.
How Much Does e-Rewards Pay?
I couldn’t find any specifics regarding e-Rewards pay rates, but I did find people claiming you can expect $4.00 or more. If true, that’s double what you’ll earn from most survey sites.
When you complete a survey, you’ll earn Opinion Points (e-Rewards currency). A hundred points is equal to roughly 33.33 cents… so if you’re looking for a $25 gift card, at their current points:dollar ratio, you’ll need 7500 points.
And speaking of gift cards, there are 50+ retailers they work with (although it seems, from reading member reviews, this changes periodically and there are not as many choices as there used to be).
e-Rewards Gift Cards and Other Rewards
- e-Gift cards (you should receive them 1 – 2 hours after redemption)
- Physical gift cards (4 – 6 weeks)
- Magazine subscriptions
- Airline Miles
Minimum Payout
Depending on the reward you trade your points (or e-rewards currency) for, the minimum payout threshold can be as low as $10 for some gift cards.
e-Rewards Redemption
It shouldn’t be an issue for most people, but e-Rewards now requires mobile or landline verification when you redeem your points. Like 2-step authentication, they’ll send you a code which you are required to use for redemption.
The purpose of this is to make your account more secure, but not everyone is happy about it. Here’s a complaint by one person who suggests the real reason e-Rewards asks you for a phone number is for spam.
What I Like About e-Rewards
- Higher than average payouts.
- Relatively low minimum redemption threshold.
- Can search for surveys inside your member account (rather than waiting for them to be emailed).
What I Don’t Like
- It’s impossible to overlook so many complaints about not getting paid. I cannot confidently say you’ll be compensated for your time filling out surveys whether e-Rewards is legit or not (they are legit, but these payment complaints shouldn’t exist).
- No referral program.
- No passive income potential doing surveys.
Where Do You Go From Here?
You can probably tell, this isn’t my favorite method of making money online.
But, that’s just me…
Doing paid surveys online may be exactly what you’re looking for though. It’s relatively safe and with little effort has the potential to give you some extra money. Not a lot, but a little.
Surveys of course won’t be enough to quit your job, but if you’ve never made money online before, they can be a good first step to something bigger down the road.
If you’re at home because of a medical issue or injury, maybe little ones to look after… then an online business might be what you want.
Maybe you’re just sick and tired of working for someone else…
If that’s the case, knowing how (and where) to get started online is what you need in order to get what you want.
As far as recommending e-Rewards, the number of complaints and problems reported gives me pause so I’ll leave it up to. It’s free to join and they are legit… but long-time members who have been doing their surveys for years say they used to be really good but have recently gone downhill.
It’s hard to speculate what’s going on behind the scenes, but again, e-Rewards is partners with some big name brands (who’s advisors wouldn’t recommend if they were a scam) so maybe the challenges they are having are only temporary.
Hopefully…
Anyway… thanks for stopping by (it’s always appreciated) and I hope my e-Rewards review was helpful. If you have any comments, questions or experience with e-Rewards, please share in the comments section below.
