(1) Join few.
Beginners like to join a lot of programs in the hope of earning as much as possible. They make a lot of daily clicks, but find out that most programs they are in will not pay even a penny.
(2) Forget about "NPA".
NPA, or New Program Alert, informs you of a new program. It is very hard to predict the success of a new program.
If a three-day old program is praised as among the very best, you can be sure that truth is not being told.
(3) Take advice from others.
It is always good to ask for advice from friends before joining a program. You can also get information from fellow members in various forums.
If you join a program upon someone's recommendation, and the program turns out to be excellent, you may give more credits to the person. [On the other hand, if the program turns out to be not that good, it may be the case that the person is only interested in getting referral commissions from you, or is trying to win a referral contest.]
(4) Who owns the site?
The owner is the invisible human face behind a program. The reliability of a program depends heavily on whom the owner is.
(5) Check advertising prices.
Take a few minutes to check the regular advertising prices at the program you wish to join. If a 1c paid email (guaranteed 500 clicks) costs only $0.99, you know you will not get paid.
(6) Check black lists.
Several sites have a list of banned programs. You will be glad that you check these lists before joining a program.
(7) Last chance: check advertisers
If you join a site, and discover that almost all paid ads are from the owner her/himself: Get out as soon as possible. When no one purchases advertising, how would you expect to be paid? (Unless you believe in Santa Claus...)
You have reached the end of this page. Papy would like to thank you for the visit, and wishes you an enjoyable online time.
Hope to see you again soon.