Are you one of those people who think about everything? Then you could earn money from your views on anything from politics to dog food. You could earn hundreds of pounds a year.

Dozens of Survey and focus group websites have sprung up in recent years, willing to pay for independent opinions.

They rely on this research to fine-tune the products. For example, to see which packaging attracts the customer's attention or which flavors he likes the most.

Share views in person to earn more money

Focus groups tend to be the most lucrative – you can earn up to £200 for your opinion. In these, you join a group of people to share your views on what you think of a product or service.

Before, focus groups involved sitting on bean bags or at a table in an office. But these days much of the exchange of opinions is done through online meetings where you only see each other on a computer screen.

Market research agencies such as Saros, Angelfish Opinions, Research Opinions and Market Research 4 U typically pay £50 per hour. If you get an assignment that requires you to test a product over the course of a week, you can often earn around £200.

You must answer a series of questions about the product, which can be anything from a new range of yoghurts to a new credit card. Agencies will also ask you questions when you initially sign up to make sure you fit the client profile.

Although the money can be generous, people are only typically chosen for focus groups once every six months, or more often if they are enrolled with multiple agencies.

Emma Coombes, Angelfish's head of client services, says: “When choosing an agency, consider a member of the Market Research Society, which has a strict code of conduct for members that includes ensuring sensitive data is shared responsible way”.

Case study one: I have to compare lip balms

Abbey Thornhill has just won £200 for testing lip balms for a cosmetics company. The 25-year-old civil servant from Brixton, south London, says: ‘I sign up for focus groups on topics that interest me; any money is a bonus.

“As someone who has used dozens of different lip balms over the years, it was a great opportunity to share my views and make sure that what sells is what people want, not just what companies want.” want to sell.”

Abbey was given a selection of products to try for a fortnight through Saros and, via an online focus group, was asked to compare them to others on the high street. She says, “I kept a journal and spent a few minutes every day writing down my findings.”

She also recently enjoyed a focus group where she shared ideas on how she shares music with her friends.

Case study two: My baby and I win £200

Georg Alleway recently won £200 testing baby food with his 18-month-old daughter, Sylvie, through research agency Saros. “The cheese and the pickle went down surprisingly well,” says the 38-year-old police sergeant from Woking in Surrey. “It's gratifying to know that we could have an impact on what is stocked in stores in the future.”

George has also won £150 by sharing his car design ideas with market researcher Research Opinions. Providing his views earns him at least £400 a year.

“I won £24 in surveys, but I had to work for it”

A growing number of market research companies pay for people's opinions through online surveys. Among the most popular are Ipsos iSay, Swagbucks, Branded Surveys, Toluna Influencers, Inbox Pounds, and LifePoints Panel.

Signing up is easy. You provide some personal information, and then you're contacted with surveys that take anywhere from five to 30 minutes to complete.

You will rarely earn more than £1 or so for a survey. But you can complete them from the comfort of your couch on a laptop or smartphone at your convenience.

I have an opinion or two myself, so I signed up with various online survey companies to see how much I could earn in an afternoon. Toluna is one of the most generous. It claims to offer “the equivalent of a £20 Amazon voucher in record time”. I fill out an eight minute survey about snacks and sweets.

The climax is when a picture of Mr. Kipling's apple pie appears on the computer screen and I am asked what emotion it makes me feel. I choose ‘wish' from a list of a dozen; others included ‘shock' and ‘sadness'.

However, once it's done, I find that I have to complete another two dozen surveys to get the coupon. I calculate it as two 40p apple pies per quiz.

Branded Surveys bombarded me with over a dozen surveys in a few days. I earn points for each one I complete, and they tell me that once I have 500 I can redeem them for reward vouchers. However, each survey earns only a few points, so completing 19 equates to just over £1 an hour in coupons for retailers like Argos and John Lewis.

Ipsos iSay also makes me work hard for my money, requiring me to complete six separate surveys just to get my profile. After five minutes answering questions about which drink I drink, which coffee machine I prefer, and which cars I use, I've had enough.

I'll have to earn 980 points to get a £10 voucher, and at 45 points for a starting grid doesn't seem worth it.

A word of warning: while searching for legitimate survey companies online, I found several that claimed to be authentic, but seemed anything but.

Alarm bells should ring if an online survey or focus group wants you to pay some sort of registration fee or registration charge. Stay away, otherwise you could fall for a scam. Using your personal email address can also lead to a flood of unwanted survey requests and spam, so it's best to set up a new one for surveys.

Please be careful when giving out any personal information online and make sure you know exactly how your information will be used.

Be a mystery shopper… or try restaurants

You can also earn a little extra money as a secret shopper. You go incognito to test goods and services on the high street. Market research companies such as Market Force Information, GBW and GfK typically pay £5 for you to test the quality of a store experience during a trip to the stores.

Companies want you to snoop on everything from how sales assistants are dressed to whether there are empty spaces on store shelves. You'll need to keep a mental record of what you see and write it down later so you don't give yourself away by taking notes. Sometimes you will be required to secretly record your finds and take photographs.

If asked to verify food outlets, such as Greggs or JD Wetherspoon, the investigator will usually include the price of a meal or sandwich as well.

Mystery shoppers don't usually make large sums, but they can be a good way to finance meals and earn a little extra cash by going to the malls you plan to visit anyway. It can take a couple of weeks for the money to reach your bank account, so it cannot be relied on for income. Some companies will pay for your travel expenses, especially if you are asked to visit somewhere a little out of the way.

Make sure you only sign up with reputable companies.