London in January doesn’t make it easy for us. It’s cold, it gets dark early, and everyone’s skint meaning it’s a quiet month on the going out front. Any money that was left over from Christmas we’ve spent in the Sales, and before we know it it’s Monday morning again and we’re back in the rat race.

Sell stuff? eBay and Gumtree have been around for a while, but it can sometimes be more hassle than it’s worth sending individual items off to different buyers. However, with apps like Shpock, it is getting easier to sell things on the go from your phone.

Which leads us to the next question. Here in London in 2019, on top of the challenge of juggling a healthy work-life balance, is it even possible to earn an extra income on the side?

Side hustles 

Side hustles have always been around, but it’s only recently that we’ve started to see innovative, yet simple and convenient ways to earn money that normal people like you and me can get involved with. And just for good measure, we’re staying well clear of any sort of dodgy ‘Get rich quick’ schemes, FYI.

There’s only so many hours in a day, and it’s rare to find somewhere to earn decent money on the side that doesn’t consume your whole life. If you’re reading this, you’re probably working or studying full-time, let’s not forget.

Fortunately, there is something that’s both easy and convenient, and better still, pays out hefty rewards for completing tasks. Welcome to the world of crowdsourcing. 

What is Crowdsourcing?

You may have heard the word crowdsourcing before. It’s one of those buzz words, isn’t it? It gets quoted everywhere in a range of very different contexts, but what does it actually mean?

Crowdsourcing is the communal effort and exchange of ideas, opinions or even finances, to help get to an end goal. It’s something that nowadays takes place mainly over the internet, and can even involve huge, collaborative, international efforts spanning different countries.

You may have seen the terms ‘crowdfunding’, ‘crowdvoting’, or even ‘crowdtesting’ before. ‘Crowdsourcing’ is the umbrella term for these.

Crowdsourcing pays?

Yes, you did read that right. You can even earn money by taking part in a whole host of crowdsourcing projects online.

If companies want to get the verdict on one of their new products or they want to gauge public opinion on something, they often carry out crowdsourcing exercises to get a real handle on what’s going on. From their point of view, there’s no better way than getting real opinions from real people. This goes beyond just testing in a lab.

It’s a form of market research that will often involve survey questions, that ultimately helps brands improve their service and products in the long run.

There’s plenty of websites or ‘panel sites’ that pay you to complete surveys. The problem is you’ll often find yourself having to complete a 10-minute survey on a really niche subject all the while ‘earning’ as little as 60p for your efforts.

Fair enough, you don’t have to be a rocket scientist to complete these surveys and anyone can do them, but is it really worth giving up your hard-earned time for that amount of money?

No, it’s not.

Crowdville

Except it is when the prizes on offer are much greater.

Crowdville is a global community of over 40,000 testers who get paid for giving their opinions on the latest apps, gadgets, and other digital products from the biggest brands.

It’s free to sign up and Crowdville’s online tasks range from simple surveys asking about your experience of an app to more complex bug finding challenges that tech lovers can get their teeth stuck into. You only need a smartphone to get going, and you can complete the tasks from the comfort of your own home when it suits you. It’s this flexibility which makes Crowdville such a convenient side hustle.

The beauty of how it works is that your opinions get fed straight back to the big brands you’ve just been reviewing, meaning you can claim genuine ownership on new and future app releases. I mean, how often can you say you’ve helped play a part in a new app release from one of the country’s most well-known brands?

And now to a very important point: the money on offer.

Crowdville’s been paying out to their Italian crowders for 4 years now, and since launching in the UK last summer, the prizes have included up to £15 for completing a survey and up to £14 for each bug you find on the app too.

That’s right. You earn up to £15 for each survey you complete and can earn lots more for finding bugs on the apps you’re testing out on your phone too.

Crowdville’s tasks often contain ‘Bug Prizes’, which means whoever finds more bugs than anyone else wins £90 in Amazon Vouchers. They’re not messing about, and you can see why this would appeal to both casual internet users and serious product testers alike.

Crowdville’s tasks are quick and easy to complete, you get to take part from the comfort of your own home, and best of all, you’ll earn much more than on other survey sites. When you’re broke and in need of a boost to your finances, then completing tasks on Crowdville is a really interesting option.