Taste your way to extra cash!

Enjoy trying new foods? You can get paid to indulge as a taste tester! Market researchers and food companies are looking to hire folks to evaluate all sorts of foods and drinks! Here’s how you can cash in:

GET TASTING! As a taste tester, you’ll get paid about $25 to $30 per session to give your honest opinion of foods and drinks! To find gigs, search for “taste tester” openings on job sites like Monster.com and Indeed.com. You can also apply directly with research firms, such as Contract Testing (Contract Testing.com), Focus & Testing (Focusand Testing.com) and L&E Opinions (LE Opinions.com). Since most taste testing occurs in a lab, look for opportunities in your area. And rest assured, demand is high: “People come and go, so we’re always looking,” says Dan Scholes, an owner of Contract Testing, which has several sites in the U.S. and Canada.

TELL THE TRUTH! When you sign up as a taste tester, you’ll likely have to fill out a screening questionnaire to give compa- nies a sense of the products you use regularly—that’ll help them figure out if you’re a fit for upcoming tests. “For example, “says Scholes, “if a frozen French fry is being tested, the client will want to make sure you’ve actually consumed them.” Be sure to check only those items you truly use, stresses Scholes. “If people say yes to all of them, we know they’re not being honest and will be less likely to tap them.”

TAKE YOUR TIME! After you’ve tested a product, you’ll answer questions about it, most of which are scaled (for example, you’ll be asked to rate the flavor, price, appearance, texture, etc.). Scholes says the biggest no-no is to speed through a test or just mark the same rating for all the categories. “We call that speeding and straight-lining—that’s a problem for us. We remove that data set from our study and identify the individual, so you’d end up in our bad books.” Also smart? Don’t be shy with your feedback! Sometimes you’ll get the chance to participate in a more in-depth focus group following the basic taste test— and to earn an extra $25 to $75! “If you don’t have an opinion or can’t express yourself clearly, you’ll be less likely to be picked,” says Scholes.