Are You Being Paid For Your Internet Searches?

I've been working on a new Squidoo lens and thought I'd share the topic and the relevant links with my Gather friends.

Most us use Google, or Yahoo, or some other big site to look for information online.  When we do, we see ads and sponsor links, and the site gets ad revenue.  What is lesser known is that there are ways to get paid part of that money, or even use our searches to benefit charity.  Just find the sites that offer reward for searching through their page or browser search toolbar (I'll link a few in a moment).  Use these, and you can instantly win, or earn points to exchange for items, gift cards, or donate to charity.   The reward sites draw their search results from one or more of the well-known search engines, so we're getting the same or very similar search results.

Naturally, the ones that offer guaranteed points per search are the best use of time, but don't count out the instant wins - if I've added them here it's because I've won at them, and won often enough I consider them worth recommending.  And, no, of course you're not going to make a living doing this, but why not benefit from something we all do anyway?

Scour - earn points for every search, for referring friends, and for voting and commenting on the search result.  Each search, vote, and comment is worth 1 pt each for a total of 3 pts per search.  50 points for a friend referral, plus you get 25% of the amount they earn.  6500 points gets you a $25 Visa Gift Card.  According to their FAQ, their point exchange is available at that rate to members in Canada, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Poland, the U.S., and the U.K.  Global members from countries not listed can still benefit, but at a reduced rate.  Check their FAQ for details.  Offers browser plug ins for Firefox, IE, and Opera, as well as search widgets for start pages and desktops.

IRazoo - points accumulation for searching and voting, AND a chance to instantly win an Amazon GC.  Points can be traded for a variety of items, including gift cards.  Users from any country can win instantly, but points are only available if you're in the U.S., U.K., Canada, or India.

(The two above are both new to me, but they sound good, and I'm reading good reports on them, online.  Let me know what your experience has been if you've used them.)

Lucky Search - instant win.  I've won 500 point wins a few times from them, which is the exact amount needed for a $5 Amazon GC.  I really have no idea what else they offer in terms of instant wins; I couldn't find it in the FAQ.  You can trade your points for gift cards, items, and donations to charities.  They do have a limit of 25 chances to win a day, and those are only available to the U.S., Canada, and the U.K.  Search toolbar plug ins for Firefox and Internet Explorer.

Swagbucks - instant win.  Instantly win swagbucks you can exchange for gift cards or items.  My personal experience is that it all adds up fast, I usually win less than 5 at a time, but have won as much as 20.  The possibilities are 1-5, 10, 20, 50, and 100.  I'm cashing out every few weeks, and don't always use them.  Wins only available to residents of the U.S., U.K., and Canada.  Offers plug ins for Firefox and IE search toolbars.

Found out about this one from Michelle, if memory serves:

GoodSearch - earn points for each search, up to 100 points a day.  Goodsearch donates those points to the nonprofit you designate.  If it's not already in their database, you can help it be added.  They say they give 50% of their revenue to nonprofits.  Just check the link in the side menu to see participating nonprofits or how to get one added.  Offers plug ins for Firefox, Internet Explorer, and Mac.

Tips:

Don't game the system, they're onto that, and will notice nonsense searches and things like that.  It's a good way to get your account closed.

Be sure to install the plug ins, so you don't forget to use your new search sites.

Refer your friends!

Yes, where available I've used my referral codes on these.  If you have any objection to giving me the referral credit, I'm sure you can find them without clicking through.  ;) For those concerned about whether it breaks Gather's TOS to post links here: it's my understanding that as long as you offer quality content in addition to the link, it's okay.  If you remove the link and have no article worth reading, it's spam. I've had all spam flags cleared on past, similar articles using that rule of thumb.