Mystery Shopping - Facts & Advice

Mystery Shopping is a great way to earn some extra cash, but there are some things that you should know before you decide to get into it.

Firstly, you need to have spare time and/or a flexible schedule if you want to earn an income from mystery or secret shopping. That is why a large number of mystery shoppers tend to be stay-at-home mums or students who have the time to perform the shops. This also means that you stand a good chance of being assigned shops that are 'urgent’, especially when you first start out as a mystery shopper.

Seriously evaluate your skills when deciding to be a mystery shopper. You must have good observational and recall skills. In addition, you will be required to submit clearly written reports of your observations. These observations will have to be made without taking notes while conducting your shop. A key to being a good mystery shopper is the ability to blend in and look like the average customer. You need to be careful not to blow your cover.

You have to be realistic about the amount of money you might potentially earn, especially if you live in a sparsely populated area. Mystery shopping can provide you some good extra money, can not make you rich. Once you get comfortable with mystery or secret shopping, it is a fun way of earning some extra cash. You can do this in your spare time.

How much will I earn ? : This is a tough question to answer because some jobs pay nothing except for reimbursement, while others pay anywhere between five and a hundred dollars depending upon the assignment. Many shoppers do this in their spare time, and earn a few hundred dollars per month. Some consistently earn more—often a lot more. It is not unusual for a part time shopper to make $500 to $1000 or more per month.

When do I get paid ? : This also depends on the company, but the earliest that I usually see is three weeks. Most companies take six to eight weeks to process your checks.

Before You Start the Shop : Before you start your shop, read all of the instructions clearly and the report form that you will fill out later. Know ahead of time exactly where you are going and what kinds of things to keep an eye out for.

Penalties for missing report deadline : You should be careful of report submission deadline, otherwise you will end up earning far less than you could have if you submitted your report well with within time. Most of the companies usually require you to submit your report within 24 hours of your shop. This is to ensure you have the freshest recollection of your shopping experience. To ensure full earning from your shop you are advised to your completed report into the company within the designated time.

How many companies should you apply for ? : It depends. If you apply for only a few companies, you might only get called for a job once a month. But if you go and apply for company after company after company, you could become so overwhelmed with mystery shopping job requests that you are simply unable to keep up.

Start off by applying for 10 or so companies. Then depending on how many jobs you are offered, continue adding new companies weekly, in 5 or 10 company increments. You will eventually find a balance where you are offered a good number of jobs for the amount of time you have to devote to it.

Take notes of your shops immediately : When you go to do a shop, when you return to your vehicle, always write down any notes about the shop immediately. The longer you wait, the more likely you are to forget or embellish details. These are the types of things that could cause you to be dropped from a mystery shopping company's rotation. Never make notes in the business establishment, unless you are absolutely certain you will not be caught.

If you need to cancel a mystery shop : There are always times when life interferes and you are unable to do a mystery shopping job that you have accepted. If this should happen, contact the company right away and let them know you are unable to do it. If you give them enough time, they will likely be able to fill the job with another shopper.

When you give the company enough notice that you are unable to do a job, it shouldn't adversely affect your standing in that company, unless it happens to become a habit.

Choosing your secret shops : As you become well known within certain companies as a good shopper, and find yourself being offered shops before the main pool of shoppers, you can begin to pick and choose the shops you do. For beginner shoppers, it is often a case of grabbing what shops you can get, but with experience you can afford to select the kinds of shops, the dollar value of the shops, or the payment terms that you prefer.

You can also start turning down lower paying jobs and only accepting shopping assignments that pay a certain minimum, such as $20 or $30. Once you have experience under your belt, don't be afraid of turning down jobs.