Dec 22 2008
Mystery Shopping Info
If you are interested in working from home and enjoy shopping then I have a job for you - Mystery Shopping. Yes, it is real. Yes, you can make some money. Yes, it can be fun. Yes, it is flexible. Yes, it is something you can do with children (most of the time).Let me begin by telling you a bit about what I do - then you will have a better idea if this kind of job is right for you.Last week I had a job that I chose to do. I took my husband and my son out to dinner at a restaurant (it was already chosen which one I would shop - as most companies have contracts with certain stores) and I was told what time to eat (lunch/dinner). We went out to eat and was allowed a reimbursement of $25 for the meal, plus $7 to do the shop. We all had a great meal- for free. I had to call before going and ask a ‘knowledge question’ such as “What are your specials tonight” and then had to record the answer. Did the person who answered the phone say the script that they were supposed to? Did they say their name? How was their personality - friendly, welcoming, etc.Then at the restaurant I needed to record the name of the host and a description, the name of the waitress and a description. Evaluate the service throughout the whole time we were there, and then also check the place over for cleanliness. All without being spotted as a mystery shopper. At this point I am doing on average 2-3 of these shops with the same company every month - I have this shop down pretty good. I carry with me a small slip of paper where I jot down a few notes about the service and the names so I remember later when I need to write my report.After the meal, we pay and leave. In the car, I have a report printed out that I fill in, so that I don’t forget any details. It is mostly multiple choice answers on the service, but I must write a few sentences at the end of each section. Then I go home and input this same info into the mystery shopping website. After inputting everything, they then require me to scan in my receipts from the meal and upload them to their website. I submit my report and with this company I am usually paid the same week via direct deposit to my checking account.This is one of my favorite companies and my favorite shops - since money is often very tight there is no way we would go out to eat if it weren’t for this job. We now get to go out to eat 2-3 times a month for free. On the rare occasion that we go over the $25, we are usually still within the $32 total that we get to take home for this shop.Other shops that I’ve done for other companies have paid more- another company I worked for asked me to compare two mattress companies. They would send me the name and address for two companies in one town. I would be asked to go to visit them in the same day, evaluate the sales person and what they were selling. I had to obtain a business card and scan these in at the end of the shop as well as write a report on the sales techniques and which store I would buy from between the two. These shops were easy, I could take my son, and I enjoyed learning more about mattresses (since I need to get one soon). These shops ranged from 15 minutes in a store to up to 1 hour in a store depending on how much the sales person showed me and how in depth they got with the info. Once they were submitted in I got $30. I did four shops for this company like this for a total of $120.One other company I work for asked us to evaluate a eyeglasses store. My husband needed glasses and we had a flex account so we said sure. My husband got two pairs of glasses, used his insurance who reimbursed a portion, then we used the flex spend to cover the rest. The mystery shopping company paid us $120 to do the shop. You are not going to get rich doing mystery shopping, but it can be a nice break to do something out of the house, put a few extra bucks in your pocket, and give you a nice meal out on occasion. I really enjoy it and will continue doing it as long as I can. Here are a few of the companies I mentioned in my post:http://trendsource.com/http://www.nationwidesg.com/pages/1/index.htmhttps://www.bestmark.com/http://www.beyondhello.com/secure/index.htmThese are all companies that I personally work for and would recommend them. Some don’t pay fast (one I had to wait for over a month to be paid) and others pay every week or every-other week. Many pay by PayPal, some by USPS, and others by direct deposit. You will need to apply to become a mystery shopper - there is no need to become certified - it doesn’t really help anything. Just do a good job on your reports and always turn them in quickly.
First of all, companies will never pay before a job is done, you must complete the job and then you will be paid. Some companies pay faster than others - for instance Trendsource pays every other week, plus for certain shops they pay weekly. I get direct deposit to my checking so I get paid super fast with them.
Another company I work for pays monthly - I did a job in October and I wasn’t paid until the end of November for the shop. Some companies pay via Paypal, paper check or direct deposit.
I applied for many different companies to be a mystery shopper with them. Once I was accepted, I got access to view their “job boards”. Basically I look at jobs that they have available in my area. I can search by the whole state, or by a certain distance, say 30 miles, that I am willing to travel for a job. Then once I narrow it down I look through the jobs available- I read descriptions of what they want me to do, and if I would like to do the job I request it. With Trendsource, once I did 5 jobs for them with good scores (they score my reports) they gave me the opportunity to schedule my own jobs (basically I don’t have to wait for approval when I see a job I want, I just say I am going to do it). Other companies always have to approve you for the job that you request.
I would recommend searching out the companies that I’ve mentioned in my blog to start with. If you are interested in more companies, keep checking back as I will be posting a large list of work at home jobs that are legit, and I have many more mystery shopping companies. There is only one place that I know of that you can search all jobs, but I have never got a job through them, and I find it much better to work directly for a company. Plus, even with a search like that, you will still need to apply with each company individually and be ‘hired’.
Certified is a program to teach people how to be a mystery shopper. I’ve never done this, as it can be expensive. I’ve had more than enough jobs on my own and have never needed to be certified. I find that some places say that you need to be, but I think that is to get you to spend money that you really don’t need to spend. So I recommend staying away from companies that require certification and not bothering with getting the extra certification to begin with.
If you have any further questions, feel free to post and I will try to answer as best I can.