Monday, September 24, 2012

Free Prizes Etc. Website Comparisons… My Opinion

Free Prizes Etc. Website Comparisons… My Opinion
I first want to make sure that you all know that this is an editorial.  All opinions and views are mine and mine alone, and I am receiving no compensation or endorsement from this post.
With all that said, I want to talk a bit about those sites that we all hear about… the ones where we can earn FREE stuff just by doing little tasks.  The top 3 (in my opinion) are MyPoints, InboxDollars, and Swagbucks.
Each one does things a bit differently, but each keep you focused on getting stuff for free or earn $$ online.
First question: How do I earn _____?  
Let’s compare:
Inbox Dollars                                     MyPoints                                            Swagbucks 
Paid Emails                                          Emails                                                 Surveys
   Surveys                                               Surveys                                               Daily Deals
Paid Offers                                         Booking Travel                                   Daily Polls
Games                                                 Games                                                 Games
Search                                               Shopping                                             Search
Tasks                                                   MyPoints Visa                                                Shopping
Coupons                                              Coupons                                              Coupons
                                                                                                                        NOSO
Swagbucks TV
Special Offers
Tasks
Trade-Ins
Sign Up Bonuses?
Each one offers something special when you sign up for free.
InboxDollars gives you a $5 credit.
MyPoints (well, I’m not seeing a bonus offer for signing up here.)
Swagbucks gives you free Swagbucks when you sign up with a referral code from a friend.

Okay, so my personal ranking is:
1.      Swagbucks
2.      Inbox Dollars
3.      MyPoints
So far this year, I have gotten $55 in Amazon Gift Cards on Swagbucks, $30 from InboxDollars, and 180 points on MyPoints.  And I’m on track for more rewards before the end of the month!! 
Following all this, I have copied the FAQ’s from each of the sites for your reference. 
I welcome all comments on your personal experiences!!  Let me know if I’m right or wrong here!!

Thanks for reading.
Amy


How can InboxDollars® help me earn cash or rewards for my online activities?
Advertisers pay InboxDollars® to reach consumers like you. Through programs ranging from paid online surveys to PaidEmail®, InboxDollars® shares the revenue we receive from advertisers with our Members. Your time and participation are valuable, so join now to be rewarded!

Does it cost anything to join InboxDollars®?
Absolutely not! InboxDollars® is 100% free to join. Simply complete our Signup Form and we’ll even credit your account $5.00 just for trying our service.

I signed up, but did not receive my Confirmation Email?
Your Confirmation Email is sent immediately after you sign up for InboxDollars®. It may take a few minutes for the Confirmation Email to reach your Inbox, especially if you are using a free email service provider such as Hotmail, Yahoo, or Gmail.
If you have not received your Confirmation Email within a few minutes, please check your Junk or Bulk folder, as some email providers may automatically filter your Email. To ensure delivery of our PaidEmails® to your Inbox, please add paidemail@inboxdollars.com to your email address book or contact list.

Can I really earn money for reading Emails from InboxDollars®?
Absolutely! Simply click the confirmation link in the PaidEmail® that InboxDollars® delivers to your Inbox. After clicking the confirmation link, your account will be credited instantly and you’ll be taken to our Advertiser’s web site.

How much Email will I receive?
InboxDollars® sends PaidEmails® based on your activity in our program. Members who actively participate may receive up to 3 PaidEmails® per day, while Members who do not actively participate may not receive any PaidEmails®. If your account is active and you are not receiving regular PaidEmails®, please add paidemail@inboxdollars.com to your email address book or contact list. Members outside the U.S. will not receive regular PaidEmails®

MYPOINTS

Do I have to sign up for stuff to earn money?
Most of the PaidEmails® that InboxDollars® sends to you will include an opportunity to earn additional money by taking advantage of the offer for the product or service that is being advertised. However, you will earn cash for confirming the PaidEmail® regardless of whether or not you take advantage of the offer being advertised.


Sign into MyPoints
Log into your MyPoints account before you start your online shopping.
Shop Your Favorite Brands
Find your favorite brands, make purchases and watch your Point balance grow.
Get Cash, Gift Cards or Travel Miles
Redeem your Points for valuable rewards, including gift cards to your favorite stores, cash or travel miles.
How do I earn Points in the MyPoints Program?
You can earn Points in a bunch of ways. For example:
·         Shopping online, using our site as a starting point
·         Clicking on emails we send out on behalf of our partners
·         Booking travel with the sites you already trust
·         Using the MyPoints® Rewards Visa® credit card
·         Taking surveys
·         Playing online games
...and much, much more!

How do I ensure that I will receive my Points for a purchase?
You can ensure that you'll receive purchase Points by doing the following:
1. Always visit MyPoints.com and click on the merchant you wish to purchase with.2. Immediately make your purchase before doing anything else, as the merchants will track you as being from MyPoints for only a short time (usually it tracks as long as you do not close the browser window or navigate away from that merchant's web site.). Only use coupon codes provided by MyPoints, as coupon codes from other sites may disrupt our tracking. If this happens your purchase will not be tracked as a MyPoints purchase and therefore will not be eligible for Points.

How long does it take to see the Points for a purchase in my account statement?  It can take up to 30 days to see your purchase Points in your account statement as our partner merchants (the companies you reach through MyPoints) report purchases to MyPoints at different intervals. Many, but not all, of our partner merchants report to us within 2-5 business days. Once your purchase has been reported to us, MyPoints posts the Points to your account and these Points will be in a pending state for 30 days from the post date (not the purchase date). If after 30 days from the purchase date you still do not see the Points in your account, please click on the activity in question in your account statement and follow the instructions on how to contact Member Services.

What do I do if my Point total is missing or incorrect for a transaction?  First, please allow up to 30 days for Points to appear in your account. If your Points have not appeared after 30 days:
Go to the "My Account" page (the "My Account" link appears on the top-right of every page on the site)
Within "My Statement," find the transaction in question and expand the transaction by clicking on the "[+]" symbol
Click on the "Contact Member Services" link that appears within the Description and submit a Member Services request
If you can't find the merchant clickthru in your statement, email Member Services and provide them with a copy of the purchase confirmation email you received from the merchant. To do this, copy and paste the confirmation email into the web form to Member Services (we can't accept attachments). Your purchase confirmation must include the merchant name, date of purchase, order number and subtotal (excluding taxes and shipping).

What are pending Points?  These are earned Points that have been reported to us by the merchant, but not yet available for redemption. Points go into a pending period to allow for returns or cancelled orders.

When I make a purchase through MyPoints, will I earn Points for tax, shipping and handling? Points are only awarded for the subtotal of your purchase–excluding sales tax, shipping and handling.

What do I do if I'm not receiving any BonusMails or if BonusMails are being delivered to my "bulk" or "spam" folders?  For some members, BonusMail gets caught by overzealous spam filters. The easiest way to make sure you get your BonusMail delivered to your inbox is to add BonusMailReply@MyPoints.com to your email address book or contact list. If you have done this and are still not receiving BonusMails, please contact MyPoints Member Services.

Swag Bucks

Swag Bucks are the web's premier digital dollar. Accumulate at your own pace and redeem them for exclusive Swagbucks.com prizes.

How do I win Swag Bucks?
Visit the How It Works page for more information on how to start accumulating Swag Bucks!
How long does it take to redeem prizes?
The frequency with which you use www.swagbucks.com, determines the length of time necessary to win top prizes. Visit the How It Works page, as well the Winning Tips page, to learn how to maximize your Swag Bucks account.

How are Swag Store prices determined?
The prices of Swag Store items are based on several indicators, including availability; cost of prize acquisition; shipping fees; and the dollar value of Swag Bucks. Swag Bucks do not have a preset value, but like other commodities may fluctuate according to the number in circulation, relative demand, and other external factors.

I have the Swag Bucks to redeem a prize, but I'm being told that I don't have enough. What's going on?
You can only redeem prizes on the site(s) where you've earned your Swag Bucks. If you've used multiple Swag Bucks-powered sites, you may want to visit the section titled "My Swag Bucks" in your account. There you can find a complete breakdown of your Swag Bucks account and how many Swag Bucks are available for you to spend, and on which particular site.

Can I transfer Swag Bucks from one Search&Win site to another?
Swag Bucks earned on one site cannot be used or transferred to another site. To ensure you are maximizing your Swag Bucks earnings, be sure to use the Search&Win site that has the prizes you want, at the best possible prices.

My friend registered under me, but I'm not receiving matching Swag Bucks. Why not?
When you refer a friend and they sign up with the link you send them, you are awarded matching Swag Bucks (within 48 hours) only for the Bucks they win while searching (up to a total of 1,000). You are not, however, awarded matching Bucks for those earned as a sign-up bonus, through Shop&Earn, from our trade-in programs, from entering Swag Codes, from Swagstakes, from friends of friends, or from any other method.

I've heard that I can earn Swag Bucks for sending in a photo and/or video of me with my new Swag Store prize. Is that true?
Yes! You can earn multiple Swag Bucks after you've received your prize in the mail. Simply send a photo of yourself and your Swag Store prize to prizephoto@swagbucks.com and 10 Swag Bucks will be credited to your account within approximately 7 to 14 business days. Please remember that YOU must be in the photo with your prize to be accepted. You can send in a total of five photos.

You can also film a video of yourself unboxing your prize from its shipping material. All you have to do is upload your video to www.youtube.com and send the url link of your video As with the photo to prizephoto@swagbucks.com and we will credit your account with 20 Swag Bucks!

Your picture/video may appear in one or more of the following pages: Swag Bucks homepage, blog, Swag Bucks Flickr page, facebook wall, twitter feed, etc.

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