Review of Harris Poll Online

In the search for legitimate survey companies that pay, I have personally seen the good, the bad and the ugly. However, after spending the last six years playing the “make money with surveys” game I have my list of favorites and not-so-favorites that I am willing to share with the masses and save other people loads of time. Harris Poll Online is one of the very first survey panels I joined in 2005 and I am still a member. That said, I’ll provide you with my experience with this site and allow you to judge for yourself whether it is worth the effort.

Harris Poll Online is an online survey panel operated by Harris Interactive (Harris Poll). It offers incentives to panel members in exchange for participating in research studies. Harris Poll itself has been around for more than 45 years and is considered by many reputable businesses to be the solution to all of their research/marketing needs. Harris Interactive has conducted surveys in over 80 countries and boasts more than 6 million members.

The incentive catalog has changed quite a bit since I first joined the site, but the general merchandise has remained the same. Gift cards, small household appliances like blenders, toasters, and hair dryers, DVDs, a small selection of books and small electronic devices and accessories like mp3 players, headphones and protective cases are all prize options. Sweepstakes for cash prizes are also offered.

Survey panelists must first register with Harris Interactive. Registration is free and is open to individuals at least 13 years of age who are legal residents of either the United States or of “countries approved for shipping from the U.S.” (Harris Poll Online.com FAQs) Once members complete the registration process, Harris Poll will send survey invitations via email. In exchange for completing or attempting each survey, members will receive HiPoints, which can be redeemed for any of the gift cards or merchandise in Harris Poll prize catalog, also known as Folios. Point incentives may range between 30 and several hundred HiPoints. Members need at least 200 points to redeem for sweepstakes entries and at least 800 points to redeem for a $5 Amazon.com gift certificate or $5 iCard Gift Card and other merchandise. The actual surveys vary in length from five minutes to one hour.

I have been a member of Harris Poll Online since 2005 and have redeemed my points a total of six times. That averages to once a year. Here’s my list of rewards received:

• $5 BestBuy Gift Card – September 15, 2005 – 800 points
• $5 Target Gift Card – July 30, 2007 – 800 points
• 128MB MP3 Player/USB Flash Drive – October 12, 2007 – 2500 points
• $5 Paypal Credit – March 30, 2008 – 800 points
• $10 Burger King Gift Card – August 30, 2009 – 1600 points
• $5 Amazon.com Gift Code – November 19, 2009 – 800 points

I currently have almost 2600 points and I am eligible to request a $20 Amazon gift certificate or $25 iCard Gift Card or any of the merchandise that is worth approximately $20-$25 or less. My redemption history may not be the most impressive, but based on other reviews that I have read, my experience has been more lucrative than most. Typically, I receive one to five email survey invitations every month and I get 30-50 points for most of the surveys I complete because I usually don’t qualify. There have been several times I have missed several consecutive surveys and missed at least 30 points for each. With the minimum requirement for merchandise being 800 points or approximately $5, the low point value for many of the surveys Harris Poll conducts can be discouraging. On top of that, many of the prizes that were available when I first joined the site are no longer options. Of course, it was five years ago that I joined, but out of the six prizes I have redeemed and received from Harris Poll only one of them, Amazon.com gift codes in various amounts, is still an option. I have been telling myself for the last year or so that I would cancel my membership since most of the prizes are not appealing to me, but I have yet to actually do so. The surveys are usually pretty easy and the website is user-friendly. Unlike many other companies I complete surveys for, the surveys for Harris Poll are actually interesting and cover topics that extend beyond soft drink and food evaluations, though those types of surveys are also included. Overall, I have found Harris Poll to be very reliable, though I wouldn’t include it on my list of top-paying survey sites. It is good for those who enjoy giving their opinions and who are not as concerned with receiving incentives, although incentives are offered.

Well, I recently logged on to my account because I hadn't been on the site in ages, even though I have continued to complete surveys for them. Harris Poll Online has made several changes. For one, members can no longer access their accounts with their own personal passwords, but rather with a generic password that Harris Poll provides. Also, Harris Poll has changed it's prize options. It no longer offers merchandise as prize options. Amazon.com gift certificates, iCard gift certificates, and Restaurant.com gift certificates as well as magazine subscriptions and sweepstakes entries are the prize offerings now. Apparently these changes were made in August 2011. I didn't log in to my account until September 29, 2011. Though I am not too pleased with the password change, I don't mind the prize options. On September 29 I ordered a $20 Amazon.com gift certificate for 2,500 points and received it via email on October 6, 2011. Personally, I feel that's not a terrible trade-off and a relatively decent amount of time to wait, though it could be better. Charitable donations are also a prize option.