Dogmatic? You don’t have to limit yourself to arguing with strangers on social media. You can get paid to participate in secondary activities for the opinionated.
They range from website reviews to opinions on court cases, books and other products. You don’t need a college education, or arming yourself with reference materials or statistics. You may, however, need a fast internet connection and a fairly up-to-date computer system to apply. Otherwise, just have an opinion. And, since you’re still reading, you probably have one.
Here are six categories of secondary activities to choose from. But there’s no reason to pick just one. The best way to make money from these side hustles is to sign up for all of them – or at least all of the ones you like.
False juror
Have you ever served on a jury? If so, you probably spent a long time waiting before you could review the case. Besides, you hardly get paid for your time. Being a fake juror is much better. First of all, you usually don’t need to go anywhere. Mock jurors typically receive case information via email. Cases are compressed into presentations of 30 minutes to two hours, written or video. The jurors are then asked to decide on the quality of the presentation of the case – or part of the case. Even better, mock jurors earn considerably more than minimum wage.
For example, Verdict online pays $20 to $60 per case review. Cases typically take 20 minutes to an hour. Everything is done electronically, except the payroll. You will receive a check within two weeks of the end of the examination of your file.
JuryTest pays $5 to $50 per case review, which is done through a media player. Cases can take five to 30 minutes to be heard, after which you provide your comments.
Less attractive fake juror sites include RegistrationDirect and eJury, who pay smaller allowances for each case.
Discussion groups
Manufacturers of everything from cars to electronics often ask consumers to comment on their products. Whether judging the convenience of automotive cupholders or whether a smartphone is too heavy for your pocket, focus groups help manufacturers improve the usability of their designs.
Focus groups are usually done in person, but the COVID era has caused some to take place via videoconference. The idea is to bring several independent people into a room to discuss their likes and dislikes of the product.
These gigs don’t happen every day. But when they do, they pay handsomely – over $50 an hour. There are several good companies to sign up with to find focus groups – FindFocusGroups, Work on the field, Shifrin–Hayworth and Consumer Opinion Services.
Product testing/evaluation
A handful of sites also pay consumers to review products or commercial buildings. The two sites we recommend in this space both pay between $5 and $35 per gig. Since gigs normally last a few minutes to half an hour, that equates to a decent hourly wage. These sites:
Product tube is a consumer research company that wants to know your opinion on products ranging from laundry detergent to baby food. Product reviews happen via short selfie-style videos on your smartphone. Each video should be two to four minutes long. Payment is made by Amazon gift card, usually within a few days of completing the assignment.
Ivueit connects freelancers with businesses who want photos and short appraisals of their commercial property to verify maintenance or the status of construction or repairs. Each task takes approximately 10-15 minutes to complete. You will take photos and answer a short survey about the condition of the photographed property. You are usually paid for assignments within 24 hours.
book reviews
Have you ever done a long book review on Amazon? Then you might qualify to get paid to review independently published books.
American Book Review is one of the few sites that will pay you to read and provide brief reviews of independently published books and authors. The site does not pay much. But it also has reasonable rules about what should be in an exam – a half-abstract; half-comment — and length. Reviews are usually between 250 and 300 words and pay $25. Longer reviews of 500-600 words pay more – up to $75.
online book club will pay you to read books and review them for the site. However, the first exam you take is free. After that, the salary depends on various factors, but caps at $60. But be aware that OnlineBookclub reviewers say they are often denied payment for completed reviews. Of the two options, US Review is the better choice.
Website testing
If you spend a lot of time on the web and have a clear idea of what makes a website user-friendly, you can sign up for UserTesting. User testing uses freelancers to review new websites and mobile apps in exchange for a $10 tester fee. Given that the tests take about 20 minutes, that works out to a good hourly wage for working from home. But the tests are not available every hour, or even every day.
Survey sites
Survey sites are the least lucrative, but often the easiest, secondary scams for the opinionated. These sites pay rewards — usually pennies to a dollar — for completing surveys on everything from insurance to breakfast cereals.
You often have to answer a number of screening questions to qualify for paid surveys. And the biggest complaint about these sites is that the screening surveys can feel like a survey itself, taking five to 10 minutes to complete. But you are not paid to be controlled. And screening will often prevent you from participating in the paid survey.
We only found one site that does this pre-screening and only contacts you when you qualify for a paid survey. This site, Prolific, is our top pick in the category. However, if you’re stuck in an airport or in a jury room waiting for your number to be called, or half-watching golf on TV, you can use survey sites to earn a few bucks while you perform. several tasks. Some other sites to consider: Swag Bucks, Poll followerand Qmee.
Kristof is the editor of SideHusl.coman independent site that reviews hundreds of lucrative opportunities in the gig economy.