Surveys: Pinecone Research FAQs

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www.pineconeresearch.com


C o m p e n s a t i o n

PayPal Members
Is it necessary to have a separate personal PayPal account setup for PineCone?
If you already have a personal PayPal account, you are welcome to use it for receiving your PineCone payment. Please note: a merchant account can incur additional charges. The PineCone Research database can accommodate a separate e-mail address for your payment.


Can I have both Personal and Premier/Business Accounts?
Yes. PayPal members may have one Personal account and one Premier or Business account. However, each account must have its own e-mail address and financial information.

How can I tell the difference between a real PayPal e-mail and a fake one?
The address at the top of the browser window you're brought to should read exactly https://www.paypal.com. PayPal e-mails will address you by first name and last name, and NOT by Dear PayPal User or Dear PayPal Member.


Who should I contact with questions; PayPal or PineCone?
Questions about the PayPal service or navigation of the site should be directed to PayPal through their Contact PayPal Customer Service link or Customer Service Center. For all other PineCone Research survey inquiries, feel to contact us at Scott@pineconeresearch.com.


Will I incur any fees if I opt to use my business/premier account to receive my PineCone Research payments?
The Business/Premier account can incur additional fees.

What is the minimum withdrawal amount and is there a fee?
$1.00 USD is the minimum. PayPal provides cost-free withdrawals to your local bank account as long as you meet the minimum threshold values defined on the Pay Pal Withdrawal Fee page.

When can I expect to be compensated for my participation?
Your payment is processed the next business day following the completion of your product evaluation survey. Your notification of payment will come to you from our panelpayment@pcrint.com e-mail address. Please be sure to make a note of this new e-mail address.


Will I be compensated for completing the household questions?
PineCone members are not compensated for the household questions that you may be asked to complete. Your responses to these brief 2-5 minute questionnaires enable us to send you product evaluations, which are paid, that are more specific to your household.


I haven't received payment for my survey; whom do I contact?
Participants can expect to receive their payment 3-5 days after survey completion. If your payment is not listed in your PayPal personal payment history, please contact us and we'll be happy to investigate this further.


How can I identify my PineCone Research survey payment from others that I may receive?
Your payment will be posted to your PayPal Account from our panelpayment@pcrint.com address. The payment detail will include “PineCone Research” in the subject line and the study number in the accompanying message.


Can I update my PayPal Account Email using my PineCone Research personal profile?
Yes. If you have selected PayPal as your PineCone Research payment method and received confirmation of this, the personal profile can be used to update your PayPal account information with us.


What does a Status of Unclaimed mean?
A payment may be Unclaimed for one of the following reasons:

• Your recipient did not sign up with PayPal using the same email address that you used to send the money. The recipient simply needs to add this email address to his account (he can add up to eight addresses) and confirm the new email address. The money will then immediately appear in his balance.
• The recipient may not have confirmed his email address. Any payments sent to an account will not appear in the account balance until the user has completed the registration process by confirming his email address.
• The recipient must manually accept or deny this payment.

For further troubleshooting assistance on this topic, please contact Pay Pal directly through their PayPal FAQ or PayPal Customer Service Center.


What does a Status of Denied mean?
A Denied status can mean there's an issue with your PayPal account setup or you have chosen to deny the payment. Please contact PayPal directly through their PayPal FAQ or PayPal Customer Service Center for troubleshooting assistance with your account.
If you have a denied PineCone Research payment in error, please contact us at Scott@pineconeresearch.com and we'll be happy to assist you.




Check Members
How will I be compensated for my participation?
Checks are issued to our panelists as payment for their participation in the PineCone surveys.


How long are PineCone checks good for?
The PineCone checks are good for a period of 120 days. If you run into difficulty cashing one of our checks, please let us know.


Will I be compensated for completing the household questions?
PineCone members are not compensated for the household questions that you may be asked to complete. Your responses to these brief 2-5 minute questionnaires enable us to send you product evaluations, which are paid, that are more specific to your household.


I misplaced one of my PineCone Research checks and now it's expired. Can you replace it for me?
Due to the high volume of checks that we generate on a weekly basis, we are unable to replace lost, stolen or expired checks. The compensation charges for each product evaluation survey are immediately passed along to the sponsoring manufacturer and the accounting records are closed within weeks of the projects end.


If I'm selected to take part in the product-testing phase of a study, will I be compensated for that as well?
Absolutely! Participants are paid for each completed product evaluation survey. You are compensated for the initial product concept survey and again for the follow-up survey.


When can I expect to be compensated for my participation?
Your payment is processed the next business day following the completion of your product evaluation surveys.


Do you offer alternate forms of payment to your members?
We now offer PayPal as an alternate form of payment to our members. Those who have a PayPal account can now have their PineCone Research payments sent directly to this account. To select PayPal as your preferred payment method, contact us.



How do I start receiving my PineCone payments through PayPal?
To switch your PineCone Research payment type from check to PayPal, you must have an existing PayPal account. If you are a first time PayPal user, it is imperative that you complete all registration requirements, including confirmation of your PayPal account email address. Once you've setup your PayPal account, please update your PineCone Research personal profile with your PayPal account email address and email us at scott@pineconeresearch.com with your request to change your payment type along with your name and user ID. For faster processing, please include your PayPal account email and use "Switch to PayPal" as your subject line.



How do I sign up for PayPal?
To sign up for PayPal, go to www.paypal.com and click on the "Sign Up Now" link. For further assistance with questions pertaining to the PayPal service or navigation of the site, please contact PayPal directly through their PayPal FAQ link or PayPal Customer Service Center.



Sweepstakes
What are the official sweepstakes rules and where can I find them?
When sweepstakes are offered, the official rules will be posted prominently on our web site and contain the specific terms and conditions for each drawing.


Will I have to pay taxes on the sweepstakes cash prizes?
You are required by law to claim prizes valued at $600.00 or more when filing your tax forms and are also responsible for any local, state and/or federal income taxes.


Will my name be published on your web site if I'm selected as a sweepstakes drawing winner?
Your first name and last initial along with your state of residence will be posted on the PineCone website as one of our lucky drawing winners.


G e n e r a l P a r t i c i p a t i o n
Can I suspend my surveys for a short time if I'm going to be out of town, on vacation, or my computer goes down?
Yes. Please call or e-mail us and we will be happy to put you on temporary hiatus for the amount of time you request. This way you will not miss any assigned surveys.


Can I update my household information online?
Updating your household information online is quick and easy to do. Simply go to the Pinecone Research website and enter your login information. From there, you can access your personal profile and make any necessary changes. Unfortunately, this option is not available to those with WebTv at this time. If you are a WebTv user, please feel free to contact us by e-mail or phone, and we'll be happy to make the change for you.


Do you recruit new members through your website or take referrals?
Presently, we do not recruit new members through our website or take unsolicited referrals. However, we will be posting recruitment opportunities through banner ads on various websites from time to time throughout the year. If you see one of these ads, please feel free to sign up with us.


Where can I find the PineCone banner ads?
Unfortunately, there is no one site that I disclose to you. The banner ad placement is not fixed over the life of the campaign. The web sites that our banner ads may appear on are constantly changing during the course of the campaign.


If I'm unable to complete the survey, can someone else in my household fill it out for me?
Unfortunately, no. Our panelists are pulled for studies according to certain demographic requirements. While there may be opportunities for other members of your household to participate from time to time, you are the only person who should be completing our studies.


If I make a mistake in the interview, how do I correct it?
It's okay to finish the interview first, then e-mail us the incorrect and correct information for us to change. The "BACK" browser button does not allow you to change any information concerning the survey. The only way to correct this is to finish out the survey and alert us.


Do you ever remove members for missing surveys?
We routinely monitor member participation. Members that are identified as "at risk for removal " are notified of this via e-mail. Those who are unable to maintain acceptable participation levels thereafter are removed from the panel.


Are the survey results ever posted on the web site?
Due to the confidential nature of the testing done on the manufacturer's behalf, the results are shared with the survey's sponsor only.


Is it ok to sign up my spouse for the panel as well?
Participation in the PineCone Research panel is limited to one member per household. While there may be opportunities for other household members to participate from time to time, there can only be one designated spokesperson for the household.


Why am I being asked to complete a survey for a product I haven't tried?
In some instances, panelists are testing the merits of a product idea rather than an actual product that is already in existence. Your feedback helps the manufacturer determine what appeals most to consumers in a product.


Have you stopped using e-mail to notify members of their new assignments?
Your first survey notification will always come to you by e-mail. If you are not receiving these notices, check to make sure your PineCone Research personal profile contains the correct e-mail address. If your address is correct, we recommend checking the e-mail filter setting on your computer and/or contacting your Internet Service Provider.


If my e-mail is missing my survey and ID number, will I still receive a response back from you?
Absolutely! However, including your ID number and the survey number in the message assists us in providing you with a speedier response.


If I'm unable to see the product concept, should I complete the survey anyway?
Your ability to view the product concept in the survey is a requirement for participation in the study. As a member of the PineCone Research panel, you directly influence which products get developed and help ensure that these products meet consumer demands. Your opinion will have an impact on everything from product performance to style, varieties, features, pricing...you name it.

If you are ever unable to view the product concept in one of our surveys, whether it's presented in a picture or video format, please contact us at scott@pineconeresearch.com for troubleshooting assistance. Surveys submitted by those who were unable to view the product concept are not included in the study data.


Do you remove panelists for reasons other than survey non compliance?
Yes. We reserve the right to remove members from the panel without notice for variety of reasons. The list below represents reasons for removal outside of survey compliance and subject to change or update without prior notice.

• Violation of the Confidentiality and/or Membership Agreement
• Multiple person or household registrations on the panel
• Panel composition maintenance (to mirror changes in general population and provide clients with the broadest possible spectrum of consumer opinions)

How long can I be a member of the panel?
Your participation is always entirely voluntary and you may discontinue your panel membership at any time.

Periodically, we have found it necessary to refresh the composition of our panel to stay current with changes in the general population and provide clients with the broadest possible spectrum of consumer opinions. Memberships may be discontinued during panel composition maintenance.




G e n e r a l P a r t i c i p a t i o n - N e w M e m b e r s

How long does it usually take to complete a questionnaire?
We try to keep our studies as short as possible, making them most convenient for you. A typical questionnaire usually takes 15 to 20 minutes to complete.



How often can I participate in a study?
You can expect to be called upon to answer a survey once or twice a month, sometimes less. Our client volume drives the need for participants.



How will I be notified of my new product evaluation survey assignments?
All survey notifications will be sent to you via e-mail. We ask that you check your PineCone Research personal profile using the member login area on the web site to make sure that it contains the correct e-mail address and that any e-mail filters on your computer are set to allow you to receive correspondence from PineCone Research.



What if I can't remember my ID or password?
We include a reminder of your ID and password in every new survey communication to you. You do not need to worry about remembering or misplacing this information.



Why am I being asked to complete a survey for a product I don't use?
Your responses help manufacturers better understand the strengths and weaknesses of their product ideas and what you would look for in the product should you ever need to purchase it.



When I email, what information should I include?
It is important to give as much detail about your problem as possible. This should include the study number, at what question or page the problem occurred, if there was an error and if so what was the error message, and if this has happened before. Being as detailed as possible allows my staff and I to handle your issue in a more efficient and timely manner. Also, please be sure to provide your ID or full name. We need to be able to investigate and log your issue in order to track the problem correctly and provide resolution.



Whenever I call or write in, how long can I expect to wait for a reply from you?
Our goal is to always respond to your inquiry within 24-48 business hours. Typically, you can expect an even quicker reply, but sometimes a very heavy workload can affect our response time.



Your questionnaire asks for my e-mail address. I have several, should I provide them all?
No, please provide the one e-mail address that you would prefer us to use to contact you (i.e., one that you check the most frequently).



Can I still be a member if I miss my first survey?
The completion of the first survey assignment is key to active membership on our panel. Those who do not complete the survey are not asked to take part in subsequent surveys.



Do I have to login on the PineCone web site to access my survey assignment?
No, you may access your study directly via the "Current Studies" page of our web site. This eliminates the need to login twice.



Are panelists considered employees of PineCone Research?
No, panelists are not employees of PineCone Research. Your participation is always entirely voluntary and you may discontinue your panel membership at any time.



P r i v a c y
Are my survey responses ever looked at individually?
Your privacy is always respected and the confidentiality of your answers is maintained. Your opinion will be counted along with that of other participants, and your personal household information grouped and analyzed with the information of the other households.



Will my personal information ever be given away?
No. It will be kept completely confidential and will never be sold to any third party. Your personal data is used only for the purpose of our research studies.



Will you ever try to sell me anything?
No one will ever attempt to sell you anything, and you will never be expected to purchase any products. We value your opinion.



If the product that I'm evaluating is already out on the market, is it okay to talk about it with others?
Because the research we do on our clients behalf is not limited to just new product ideas but frequently extends to existing products that may already be on the market, we ask that you not share information about your product evaluation experiences with anyone living outside of your home.



P r o d u c t
Can test product samples be given to friends or relatives living outside my home to try?
Unfortunately, no. This includes other family members who do not live in your immediate household. The test product sample is intended for use by the panelist. Manufacturers are very anxious to protect any new products from the eyes of their competition. That is why we ask that you evaluate new products within your own household and not share them or discuss them with your friends, neighbors or relatives living outside the home.


Is it ok to complete the follow-up survey even if I haven't received the test product?
To ensure the accuracy of the product testing results reported to the client, panelists need to respond based on their actual usage. If the test product has not arrived by the start of the follow-up survey, please contact us by e-mail or phone so we can troubleshoot the problem.



Who should I contact if I have questions about a product sample, the manufacturer or PineCone Research?
Unless you are directed otherwise by PineCone Research, anytime you have questions or concerns about a test product you have been given to try, please don't hesitate to contact us. We are always glad to help.



If I update my address before I receive my notice that product samples are on the way, will it be delivered to my new address?
Panelists are assigned to a project three to four days before the study goes online on our website. Unfortunately, if your address is not updated prior to the time you are assigned to the study, then the old address will be used.



Will I ever be asked to return a test product sample?
Upon occasion manufacturers will request the retrieval of any remaining test product samples from the study. It is sometimes very important for manufacturers to see how a product holds up after typical use. Should a manufacturer make the decision to retrieve any remaining test product samples, you will be notified by mail and e-mail.




Q u e s t i o n n a i r e T r o u b l e s h o o t i n g
If my new survey assignment is not listed on the web site, what should I do?
The e-mail notification of the new study sent to panelists is a signal that the questionnaire is online and available. However, if there is ever a time when you do not see the study listed on our "Go to Current Study" page, hold down your control button and click refresh. An old page may have been stored in your computer's memory and it will not update until it is removed. The control/refresh will clear it out allowing you to see the new study listed.


What should I do if I encounter the error message "Something Borked" when attempting to access my survey assignment?
The "Something Borked" error typically indicates a technical problem with one of our servers. If this should occur, simply try again in a few hours.


If I have to end the survey before completing it, will I have to start over from the beginning?
No. The webserver is designed to allow you to continue at the point of the questionnaire where you originally exited. If it does not, or if the program falsely tells you that you have completed the questionnaire, please contact us and we will reset your ID so that you will be able to complete your questionnaire.


What do I do if the survey won't allow me to advance to the next question?
This problem generally stems from a missing answer. Check to make sure that you have entered a response for every variety or statement appearing on screen. If the problem continues contact us by e-mail or phone so we can troubleshoot the problem.


Your questionnaires sometimes ask for a price to be entered. What do I do if it won't accept my answer?
This problem typically indicates that your answer does not match the form shown in the example (i.e., number of digits, etc.). Check the format of the response that you've entered. Your response should mirror the format example provided in the questionnaire instructions. If the problem continues contact us by e-mail or phone so we can troubleshoot the problem.


What should I do if the error message "Interview is no longer active" appears on screen during my survey?
The "Interview is no longer active" message error typically indicates a technical problem with one of our servers. Should this occur as you are submitting your survey, let us know and we'll be happy to verify the status of the interview; otherwise, simply try again in a few hours.


I've noticed an increased frequency of "time out" errors when trying to access my surveys. Any ideas?
These difficulties may be connected to settings associated with newer releases of browser software, such as AOL 8.0 and the like. Instead of using the software's built in browser, try accessing the survey using Internet Explorer.


Upon occasion, I receive the error message "Error processing request - The server was unable to locate your Personal Identification Number (PIN)." What does this mean?
The "Error processing request - The server was unable to locate your Personal Identification Number (PIN)." message indicates that the survey has already been completed and no further attempts are needed. If you feel you have received this message in error, let us know and we'll be happy to verify the status of the interview.



T e c h n i c a l I s s u e s
Do I need any special browser "Plug-In" controls that I always hear about?
Yes. Some of our studies require special "Plug-In" controls such as Flash and Microsoft Media Player. Instructions will be given for installing these "Plug-Ins" at the time when you need them.


Why do I get a blank screen when attempting to login to the survey?
Make sure you have the most recent upgrade for your browser. If you have the most recent upgrade, your Internet Explorer security settings may need adjusting. If you are unaware of how to adjust your settings or need links to current upgrades please contact us by email or phone.


Why am I getting sent back to the Homepage?
Some studies open a new/second window. In some instances your pop-up blocker software may be preventing the second page from displaying. If you have software like this installed on your computer, please try adjusting your settings or temporarily disabling it while you complete our survey.



T r o u b l e s h o o t i n g
What does the "User name not on file" error mean?
The "User name not on file" error is typically an indicator of an id not being on the invitation list. Double check that the job selected is the same as the number on your invitation. If you are accessing the correct survey, be sure to type your Household ID and Password because the copy/paste command can add hidden spaces.

What does it mean when the study I select has a construction page or traffic page?
A construction page is used when changes are being made to the study. A traffic page is used when a larger number of panelists are participating in studies at the same time. In order to minimize delays or slow downs, the number of panelists are limited at that particular time. In either instance, you should try back in a few hours.


What should I do if I encounter the error message "Illegal Operation?"
This message is typically associated with low storage space or lack of memory on the computer. Try emptying your recycle bin, temp files and Internet temp files.