The people who are most successful as mystery shoppers are the ones who take it seriously and treat it as the business that it is. Mystery shopping can be interesting and enjoyable, but it is a business and you need to be a professional. Here are some tips to become a better mystery shopper.Continue Reading
One of the things I hear from new shoppers is that they signed up for one company, looked at the job board and saw two available assignments for fast food shops reimbursing $10. Is that all there is to mystery shopping? No!
Just as with any other business, mystery shoppers do not start out at the top. The best assignments go to experienced, proven shoppers. The assignments available to inexperienced shoppers are usually the ones that are left after veteran shoppers have gotten their assignments. And here is the thing that even many experienced shoppers don’t know: The very best assignments almost never appear on a job board. They are offered directly to the very best shoppers. Fortunately, it doesn’t take years to work your way up to better opportunities.
Want to launch your mystery shopping career the right way? There are a few simple steps that will put you ahead of the crowd.Continue Reading
Yes, (almost) anyone can become a mystery shopper, but that doesn’t mean that anyone can be a good mystery shopper!
You need to be an adult to register as a mystery shopper, but there are no other age limitations. There is no specific educational requirement and you can mystery shop in just about any city.
Some shop assignments require shoppers of a particular gender or who are within a given age range to match the client’s typical customer demographics. But most of the time schedulers are just looking for someone who will do a good job on the shop.
So what else does it take to be a good mystery shopper?Continue Reading
Mystery shoppers evaluate customer service, cleanliness and quality at all kinds of businesses. The mystery shopper reports are used by businesses to recognize star performers, determine training needs, monitor whether procedures are being followed, identify missed sales opportunities and even, in some cases, as one factor in determining raises and bonuses.Continue Reading
The brand new 7th edition of The Mystery Shopper’s Manual is here!
More than an update, this is a completely new book. I reviewed every page of the 6th edition and made drastic changes. Although a few of the basics were retained with minimal revisions, several chapters were eliminated, others were revised, and a lot of new content was added. In fact, the word count of this edition is 40% greater than the last one!
The biggest addition? I greatly expanded the section on writing reports. In fact, there are now two full chapters on writing reports with lots of example comments and narratives.
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Short answer: No. But let’s look at a few specifics where you may be asked to pay.
First, there are companies that represent themselves as mystery shopping companies that can award shops, and they charge shoppers a membership fee or other charge to access available assignments. These are not mystery shopping companies. Mystery shopping companies do not charge you to apply. Never pay to apply, and never pay a “membership fee” to get mystery shopper jobs.
You do not need to pay to view available assignments. Sign up with as many mystery shopping companies as you can, and you will have more shop notices than you can handle. I have a list of 200 legitimate companies (none of them will charge you) here at MysteryShoppersManual.com. There are also job boards, such as Jobslinger.com, where you can view postings from many mystery shopping companies.
I hear from a lot of people who want to become mystery shoppers, but say they do not know how to find secret shopper companies that do not charge.
They are on the right track knowing that they should not pay to sign up with a company. Legitimate mystery shopping companies do not charge you to register.
The companies that charge may be providing a service (which you do not need) or they may just be out-and-out scams. In either case, you should never pay a fee to any company claiming to offer mystery shopper jobs.
So how can you find the legitimate mystery shopper companies that do not charge?
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Question from a mystery shopper:
I am interested in becoming a mystery shopper, but it seems like mystery shopping is for women only. Can I be a mystery shopper even though I am a man?
Sure! In my non-scientific observation, it appears that nearly 90% of mystery shoppers are female, but both men and women can be mystery shoppers. In fact, at times you may have an edge as a male shopper.
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Question from a mystery shopper:
My husband and I are retired, and we think mystery shopping would be fun. I would love to be a mystery shopper, but I am concerned they might think we are too old.
Is there an age limit for mystery shoppers?
When several mystery shopping companies were asked what makes someone a good mystery shopper, they came up with remarkably similar answers. They said that their best mystery shoppers are those who care about customer service and want to help businesses improve. The best shoppers understand the importance of the work and take mystery shopping seriously. And, although they like making the extra money and getting the free perks that come with mystery shopping, they truly enjoy the work and aren’t in it just for the money.
According to the companies surveyed, a mystery shopper must be:Continue Reading