How to Lose a Mystery Shopper in Ten Seconds
As mystery shoppers, we work with a lot of mystery shopping companies. Many shoppers are registered with twenty, fifty or more companies—some secret shoppers are in the data bases of more than 200 different mystery shopping companies!
So why do some companies seem to want to make it harder for us to work with them?
Although there is competition for mystery shopper jobs, there is also competition for great mystery shoppers. Every company wants to attract the best and the brightest shoppers so they can provide their clients with the best possible information. However, many of the things they do are likely to turn off some of the very shoppers they most want to attract.
I am not referring to big things here. Certainly, if you are treated in a way that you believe to be unfair you will not want to work for that company again. In my experience, though, there are little things companies do every day that can alienate secret shoppers. There are lots of other companies out there. Annoy me, and I will be gone in no time.
Here is my personal list of a few things mystery shopping companies can do to cause professional mystery shoppers to look elsewhere for work.
Require that I use a certain web browser. I use Firefox as my default browser. When I click on a link in a job announcement email, Firefox opens. If the mystery shopping company site says I have to use Internet Explorer to access the site, I am more likely to just disappear than I am to open IE and paste in the link. Get your programmers to design a site that works, not one that works only in certain browsers.
Send emails with misleading subject lines. The email subject line says, “$20 Bonus!!!,” but when I read the email it turns out that the total pay is $20. Meaning, the shop usually pays $15, but we have a $5 bonus on this one, so it pays $20. If you misrepresent the pay, what else are you misrepresenting?
Make me pass a “certification” test before I can apply to–possibly–do a $5 convenience store shop. Some companies require that shoppers pass a test showing that they understand the client’s shop guidelines before they can apply for a shop. I understand the need for that, as many shoppers are unwilling or unable to read and follow the shop guidelines. However, if you ask me to take a test before I know where the shop locations are or how much they pay, forget it. I have better things to do with my time. And how about waiving the testing requirement for MSPA Gold Certified shoppers?
How about you? What are seemingly “little” things that will cause you to look elsewhere for mystery shopper jobs?
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on March 9th, 2009 at 1:59 pm
There is an MS company that has some nice companies with low paying shops that require monthly certification tests for each client. While I can see where the shops are, I am simply too busy to take these sometimes lengthy tests monthly for a $5-8 shop. Another shop I don’t take is a 3 part exam with each shop requiring weighing the beverage and taking its temperature.
on June 24th, 2009 at 12:27 am
42 days to get paid. Most companies pay within three weeks. I’ve got one shop I did in Feb that has stilll not paid due to economic issues. (But they promised a $5 bonus due to being late).
on June 24th, 2009 at 7:30 am
Waiting to get paid is incredibly frustrating. If this is an one-time occurrence, well, things happen. But companies that often pay later than promised–that is a big thing to me, not a minor annoyance.
on March 8th, 2011 at 11:27 am
I COMPLETELY agree with the browser issue. I recently did a first-time shop for a company. I was able to get onto their website and assign shops in Firefox. However, I got through the (lengthy) report, only to have it not go through at the end. I had to take a screen shot of my work and send it to them via email. It was then that I was told that their reporting system only works in IE. The shop paid FIVE dollars, and now I was going on three hours of work. I did not want to go through and re-enter the information, but I am a fairly new mystery shopper, and in the end, my fear of sullying my reputation won out and I did the work. However, I will NOT be taking any $5 shops for this company again anytime soon, and I did remind them that 30% of Internet users are on Firefox.
The pay issue–I’ve found that most of the companies I am working with take a month, sometimes up to two months, to pay. I find this annoying, and even insulting, considering that we are expected to submit our reports in 24 hours or less.
on March 8th, 2011 at 11:28 am
PS I fear that I sounded a bit too hostile in that last post. I truly enjoy mystery shopping, in spite of the wait to be paid. And I *am* finding some companies that pay within 30 days.
on March 8th, 2011 at 11:31 am
Mystery shopping certainly isn’t perfect! I enjoy mystery shopping, too, but there are things I would like to see change. One is the speed of payment. Some companies are faster than others, so if that is an issue, focus on the companies that pay sooner. Most say on their websites or in the shop offer when they pay.
on October 25th, 2011 at 10:56 pm
“Another shop I don’t take is a 3 part exam with each shop requiring weighing the beverage and taking its temperature.”
That is hilarious!
on October 25th, 2011 at 10:59 pm
I don’t really have an issue with being paid so far out as long as I know exactly what I am getting into. Pretty much, the first couple of months I didn’t have much of income with mystery shopping… but now it’s balanced out and something is constantly coming in.