Apex Focus Group Review: It’s a Complete Waste of Time
Trying to make the most of apex focus group review? You are in the right place. Below we break it down in plain English, with practical tips you can actually use.
Key Takeaways
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- Apex Focus Group claims to have over 800 active participants from 41 states taking part in their 1,000+ market research opportunities, and t...
Apex Focus Group claims to have over 800 active participants from 41 states taking part in their 1,000+ market research opportunities, and the company’s home page indicates that they “help you find paid focus groups near you.” In reality, the company does not offer any of its own research opportunities; it merely directs you to third-party sites that may or may not be worth your time.
This is an key distinction, particularly given that Apex’s terms of service indicate that the company “has no control over, and assumes no responsibility for, the content, privacy policies, or practices of any third party web sites or services.”
In other words, Apex is not a legitimate market research company and users should follow links from the site, or from the emails that Apex sends, at their own risk.
In this Apex review, I’ll go over what the company does, how it makes money, and why you should consider other options.
Table of Contents
ToggleIs Apex Focus Groups Legit?
Apex does not offer its own paid research opportunities. Instead, the goal of the site is to sign users up to an email distribution list. Subscribers receive emails with affiliate links that direct them to third-party survey sites, market research platforms, product testing opportunities and various other services and offers.
Although Apex does not disclose how the company earns money, my assumption is that they receive a commission when users click on links and/or sign up for third-party services. While I was referred to several legitimate third-parties, I hadn’t heard of most of the companies I was directed to and received a number of errors and security messages after clicking on links during testing.
In other words, Apex does not appear to conduct much if any vetting with regard to the quality of the third-party opportunities it sends to its email list.
Apex’s List of Available Focus Groups Is Never Updated
One of the easiest ways to tell that Apex is not offering its own opportunities is the fact that the list of available focus groups displayed on the website never changes.
Take a look at the screenshots below. The first one shows the focus groups that were listed on December 20, 2022 (after clicking “Focus Groups” on the main page). The list was identical to the results from a search conducted in July 2023.
List from December 2022. List from July 2023. Apex’s list of “Available Focus Group Studies” never changes.While I suppose it is possible that all of these companies are still looking to complete studies that began at least seven months ago, it is more likely that Apex added a number of opportunities at a point in time to give the site the appearance of a functioning website and then never bothered to refresh them.
And in fact, clicking on numerous of these “sign up” links takes you to dead pages or research studies that are no longer available.
What Happens After You Sign Up
When I clicked on the “Go Here To Get Started” button, I expected to be taken to a sign-up page that, after entering personal details, would lead me to a dashboard that provides access to various studies based on my demographic information. That is what occurs when you sign up for legitimate paid research sites.
Apex says you’re “joining their panel,” but you’re actually just signing up for an email list.Instead, the resulting page indicated that Apex was seeking participants in all cities and states. The description listed a generic set of responsibilities and qualifications and promised the ability to earn $75 to $150 per hour. Even the low end of that range would be approximately 50% higher than the best-paying focus group platform we’ve tested.
Apex does not ask for the type of demographic information that would be helpful in pre-screening you for paid research opportunities.It also stated that there were only three positions left. This appears to be a complete fabrication, as that same “three positions left” message has been shown every time we’ve viewed the registration page over the three months we’ve spent researching, writing and fact-checking for this review.
After clicking on “Apply Now,” I was asked for a few personal details. However, I was also asked whether or not I was interested in receiving a school grant, which was unusual and raised some red flags; not only does this not have anything to do with focus groups, it just generally seems sketchy.
After completing my registration information, Apex sent me a welcome email that included a “private” link to complete my first questionnaire along with a link to register for my first market research assignment.
The first link sent me to a third-party, Curion, where I was asked to sign up for their service to gain access to various product testing opportunities. The second link redirected me to a third-party survey site, Branded Surveys.
To find paid opportunities, I would have to sign up separately for one of those two sites.
Our Apex Focus Groups Testing Experience
After my initial annoyance with Apex not being what it claimed to be, I decided to see if any of the seemingly stale opportunities were actually legit. I attempted to sign up for the first five studies listed on the “Available Focus Group Studies” page.
Apex claims to list available focus groups, but most of the links don’t work or don’t direct you to actual opportunities.Here is what I found:
- The “business travel” focus group study redirected me to a SurveyMonkey signup page.
- The “decision making” and “home financing” studies both redirected me to third-party sites that were flagged as having privacy concerns by my browser.
- The “pet products” study link resulted in an error message.
- The “Health and Wellness” study redirected me to a sign-up page for L&E Opinions, where I could gain access to studies run by L&E Research.
These five “studies” weren’t what I had anticipated. I decided to switch gears and check out the numerous emails that Apex sent me. I’ve received one or two emails each day since signing up. Each has a different call to action, like “here’s you
Final Thoughts
Before you check out, double-check apex focus group review against current offers and any coupons you can stack. Small habits like this add up to real savings over a year.
Originally published at thewaystowealth.com.
Vanessa Zeigler
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