Demographics and Screen-Outs

"demographics

Pronunciation: /dɛməˈgrafɪks/

noun

statistical data relating to the population and particular groups within it"

(Oxford Dictionaries)

Some people I have talked to have said that because they don't meet the correct demographics they have not been successful in earning enough from surveys to make it worthwhile. It is true that a lot of brands tailor their surveys for a certain demographic, the 'perfect consumer', so for instance, if you're a young mother with school age kids you will find you fit into the optimum consumer bracket for lots of surveys, they want to know your opinion. This does not mean you won't get any surveys if you don't fit into that mould, it's all about finding the right panel and waiting for the surveys to roll in. This is where screen-outs happen, despite the fact you will have given the panel lots of demographic information when you signed up, at the start of a survey you will be asked for some screening information such as you gender, age etc. and this will decide whether you are selected to continue with the survey. At this point some panels will give you a couple of points or an entry into a monthly prize draw as a thank you for attempting the survey but screening-out.

The demographics used to select participants for surveys are not published so it's mainly guess work but the one thing I will say is never lie to make yourself seem more appealing for a survey. You have no idea what the survey is about and by lying you could be screening yourself out of a great earning opportunity and if you did make it through the screening with false information and where invited to join a focus group as a result you would probably have to prove you are who you say you are. It's just not worth it, be honest and hope you're just what they're looking for.

There are some survey companies that I am sent very few surveys from, these seem to favour either younger or older participants so it is always worth joining lots of panels to see which you find the most lucrative. The one thing I have discovered while talking to people about surveys is that my favourite site maybe someone else's nightmare. Try a few and see how well you think they're rewarding you.
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