How to Make Some Extra Cash as a Website Tester

A smart Penny Hoarder has several gigs in the works because he knows that not all of the gigs will have jobs all of the time.  If you have several opportunities lined up, you have the opportunity to make a little bit of extra money every day.

One fun way to make some extra money is to give your opinion about websites.

You’ve likely used a website and found yourself complaining about how difficult it was to navigate.   Maybe you’ve found yourself scrolling up and down looking for contact information or an about us page.  Maybe the webpage just doesn’t seem to be laid out in a logical manner.  You might have even started talking out loud to yourself, saying something like “What am I doing wrong?” or “Why won’t this work?” or maybe something not fit to be written on this website.  You know how it goes.  We’ve all been there.

These types of websites are bad for businesses because many users simply give up (and fairly quickly) and leave the site and take their business elsewhere.  Now, a company, UserTesting.com, is hiring people to give their opinion about various websites so the businesses can make the websites more user-friendly.

Who Can Review Websites?

Anyone can sign up to review a website.  When you first join UserTesting.com, you fill out a simple form.  Then, you’ll be able to review a website if you meet the particular demographic that the business is targeting.

To get a better idea how the process works, you can check out this video put together by UserTesting.com.  Their motto is “making the web a better place”, which is probably something we would all like to see.  As a usability tester, you can be part of this mission.

What Equipment is Required?

You’ll need a microphone.  You’ll also need to download UserTesting.com’s screen recorder onto your computer so they can track your computer strokes while you’re exploring and using the website.  Finally, you must have a computer that meets some basic requirements.  (Check out the Frequently Asked Questions for specific details.)

What’s Required for the Job?

Here’s the best part.  You simply take 10 to 20 minutes to navigate through the site.  As you do so, you give your opinion out loud.  Both your recorded opinion and your screen movements are recorded and sent to the company.

How Much Are You Paid?

Perhaps this is the best part.  You’re paid $10 per site that you review, and your payment comes 7 days after your review via PayPal.  Even better (seriously, can it get any better!), if you complete 5 successful reviews with no negative complaints from the companies you reviewed, you can qualify for a free web cam.  Then you can become a mobile reviewer and earn $15 per review.  How sweet is that?

How Often Are Reviews Available?

Reviews are available every day, but the key is that you must fit a company’s preferred demographic. You may get a job every day, but you may not. It all depends on the demographic that you are in and what the companies are looking for. If you do a good job speaking your opinion, you’ll get good ratings and companies may start requesting you. Becoming a mobile tester also increases the number of jobs available.

While this is a fun way to earn extra money, don’t plan on turning it into a regular gig or even a reliable side gig.  It should be one of the many ways that you employ to make some side cash.  However, this is a fun job that not only pays you, but gives you the opportunity to make the web a more friendly and less frustrating place for all users.  That’s something we should all be happy about.

Interested in giving it a try? You can sign up here.

Good luck Penny Hoarders!