CloudCrowd: Looking Back

CloudCrowd is a Facebook application that lets you earn money online--for real. This isn't a scam, at all. At CloudCrowd, you complete small tasks such as classify websites, review keywords, edit badly-written English paragraphs, and a variety of other tasks each with an equivalent rate. The easier the task, the lower it pays. The more difficult tasks of course, have higher rates. You get paid per piece and payout is sent daily through Paypal. You do need to have a Facebook account to be able to work at CloudCrowd since it is accessible as a Facebook application. 

I used to work at ClowdCrowd. My favorite tasks were the easier ones such as "Categorize Business". They pay lower compared to difficult tasks but it was where I was comfortable. Small earnings add up to big earnings, anyway. So it's the same thing. The difficult tasks may pay higher but they require a longer time and much effort to complete. So you get to only do a few pieces of these difficult tasks. Easier tasks get done quickly and with less effort so I can do more pieces of work in one sitting. The earnings I get are quite the same whether I choose to do easy tasks over the difficult ones.

This is the beauty in CloudCrowd. You can work at where you're most comfortable. And you can always switch to doing other tasks if you get bored easily over one task. I remember having used the earnings I got from working there to buy me a domain of my own. And another thing that got me hooked to CloudCrowd before was that they send the money you earned daily! When you see something like this in your email everyday "CloudCrowd has sent you payment", do you not get excited? 

I quit working at CloudCrowd because there was a time when they had no available work. It was probably because they have so many workers already and the tasks all get taken fast. 


So why not earn while spending time on Facebook? Join CloudCrowd now as they now have more available tasks. CloudCrowd is also a good start for those who want to try what it's like to earn online.

Unionbank's Email Customer Service Exists!

I have sent several email inquiries to establishments before. I usually do my inquiry this way because it's faster and more convenient. If companies had provided email addresses so we could contact them, how come we seldom get replies from our emails? So I'm used to not getting any. I always have to visit the actual store or the company's office and get answers from an actual human being. 

So when I received a reply from Unionbank's email customer service (and it clearly wasn't some automated response), I caught myself thanking invisible gods. I then felt guilty in my having lost faith in the Filipino email customer service.

The email I sent to them was about my EON card and Cyberaccount. I have an EON card which I got in October 2008 but have never really used it. Now, I'm taking online jobs for real whose payments are sent to my Paypal account. I have earned quite enough to make a withdrawal but I was worried about my EON card and Cyberaccount if it's still valid for a Paypal transfer. My Cyberaccount and EON card has been inactive for almost 2 years and when I checked my account online (at www.unionbankph.com) it said, Please enter a valid card number. I tried enrolling my card again but I get this reply instead: Card number already enrolled in banking system. I have also visited a Unionbank branch and the staff told me that my card is still active. I just had to re-enroll my card number at www.unionbankph.com. So I tried re-enrolling several times everyday, but I always get the same error message.

Frustrated, I tried my luck at emailing my problem to customer.service@unionbankph.com. Immediately the day after, I got a response that I could now re-enroll my EON card number at their website. And I successfully did! It turned out there was just some technical glitch in their website. Woohoo! Kudos to Unionbank for having an existent Email Customer Service! And the best part of this all? I finally was able to withdraw money from my Paypal earnings. I used the method Withdraw to Bank Account and was deducted Php 50 only. After 2 banking days, the transfer was completed---my Paypal account deducted of the amount and my Cyberaccount debited with the amount.   ^_^

Paid Surveys for Filipinos

Another form of GPT or Get Paid To- program (see previous post on GPTs) that Juan may want to try is the paid survey. Take that VERY literally. Yes you get paid. Just by answering surveys!

These online surveys pay you just for sharing your opinions/views on certain social topics or most often, your preferences and comments on particular products or brands. Market research companies (or the paid survey sites) get hired by private companies/manufacturers to check how their products affect consumers. The results of these surveys are vital since these could help determine the future products that will be launched in the market. These results could guide manufacturers on innovations needed and standards they have to set to dominate the global market.

Like PTCs, there are a lot of scam paid survey sites out there. So for a start you can check Survey Police first. This is a website with a list of legitimate paid survey sites that you can register to. Note that when choosing a paid survey site, you have to qualify first as a respondent. Most paid survey sites unfortunately (again) accept US, Canada, Australia, or UK residents only. So far, I have found three (3) paid survey sites that Filipinos can register to: Global Test Market , Brand Test Institute and Survey Savvy.

Remember to create a separate e-mail where these surveys go in. Since you will be receiving loads and loads of spam emails upon signing in these survey sites.

Hope this helped. Good Luck! 8)

Trying Out Other PTC Sites

• The first PTC (Paid-To-Click) site that I registered to was actually Neobux. It was my first try at earning online. It had (I don't know if this is still the current number and because my account has been suspended) 4-5 advertisements available daily and they all load slow. Except for its low payout, Neobux was all right. Until I heard that cashout isn't available anymore for Paypal (this is so far the payment option that works here in 'Pinas pa naman). For the latest news about Paypal and Neobux, click here. Needless to say, if you're Filipino and you only have Paypal, then don't bother signing up for Neobux.
  
  

• Another PTC that pays through Paypal is WordLinx. They have a PTR (Paid-To-Read Email) available as well (which to me is the one that's really working). It's difficult to navigate around their site, I've seen just 2-3 ads available (sometimes zero ads even) so I don't recommend it. Their PTR email also doesn't come regularly in my inbox.

• Then comes Isabelmarco. Pays either through Paypal or Alertpay. Registration is so quick and easy and free. I've seen 20 advertisements available per 24 hours, they all load pretty fast. Navigation isn't much of a headache too. I recommend Isabelmarco to any Juan.

• I have also registered with Earn.Nu before (that was after Neobux) . There were 9-15 ads available and would load quick but saw they don't have Paypal in their payment options. Therefore Earn.Nu isn't for Juan.
  

Paypal for Juan: HOW?

There have been a lot of blog and forum posts about how a Filipino can get Paypal here in the Philippines, but this is my version. This is for the still-confused Juans out there.

Paypal, according to Wikipedia, is an e-commerce business allowing payments and money transfers to be made through the Internet. Most online shoppers (especially in e-Bay) confess they prefer to use Paypal because it’s a safer way to pay for purchases since you don’t have to give out your credit card number to just anyone. And to online earners, Paypal is the most convenient way to receive pay for the projects they do for their employers. These virtual employers are usually based on the other side of the globe thus the sending of cash or check to their virtual employees will be too risky and expensive.

So generally, one isn’t eligible to do online jobs unless he has a Paypal account. It is a requirement and the first step before you start on work-at-home jobs.

Paypal in the Philippines has only recently been in full effect. Understandably, there are still a lot of Filipinos who are clueless as to how it works here. So here is a guide on how to apply for a Paypal account. More helpful links are found on the bottom of this post. I recommend you click on them because they will be very helpful.

1. 
   
   Sign up for a Paypal account. Click here to create it. In their website they have their FAQs section, they’re helpful so be patient to go over them.
2. 
   
   Verify your Paypal account. You can only send and withdraw funds from your Paypal account only if it’s been verified. A verified Paypal account asks for a card number and a bank code. The only Philippine bank so far that Paypal fully acknowledges is the Unionbank of the Philippines. So you have to open a Unionbank account if you do not have one.
3. 
   
   Go to Unionbank’s website or visit a Unionbank branch. Apply for the EON Cyber Account. This comes with the so-called EON Card (or Unionbank's VISA Electron Card). So to verify your Paypal account, what you type in the area that asks for a card number is your EON Card number and for your bank code, the code for Unionbank. Photocopies of two (2) valid IDs will be asked from you. (For a list of valid IDs they accept, click here).
4. 
   
   There is a Php 350- fee for the card. This is also the annual fee that Unionbank charges from EON card users. You pay the Php 350- upon claiming your card.
5. 
   
   Paypal also asks for a $1.95 USD verification fee so convert that in pesos (around Php 100.00 as of writing) and deposit that amount to your Unionbank Cyber Account.
6. 
   
   Unionbank consumes 3 to 4 weeks processing your application. But if all goes well you can get your EON card in 1 week. Just ask for the number of the branch where you applied so you can follow-up for your card’s status.
7. To complete verification of your Paypal account, you will need the 4-digit code that Paypal has sent to your Unionbank account. To access this, go to Unionbank's website again and enroll in their EON online banking system. Once you're enrolled you can view the list of transactions you have entered in. In your Unionbank Mini Statement, go to Accounts. On Options, select Transactions. Here you can find the 4-digit code which would look like VISA-XXXXPAYPAL, where the four X represents the code. Your key to finding this in your transactions list is the $1.95 USD peso equivalent that Paypal has deducted from you as verification fee. The code will be found on the same line where this amount appears in your Mini Statement.
8. Go back to your Paypal account and enter the 4-digit code. You are now a verified Paypal user and the $1.95 USD charge will be refunded to your Paypal account.

When you’re a verified Paypal account holder, you’re set! You can now register for PTCs, PTPs, or PTRs and other online opportunities that pay through Paypal and start earning.

Helpful Links About Paypal:
Why Use Paypal On eBay?
Unionbank's Guide To Paypal
Unionbank's EON Cyber Account
Paypal 101
How To Apply For Paypal by PinoyMoneyTalk.com
How To Verify Your Paypal Using EON Card

Or Google it! Forums in your own dialect will be sure help too!

How Juan Can Earn Money Online

Money-making opportunities through the Internet are growing in popularity. In the US and UK, it has even become a full-time job to many. Most of them are moms who can’t afford to leave their kids to nannies, singles who are sick of living the corporate life, the handicapped whose only option is to work at home, and the curious Internet addicts. To students and to those with day jobs, online (or home-based) jobs are part-time opportunities where they earn their allowance and additional income.

Here in the Philippines however, online jobs are often labeled as scams. Surely you have received one of those emails that mysteriously go in your inbox saying “Work At Home. Earn Unlimited Income.” The email promises you that you can earn XX dollars per day while just simply surfing the Internet or answering surveys. But at the end of the email they ask you to pay XXX dollars as one-time registration fee! To feed my curiosity, I clicked on the link they provided that says “Register and Get Started Right Away”. The link leads you to their main site showing (more and more) testimonials of people who have joined and are now earning an “unbelievably huge income”. I didn’t register of course. I was only curious where the link really leads. So I clicked on Exit to resume to my usual surfing activity. But once you try to Exit, a chat box appears and a live agent tries to chat with you. The agent would then tell you that if you register at once you will be given a 50% discount off your registration fee blah blah. If you don’t reply the agent tells you: “Please type Hi to let me know you’re still there. This is a limited offer blah blah and more blahs.”

First thing to remember about these online job offers is this: Stay away from those that ask you to pay anything. They need you to work for them so it should be them paying you, NOT the other way around. If they ask you to pay, MOST likely scam ‘yan!

So what exactly are these online or work-at-home jobs?

They are called GPT or Get Paid To- sites. Most common and popular types of GPTs are:

• Paid To Click (PTC) – Get paid to click on advertisements. Standard rate per click is $0.01. This is perhaps the easiest, most popular among the GPTs. And because of these very reasons, scam PTCs are very common out there. It is important to check the legitimacy of a PTC site. Look into forums and search engines to research or better ask from somebody who actually earns from PTCs so he can refer you to legitimate (those that really pay) PTC sites.

• Paid To Post (PTP) – Get paid to post in forums and discussions, comment on blogs, or comment on online articles. Rates vary with the quality and length of your post.

• Paid To Read (PTR) – Get paid to read emails. I haven’t looked into how this works so if you are into PTRs, please enlighten us. =)

• Paid To Blog (PTB) – Get paid to (of course) blog. (A blog is an online diary or journal). This is a popular GPT also. We have heard stories of bloggers who earns huge just by telling the whole world anything.

Other forms of GPTs:

• Get paid to answer surveys. Rates also vary per survey. The lengthier or time-consuming the survey, the higher it pays daw. Make sure you have a separate email where these surveys go in as you will have to deal with loads of spam emails. If you are receiving few survey invitations in your inbox this is because demographics have to apply. You have to qualify as respondent first before they send the survey to your email.

• Get paid to post pictures, listen to music, make reviews, use a particular search engine. These, and more ways to earn money online.

So how do you get paid?

Unfortunately, the payment option that’s applicable to us Filipinos (and what I’ve learned pa) is through PayPal. So make sure that if you join any of these GPTs, look up in their FAQs if they pay through PayPal. Search through their FAQs also if they accept residents from outside the US, Canada or the UK.

So far, these are the GPT sites I found that Juan can be a member of. Registration is FREE to any of these sites. Feel free to comment on this blog or send me a message so we can expand this list. =)

CrewBux – PTC site that pays through PayPal.

myLOT – a PTP social networking site. They pay you to post in their discussions, post pictures, comment on discussions. myLot is a fun way of earning because you get to meet friends as well. Payment is through PayPal. Happy myLotting! 

Global Test Market, Survey Savvy, and Brand Institute meanwhile pay you to answer surveys. 

Or these may be helpful:

Forum Booster and Paid Posting Tools are PTPs.
 
While Homepages Friends pay you to use a particular search engine.

Hope any of these has helped. Happy job hunting, Juan!