Interested in Mystery Shopping? Great! Here’s a list of common FAQ’s compiled to save my poor hands from carpal tunnel in answering questions one at a time: (If you’re looking for other random jobs, check out the Work at Home FAQ)
- What is Mystery Shopping? Mystery Shopping is another aspect of Market Research. Mystery Shoppers are needed to go into establishments to give honest and objective evaluations on products and services they receive. The businesses then use this information to improve productivity, gauge competition, provide training, and reward employees.
- Who hires Mystery Shoppers? Mystery Shopping Companies hire shoppers. Don’t bother calling up your local stores to see if you can get assignments from them. It’s the Mystery Shopping Companies that hire and pay shoppers.
- Are you a Mystery Shopping company? Currently, no. I used to have my own clients and hired shoppers, but I found it really was a full time job…I don’t like jobs. I like having random things that give me income, so I can pursue more fun things like puppetry! So, I stopped taking on clients, and I started referring whatever business I got to Mystery Shopping companies that I know do good work, and treat their shoppers fairly.
- Are there Mystery Shopping jobs in my area? If you live in a fairly metropolitan area, chances are, there are jobs available. If you live in the middle of nowhere, then you’ll have a harder time finding assignments. Mystery Shopping is mostly for chain establishments: restaurants, retail stores, movie theaters, banks, apartment buildings, health care facilities, storage units, cell phone providers, etc. If you’re not near these establishments, there won’t be work available to you. You might want to check out my Work at Home book instead.
- How much money can I make as a Mystery Shopper? That’s completely up to you and where you live. If your nearest town is nearly an hour away, and has only a few stores, you won’t get much work. If you only sign on with one company, you won’t get much work. The more mystery shopping companies you register with, the more assignment offers you’ll get. The more assignments you take, the more money you make. If you do a good job in writing up your form, submit it on time, and make your schedulers happy, they’ll consider you for more work. I tell people when you’re first starting out, you can expect about $300-$600/month. $300 is doing 15–$20 assignments…which should be very easy to do. The most I’ve ever made was around $2500/month, but again, I’ve been shopping for over a decade.
- Can I bring the kids with me? Read this blog post for my answer. Better yet, check out the whole Mystery Shopping category on my blog for more detailed questions about assignments.
- I saw this job post, is it real? Mystery Shopping companies do not advertise on Craigslist, Monster, CareerBuilder, or any other job site. They have their own industry-specific message boards where they post assignments. Also, Mystery Shopping companies do NOT charge for the joy and privilege of working for them. You’re more likely being lured into a scam. If you want an in-depth evaluation of a job offer or post or business opportunity, I can help for $0.99.
- How Do I Become a Mystery Shopper? You sign on with Mystery Shopping companies and they send you assignments as they become available in your area.
- Can You Get Me a Job as a Mystery Shopper? No. It is up to you to sign on with companies and find your own work. I have done as much as I can with providing a TON of information through my Mystery Shopper Training Program, as well as legitimate companies to work for, I also send out a newsletter to keep you all up to date. But, what it comes down to is you actually getting on the computer to do your own work!
- Do I have to buy your Training Program to get started in Mystery Shopping? No, of course not! You can Google “Mystery Shopping” to find companies to sign on with and learn about the industry that way. However, if you want to cut down on the learning curve, find out the common scams, learn how to correctly fill out forms, have a list of 170+ companies that hire shoppers and learn from my 12+ years as a shopper, scheduler, editor, and mystery shopping company owner, well, get the program.
