Wouldn't it be great to make money for something you already do for fun and for free?
Now you can.
Market researchers on the Web discovered something a couple years ago, that web surfers pay more attention to ads online if they are paid to. So they created web sites and services that did just that, paid users to look at advertisements on web sites. Sound too good to be true? It isn't.Members of Cybergold have been are able to just that since 1995. They get "paid" anywhere from a quarter to several dollars to look at web sites and answer online quizzes about them. This payment can be in four different forms: direct deposit to a checking account, credit to a Visa card, donation to a nonprofit organization, or deposited in a CyberCash (an Internet bank) account.
Other such services soon followed. One of the biggest and most ambitious of these was FreeRide, which started out not paying users cash but instead paying their Internet service provider bills. In addition to the online ads, FreeRide also paid its members to clip UPC codes from groceries and common household goods, and added points from those to the users' credit. Eventually, they branched out and started offering music store gift certificates, magazine subscriptions, online games, and even Playboy Online memberships.
Looking at advertisements isn't the only way to make money online. Several sites, including Greenfield Online and FocusLine pay members to fill out surveys and questionnaires. Sometimes they conduct online focus groups and discussions that can earn $25-45 for little effort at all.
Admittedly, even the hardiest web surfer can't make more than $20-50 a month at these sites, but think about this. It's money for 'netting.
And you're surfing for free.
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