This is the only book endorsed by the Mystery Shopping Providers Association, and it includes everything you need to know to become a successful professional secret shopper.

Order here and your copy will be personally autographed by the author, Cathy Stucker.

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When you register with a mystery shopping company, they will explain how mystery shops are awarded. Companies that use self-assigning may offer only some of their shops this way, or may use self-assigning for almost all of their assignments.

Here is how self-assigning works, and what you need to know about getting assignments this way. (more…)

Sometimes even when my brain knows that correct word, my fingers are confused. I have often keyed “there” when I meant “their,” for example. We get in the flow of writing or keying, and enter the wrong word without realizing it. That is why proofreading is so important.

Even if you think you know the correct usage, here are some of the words you need to watch out for in your writing, along with some tips to help you remember which words to use in various contexts. (more…)

The U.S. Treasury has started depositing and mailing stimulus payments to taxpayers. When you receive yours, why not use some of the money to make your mystery shopping business more profitable? That can mean investing in yourself, or in equipment to save time and qualify you for more shops.

Here are some examples of ways you could invest a small portion of your stimulus payment to earn more as a mystery shopper. (more…)

Consult a grammar book and it will tell you that you should use “I” when the word you are using is the subject of the sentence and you should use “me” when the word is the object of the sentence. Well, that clears that up. If you learned to diagram sentences in school, that may answer the question for you. However, that answer does not help if you do not know the difference between a subject or object, or just do not want to translate that way. There is an easier way to know when to use “I” and when to use “me.” (more…)

As part of your preparation for the shop, here are a few things you can do to make sure you go to the correct location:

• Go to the client company’s web site and look for a map of locations. Compare the address in your assignment to the locations on the site.
• Use Google Maps or other online mapping systems to check the address. You can also get directions there, if you are going to an unfamiliar part of town.
• Call the client location and ask where they are. The phone number is usually in the guidelines. If not, look it up online or in the telephone directory. Many shops require a pre-visit call, so that is a good time to ask for directions.

Don’t forget to check the address when you get to the location, too. Look for an address on the sign, building or door.

Making the effort to verify the location before the shop takes very little time, but is an important part of doing your secret shopping assignments correctly.