I am thinking of becoming a Mystery Shopper as it seems like fun. Don't know what companies are really good. Do they pay for Gas to go around? Do you pay up front and then get reimbursed. Please help explain if any of you do this. Also how many jobs do you normally get in a month?

Thanks
Cheryl

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Without Health you have no Wealth!

I used to be a mystery shopper. For me, it just wasn't worth my time to do what a lot of shops required. The ones I guess that were the best for me were the restaurants. My husband and I could eat for free. You'd have to pay for it and you'd get reimbursed. You have to time everything, how long it takes for someone to seat you, how long for the waitress to take your drink order, etc., and you have to be very detailed.

I've found that most want you to do a LOT for the small fee they pay. I had one store that wanted me to go to each department, time how long it took for a clerk to 'notice' me, what they said, get their name, ask a particular question, remember the response, purchase an item, later take the item back.... (you get my drift). Just not worth the time nor the gas for the small amount they paid.

Like I said, the best ones for me are the restaurants.

Just make sure you never pay a fee upfront to a mystery shop company.

I always got paid by check after my assignment was accepted as complete. No gas money. It was fun, but not too many jobs nearby so I quit.

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I've never lied to you. I've always told you some version the of truth.

My best one was for apt complexes. I went and toured about 10 of them. Turned in the paperwork and got $25 per place.

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I've never lied to you. I've always told you some version the of truth.

I am quoting this to ditto EVERYTHING said. I too have been a Mystery Shopper.
NEVER NEVER pay a fee upfront to find mystery shops, to work for one, etc.
That would be a total scam.

That said, I have done restaurants, fast food, banks (I had to spend so much time and lie about opening accounts and then purchase travel checks, the write up time took me over an hour! with all the essay questions) supermarkets, post offices, etc.
When gas was cheap and my kids were tiny I felt that I was going to go to certain places anyway and so I didn't mind. But when the shop required extensive story telling and extensive observations and then extensive reports (this could mean 15 minutes to drive to the location, 45-90 minutes to do the shop, 15 minutes more to drive home, then 60 minutes to write up the report) well $7 to $20 just doesn't seem worth it.

I stopped doing them altogether for several years. Funnily enough I just did a shop this weekend. I made $14 and then remembered all the reasons why I stopped in the first place, lol.

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YEP Been one for 6 years now.

I have been shopping for almost 15 years....I still have a few good shops and it's a nice extra income however, the pay has gone WAY down since I started so I have cut back a lot.

Some places I used to shop 12 years ago for about $20 now are paying $5 for the same shop....I'm not gonna do those, however my area has tons of shoppers and I see those shops getting snapped up at $5. I can't imagine who is doing all that work, evaluating a bunch of employees and filling out a report, for $5!

Also there are several companies that have closed or gone bankrupt and have left the shoppers holding the bag, after the shopper has spent big bucks at a hotel, restaurant or resort. More than one person on volition posted about how they were stiffed for thousands of dollars in shop fees and expenses like spending several days at a hotel or resort, they lost all that money so I am very leery about taking shops where I have to lay out big $$, I just can't take that chance. I will do the restaurant, bank etc shops where I don't lay out any $ or it's a small amount.

Check out: http://www.volition.com/mystery.html for a complete list of mystery shop companies. Also, be sure to click on "the forum", then "job openings and recruitment ads". You can search for current available shops in your area.

To answer your question, the number of shops you get varies greatly. It depends on how many you apply for, who you work for, where you live, etc. Good luck. HTH

In the past I have done some mystery shopping. I worked for one company that would pay me to go to Bugaboo Creek every three months. They paid me $10, plus paid for the meal for two people. So, basically I got paid for a free night out! I haven't heard from them in months, probably not around anymore.

I got sick of the schedulers (at some companies) treating the shoppers like they were idiots. I used to be a scheduler, so I had access to the schedulers forum on volition. I was shocked at how they talked about shoppers on there, and the gossip.. it was amazing.

They would actually NAME shoppers by name on the forum and warn each other whom to look out for. Some of them would ban together to do a witch hunt and compare notes on one shopper.. it was insane.

As a shopper myself, I was so turned off. While I know there are some that do not have good intentions, I worked hard and was very honest in all that I did. To come across these types of attitudes from schedulers who start lumping most shoppers as "stupid" or "unethical", turned me completely off. The rolling of eyes, the jeers, sneers and complaints simply because a shopper would have a valid question.. just amazed me.

I was working for a company that paid weekly, and I loved doing their shops. They were good pay.. but then I came across a person who does the editing there, and her attitude was the same as said above.

I have not done a shop for them since. Absolutely horrible attitudes towards the people that keep their business going!

Okay
This isn't sounding appealing or honestly worth my time or gas. I hava a big suv and if they pay $5.00 for a job it would cost me money.

Thanks for your honest replies!

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Without Health you have no Wealth!

I do it more as a hobby. You certainly aren't going to get rich.

I have been a shopper for many years. In the last year, with gas, and disinterest on my part, I have gradually stopped. I have one big rule, (and many smaller ones), that if I can't afford or want the meal then I shouldn't do the shop. My main focus was restaurants and I thought it was fun for a long time. Then gas prices started rising, pay started dropping and I lost interest. I had one shop that started paying in gift cards to the restaurant that I had just eaten at. And even at that, it wasn't enough to cover the meals, should I have had the desire to return there that soon. Every now and then I'm tempted to take one of the many that are offered, but there are only one or two that I will consider any more.

Do go to the volition forum listed above. Be sure and read the comments about the various companies before signing up. And if you decide to go ahead and do this, keep going back to volition for updates on the companies you are working for, because things tend to go bad quickly and that could be your early warning to get out.

Some of the companies must be having trouble getting people to do the shops. About every other month, I get a call asking if I'd be willing to fill a shop. One in particular is a 25 minute drive one way, and it takes about 45 minutes to do the shop and then enter it on-line. They pay $10.

Another one that I do offers a $3 bonus towards the end of the month, if they haven't filled it yet.

Also, some of them have time restrictions. One of them requires the shop to be done between 6 and 9 PM. Another requires you to shop between 5 and 7 PM. Be careful to read and follow the instructions perfectly or they won't pay you.