Hey there mystery shoppers and potential mystery shoppers. Have you looked into doing mystery shopping yet? Are you still kind of wondering whether it is something you want to do? Well, I want to make it as easy as possible for you. I want to give you a list of companies in a chart to start you off. All you have to do is go to the website and sign up. You probably won't get a whole lot of work if you only sign up with two or three companies. But if you sign up to a minimum of 15 your chances of getting to choose the jobs you are really interested in and potential to make good money increase. But as we say in the south, I'll do ya one better. I'll send you a list of twenty companies all ready for you to sign up to.
Let me tell you why you need to jump on this offer now. I could be charging for this info! A lot of other sites do charge you, like this one here or shadow shopper. By the way, I did try shadow shopper and they seem to be very reputable if a membership site is the way you want to go. If you want to pay for that information, then feel free to. You can save money and headaches by getting this list of free, up-to-date companies. I personally checked the links of the companies that I'm not signed up for although many of them I am a shopper for.
This list has links that you can click on to go directly to the site where you sign up to be a shopper for the particular company. As you sign up simply add your username and password to the chart beside the website. Then when you want to look for jobs, all you have to do is open that document and click on the company that you want to look at and you password and user name are READY for you. I really should be charging for this now that I think about it. It is so convenient you just should not pass up the opportunity to get in on this offer. But I can guarantee I won't have it around forever.
You have to pay money on other sites to get a free list of mystery shopping companies or you can sign up to one of the sites that has a monthly fee. I did a trial of one of those companies- so that I could blog about my experiences. I only found two sites that I didn't already know about. Literally, I'm not exaggerating. Big whoop... Needless to say, I was not impressed, but maybe that is just one of my things. I don't think you should have to pay to get a job.
Here's how you get your hands on a list if you are not interested in subscribing. Pick any one of my blog posts and stumble it. Post a reply on the blog post that you stumbled (or use digg if you like) and send me an email at mysteryshoppingteacher@yahoo.com telling me about the the post that you placed. I'll email your list back to you in my reply.
If you want to subscribe to my blog then all you have to do put in your email address to the right of this post, pick out your fave post to stumble or digg, and put your link in a comment on the post. When your subscription goes through send me an email, and I'll send your list.
If you already subscribe to my post, stumble or digg a post, put a comment, and drop me a line via email using the email address you subscribed to my blog with. I'll send you the goods.
Easy as pie. You can't get any easier than that. Got questions? Let me know. Three, two, one...do it!
Wednesday, October 29, 2008
Wednesday, October 22, 2008
Ten Freebies- Grab em while they last!
If you like free stuff as much as I do, you might want to check out the following sites to make your request while supplies last. I know this blog is mostly about mystery shopping, but whenever I come across goodies like this, I want to share the love with my readers. Get an autofill tool like on the Google toolbar, and fill it in. Then whenever you come across a website that asks for your information, you can click autofill and it fills in the form for you. Couldn't be easier. Plus, no long surveys to fill out with a credit card- I despise those.
1. There is a free sample of FiberOne cereal. Looks pretty good to me! I know the cereal bars are good as well as the pop tarts.
2. Here is a free sample of head and shoulders shampoo. You have two choices to pick from.
3. Now that cold and flu season is here, try a free sample of Airborne zesty orange.
4. & 5. Who doesn't like a glass of tea? Well, Sundance wants to send you some. Or, let Yogi send you one of their samples. Better yet, get both!
6. Jump on this one right away while supplies last: a free sample of Original Pho soup. Warm yourself up on a cold day!
7. Al's pistachios is sending out free pistachio samples- a big 12 oz. sample. Click here to sign up before supplies run out.
8. Get a free tote bag here while supplies last.
9. Free Pond's clean sweep facial towelettes here.
10. Here is your chance to get a free sample of Aveeno Skin Care.
Enjoy these goodies! I did the research for you and you can reap all the benefits. If I get a favorable response to this, it might become a more regular part of this little blog. Stumble this blog and leave me a comment if you like this!
1. There is a free sample of FiberOne cereal. Looks pretty good to me! I know the cereal bars are good as well as the pop tarts.
2. Here is a free sample of head and shoulders shampoo. You have two choices to pick from.
3. Now that cold and flu season is here, try a free sample of Airborne zesty orange.
4. & 5. Who doesn't like a glass of tea? Well, Sundance wants to send you some. Or, let Yogi send you one of their samples. Better yet, get both!
6. Jump on this one right away while supplies last: a free sample of Original Pho soup. Warm yourself up on a cold day!
7. Al's pistachios is sending out free pistachio samples- a big 12 oz. sample. Click here to sign up before supplies run out.
8. Get a free tote bag here while supplies last.
9. Free Pond's clean sweep facial towelettes here.
10. Here is your chance to get a free sample of Aveeno Skin Care.
Enjoy these goodies! I did the research for you and you can reap all the benefits. If I get a favorable response to this, it might become a more regular part of this little blog. Stumble this blog and leave me a comment if you like this!
Tuesday, October 21, 2008
How to Get Mystery Shopping Jobs Repeatedly
So by now, if you are a regular reader of this blog, you have already compiled a list of companies that you can do mystery shopping jobs for. If you are a new reader you should definitely get started on that.
What is important as a new mystery shopper is getting jobs. You might start off doing any job you can get your hands on at first. As a new mystery shopper, you probably get the jobs that aren't the best. You'll probably start with the low paying jobs or the ones that have longer reports. You may even end up doing the shops that have the super long reports just because you don't realize how long the reports will actually take you.
Let me clue you in on how to get some of the better jobs. You won't get the great jobs right away, but you can start to make your mark on the company by doing something you have to do anyway. You have to write reports for companies when you do shops so you should make your reports the best that you can. Be super descriptive when it comes to describing employees, the atmosphere, food, service, etc. For example, instead of saying that your hamburger was hot and delicious say, "The hamburger was cooked to perfection. The meat had the coloring of a burger cooked medium well, just as I had ordered. The lettuce was cool and crisp. The tomatoes were perfectly ripe and fresh. The bacon was crispy and sizzling. The temperature was just right as well." Instead of saying that the fries are good you can say, "The french fries were firm, crispy, and well seasoned."
I tested out this theory of mine as I was filling out the report for a casual dining shop.
I teach writing so I used some of the tricks that I use as a teacher to help get more opportunities as a shopper. The shop was for a dinner for two including soup, appetizer, drinks, two entrees, and desert- all reimbursed might I add. Even the tip was covered. Anyway, I felt particularly creative that night for some reason. I decided that I would try out my theory of being super descriptive in the reporting section. It probably only took me ten minutes more than it would have taken me otherwise to write a less descriptive report. I have done shops for the company before and I had even filled out this report before in the past, (read more about it here) but was just less descriptive.
What happened to me was that I got a personal email from the scheduler thanking me for the outstandingly written report the very next morning. I got the opportunity to do new shops on my log. I'm not a scheduler or anything but I know that schedulers do not necessarily show ALL available shops to everyone that signs up for their company. From what I have heard, but am unable to verify for myself, you have the opportunity to do more mystery shops if you are certified. It appears that evidently if you do a really good job on your report, the scheduler might think you are worthy of doing more shops too. This is a company that I had been scoping out for months to see what shops were available and then the day after I did a great job on my report all of a sudden there were more opportunities for me. Another thing that happened was I got a 10 on my report for my shopper rating. Finally, I have been getting emails about job opportunities from this company and even phone calls. All of this for just spending time being a little more descriptive.
When you think about it, doesn't it make sense? If a scheduler has to choose between two people to do a shop, wouldn't they choose the one that has the best feedback? Companies read the feedback from the mystery shopper and I'm sure they are thrilled to see reports of the shoppers that are thorough and descriptive.
So, what do you think? Does anyone have anything to add about this? Personal experiences that affirm this theory? Leave me some feedback on what you think about this theory of mine.
What is important as a new mystery shopper is getting jobs. You might start off doing any job you can get your hands on at first. As a new mystery shopper, you probably get the jobs that aren't the best. You'll probably start with the low paying jobs or the ones that have longer reports. You may even end up doing the shops that have the super long reports just because you don't realize how long the reports will actually take you.
Let me clue you in on how to get some of the better jobs. You won't get the great jobs right away, but you can start to make your mark on the company by doing something you have to do anyway. You have to write reports for companies when you do shops so you should make your reports the best that you can. Be super descriptive when it comes to describing employees, the atmosphere, food, service, etc. For example, instead of saying that your hamburger was hot and delicious say, "The hamburger was cooked to perfection. The meat had the coloring of a burger cooked medium well, just as I had ordered. The lettuce was cool and crisp. The tomatoes were perfectly ripe and fresh. The bacon was crispy and sizzling. The temperature was just right as well." Instead of saying that the fries are good you can say, "The french fries were firm, crispy, and well seasoned."
I tested out this theory of mine as I was filling out the report for a casual dining shop.
I teach writing so I used some of the tricks that I use as a teacher to help get more opportunities as a shopper. The shop was for a dinner for two including soup, appetizer, drinks, two entrees, and desert- all reimbursed might I add. Even the tip was covered. Anyway, I felt particularly creative that night for some reason. I decided that I would try out my theory of being super descriptive in the reporting section. It probably only took me ten minutes more than it would have taken me otherwise to write a less descriptive report. I have done shops for the company before and I had even filled out this report before in the past, (read more about it here) but was just less descriptive.
What happened to me was that I got a personal email from the scheduler thanking me for the outstandingly written report the very next morning. I got the opportunity to do new shops on my log. I'm not a scheduler or anything but I know that schedulers do not necessarily show ALL available shops to everyone that signs up for their company. From what I have heard, but am unable to verify for myself, you have the opportunity to do more mystery shops if you are certified. It appears that evidently if you do a really good job on your report, the scheduler might think you are worthy of doing more shops too. This is a company that I had been scoping out for months to see what shops were available and then the day after I did a great job on my report all of a sudden there were more opportunities for me. Another thing that happened was I got a 10 on my report for my shopper rating. Finally, I have been getting emails about job opportunities from this company and even phone calls. All of this for just spending time being a little more descriptive.
When you think about it, doesn't it make sense? If a scheduler has to choose between two people to do a shop, wouldn't they choose the one that has the best feedback? Companies read the feedback from the mystery shopper and I'm sure they are thrilled to see reports of the shoppers that are thorough and descriptive.
So, what do you think? Does anyone have anything to add about this? Personal experiences that affirm this theory? Leave me some feedback on what you think about this theory of mine.
Wednesday, October 1, 2008
Alcohol Compliance Shops- Easy Money
If you like to have a beer every now and then, this is good news for you. Check this company out right away. If you do an alcohol compliance shop you can get a beer for free. I did one of these shops and it was very simple to do. The tasks were to check out the bathrooms, food court, pricing, signage, and of course purchase the beer. Not to mention the pay was $20 just for about 10 minutes of my time...shops like that always make me do a little woo hoo in my mind. I mean there is like a big song and dance to go with it and everything. Song 2., Blur, to be exact.
I went into the store which had just opened about two weeks before I stopped in. I walked to the bathroom immediately to check out what that was like. It was in fairly good condition. It didn't smell terribly awful or anything. So I took a mental note of that and went back out into the store to check the other necessary things.
When I looked at the coolers they were almost empty. I opened the cooler up to look at the beers that were available and most of the drinks were warm. I didn't know if they had just been put into the cooler or if the cooler just wasn't working correctly. I noticed that price tags were not in the cooler consistently either. It was kind of haphazardly done. I tried to pick out a beer that I knew my husband would like since I don't drink any kind of beer at all, I'm more of a super sweet margarita drinker. I can't drink anything that you can taste the liquor in...anyway, I digress...so I was picking out the drink while trying to spend as little as possible to make sure I came in under budget.
I picked a drink and walked around the store looking at other things on my checklist. I looked at the food court. I looked for signs that said something about the age of alcohol purchase. I looked for the price tags (or lack thereof) of some other items throughout the store. After spending a few minutes looking around, I went to the checkout. I put my beer on the counter to checkout. The cashier asked for my birthday but never asked to see my driver's license so I could have told her anything really. The cashier said that there was no price on the beer so she couldn't ring it up. I silently went back to the cooler and put my 1st choice away and picked another. I went to check out once again. She couldn't remember my birthday and evidently didn't want to ask me again, so she must have just put in her birthday. The entire time she never asked for my drivers license. I almost left without my receipt because she didn't give it to me right away.
This is one of those companies that pays you right into your paypal account. If you don't have a paypal account you should sign up for one immediately. You will have to sign up with a bank account, but it is so convenient to have a paypal account in case you want to buy anything online. Also, a lot of mystery shopping companies pay this way. I've received my payment and already invested that money into making money with other shops. If you are interested in getting a beer for free, click here to sign up with this company. Also interesting about this company, if you get your friends to sign up and complete shops you can get paid for that too. I think they have to sign up with your email address as the referrer to do that though. In my opinion this is one of those companies that you shouldn't dawdle on...go ahead and sign up for. Do it, do it now.
I'm outtie.
I went into the store which had just opened about two weeks before I stopped in. I walked to the bathroom immediately to check out what that was like. It was in fairly good condition. It didn't smell terribly awful or anything. So I took a mental note of that and went back out into the store to check the other necessary things.
When I looked at the coolers they were almost empty. I opened the cooler up to look at the beers that were available and most of the drinks were warm. I didn't know if they had just been put into the cooler or if the cooler just wasn't working correctly. I noticed that price tags were not in the cooler consistently either. It was kind of haphazardly done. I tried to pick out a beer that I knew my husband would like since I don't drink any kind of beer at all, I'm more of a super sweet margarita drinker. I can't drink anything that you can taste the liquor in...anyway, I digress...so I was picking out the drink while trying to spend as little as possible to make sure I came in under budget.
I picked a drink and walked around the store looking at other things on my checklist. I looked at the food court. I looked for signs that said something about the age of alcohol purchase. I looked for the price tags (or lack thereof) of some other items throughout the store. After spending a few minutes looking around, I went to the checkout. I put my beer on the counter to checkout. The cashier asked for my birthday but never asked to see my driver's license so I could have told her anything really. The cashier said that there was no price on the beer so she couldn't ring it up. I silently went back to the cooler and put my 1st choice away and picked another. I went to check out once again. She couldn't remember my birthday and evidently didn't want to ask me again, so she must have just put in her birthday. The entire time she never asked for my drivers license. I almost left without my receipt because she didn't give it to me right away.
This is one of those companies that pays you right into your paypal account. If you don't have a paypal account you should sign up for one immediately. You will have to sign up with a bank account, but it is so convenient to have a paypal account in case you want to buy anything online. Also, a lot of mystery shopping companies pay this way. I've received my payment and already invested that money into making money with other shops. If you are interested in getting a beer for free, click here to sign up with this company. Also interesting about this company, if you get your friends to sign up and complete shops you can get paid for that too. I think they have to sign up with your email address as the referrer to do that though. In my opinion this is one of those companies that you shouldn't dawdle on...go ahead and sign up for. Do it, do it now.
I'm outtie.
Saturday, September 27, 2008
Earn $10 NOW
Well, this is not mystery shopping related per se, but it is shopping related so I'm going to say that counts. If you like getting paid to do stuff that you have to do anyway, and if you're reading this blog than I know you do, you have to sign up for this right now. Do you shop online?If you haven't done it before you should consider it because it is so easy and convenient to do. There's this website you can sign up to that will give you cash back for your purchases. I have used it several times and I am about to have a nice little paypal payment for purchases I would have to do anyway. Or, you can elect to have a check sent to you in the mail.
There are thousands of different sites that are available for shopping too: Overstock, Amazon, Wal Mart, etc. You can choose whether you want cash back and you may be able to use online only coupons in conjunction with the cash back. If you are curious and think this might be for you sign up here now. You get $10 now if you sign up through this exclusive link. You've lost nothing if you sign up and end up not buying anything online because it is free to sign up and there are no fees whatsoever. You only have until October 31st to get the cash bonus though, so hurry on over and sign up. It really is a no brainer if you shop online anyway. Happy shopping!
There are thousands of different sites that are available for shopping too: Overstock, Amazon, Wal Mart, etc. You can choose whether you want cash back and you may be able to use online only coupons in conjunction with the cash back. If you are curious and think this might be for you sign up here now. You get $10 now if you sign up through this exclusive link. You've lost nothing if you sign up and end up not buying anything online because it is free to sign up and there are no fees whatsoever. You only have until October 31st to get the cash bonus though, so hurry on over and sign up. It really is a no brainer if you shop online anyway. Happy shopping!
Sunday, September 7, 2008
Grocery store shops with great pay!
One of my favorite shops that I've done to date would probably be the grocery store shop. I found one company that needed a grocery store shop done. I just happened to stumble upon the company and shop and it was a spur of the moment decision to apply for the shop. The shop pay was decent, but it was out of town. It just so happened that I was going out of town for another shop too, so it was worth it to me to get this shop done while I was there anyway.
The point of the shop was to keep a look out for the quality of service, promotional materials, store branding, and cleanliness. I had the task of looking at several different aspects of the store. There was not an amount of time specified for how long I had to be in the store. I was also to make a purchase of at least two items. One of them had to be big enough to fit in the bottom of the grocery cart like bottles of water or dog food, and the other item was to be small. The items were reimbursable.
It is a fairly small town company. I believe it is one that is kind of common to the south, but maybe not so common elsewhere. I went with a checklist of the things I needed to look for, discreetly of course. There was no one else in the store with me so it was really easy for me to do the evaluation discreetly without anyone noticing that I was checking out the ceiling and floor tiles for discoloration. I looked for the promotions of the month and selected my two items. I, of course, had decided on bottled water and cereal bars before I entered the store knowing that I wouldn't have to come out of pocket because my reimbursement would cover these items.
Everything about the shop went well. The only thing that was not so great was that it was raining when I got out to my car and I had to lug the huge bottles of water out to my car and get soaked. The really awesome thing about this company is that they pay really quickly. I mean, I got my check like two or three weeks later and I was trying to figure out where the check came from because I got it so fast! I highly recommend this company for great, fast payment. This is one company you definitely need to check out.
In my book this company gets five stars for ease of report, great pay, and prompt delivery of payment! This is a great company to start off with if you are a new shopper. Go for it!
The point of the shop was to keep a look out for the quality of service, promotional materials, store branding, and cleanliness. I had the task of looking at several different aspects of the store. There was not an amount of time specified for how long I had to be in the store. I was also to make a purchase of at least two items. One of them had to be big enough to fit in the bottom of the grocery cart like bottles of water or dog food, and the other item was to be small. The items were reimbursable.
It is a fairly small town company. I believe it is one that is kind of common to the south, but maybe not so common elsewhere. I went with a checklist of the things I needed to look for, discreetly of course. There was no one else in the store with me so it was really easy for me to do the evaluation discreetly without anyone noticing that I was checking out the ceiling and floor tiles for discoloration. I looked for the promotions of the month and selected my two items. I, of course, had decided on bottled water and cereal bars before I entered the store knowing that I wouldn't have to come out of pocket because my reimbursement would cover these items.
Everything about the shop went well. The only thing that was not so great was that it was raining when I got out to my car and I had to lug the huge bottles of water out to my car and get soaked. The really awesome thing about this company is that they pay really quickly. I mean, I got my check like two or three weeks later and I was trying to figure out where the check came from because I got it so fast! I highly recommend this company for great, fast payment. This is one company you definitely need to check out.
In my book this company gets five stars for ease of report, great pay, and prompt delivery of payment! This is a great company to start off with if you are a new shopper. Go for it!
Wednesday, August 27, 2008
Keepin' track of it all...and my free gift to subscribers
Hello shoppers! Now this post is an important one for mystery shoppers everywhere. If you are not one of those people who are born organizationists, you need to come up with some type of system to keep yourself organized. I know that organizationist isn't a word, but it should be.
Some people are just born with the innate tendency towards being organized. These people are always on top of their game, so to speak. These people as teachers are awesome because they can keep track of everything. Believe me, I know because I am the exact opposite. Organizationists believe that there is a place for everything and that everything should be in its place. They can somehow put information together in ways that can be easily retrieved if necessary. Organizationists keep to do lists. There is so much more that organizationists do that differ from folks like myself. If I knew all of what they did then maybe I would be able to join their ranks.
Then there are the rest of us. I am like the least organized person that I know. I keep things to do in stacks on my desk. Of course I'm constantly looking for things because I do not have a specific place for anything. I have a general idea for where I've left things because I am a visual person I can usually picture where I last saw the item I'm looking for. But that's neither here nor there. The point that I'm trying to make is that organizationists have it goin' on. If you are not one of those people then I have a few ideas of ways you can keep yourself organized.
1. Keep a list of companies that you shop for. I will give you a template that you can use to keep up with your companies if you subscribe to this blog- as my gift to subscribers. What I have done for myself, because I realized that there is no way I would be able to keep up with every company, is to make a list of the companies that I shop for. That way I can go to one place to search for current openings instead of saving each individual site to ymy favorites. Also, you don't have to worry about remembering 30 passwords. This saves lots of headaches!
2. Keep a list of shops that you do. A checklist would be fine. It should list the company, the date you performed the shop, and the amount you should be paid. You may want to add other things, but you will want these things at the very minimum. This is essential in making sure you get all the money you are due. To me, this is especially important if you do a large quantity of short, quick shops.
3. Get a folder to keep track of receipts. Many companies ask that shoppers keep receipts for 30-60 days. I would definitely do that just in case something doesn't go through when you scan it. If you lose your receipt, you can be in a bit of trouble when it is time to get reimbursed.
Just some ideas. Use some of them or use them all. For sure you need to sign up for a subscription to get more useful shopper tips. I feel the need to explain the statement that I'm about to use in closing. One of my students ended her writing essay in this way a couple of years ago and it has stuck with me: Bow wow for now!
Some people are just born with the innate tendency towards being organized. These people are always on top of their game, so to speak. These people as teachers are awesome because they can keep track of everything. Believe me, I know because I am the exact opposite. Organizationists believe that there is a place for everything and that everything should be in its place. They can somehow put information together in ways that can be easily retrieved if necessary. Organizationists keep to do lists. There is so much more that organizationists do that differ from folks like myself. If I knew all of what they did then maybe I would be able to join their ranks.
Then there are the rest of us. I am like the least organized person that I know. I keep things to do in stacks on my desk. Of course I'm constantly looking for things because I do not have a specific place for anything. I have a general idea for where I've left things because I am a visual person I can usually picture where I last saw the item I'm looking for. But that's neither here nor there. The point that I'm trying to make is that organizationists have it goin' on. If you are not one of those people then I have a few ideas of ways you can keep yourself organized.
1. Keep a list of companies that you shop for. I will give you a template that you can use to keep up with your companies if you subscribe to this blog- as my gift to subscribers. What I have done for myself, because I realized that there is no way I would be able to keep up with every company, is to make a list of the companies that I shop for. That way I can go to one place to search for current openings instead of saving each individual site to ymy favorites. Also, you don't have to worry about remembering 30 passwords. This saves lots of headaches!
2. Keep a list of shops that you do. A checklist would be fine. It should list the company, the date you performed the shop, and the amount you should be paid. You may want to add other things, but you will want these things at the very minimum. This is essential in making sure you get all the money you are due. To me, this is especially important if you do a large quantity of short, quick shops.
3. Get a folder to keep track of receipts. Many companies ask that shoppers keep receipts for 30-60 days. I would definitely do that just in case something doesn't go through when you scan it. If you lose your receipt, you can be in a bit of trouble when it is time to get reimbursed.
Just some ideas. Use some of them or use them all. For sure you need to sign up for a subscription to get more useful shopper tips. I feel the need to explain the statement that I'm about to use in closing. One of my students ended her writing essay in this way a couple of years ago and it has stuck with me: Bow wow for now!
Tuesday, August 19, 2008
Telephone Shops
You're probably saying to yourself, "What?!?". I know that reading of telephone shops might confuse you a little bit but there are shops that you perform over the telephone. These are some of my favorite shops to be honest. Why? Well, for one reason, these shops take very little time to do. The forms to fill out are super short and you can get them done in no time. The pay isn't very much individually, but if you add them together, it does pay to do these shops. Plus, hello, you can actually do them in your pj's. If you do the maximum number of shops for Friday, Saturday and Sunday each month you can end up with about $80 extra per month. That's $20 dollars and hour to sit at home on your B-hind and make a few phone calls. That's $960 per year just for those shops. You really can't beat that!
It takes me seven to eight minutes per shop. I timed myself and that includes everything from printing and scanning the paperwork to entering the report. And, it only takes that long because my scanner is ancient. It slowly ekes across the paperwork that has to be scanned in. I refuse to buy another scanner until this one has a slow sputtering death and will no longer work at all, even though I'm costing myself time that I could be doing shops. I'm sure with a normal scanner (one purchased in the latter part of this decade) things go alot more smoothly. You can probably shave that time down to 5-6 minutes per shop once you get good at it. So by now I'm sure you're wondering where to go to get these shops. Click here to find out. You have to sign up with the blue portal in order to find these shops.
Have I piqued your curiosity as to how these shops actually work? Well, all you do is call a fast food pizza chain and pretend you are going to make an order for delivery. You evaluate their customer service anonymously and then you cancel the order at the end. Of course, if you decide to you can get the order.
These shops are the tops for me. It can't really get much easier. You can do them while watching t.v. in about 30 minutes a day. I've done several shops with this company also and they pay direct deposit so you don't have to wait for a check in the mail. If I were you I would jump on this opportunity now...
It takes me seven to eight minutes per shop. I timed myself and that includes everything from printing and scanning the paperwork to entering the report. And, it only takes that long because my scanner is ancient. It slowly ekes across the paperwork that has to be scanned in. I refuse to buy another scanner until this one has a slow sputtering death and will no longer work at all, even though I'm costing myself time that I could be doing shops. I'm sure with a normal scanner (one purchased in the latter part of this decade) things go alot more smoothly. You can probably shave that time down to 5-6 minutes per shop once you get good at it. So by now I'm sure you're wondering where to go to get these shops. Click here to find out. You have to sign up with the blue portal in order to find these shops.
Have I piqued your curiosity as to how these shops actually work? Well, all you do is call a fast food pizza chain and pretend you are going to make an order for delivery. You evaluate their customer service anonymously and then you cancel the order at the end. Of course, if you decide to you can get the order.
These shops are the tops for me. It can't really get much easier. You can do them while watching t.v. in about 30 minutes a day. I've done several shops with this company also and they pay direct deposit so you don't have to wait for a check in the mail. If I were you I would jump on this opportunity now...
Wednesday, July 30, 2008
Six things you gotta have to be a shopper...and two more you should have
Alright, there are some things that mystery shoppers just need to be successful. I'll let you know what you need and why you need it. If you don't have these things you might want to aquire them before you start mystery shopping. Here we go in no specific order...
1. Computer with Internet Access
This seems like an obvious thing right? Well, I would definitely recommend that mystery shoppers have their own computer with internet access to do mystery shopping. I mean, you wouldn't want to have to go to the public library to do your mystery shops. Mystery shoppers have to input reports within a specific period of time. I recommend having high speed internet access in case you have to send in scanned copies of receipts, business cards, or other work related paperwork. Which brings us to our next necessity...
2. Scanner
Now there are some mystery shops that you can do without a scanner but...actually I can't think of any that I've done without a scanner. If you are thinking about becoming a mystery shopper you need one of these. The faster the better in my book too. I have an ole dinosaur scanner but I'm stuck with it until it dies. It gets the job done though.
3. Printer
Now this is another important thing for mystery shoppers. You have to make copies of paperwork constantly. And, in the beginning it is important that you print out your specific instructions to make sure you don't miss any part of your shop. Once you've been shopping for a little while you can print less and less of your paperwork. Can't do without this one. You might want to go ahead and get one of those printer/scanner/copier in one deals.
4. Reliable Transportation
If you have reliable transportation you can make good money mystery shopping. This only makes sense because you can travel further if you want and take more jobs.
5. Timing Device
Now I'm not really a watch wearer but to be a mystery shopper you definitely need a time keeping device. Many shops ask for time down to the minute and second. It would be a good idea to get an inexpensive stopwatch or maybe a digital watch that can keep track of minutes and seconds.
6. Good Organizational Skills
For this gig it definitely pays to be organized. You could get a PDA if you're not one of the few people privileged enough to be super organized and on top of everything. You'll want to get something to help keep you organized. You'll want something to help you keep track of your scheduled shops so you do them when you are supposed to. Also a good idea to get something to help you keep up with what you are supposed to be paid. You should always look out for yourself when it comes to keeping your pay straight. Don't get upset if it takes a little while longer than you think it should to get your first paycheck. That's pretty much just how it is. I just jot my info down the old fashioned way with a piece of paper. Whatever works for you.
Nonessential but nice to have
1. Digital Camera
You will want to invest in a digital camera for your mystery shops if you are serious about it. Some companies want pictures uploaded to go along with the report. Read about one of the companies I shop for that requires pictures here. Some companies will allow pictures to be taken with a camera phone but some specify that camera phones should not be used. These are really not that expensive anymore and once you get one you'll find lots of use for it.
2. GPS System
This is another one of those things that you can do without but it would be nice to have. You can set up your shops and have your GPS system tell you how to get to them. This would be of benefit when you go out of town on vacation and want to pick up a few extra shops. Of course you could just do good ole mapquest. Just a thought.
1. Computer with Internet Access
This seems like an obvious thing right? Well, I would definitely recommend that mystery shoppers have their own computer with internet access to do mystery shopping. I mean, you wouldn't want to have to go to the public library to do your mystery shops. Mystery shoppers have to input reports within a specific period of time. I recommend having high speed internet access in case you have to send in scanned copies of receipts, business cards, or other work related paperwork. Which brings us to our next necessity...
2. Scanner
Now there are some mystery shops that you can do without a scanner but...actually I can't think of any that I've done without a scanner. If you are thinking about becoming a mystery shopper you need one of these. The faster the better in my book too. I have an ole dinosaur scanner but I'm stuck with it until it dies. It gets the job done though.
3. Printer
Now this is another important thing for mystery shoppers. You have to make copies of paperwork constantly. And, in the beginning it is important that you print out your specific instructions to make sure you don't miss any part of your shop. Once you've been shopping for a little while you can print less and less of your paperwork. Can't do without this one. You might want to go ahead and get one of those printer/scanner/copier in one deals.
4. Reliable Transportation
If you have reliable transportation you can make good money mystery shopping. This only makes sense because you can travel further if you want and take more jobs.
5. Timing Device
Now I'm not really a watch wearer but to be a mystery shopper you definitely need a time keeping device. Many shops ask for time down to the minute and second. It would be a good idea to get an inexpensive stopwatch or maybe a digital watch that can keep track of minutes and seconds.
6. Good Organizational Skills
For this gig it definitely pays to be organized. You could get a PDA if you're not one of the few people privileged enough to be super organized and on top of everything. You'll want to get something to help keep you organized. You'll want something to help you keep track of your scheduled shops so you do them when you are supposed to. Also a good idea to get something to help you keep up with what you are supposed to be paid. You should always look out for yourself when it comes to keeping your pay straight. Don't get upset if it takes a little while longer than you think it should to get your first paycheck. That's pretty much just how it is. I just jot my info down the old fashioned way with a piece of paper. Whatever works for you.
Nonessential but nice to have
1. Digital Camera
You will want to invest in a digital camera for your mystery shops if you are serious about it. Some companies want pictures uploaded to go along with the report. Read about one of the companies I shop for that requires pictures here. Some companies will allow pictures to be taken with a camera phone but some specify that camera phones should not be used. These are really not that expensive anymore and once you get one you'll find lots of use for it.
2. GPS System
This is another one of those things that you can do without but it would be nice to have. You can set up your shops and have your GPS system tell you how to get to them. This would be of benefit when you go out of town on vacation and want to pick up a few extra shops. Of course you could just do good ole mapquest. Just a thought.
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