American Consumer Panels (ACP) Review- Scam?
Website:american-consumer-panels.com
Owners: no clue
Cost: free
In this review I will share with you all the pros and cons of this program.
I will give you my opinion if this is a good business opportunity or one of many to stay away from.
When I am done, you will have enough information for you to make an intelligent decision on whether to get involved or to stay away, as there are many scams around.
Also, good for you for taking the initiative to do your own research before getting involved in any program.
It shows you are serious about finding a “legitimate way to make an online income.”
Disclaimer: I am not a member or an affiliate of American Consumer Panels. Any and all information researched for this review can be obtained online within the public domain.
This review is my opinion and any recommendation are my own which you may or not agree with. You can see my full disclaimer here for more information, Click here.
Overview
American Consumer Panels professes to be a consulting company for testing products for manufacturers.
Supposedly, they specialize in home usage testing, where they have people {like you and me} to test different home products to give potential buyers feedback on how their products actually worked with home use.
After the testing the products go back to the manufacturer to be improved according to the test results.
American Consumer Panels hires testers like us to supply feedback on different products. By doing this in the comfort of your own home.
Unfortunately, this is just a scam. There is no proof that there is a legitimate company behind this website.
What is American Consumer Panels?
ACP is a market research company that provides in-home testing services. Very little is known about the owners of American Consumer Panels. This is despite listing on their website that it is owned by Innovation Consulting LLC in Cheyenne. The latter information doesn’t associate the company to any individuals. As a matter of fact, an in-depth search of Innovation Consulting LLC won’t yield any useful results.
According to BBB, the company has a rating of A- at the period of doing this review. It is however not accredited. On the same Better Business Bureau, there is no information on the ownership or management of the business.
There are many pros to being a doubting Thomas. If you have an inquisitive mind then your chances of being scammed are going to be very low.
Of late, many people have been talking about earning an income through product testing. This seems like a lucrative idea. And that’s why you are here reading this review about American Consumer Panels, a company that claims to pay people to test products. But, is ACP legit or a scam? Keep on reading to find out the good and the ugly about ACP.
How to Be Part of the ACP Community
Fill out the application and give them your e-mail address. That’s all that they want anyway.
How Does ACP Work?
Being an in-home product testing platform, American Consumer Panels sends products to testers in their homes. Afterward, the tester will have to either write or record an audio/video describing the experience they had with the product.
The products may vary in nature with others requiring testers to visit a manufacturer’s site to review a product. Depending on the manufacturer, testers can be allowed to keep the products and this is one of the things that makes product testing so lucrative.
Make money by just testing products? And do so in the comfort of my home? How do I sign up?
Well, all you have to do is navigate to their website and start the registration process. Here is the catch though, the company will direct you to 2 partner survey sites which will capture your demographic details. The objective here is to know which products you may be required to test.
The Average Income You Can Make with American Consumer Panels
Should you get selected to join the ACP community, the panel claims that it will be sending you work regularly. The rates will range from $25 to $45 per hour.
As great as this pay is, I advise you to approach product testing from a realistic point of view. Because, not very often that you will have products to test. In the long run, you may want to also look for another side hustle to drive more money into your pockets.
The payment from American Consumer Panels is sent to you the week after you test a product and it’s mailed via check or direct deposit.
Pros and Cons of American Consumer Panels
Pros
Great Pay – Picture earning $25 to $45 for testing a product and sharing your experience with it. How great would that be? Not to mention, the pay comes after a week.
You Get to Keep the Product – Other than being paid to test a product, you are also allowed to keep it.
No Prior Expertise Required – You don’t have to be a professional at anything. What matters is that the product suits your demographics.
A Wide Range of Products to Test – Based on your profile, every week you will get a variety of products to test. And this can be quite exciting.
Cons
Limited to Residents Only in the US – The products are not shipped to other regions.
The Chances of Making a Lot of Money is Low – Weeks can go by without getting the opportunity to test even a single product. Because there are no products!
No Products to be Tested
The main disadvantage of signing up on ACP is that there are actually no products to be tested. They only take you in circles from one survey to another.
Lots of Negative Reviews – The number of positive reviews about American Consumer Panels that can be found online are countable. Most are just negative and honestly quite discouraging.
Many people complain that once you sign up, you are directed to surveys and there is no product to be tested.
What is All the Fuss about ACP Being a Verified Member of FTC Guardian?
Midst all the complaints raised about ACP, one of the most focused on issues is them being verified by FTC Guardian. This is one of the gray areas associated with ACP. , claim that this verification shows their compliance with the rules set by the Federal Trade Commission. But how true is that?
Allow us to catch you up to speed with who FTC Guardian are and their responsibility in the financial world. FTC Guardian is a company that trains on how people can comply with FTC regulations. The only extent they go to is protecting the companies they verify to be in good standing with their regulations. They however in no way prove compliance of FTC regulations.
Is ACP a Legit Site to Make Money Testing Products?
By now, you have probably seen some red flags of working with American Consumer Panels. With that being said, however, below are reasons why you should think twice about this product testing opportunity at ACP.
No one knows who the owner of American Consumer Panels is. Therefore, should there be any issues, who will you approach?
Another red flag is the presence of outdated information on the website. For instance, their privacy policy dates back to 5 years ago.
The overall appearance of the website looks unprofessional and this lowers the credibility of the site.
The hundreds of complaints can be quite discouraging. Because if plenty of people don’t find the company useful, chances are, neither will you. So there is no point in wasting your time.
The New York address listed is fake according to Wikipedia.
Bottom Line
From a professional point of view, I would avoid American Consumer Panels at all costs. This is because the cons outweigh the pros. And, unless you are very daring, I wouldn’t recommend you venture into a company with a lot of red flags.
The idea of making $25 or more per hour testing products may seem like a deal-breaker, but if it seems too good to be true, it is usually.
You are better off finding other legitimate programs that can teach you an excellent way to earn needed money online. It’s called affiliate marketing.
How would it feel to do something once and get paid over and over again! That’s the beauty of affiliate marketing.
Once you have completed all the training and have your site established, you will generate income for years to come.
And, then just rinse and repeat with another site.
And the best thing is it’s 100% free to get started for as long as you want. Check it out here.
Thanks for reading my article and good luck in your future earnings, Deanna
What a detailed American Consumer Panel review! Years ago, I tried out several survey sites such as Vindale Research, Toluna, Global Test Market, and many others, but to no avail. I realized that members were only making money for those sites, and nothing else. Some promised to pay $5 per completed survey while others assure to pay higher to test products of companies.
Thanks for recommending the affiliate marketing model! Nothing can be compared to being an affiliate marketer, as it’s a sure way to earn passive income for a lifetime.
Thanks for your comments. I also tried a couple of MLM programs without any luck. Affiliate marketing is great, but you do have to put in a lot of work to see success. Many people are looking for a get rich quick program, which don’t exist. Thanks again, Deanna
Hello Deanna, it’s really a nice idea for people to go into business and they are aware of the things they do and like this her, one would be in total darkness seeing how the people who have created this can’t be known as the founder. With a all of these being considered, then any of such business should be avoided.
Hi Justin, Thanks for the comment. I certainly agree with you that it’s important to know what ‘s in store for you when you start a new business. There is still a lot of uncertainty with any new venture, so the more you know the better off you are. And your chances for success are better. Deanna
No no no. I don’t think that I want to be a member of this one at all because the possibility of me making money out of it is very slim and I don’t in any way want to lose my money to all of this at all. I’m still really happy that I can learn that this is a scam so I don’t have to waste my time to be a part of it at all.
Thanks for the comments, It’s very hard to find legit products out there so it’s good to read reviews, Thanks again, Deanna