I was introduced to the idea that information was valuable when a friend with a brand new Ph.D. hired me to design a program that tabulated survey results. It seems that a group of non-profit organizations were willing to pay big bucks to find out who their contributors were and what they were thinking. It dawned on me that if low budget, non-profit organizations were willing to pay to collect information about their contributors, there must be something of value there.

There was! Now the only problem was how to collect it. So, now you are thinking log files right? Those fancy programs with wonderful graphs, sky-high numbers and tons of dreams. I still remember looking at my first set of graphs for my new web site. This program had live statistics, bells, whistles and color. I logged in and my heart leaped as I saw sixteen people logged on my web site at the instant that I checked it!

Only later did I discover that, the sixteen individual sessions recorded by my software package were created by one lonely AOL surfer. It seems that AOL has this way of switching IP numbers that threw my statistics package into a virtual tizzy. Once I had learned a few tricks and twists related to log files, the information grew valuable and I wanted more.

It's hard to ask a statistics package to tell me the annual household income of my visitor, their age, sex, surfing habits or how long they have been on the Internet. It's also hard to just come out and ask my visitor those questions. They might be worried about their privacy and how I might use that information.

On the other hand, they might not mind that I know that my average user is male, 30-45 years old and makes in excess of $50,000 per year and is on the Internet 3-5 hours per week. Summary information is one thing and a visitor's privacy is another.

Other people are interested in this information also. I discovered that companies were willing to pay me to deliver completed answers to their questions. There is only one problem, I have to find the people that fit their market and get them to answer questions.

Here's how I do that:

1. I offer to pay people to fill out surveys.
2. I get web sites and e-mail newsletters to refer visitors.
3. I offer website and e-mail newsletters summary demographic information on people that they refer.

Then "the icing on the cake" is that I pay the affiliates 50% of every dollar that is paid to the people that they refer.

The web site or e-mail newsletter publisher gets:

1. Complete demographic information
2. Additional, direct, recurring income

Your visitors get:

1. Complete privacy
2. A chance to give their opinion
3. Additional income

You can check out the idea at:

http://www.mbsinternet.net/

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Kenneth A. McArthur is the President of McArthur Business Systems, Inc.

He has completed survey related projects for Chase Manhattan Bank,

World Vision, and The Billy Graham Crusades among others.

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Kenneth A. McArthur, President
McArthur Business Systems, Inc.
http://www.mbsinternet.net

[email protected]

152 Chestnut Drive
Richboro, PA 18954
Voice 215-355-1291
Fax (215) 322-5977