How I made $1600 in a month and a half with dscout

dscout

dscout is a qualitative remote research platform for unlocking in-context user insights. Hundreds of the world’s most innovative companies trust our suite of remote research tools to collect “in-the-moment” data that reveals their users and transforms their products and experiences.

Launched in 2018 out of Chicago, dscout has made a huge impact in the industry with hundreds of thousands of panelists making anywhere from $25 to $300 per full missions. In this blog, I’ll show you how I was able to make almost $1600 in about a month on dscout as a side hustle.

Get Started:

First things first, you need to have a smartphone, an Android or iPhone will work just fine as long as you are able to take photos, record videos, and join virtual meetings. Once you download the app, you’ll be directed to register and set up your account. And PayPal is the only payout option offered. It’s important that you fill out your profile accurately so that you will be given tests or missions as dscout calls, that are appropriate to you. This will help you get qualified for the right missions.

After speaking with a few other panelists who have had issues qualifying for missions, this is what I noticed. Their profile didn’t quite match up with who they really were, which made it difficult to make a match. So again, be sure to fill this out accurately. Also, upload a good photo of yourself, the people who are conducting these tests want to see what you look like. So make it look as good as your Social Media profile pic.

Explore:

So now that you are all ready and biting at the bit to get your first mission, open your dashboard on your app. You’ll see three icons on the bottom: explore, missions, and rewards. Explore is where you will find available mission opportunities for you to qualify for which varies from express missions to full missions.  Missions are missions that are in progress currently and rewards is where you can check your earnings.

Missions:

There are two kinds of missions in dscout: express and full. Express missions are missions that will only take a few minutes to complete such as a survey about why you like American made products to what are your money goals and everything else in between. Express missions are a great way to earn a few dollars quickly. 

Full missions can be various things with various requirements. I recently did a mission where I had to order 3 food deliveries and do selfie like videos expressing my feelings about the process. I have also done one-on-one and group live meetings with interviews testing out prototypes to even having a discussion on banking. The missions vary in duration as well from a single day to like the one I’m currently on that spans over 3 weeks.

Reward:

This tab is where you go to see your payouts. It includes how much you have been paid out as well as your pending rewards which are your missions that are in progress.  However, it may not show all of your pending live interview rewards which usually pays out $75/hr; but, once you have completed the interviews you should see the reward in a couple of days in your pending.

My Method:

Now that you know the basics, here is my methodology in qualifying for more tests.

1. Have your phone on you all the time and check your Explore tab often. I have my notifications on for possible new missions, but I have found there could be a delay up to 20 minutes from when a mission is available to when I get my notification, and that 20 minutes can make all the difference.
2. Like above about keeping your phone on you, just because the mission is open for qualifying, the researcher might not go through all the applicants. They most likely review the first applicants that came through that match their criteria and stop when they have met their quota. This means even if you are who they want, if you aren’t one of the first you may not get selected.
3. Most qualifiers are going to want selfie like videos of you. I personally don’t get dressed up or anything like that, but I present myself neat, prepared, and well lit. They want to see my reaction and my expressions clearly. It’s important to respect the researcher too. You don’t want to be lying in bed and acting annoyed. I have had missions that specifically said not to record yourself in bed.
4. Often they give you a list of prompts they want you to talk about in the selfie video. There is an option to show these prompts while you record. However, I like to write down the main points I want to cover in my videos before I start recording. This way my videos are concise, cover all the prompts and don’t meander all over. And use the full time they give you. If it’s 2 minutes go for the full 2 minutes and not just 30 seconds. They are looking for full insight.
5. Use Grammarly or another spell and grammar checking keyboard on your phone. Also, take your time and write thoughtful and intentional answers on your qualifiers. There are a lot of people as noted, hundreds of thousands of other active panelists so you want to set yourself apart, write well.
6. You may need to record your mobile screen as well. I like AZ Screen Recorder for Android.
7. Once you get accepted in the mission, no matter what is happening communicate with the moderator of the mission. On one of my mission, I had an assignment due that evening, but I was not going to be able to finish due to a myriad of issues. I was able to chat with my moderator who was able to defer the due date for me. So communication is key.
8. I’m not sure if there is a rating system for panelists, but I did notice that after I did an express mission and thought that I really did well on it and was told I was extremely helpful by the moderator I got qualified for several higher paying missions right away. You can see the trend in my payouts.

Proof:

Below are screenshots of my personal dscout dashboard. I have blurred out the names of some of the studies because I’m not sure whether or not the researchers would like them published.

As you can see, I started July 17th and by Sept 4th have over $1600 in my rewards which include my paid out and pending, but does not show my live meetings that are scheduled.

Now that you know how dscout works, let’s cover the pros and cons:

Pro

• It’s 100% legit
• All the top brands are there from Google to Walmart
• There are tons of missions that launch every day
• It pays really well
• Unlimited, unlike other sites you can do as many missions as you are qualified to do

Con

• You have to have a smartphone
• You have to be comfortable recording video of yourself and taking photos
• There is a lot of competition so you have to make yourself stand out
• Pays only via PayPal

Conclusion:

dscout is a great way to earn some side hustle money and quickly. I have read on other forums and on Reddit where some people making up to $2000 a month. Of course, this is not guaranteed, it’s highly related to your availability, demographics, and skillsets.

The Skinny:

The Hustle Team is not an affiliate to dscout but we love their platform.