I am years away from retirement, but am seeing in the myster shops cut off ages of 40 and 45. Preparing myself for what is to come. Any advice from the older myster shoppers out there?

There are tons of shops that have no age limits, I'm way older than that and I still keep very busy with shops of all kinds.

I am 53 and work full time as a shopper. I do between 5-7 shops a day.

I'm 76, got way more opportunities than I can handle. When you're older there are some shops you can't do, such as young trendy clothing and alcohol and tobacco checks. Some companies will want shoppers aged in their target clientele, but if you do a good job and you're dependable you'll have plenty of work if there is work in your area.

I am retired and find plenty of shops to keep me busy. There are many types of shops for older shoppers.

Same here. 51 and plenty of work.

Yep, plenty of work for me too. I wish I could handle more shops, but seven shops in one day seems to be my limit. I got annoyed a couple of weeks ago when I saw a shop that reimbursed $300 for a handbag and the age limit was 45. I was ready to snatch it up until I saw the age restriction. I mean, really??? Makes no sense to have an age limit for this shop. By the way, the shop is still on the board. I'm wondering if the client will change their mind about the age limit when there are not takers. Has anyone heard of this being done?

I am much older and keep quite busy with video shops and a few non-video ones. there are also shops that require the shopper to be over 550 or over some even older age. Others have 99 as the upper limit. I stay busy with new home, apartment, hotel, banking and investment, senior living, and many other sorts of shops.

I'd love to do this full time now. heh

rsglenn Wrote:
-I'm wondering if the
> client will change their mind about the age limit
> when there are not takers. Has anyone heard of
> this being done?

rsglenn, often they are willing to waive the age restriction. I have had it done for me, several times, to the point that I always ask. Actually, come to think of it, I've never had had them say "no" so far.

(heart)

I'm older than Cettie and MDavis put together and I have plenty of work. When I get to old to shop I'll apply as a scheduler to my favorite (unnamed) MSC.

Jake, I'm looking forward to it. You can call me up and we'll haggle bonuses. Just warning you up front, don't be expecting a pushover to answer my phone. XXO M

For you Mary, add $2.00 travel pay for your trip to Amarillo.

My, Jake, you're going to do real well. That's about par for the usual offer. I signed up for three today that I swear had a $10 bonus on the Available Shops List, but when they came through no such thing, nosiree. Two of them had $8 bonus and one didn't have a bonus at all. I pitched a fit but I guess I'll do them anyway because I didn't print out the Available Shops List before I booked them and I can't prove it. Also booked some other work in the same town, same day, and I'd have to cancel that too if I backed out. I think I have comprehension and memory issues, or maybe I'm overwhelmed with distraction.
$2 extra for Amarillo? Well, why not. Sign me up. Oh, wait, is that for tomorrow? I think I'm in Glen Rose tomorrow.

MDavisnowell Wrote:
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I think I have comprehension and memory issues

Do you also forget where you put your car keys or the TV remote? Ever lose your car in a parking lot? Maybe you're ready to apply as a scheduler.

Now you're stomping all over my sore toe. Last week I bought a new TV remote because I thought I threw the old one away along with a discarded slipcover. Turns out I found it and now I have two for that TV (twice as much opportunity to lose it again).

I have two complete sets of keys plus an extra car key. One set is hooked up to my maxi bag, which goes in the trunk of my car every time I leave the house. The other set is on a chain that I attach to my belt loop and I don't take it off until I get back to the house. It goes in a special box along with my wrist watch and my favorite silver bracelet. To lose that set I would have to leave my pants somewhere and I think the chances of that are slim. I carry my mini AAA card on my chain keys and the big AAA card in my maxi bag. The extra car key is on a plastic bracelet and I keep it in the bottom of my work box which goes in and out with me from the house to the car. I think I've got the keys licked.

I've lost the car a time or two but I always luck onto it sooner or later. Now I have to keep up with a Flash Pass or whatever you call it for Exxon and I put that on a snake chain I can slip over my head when I'm doing Exxons. When I'm not wearing the snake it's attached to the maxi bag. Jake, are you taking notes on all this? Some day you'll wish you'd paid attention.

I think I have it but I'm not ready for maxi-pads.

Good one, Jake, but let me assure you that by the time you have the serious key problem you will not need the maxi pads. Which is a good thing, because if you are in the age group that needs the maxi pads you will also be in the age group that might leave your pants somewhere and therefore lose your chain keys. So you see, all of this works out one way or the other.

Am I off topic? Too, too bad. Still don't care.

OMG, you guys are cracking me up.

MDavisnowell Wrote:
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> Am I off topic? Too, too bad. Still don't care.

I can't remember - I'll have to scroll up and look at the original post.

Jake, I make it a point to never look at the original post as that might cause me to lose my train of thought. No need to stay on topic, we don't have one after we get past the first page. Love it more every day.

I am 28 and there are plenty of shops I can't do because I am not old enough.

I can think of at least 15 off the top of my head that require you to be 45+, and plenty more that require 55+.

I recently saw an active senior living facility shop that required you be shopping for yourself or as a couple, you could not be shopping for a family member. It was bonused through the roof, and I couldn't do it because I didn't meet the age requirements. (60+ or spouse 55+)

How do you manage to do that many shops? The reports take too long for me to accomplish that much. My limit is two per day. Also, how do you get that many shops?

Judy

Baby steps, then pick and choose, jbliven.

I generally do 2-4 shops per day. That suits my needs, as I save time for a part time seasonal job, housework, time to read, watch TV, occasional bubble bath, and time with my family. The number of shops available to you are dependent on the number of MSC's you are signed with, your competition, and the available shops in your area.

Ok well I'm new and reading this thread of posts for the first time after introducing myself in another post.
Where do I begin? Could anyone give me some guidelines or a list of companies.
I've been getting emails from one company who want me to join for a monthly fee. That doesn't sound
right to me but then again I am not familiar with line of work. I do believe I would be very good at this.
I am located in the Phoenix, Arizona area.

Any feedback or suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks,

Susan

Hello, Susan, welcome to the forum. Shoppers will not usually give out a list of companies and most of us are signed up with 100 or more companies. There is a link to a list of companies at the bottom of this page that will help you get started. If you look through the Mystery Shopping Companies section, you will see that shoppers discuss some companies more than others. I suggest to get started that you sign up with Maritz, Market Force, Best Mark, and Bare. After that you're on your own. There's a lot of good information already here to read and we answer all specific questions. Let us know how this works out for you.

Hello MDavisnowell,

Thanks very much for getting back to me. I appreciate a little direction and some suggestions.
Want to make sure I am least going in the right direction and not getting involved with a scam,
if you know what I mean.

Appreciatively,

Susan

I started by signing up with the companies that were most discussed in the forum. I think there is a list of 10 that are the larger companies. I am retired and use MSC to supplement my retirement. It is a little slow going at first while you are learning and you do have to wait 30-90 days for payment so take that into consideration. I think it is a great way to supplement my income and love being my own boss. It has been a good fit for me since I needed a part-time job but had no desire to punch another time clock. Good luck and this forum is a wealth of information with people who want you to be a success!

I guess that I'm not so lucky. I have been denied several shops because I just missed the age requirements, i.e. must be 60 age or less and I'm 62. I'm very capable of doing these shops and have even requested to have a shop waive the age, but I always get a no. Where do the older shoppers keep so busy? How do you find so many shops that keep you so busy all of the time bacause I can't find them because of my age.

mezimmie,

The problem may be how many MSCs you are signed up with. For me it is well over 100. I may shop for only 5-8 of them in any given month, bit many more over the course of a year. I got most of my October shops from an MSC that I had not shopped for in over 2 years as of this last July. That's why I check every one of their job boards at least quarterly. BUT, my most frequently used MSCs contact me with shops before I ever have to look for them. That comes with making your rep, company by company.