Mystery Shopping Thread 20 **PLEASE DO NOT MENTION CLIENT NAMES OR FEES ON HERE**

TractorGirl327

fruityfairy wrote: »

I am interested in becoming a mystery shopper. How do sign up? Looked online but not sure which companies are scammers....

whitelabel wrote: »

you didnt look online at the first page of this thread then...


observation is a key skill of mystery shopping. If youve got it youll do fine... not great first impression though.

read every single post on this threads first page, then read it again. Then read every other post on every other page.

If there are still questions unanswered, use the search button

if the answer still doesn't come up, then feel free to ask it. Might seem harsh, but Ill be doing you a favour in the long run, believe me.

fruityfairy wrote: »

No, I didn't

The search function never works for me. It always shows no results found Even when searching 'mortgage', shows nothing & I obviously know there IS results.

I don't understand why you even need to use the search facility. This thread is called "Mystery shopping" and is - what - over 100 pages long? Why on earth would you post on it without even reading the first few posts on the thread?

As whitelabel says, read the first posts. Me, and other people, have spent considerable time on them. Most, if not all, of the information you need is there. Sign up to as many as you can. Be truthful, don't tell lies on the application forms. Don't expect to get-rich-quick. You won't. It can be very rewarding, it can also be a complete and utter pain in the !!!!! .

Good luck!

Dotty13

Can anyone pm or post the availability audit link please. Preferably before the end of the night if poss. Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance:)

whitelabel

Dotty13 wrote: »

Can anyone pm or post the availability audit link please. Preferably before the end of the night if poss. Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance:)

done...

spender

People are willing to help but the majority of people on here have spent a considerable amount of time researching and doing their homework regarding mystery shopping. Once that is done they then ask the questions. As Mystery Shopping has become more popular it seems that people want the answers given to them without the hard work. I read this thread for a long long time before taking the plunge and have been very very grateful for all the help given. However every few pages on this thread someone comes along and asks which are the best companies to work for! All the information to start is on the front page and it does become annoying for the founders of the thread and the long timers (and no I do not count myself in that) to find that people can not start at the beginning but just dive in. It seems that they want to gather all the information without the graft and jump on the bandwagon. Sorry if that sounds harsh. People often ask which companies are best, each company is different, one you may like another person will hate. I might get more work from one company because of where I live but there are some companies who I have never had an offer of work from!

I have learnt the hard way from taking every job I could get my hands on and thus losing money, not reading the brief properly and even completed jobs in the wrong month. I have made some money but I have put in the hours and now 18 months on I would not even now consider myself an expert. Another point to remember is that this is a full time job for some people but who unselfishly also provide a leg up on this thread which means that their own work may be affected in the long run, but these same people have built up their experience over time and by trial and error.

My advice is research, research, research, and then take the plunge. And then ask the questions.

Dotty13

spender wrote: »

People are willing to help but the majority of people on here have spent a considerable amount of time researching and doing their homework regarding mystery shopping. Once that is done they then ask the questions. As Mystery Shopping has become more popular it seems that people want the answers given to them without the hard work. I read this thread for a long long time before taking the plunge and have been very very grateful for all the help given. However every few pages on this thread someone comes along and asks which are the best companies to work for! All the information to start is on the front page and it does become annoying for the founders of the thread and the long timers (and no I do not count myself in that) to find that people can not start at the beginning but just dive in. It seems that they want to gather all the information without the graft and jump on the bandwagon. Sorry if that sounds harsh. People often ask which companies are best, each company is different, one you may like another person will hate. I might get more work from one company because of where I live but there are some companies who I have never had an offer of work from!

I have learnt the hard way from taking every job I could get my hands on and thus losing money, not reading the brief properly and even completed jobs in the wrong month. I have made some money but I have put in the hours and now 18 months on I would not even now consider myself an expert. Another point to remember is that this is a full time job for some people but who unselfishly also provide a leg up on this thread which means that their own work may be affected in the long run, but these same people have built up their experience over time and by trial and error.

My advice is research, research, research, and then take the plunge. And then ask the questions.

I think you're right in a lot of what you say, but the trouble is that people who know nothing about the job think its just fun, fun, fun, and dont realise that some people actually take this very seriously and use it to earn a living. Its natural to ask questions, and most questions on here receive a reply, but the fact of the matter is that you can only make a judgement once you have experienced the role. I dont mind answering questions and assisting others who have at least had a go. The others go ignored.:cool:

fruityfairy

With regards to my post above. Yes, I did jump in and make a post without giving it much thought and not looking through the thread, BUT after whitelabels post I then started reading through the thread from the begining! I have looked into doing mystery shopping a few times in the past, but after signing up and having never come accross a thread like this I was left with nothing more than spam emails! So I eagerly & prematurely posted! I really do not think this thread needs a full page of replies pointing out what whitelable said in the first reply :beer:

Stryder

MaxAben wrote: »

Tell me if I cant ask this!

What do you like best? Shops with low fee but reimbursements or do you prefer shops where no purchase is needed and you get a flat fee even though it may be lower then the first option. Not sure if that makes any sense?

Max

Hi Max

Not had any work from H recently ... must take a look.

I think there is a divide here... people who do MS as a serious P/T or F/T profression, and the hobbyists. The hobbyists I am sure like to pick the things they do already, or things they consider treats. However, if this is a serious part of your income you want to see a profit. This is key for those that travel for work, which a good % of the professional MSers do. It also depends upon the level of risk ... for example some shops are tricky or with potential pitfalls, that potentially could lead to not being paid. In this case, it is unattractive to "invest" a lot ... so for example, travelling to show rooms around the country, especially twice, when often showrooms are reluctant to offer formal quotes, it a common one.

Personaly I will do most jobs where there is a profit at or above minimum wage... For the items jobs with reimbursements, if it is something I would spend on anyway (like a supermarket, pretol station, rail fare, etc) then I see it as effectively all fee; however, if it is a burger, a CD, a toy, etc, then I need a decent fee to make it worth my time.

Saying that there is a massive feeling of cooperation, where I will do rubbish jobs if a particular account exec or allocator gives me plenty of work or finds additional mileage fees when required, or help to be flexible when things have gone wong. Doner a couple at a small loss on this basis before.

I think you need to consider your "subcontractors" as different groups as we probably can be seen in 3 or 4 categories to our approach. If you want me to clarify anything, PM me (I have worked for you in the past)

Stryder

TractorGirl327 wrote: »

I had "**********POSS CHAMPS CHECK****************" printed on the receipt for my last 2 Gyp pizza deliveries.

"Champs" is apparently the name of the reporting system than the company used that used to MS them before Gyp !!

Needless to say on both occasions, the "45 minutes toan hour" promised time was less than 30 minutes, and the pizzas were delivered by the manager in his own car!!!!

The funny thing is .... neither time was a mystery shop, hahaha!!! :rotfl::rotfl::rotfl:

I would have so been tempted to say they had got my order woring, and no wonder when the member of staff on the phone was so rude! LOL

As not MS, they would then not get a related report, and they would assume you were not ... as well as it being very funny

Stryder

Has this site ever created a feedback to the companies?

It would be great to vote on or rate the MS companies to see where they fall short on. Frankly, there are some I would bust a gut for , and others I would not feel guilty if I passed over a job for no real reason. Surprisingly, they do not appear to be self aware.

And no, not just having a go at Gap lol

clippy_girl

bloody bare!!!!!!!!!! :mad::mad::mad: still not paid from my jewllery job on 29th july :mad::mad: assume will need to wait til next payrun now as they have not bothered to reply to my email asking when i would be paid and i know some people have been paid this month. if companies want you do reimb only jobs they need to ensure they pay promptly (or at least on time when shopper is expecting it) so that shoppers can make an informed decision about being out of pocket.

on an unrelated point max thats something to consider- if you offer reimb only jobs and they are for quite expensive items, as you are out of pocket your own money (rather than simply waiting to be paid) you may find that you get more takers if you pay these jobs quicker (not sure when/how often you do pay as not got round to completing my profile yet!).

tbh within reason i dont mind when i am paid my fee but if its a large reimb thats different as i have had to pay out my own money