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There are a ton of freelance, outsourcing jobs out there. In this Amazon MTurk Review, I’m going to share with you why MTurk could be right up there with the best of them.
Basically you are marrying Amazon with an outsourcing platform for a way to make some extra income working right from home. So stay with me and I’m going to tell you how you can use this platform to make some extra money.
An extra $50 per day works out to an extra $1500 per month. Nothing to sneeze at. So let’s get into it…
Table of Contents
What is MTurk?
MTurk or Amazong Mechanical Turk is a program that involves outsourcing jobs and processes to a group of people who complete them virtually through the Internet.
The tasks can include:
- Doing research on certain subjects
- Data validation
- Doing surveys
- Moderating content and many more
The program allows companies to gain insights, skills, and intelligence needed to improve their processes, data collection, and analysis. MTurk is based on the fact that human beings can perform certain tasks more efficiently than computers.
To expand of some of these tasks, they’re pretty much endless. More examples might be identification of videos, photographs, data entry, transcribing audio files, and compiling research and more.
MTurk is a game changer and helps get things done and in most cases these tasks could have been expensive, time-consuming and hard to scale if not for MTurk.
How to Join MTurk
Ok, so now you know more about what the program is. So your next question might be, how do you join? It is very easy to get started with MTurk program. Below are the steps to take in order to join MTurk.
Step #1: Visit Amazon Mechanical Turk to get started.
Step #2: There are two options to choose from. You can register as a requester or worker. To register as a worker, click on the “Create a Worker Account’ link.
Step #3: Enter your personal details such as your name, email, and password then click on ‘Create my Amazon Account’ link and you’ll be ready to rock and roll.
How it Works
Requesters and developers use MTurk to outsource different types of jobs. Workers are required to complete different types of tasks to get paid. The tasks to be completed are referred to as HITs.
MTurk has hundreds of tasks that anyone can select. The HITs explain how the tasks should be done, the amount to earn and how long each task will take to complete. After completing a task, you will then submit it to the requester who will review and approve it.
You only get paid after your work is approved. Be sure to do more and more HITs to increase your earnings. The number of tasks you complete successfully determine how much you can earn from the program.
On average, you can expect to earn about $2-$5 per hour depending on the task. In some cases, you might even get jobs that pay more than $5 per hour. But as I’m going to show you in a minute, you can increase these averages.
Types of Jobs to do on MTurk
1) Surveys
There are various surveys you can do on MTurk. The surveys can be on a variety of different topics. MTurk allows you to filter the type of survey jobs you want to do depending on your preference. The surveys take a short time to complete. If you are good at answering survey questions and providing opinions on various topics, then this might be a type of job you’ll want to do.
2) Transcription Services
You can complete short transcriptions and get paid. long with the hourly transcription rates, you can get a bonus. Bonuses vary based on the difficulty and length of the files to transcribe.
Along with the hourly transcription rates, you can get a bonus. Bonuses vary based on the difficulty and length of the files to transcribe.
3) Search Engine Descriptions
If you’re good at researching and writing quality descriptions this might be a good option for you. You’ll be given a specific search term to research then you’ll need to submit the content to the requester.
Other tasks that you can do on MTurk include writing content for websites, editing videos, images, selecting pictures to represent products, and data verification and clean-up tasks among others.
How to Make $50 a Day on MTurk (or More)
Before I tell you how you can make money every day on MTurk in this article. I want to share a video that gives you a behind the scenes look at what a $100 day looks like. So you can do it too. Just think, if you can do just half of that it’ll earn you $50.
In the video below you’ll discover:
- What a $100 dollar day looks like on MTurk.
- What are some of the best HITS that were used to help one amazon mechanical turk worker earn $100 in a day.
- Some of the surveys that she used to make some quick cash.
- The number of HITS it took her to hit the $100 per day mark.
- Her daily schedule, some ninja tips for increasing your earnings on Mturk and more.
How to Make Money Every Day on MTurk
If you’re interested in making good money on MTurk, then below are some tips that will help you increase your earnings.
1) Select good-paying HITs
While there are a lot of lower paying HITS on MTurk, there re also some that pay a little bit better. MTurk’s platform allows you to filter the type of HITs that you want to do quickly so you can get paid.
A best practice is choose jobs you can complete in one or two minutes. And jobs that pay at least $0.40 are ideal.
2) Strive to achieve a good HIT number
Although there is no set minimum number of jobs on MTurk, it is beneficial to increase your HIT number. Some of the tasks, especially the high-paying ones require workers that have completed a certain number of jobs to apply.
To be on safe side, try to hit 5,000 HITs. Remember that the higher the number of HITs in your profile, the more experienced you will be in the eyes of requesters.
Besides, a high HIT number also qualifies you for better rates. It might be tempting if you are a new worker, but try to do as many tasks as possible.
3) Keep an eye on your approval rate
An approval rate of 98% and above will place you at a competitive edge. The rate might sound high but it is achievable considering the tasks on the platform are very simple. Be sure to follow instructions in every task you take to maintain a good approval rate.
4) Be readily available
Most of the good paying HITs come during normal weekday business hours. During these times, most requesters will be submitting their jobs and if you’re readily available you can grab them.
5) Browser extensions can help
Browser extensions can benefit you in many ways when browsing jobs on MTurk. They help you find the good jobs with low rejection rates.
Here are some browser extensions to consider:
- Tampermonkey
- Turkopticon
- Greasemonkey
Browser extensions automatically refresh your browser to display new jobs you can do.
6) Filter your Requesters
Just like any other online job, you will have different types of requesters on MTurk. Lowly rated employers can signal a red flag.
It may mean they have a history of rejection and may not be desirable to work with. Turkopticon is a tool that can aid you in filtering out this type of requester.
7) Join a Worker Forum
Workers often form forums where they can list well-paying tasks available during the day. Turker Nation and MTurk Crowd are good forums that you can join.
8) Improve your qualifications
Some HITs need skilled and qualified workers. By completing some of your qualifications, you can increase your chances of getting well-paying HITs.
If you can, try to take part in a test or sample HITs to prove your skills. Also, learn to check your qualifications sections to view the type of tests you qualify for.
If you become a qualified worker, then you reduce competition on well-paying HITs.
9) Set Goals
This goes without saying, but you’d be surprised how many people don’t set goals for themselves. If you want to make money through MTurk, you will want to track your progress.
You’ll want to journal and keep a spreadsheet on how your income is growing. When you hit your goals, set a new one and review what’s working and what is not.
How You Get Paid on MTurk
Amazon Mechanical Turk pays workers through two different methods.
One of the payment methods is a bank account deposit. You can request money to be deposited to your bank account at any time. This can take up to 3-4 days to reflect in your bank account.
The other payment method is the Amazon Gift Card. Your earnings can be added to your Amazon Gift Card. Just like a bank account, you can request the payment anytime. The transaction can take up to 24 hours to show.
The minimum amount that you should have in your account to get paid is $1.
Amazon Mechanical Turk Complaints
The biggest issue with MTurk is the absence of set hourly rates. The payments depend on how much effort you put for each HIT. Another big complaint is that the payments are very little for each HIT.
Getting paid a few cents for every task means you have to complete a lot of tasks to reach your daily goal. This makes it not as attractive as other online money-making opportunities where you can make more money.
One complaint is that some of the requesters can choose to reject the work you submitted. This not only hurts your rating but also means you lose the pay. The worst is that some of them can choose to reject your work with no clear reason.
Is Amazon MTurk Legit?
Despite some complaints, Amazon Mechanical Turk is legit. It is a safe way of making extra money during free time. Although the payments are low, those who are willing to put more effort can do well with the program.
Getting paid through MTurk is a real thing. It’s an Amazon platform where funds are deposited into your bank account or Amazon Gift Card. This makes it a legitimate way to make money from home.
Pros and cons of Amazon Mechanical Turk
Pros
- It is a trustworthy site. Amazon is reliable and trusted all over the world.
- You can get paid anytime you want. There is no need to wait till end month for you to receive your money.
- You work whenever you want based on your schedule.
- There are lots of jobs to choose from.
- Requesters from different countries can submit their jobs to MTurk.
- The platform is very easy to use and no training is required.
- You can qualify for better pay in case you’re highly skilled or qualified in certain fields.
Cons
- The major drawback of MTurk is the low pay. You need to do lots of jobs to earn more.
- Amazon charges a hefty commission on the little income you make. A commission of 20% is relatively high compared to the low hourly rates you’ll see on the platform.
- Some of the tasks on MTurk are rather boring and tedious.
Conclusion
Amazon Mechanical Turk is a legit and it’s here to stay. It is a solid platform for developers and workers. Workers can access lots of short tasks, complete them and get paid.
Although the payments are low, qualified and skilled workers can find better-paying HITs. It is a great platform for those who want to work from home and make extra income.
Just like anything, if you can master it and separate yourself from the rest of the MTurk pack, you can make money.
very interesting,and iam interested in joining.