Myster Shopper?

[3darlingsmomma]

Ok, it's me again with another question!

I've been reading a lot about being a mystery shopper. Is anyone here doing that and if so, is it worth it?

Thanks!

Tyra

[PrairieRose]

I've done a few shops Tyra but for the most part it's a bit of a pain for me. I did one recently that paid $145! I couldn't believe it. It actually paid for a basic pair of glasses at Walmart. It was a Walmart Optical Mystery Shop. My dmom got a new pair of glasses out of the deal so that was good. Most of the other ones like fast food shops....ugh...they want minute details and it's too time consuming for me. But I'm a bit impatient anyway....maybe I have add or something.
The company that I've shopped for is called Shop N Check. I think you can find them at www.Shopncheck.com

Good luck shopping!

[gkp1031]

I did mystery shopping a few years ago, didn't make too much money, found it was too time consuming for what I was getting paid. But, I guess if your in the right area and can do many shops at once, it would be worth it. Good luck!

[Megareader]

I did some mystery shopping a few years ago. It was very time consuming with all the paperwork they wanted filled out and didn't pay worth a darn.

[Ellise]

I wasn't impressed either

[pita1213]

i did some for shop n check before too. i got $20.00 plus the cost of food for doing fastfood shops because noone ever wanted to do them.
it's something you have to have paitence for, but the otehr shops if offered are pretty good, like teh glasses ones or sometimes they do hotels.

[bearaboo]

I only do mystery shops for things I have to do...like grocery shop, filling my car with gas, and renting movies. I MUST do these anyway so why not get paid for it...ok, renting movies I don't have to do but it takes 15 minutes and they reimburse me for the movie and I get $6.00! I also do occassional fast food restaurants when I want something extra for lunch...takes me 30 minutes, I get paid $10.50 plus cost of food. I don't do anything that is out of the way (shopping at stores that I don't go to) as I don't have the time! Last month, in September I made $50 for 4 shops and October I made $90 for 6 shops...it didn't take me a lot of time. Just my .02. I use www.trendsource.com and www.secretshopnet.com

[mommy2three]

i only did a couple for applebees, and had to fill out a ton of paperwork! i was only reimbursed for the cost of the food!

[mommy2three]

i forgot to mention, boy i sure could have used those glasses!! the kids broke both ear pieces off mine!!

[dolphin]

I do one shop a month for www.bestmark.com. They are great! I get paid $20.00 for the shop. It's a walkthrough in a store and you ask one employee a question about a product. Fill out a form online that takes about 15 to 20 min. and I'm done. It pays for my internet every month.

I did the food reimbursement shop one time and didn't like doing the shop although I enjoyed the food and the company. Too many details and didn't get anything but the price of the food reimbursed and it took 3 weeks to be reimbursed.

[Crystal]

Hello! I'm new here and thought I would post something on mystery shopping (this was written for another board):

Mystery shopping is basically where an individual is contracted by a mystery shopping company to pose as a regular customer and evaluate customer service. Most all restaurant and store chains are regularly mystery shopped. For instance, every single McDonalds all over the country is mystery shopped every month. Airlines, salons, hotels, cruises, sports events, theatres, etc. are also routinely mystery shopped, but these shops are usually only offered to mystery shoppers who have experience.

There are at least 200 mystery shopping companies who are hired by the restaurant and store chains to evaluate their customer service. To become a mystery shopper, you apply with these companies and then are notified if they have jobs available.

There are obviously more jobs available if you live near a larger metropolis, but there are plenty of jobs available in smaller areas... often these are the ones the companies have a harder time filling.

I have been mystery shopping for about a year and a half. I have done a good amount of fast-food shops, casual dining, fine dining, retail stores, a pet store, gas stations, post offices, and we just did our first bowling shop two weeks ago. I have been offered a lot more jobs than these, but I am particular about what jobs I will take. I will not take a job that is low-paying or requires me to pose as someone I am not or evaluate a large amount of different things. I usually make around $15/hr doing this, plsu reimbursements.

Let me just tell you up front that it is not easy money and you do have to be very observant and detailed. The companies are very particular about their shoppers. You have to follow directions exactly.

The first rule of mystery shopping is never to pay to shop. There are a lot of scam services out there that offer to provide you with all sorts of mystery shopping jobs for a one-time fee of $29.95 or something. Do not fall for them.

If this seems like something you would be interested in doing, the best way to start is to apply, apply, apply. There is a large listing of mystery shopping companies located at http://www.volition.com. I have applied with almost everyone of them. The applying part takes a lot of work and time, but it pays off once you start getting shop offers. Every company listed on there is one you can trust. Volition has been around for a long time and if you check out the message boards, you will find that there is a huge amount of valuable information to help you get started. I have learned most everything I know from the shoppers on there who do it full-time and have done this for a number of years.

Crystal Paine
http://www.CovenantWeddingSource.com

Looking for ways to earn an income from home?
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http://www.covenantweddingsource.com/MerchantMaiden.htm

[trelawney8]

I've done some mystery shopping in the past few months for www.shopnchek.com.

It does take some time and there aren't a ton of shops available in my area, but if you have time to spare, it seems like free money.

I've done two restaurants (fast food...reimbursed for the meal plus a little extra) and two cell phone shops.

I try to combine shops that I wouldn't normally go to with other errands and at the very least consider it my entertainment (sort of fun to pretend to need one service or another).

The money is by no means significant, but it's a little extra cash and I don't mind the time.

[mom43]

I have done a few in the past and got hooked up with the company through the local job service agency. Most of them I see on the internet require a sign-up fee of about $30.00. And others have nothing in my area.