Comments on: How to Lose a Mystery Shopper in Ten Seconds

By: Steffi

Steffi — Wed, 26 Oct 2011 03:59:22 +0000

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.

By: Steffi

Steffi — Wed, 26 Oct 2011 03:56:50 +0000

“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!

By: Cathy Stucker

Cathy Stucker — Tue, 08 Mar 2011 16:31:43 +0000

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.

By: Lorraine

Lorraine — Tue, 08 Mar 2011 16:28:18 +0000

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.

By: Lorraine

Lorraine — Tue, 08 Mar 2011 16:27:00 +0000

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.

By: Cathy Stucker

Cathy Stucker — Wed, 24 Jun 2009 12:30:51 +0000

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.

By: Jay

Jay — Wed, 24 Jun 2009 05:27:38 +0000

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).

By: minbari10

minbari10 — Mon, 09 Mar 2009 18:59:49 +0000

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.