user testing Archives – Leap of Faye

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As we begin the new year, it is a good time to take a look at financial plans for 2016. If you’re anything like me, you’re constantly looking for ways to streamline your budget and save money. Working for myself has only increased my desire to find ways to buy for less.

So I wondered if there were any new tips I could add to my arsenal. I tapped some of my favorite people and communities and was rewarded with a list of realistic tips that can easily be implemented, along with my own.

Learn 34 money-saving tips from real people! #Budget #Saving #FrugalLiving Share on X

Shopping

Ebates: I LOVE Ebates!! I have $83 waiting for me just for this month alone!
-Lissette

Ebates: The Ebates cash back shopping network is currently offering a $10 Gift Card bonus when you open a new account and spend $25 or more at your favorite store. Earn cash back on over 1,800 stores when you shop online thru Ebates.
-Anna

Paribus: Now there’s a service – Paribus – that automatically gets you a refund on the price difference at 18 different retailers including Amazon, Macy’s, and Target. Paribus is like insurance that you’ll always get the best price, even when retailers like Amazon change their prices many times each day. It’s free to sign-up and Paribus charges only 25% of the refund amount AFTER they’ve secured you a refund. Just connect Paribus with your email account in a few clicks, and shop online as you would normally. Whenever a price drops or you miss a deal, Paribus files a price adjustment, scoops up the difference, and sends it your way.
-Miriam at The Very Best Baby Stuff

Garage Sales & Consignment Shops: As a family of five, we spend around $1000 a year on clothing (including shoes, underwear, socks, coats). Total. If I had to guess, about 90% of our family’s wardrobe comes from garage sales. The other 10% comes from the sales rack and consignment shops. I can’t remember the last time I paid full price for anything! Here are some tips I use when I buy second hand clothing.
-Rachel at Holy Craft

Mobile Apps: Take advantage of money-saving apps and sites for a variety of stores.
-Anna

Target: Sign up for the Target REDCard to save 5% off every single purchase, AND free shipping when purchasing online.
-Faye

Clothing Swap: Host a clothing swap. Everyone brings clothing that their kids have outgrown. If you bring a bag, you take a bag.
-Alison

Food & Meals

$50 a Week Food Budget: Think a $50 a week food budget for five is not possible? You might just be convinced otherwise! Take a look for some super tips on how to feed your family on $50 a week. For these tips, I am basing it off my family of five.
-Michelle at Thrifty DIY Diva

Freezing Food: If you’re like most people in America, you probably end up throwing away your fair share of food. I know I have the best of intentions for everything I put in my shopping cart, but inevitably end up having to throw items away from time to time because I didn’t get to them in time. With a bit of forethought, you can limit your trips to the trash can. 10 Things to Stop Wasting and Start Freezing.
-Aileen at Aileen Cooks

Homemade Pasta: Over the course of the year, your family will save $123.76 – more than ONE HUNDRED DOLLARS just by making your own homemade pasta!
-Cassie at DIY Jahn

Meal Planning: Always shop your kitchen first, then the sales. Write a list and stick to it every time.
-Alison

Don’t Buy Coffee: Don’t like coffee? That actually saves me quite a bit of money. I save all the money that would have been spent on coffee, along with my change.
-Glenneth @YourPathToFit

HomeCancel Cable: Cancel cable and sign up for Netflix and Hulu instead.
-AlisonSwitch Cell Phone Carriers: Cut your monthly cell phone bill by 50% or more by switching to a low-cost carrier. Many of these low-cost carriers are owned by the big name carriers, meaning you receive the same service and same towers for a percentage of the cost.
–Faye

Switch Landline to VoIP Carrier: By switching to a low-cost carrier, I am now paying only $10 a month for TWO land lines (personal and business). This includes add-on services such as voicemail, caller ID, call waiting, etc. as well as free long distance to Canada.
–Faye

Laundry: As the mother of four, laundry was a huge expense. If I used the cheap soap, the stains wouldn’t come out, so I’d have to toss the clothes and buy new. But the better brands (Tide) were so expensive. My solution was to use Tide on whites and colors, and cheapo on jeans, sheets, towels, and stuff that really didn’t matter.
-Karen at ADHD Inattentive

Declutter Your Home: We made the decision to become debt free and live a simpler, happier life and since then have taken many steps to make this decision/goal a reality… The one I want to focus on today is decluttering our house – and how life-changing it can truly be. How cleaning our house helped us to pay off our debt.
-Cassie at DIY Jahn

Stop Using Paper Towels: I stopped using paper towels and that has saved me a lot of money! I did it gradually, introducing cloth napkins first and then finally washcloths on the kitchen counter instead of paper towels (which now live under the sink!) This is how I did it.
-Brittany at Champagne and Cheerios

Baby Proofing: Basic baby proofing doesn’t take much effort and doesn’t have to be expensive. We used the humble pool noodle, yes, pool noodle, very effectively throughout our home. Just slice down the middle and stick onto wherever you want to create a bumper.
-Maja at Mumma Hack

Reuseable Baby Wipes: Make your own resuseable baby wipes with cotton flannel squares. Then mix up 1/2 cup of baby wash with 1/2 cup of baby oil and 1 1/2 cups of water in a spray bottle. At each diaper change spray the baby’s bottom with the solution and then wipe clean with the cotton flannel squares. Wash the wipes with hot water and dry in the dryer.
-Alison

Fun

Library: We use the library for everything – not just books! Our local library offers free tickets to local museums, so that is how I take my kids places. The library has lots of movies, so I tend to let my kids pick out movies to borrow from the library, versus buying or renting. They also have lots of free entertainment in the evenings that we attend. Plus, they have several meetup style events during the day for small children that we attend regularly (free play, story time, legos, movies).
-Aileen at Aileen Cooks

Library: Use the library! Borrow books, movies, and take part in free library activities. Mine hosted a gingerbread house decorating party, a kids Christmas party, pumpkin decorating, and more. All activities are free.
–Alison

First Birthday Parties: I approached the moms of my son’s four neighborhood friends and asked if they would be interested in a joint celebration for just our babies and the parents. They all loved the idea.
–Miriam

Other

Did I Need It Yesterday?: When I’m faced with small purchase decisions, I ask myself, “Did I need it yesterday?” It’s easy to remember, simple to use, and 100% effective at keeping me from buying things I don’t need!
-Lena at What Mommy Does

No Spend Challenge: The challenge is fairly simply, yet fairly intense as well: Throughout the entire month of January we will not be allowed to spend a dime. Why did we choose this challenge? Simple: so that we could change our lives and our spending habits by jump starting the new year with no spending at all.
-Cassie at DIY Jahn

Sell Your Stuff/Services: As a Mom, it’s hard to make extra money sometimes, especially if you are a Stay at Home Mommy. It seems like we are always invited to attend fun play dates or activities that cost money. I’m going to share a few ways I have made some extra money that are (mostly) easy.
-Shannon at Daily Momtivity

User Testing: Got 10 minutes on your hands and like checking out new websites? Sign up to become a User Testing tester and earn $10-$15 for every short test you take. I make an additional few hundred dollars each month doing this in my spare time, when I am on the computer already.
-Faye

Budget: Make a budget and stick to it. THIS is the biggest money saver. Create a zero dollar budget so that every dollar is accounted for. Stick to the budget and see where you can cut things out or down.
-Alison

Bill Yourself: Treat your own personal savings the same way you treat your bills. Make it a line item on your budget and pay a set amount to it consistently every month. Better yet, set it up so that a specific amount is transferred to a separate savings account each month – just as if you were setting up automatic bill payments. This ensures that you’re “paying yourself first” and becoming accustomed to living on what is left over.
–Faye

So there you have it – 34 great tips being used by real people. These are a great way to jump start your 2016 budget in the right direction.

What other tips do you have to add to the list?

I’ve discovered the world of online user testing, and have so far really enjoyed it. It is easy, fast, and fun – and I get to learn about new websites or changes that different companies are thinking of making to their existing websites. There are a few companies that pay testers to test, and I have been trying them out to determine which ones I should be spending my time on. User Testing is the first site I signed up with.

Overview

User Testing offers “videos of real people speaking their thoughts as they use websites, mobile apps, prototypes, and more.” They provide clients with video and audio of real users within one hour. Two account options are offered: the Basic account, for $49 or $99 per video, and the Pro account, which is based on the needs of the customer. Past and current clients are listed, including large and recognizable companies.

Tester Compensation

A standard 10-20 minute test pays $10. The rate is the same for computer, smartphone, or tablet tests. Occasionally a test may take longer, but the tester will be notified upfront and the pay rate will be higher to compensate for the additional time.

After successfully completing 10 tests with acceptable ratings, users have the option to sign up for camera testing. User Testing sends the tester an IPEVO camera to record smartphone navigation. These tests pay $15.

Occasionally, testers are invited to participate in moderated sessions. These are usually scheduled for a specific date, but at a time slot of the tester’s choosing. If selected, the tester will receive a predefined amount (I’ve seen $40 much of the time).

All tests are paid out via PayPal exactly one week (to the minute) after the tester has taken them. I have taken many, many tests and have never experienced an issue with payment.

Hiring Process

Easy. Simply sign up for a tester account online, and you will receive an email asking you to take a sample (unpaid) test. The first time feels a bit weird. You are asked to navigate a site per the steps listed, and speak aloud all of your thoughts and expectations. I wasn’t sure if I was doing it right but went ahead and submitted it anyway.

Once your test is submitted, you’ll receive an email indicating that it may take them up to a week to review it. I was pleasantly surprised to receive a response the next day though, indicating that I could now fill out my tester profile to begin receiving payment for tests. That’s all there is to it.

Taking Tests

Based on the information listed in your user profile, you will be invited to take tests via your online dashboard. If your dashboard is up, you will hear a ping to alert you that there is a test available. You can then answer a series of questions to determine if you are eligible to take the test or not. If you are eligible, you can accept the test and then have no longer than 15 minutes to begin before it gets sent to another tester in the pool.

Tests go FAST, so you need to be on top of your game. As soon as you hear the ping, you will need to click the “View Test” button on your dashboard to walk through the qualification questions. Sometimes even then, you will be told after qualifying that all test spots have been filled.

Once you accept a test, you can plug in your headset/mic and then begin. Your screen and voice will be recorded as you walk through the test. The key is to read the steps provided, follow the instructions, and constantly explain what you’re doing and why. Honesty is important. If you don’t like a site’s layout or had different expectations, companies want you to state that and to state why. Once you complete the steps provided, the recording will end and you will be directed to answer 1-4 online questions (where you type in the answers). Once that is done, your test will be uploaded and your Payment Pending amount will be updated.

Client Feedback

Clients have the opportunity to provide feedback on your tests (completeness, level of detail, clarity, helpfulness, etc.) The Completed Tests tab should be checked periodically to see the feedback being provided so you can modify your approach as necessary. Only about 25% of clients take the time to provide feedback – when they do it is based on a 1-5 star system, with comments. An overall star rating is assigned to you based on the results of your last 12 tests. Your star rating is extremely important as it will determine how quickly and in what priority you receive future tests. Too many 1 or 2 star ratings and you will stop receiving tests completely.

What I Like

Prompt weekly payment via PayPal
$10 for 10-20 minute screen tests and $15 for IPEVO camera tests
Fun and interesting work – I enjoy perusing sites and providing my feedback
Opportunity to see and provide feedback on beta websites for major brands before they roll out
Many tests available if you are quick to accept
Friendly help when needed – I’ve emailed the Help Desk several times with questions and have always received quick and clear responses
Opportunity to participate in additional studies and/or moderated sessions for increased compensation
Clear and intuitive dashboard
Pause capability – I can pause the test and recording if I have to step away

What I Don’t Like

Tests are sporadic – this definitely is not going to provide a full time income
At times it seems like tests fill up extremely quickly – even when responding within seconds, I often find that a test has already reached the required number of testers
I have had issues with a lag between my iPhone and the dashboard notifications – I will receive a notification for a new smartphone test, yet my iPhone shows no tests available
The quality of the test itself depends on the client – some questions may be confusing, navigation may be difficult to understand, etc.
Star rating is completely contingent on a client’s perception of how you took the test – while I have not yet experienced any issues, you could conceivably have a client rate you poorly simply because they didn’t like what you said, instead of for a legitimate test-taking reason

Conclusion

Of all of the user testing companies I have tried, User Testing is my favorite. There is a steady stream of available tests, prompt weekly payment, and friendly help. On the flip side, tests get snapped up quickly, and consistency is sporadic – I may take four tests one day and then zero the next. But overall, I feel it is a great legitimate company offering fair compensation for easy (and fun!) work. A nice supplement to income for just a few minutes of work. I highly recommend User Testing if you are interested in testing and providing feedback on various sites and applications.

34 Money-Saving Tips From Real People

User Testing – A Tester’s Review