I was just curious to know how do you supplement your income as a Mystery Shopper?

In my case, in additional to being a mystery shopper, I also do Merchandising work . . . while I try to find a regular full-time job in our very poor economy.

Last year, I had heard that people can make a few bucks doing surveys, if you end up working for several survey companies at one time , where you would end up making $100 to $200 extra each month. I am not sure if those survey companies are legit or not, yet I have seen survey company ads listed in reputable job sites (i.e. Monster.Com, The Los Angeles Times). Now that it is a new year, I am thinking about exploring doing surveys as a way to supplement my income, as I really do need some additional ways to supplement my income between my mystery shopping and merchandising work. Has anyone had any luck with survey companies?

Lastly, what do you do to supplement your income as a Mystery Shopper?

Wilson

I have had experience with Pincone. It's the only one that I would recommend.

Mystery shop some more

I'm also a free lance writer and published author. In addition to that I'm a professional genealogist for over 30 years now.

Really? That's awesome, Cettie. I'd love to find out my family history.

I mystery shop...a lot. Putting a lot of miles on my car though Surveys can provide some income, but you have to do a lot of them. Can you tutor?

I work part time for our town's water company. 3 days a week.

WestCoastWilson Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> I was just curious to know how do you supplement
> your income as a Mystery Shopper?
>
> In my case, in additional to being a mystery
> shopper, I also do Merchandising work . . . while
> I try to find a regular full-time job in our very
> poor economy.
>

my base income is from rental property. the mystery shopping itself is the supplemental income. sort of the reverse of what you're suggesting.

at times, i've taken temporary jobs at temporary agencies, although only intending to work there for a week or two at a time. just a way to make a quick $300-500 for the month. no long-term commitment.

another good thing to get involved in is serving as an election judge at the voting polls each year. you sit at a voting station (collecting voter signatures or something like that) for about 12 hours. the required energy expenditure is nominal, except that you sit there for awhile. you maybe read a book so as not to get too bored. you also set up and tear down equipment before and after the voters vote, but there is a whole crew helping you.

Look at Cooldudes recent post about this. He has some good ideas. Surveys ? Do not count on it. Freelance writing. Look this up on this forum. That's all I got for now. We are all looking.

I work part time retail, part time senior care, and volunteer to accumulate hours towards my mental health counseling license.

Carol

Substitute teaching! Depending on what kinds of requirements the districts have where you live, you can make a decent buck if you like kids. And I do! Where I am they pay $60/day, but where I came from, they pay $162/day but they require a teaching certificate to sub there. Here they don't even require a degree at all.

I work full-time and use mystery shopping as a small income producing hobby. I spent decades in retail and enjoy doing the shops and giving good feedback. I personally used mystery shop reports and conducted my own observations on my employees.

I stand around on street corners with a hand-lettered cardboard sign that reads "Will Shop for Food."

No, seriously...I am employed full-time, with abundant overtime. I took to mystery shopping because in the past, on my rare days off work, I would go shopping and spend a couple hundred bucks on whatever. Now, instead, I go shopping and make...well, not that much, but some. So for me it's a productive hobby/pastime/sideline.

I am a staff photographer with a major newspaper in South Florida as a FT job with benefits, vacation days, personal days and sick days. (Please don't hate me!) But believe it or not, they don't pay us a lot of money. I tried shooting weddings on the side in 2010 but a serious cycling accident in February 2011 and a stint in the ICU put an end to that for the rest of the year. (And I HATED shooting weddings even though it was good money.)

I now do mystery shopping as a supplemental income which works out very well with my daily photography assignments. I choose shops in the same area where I am already going to be for my newspaper job which helps save on gas and time.

WESTCOASTWILSON - Not sure if you would be interested in this or not but there is a MSC with the initials "AA" that sent out an e-mail yesterday saying that they are looking for part-time editors. They pay $8.00 per report.

I wish you and everyone the best of luck in 2012.

Mystery Shopping started out for me as something constructive to do with my time and that I could be flexible with as I have Lupus and Sjogren's with Fibromyalgia and Chronic Fatigue Syndrome. (Ya, try working even part time with that!) But as I found out how much I enjoy it, I started to do more and more. Turned into a nice supplement for my fixed income. I also got really sick alot from doing too much! So I had to cut back alot! It is really painful to not take shops I know I would enjoy and that I could make alot more money if I could do them. I finally tested out enough to know how much I can do, and it turns out to still be worth my while as I don't need alot of extra income.
This year I am planning on traveling and having the shops pay for my travel and fun stuff I want to do along the way. Sure wish I would have found this so many many years ago!
I have always been aadventurerer and have always liked to act. This fits both. I hope to be on the road by the end of the month/beginning of Feb. Trying to get all my ducks in a row first. I am really looking forward to the freedom of roaming wherever the shops may take me, and having interesting adventures along the way. Hope I get alot of hotel shops! LOL! If not I do camping very well.
Will post how I am doing from time to time, if anyone is interested!?!

If you work hard and I mean hard, you CAN make a decent living from this alone. Of course that is if you live in an area that has alot of shops, and if you are good to best at being a MS!

Please update! I'd love to hear stories

My "stories" tend to involve out-running love starved goats or being hunkered down in a post office while state police surrounded the building with guns drawn while I was shopping the location.

I draw Social Security. It still affords me the opportunity to continue to live in the extravagant lifestyle to which I am accustomed.

Rather than bringing more money in, I keep more money from going out by couponing. Over the past few months, I've averaged $600/month in savings due to smart shopping. Coupled with what I make MS'ing, not too shabby for someone who "can't get a job!"

Maricier I would love to learn to coupon. Arizoniashopper I would love to hear the stories of your adventures. You sound like a person after my own heart...I think I have gypsy blood...

Thanks for the awesome feedback Everyone! Based on your comments and feedback, this thread has made for a great read for me and has given me a TON of food for thought.

I can not really tutor, as I have absolutely no educational background to train and nor do I have any teaching credentials of any kind. MAJOR FROWN!!!

Last year, I thought about starting my own non-medical senior assistance business, but it never got off the ground, because I found out that so many retired people here in Los Angeles live on a fixed income, so they and or their insurance would not cover the cost of my assistant services. Mainly I was marketing my services to just help seniors for 2 hours per visit, thus making it easy on their wallets/purses, for when they had odd jobs that they needed done that could be done within 2 hours. Yet even that proved to be too much for them to consider.

Yet I did think that it would be so cool and fun to teach elderly people how to use a personal computer and use the internet. Yet I just can not afford to volunteer my time right now, since I am really strapped for cash as I try to find a stable full-time job in this poor economy. Since I live in Los Angeles, I have not had any luck with the temporary agencies here, I think because there are just too many unemployed people here all trying to get any job that they can get as well. Here is is kind of like for every job opening we have here, there is easily 100 unemployed people waiting to apply for it. MAJOR FROWN!!!:-(

Overall, thanks everyone for your great suggestions. I will check into them more to see if I can find something that works for me.

Shop2LiveinFL, thanks for the information about the “AA” msc, however upon reading that LONG tread, I have decided to pass on their “Part-Time Editor” position. LOL!!!

ArizonaShopper, have a safe and wonderful vacation. Please keep us posted. For sure, I hope that you get some great hotel shops. I wish I could afford to travel to do hotel shops, yet with my employment situation and this poor economy, I won’t be able to do any hotel shops for a very long time to come.

Thanks a MILLION, Everyone! You all have some great ideas and some great gigs! I sincerely appreciate your help and input:-)

Wilson

I own a tutoring/educational consulting business called No Tears Tutoring. And I am an artist. I was bringing in tons of money with NTT last year. The last few months have been tough so I beefed up on the MSing. When I started MSing a little more than 2 years ago, it was to keep me busy while I got my business going. now, I am trying to step up my game. the art has always been my passion, but never a reliable source of income. in fact, with gallery fees, supplies, etc. I find it is a drain on my income. still, I would never stop doing it. I have been doing art since I was a kid.

jersey07032 Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> I own a tutoring/educational consulting business
> called No Tears Tutoring. And I am an artist. I
> was bringing in tons of money with NTT last year.
> The last few months have been tough so I beefed up
> on the MSing. When I started MSing a little more
> than 2 years ago, it was to keep me busy while I
> got my business going. now, I am trying to step
> up my game. the art has always been my passion,
> but never a reliable source of income. in fact,
> with gallery fees, supplies, etc. I find it is a
> drain on my income. still, I would never stop
> doing it. I have been doing art since I was a kid.


Congratulations, Jersey07032! It sounds like you are doing all the right things to stay balanced and keeping an income coming in. Keep up the great work:-)

Wilson

ArizonaShopper Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Mystery Shopping started out for me as something
> constructive to do with my time and that I could
> be flexible with as I have Lupus and Sjogren's
> with Fibromyalgia and Chronic Fatigue Syndrome.
> (Ya, try working even part time with that!) But
> as I found out how much I enjoy it, I started to
> do more and more. Turned into a nice supplement
> for my fixed income. I also got really sick alot
> from doing too much! So I had to cut back alot!
> It is really painful to not take shops I know I
> would enjoy and that I could make alot more money
> if I could do them. I finally tested out enough
> to know how much I can do, and it turns out to
> still be worth my while as I don't need alot of
> extra income.

i have a somewhat similar experience. i was a corporate manager with 400 employees, but i damaged my health with an ulcer by working too much. now mystery shopping suits me, because i can do as little or as much as i want, and i'm not bound to a strict schedule, unless i impose one on myself. no one can tell that i have a medical condition when they look at me, but mystery shopping works around my medical condition quite well.

thank you, Wilson.I am developing the balance. some days/weeks are great. and then...this week was was the pits.

WestCoastWilson Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> jersey07032 Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > I own a tutoring/educational consulting
> business
> > called No Tears Tutoring. And I am an artist. I
> > was bringing in tons of money with NTT last
> year.
> > The last few months have been tough so I beefed
> up
> > on the MSing. When I started MSing a little
> more
> > than 2 years ago, it was to keep me busy while
> I
> > got my business going. now, I am trying to
> step
> > up my game. the art has always been my passion,
> > but never a reliable source of income. in fact,
> > with gallery fees, supplies, etc. I find it is
> a
> > drain on my income. still, I would never stop
> > doing it. I have been doing art since I was a
> kid.
>
>
> Congratulations, Jersey07032! It sounds like you
> are doing all the right things to stay balanced
> and keeping an income coming in. Keep up the great
> work:-)
>
> Wilson

eBay does a lot for me, but as many others here, shopping is just a paid hobby ora minor income supplement - I can get so much more for my time from businesses that I own than shopping that I find myself doing only very highly bonused shops for a few companies with which I have built friendships with the schedulers - I dont mind driving a few hours each way to do a single shop for the right $$ and that endears me to the schedulers, so my local work tends to be overpaid as well when I decide to do it

I guess I am lucky in that my businesses are of a sort that I can wrap a 4 hour round trip shop around a field visit for one of the businesses and a buying trip for the other, so in essence the drive time for the shop doesn't really exist

Anyway, back to the topic - eBay is a low entrance cost potential income producer, selling stuff in your own house can often get you a quick half a grand and you can use part of that do re-inventory at garage sales, thrifts, etc

Art


WestCoastWilson Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> I was just curious to know how do you supplement
> your income as a Mystery Shopper?
>
> In my case, in additional to being a mystery
> shopper, I also do Merchandising work . . . while
> I try to find a regular full-time job in our very
> poor economy.
>
> Last year, I had heard that people can make a few
> bucks doing surveys, if you end up working for
> several survey companies at one time , where you
> would end up making $100 to $200 extra each month.
> I am not sure if those survey companies are legit
> or not, yet I have seen survey company ads listed
> in reputable job sites (i.e. Monster.Com, The Los
> Angeles Times). Now that it is a new year, I am
> thinking about exploring doing surveys as a way to
> supplement my income, as I really do need some
> additional ways to supplement my income between my
> mystery shopping and merchandising work. Has
> anyone had any luck with survey companies?
>
> Lastly, what do you do to supplement your income
> as a Mystery Shopper?
>
> Wilson

I used to buy up scrapbooking supplies from companies going out of business and then sell them on eBay. Made about $15,000 over a two year period doing that. Still have too much scrapbooking stuff in boxes and bins in my storage locker. Need to get it out, take pictures and list it Great idea. Don't have much more property than that.

I babysit to supplement my income. I've been thinking of doing the eBay thing for awhile if I can get going on it. And I've tried couponing, but have not had any success getting off of the ground with that. I've done the survey thing, but it's very minimal so I gave up. Thought about blogging too. My sister is doing Scentsy and wants me to go in with her on that so I might try that. Right now any day I'm no babysitting, I'm out there shopping. I've got a very full day of shopping coming on Monday.

I teach full time. I got into Mystery shopping because I read an article where someone paid off their student loans by doing mystery shopping. I started researching the web and finally got a call from Bestmark (who did not charge). It started out as fun, I would spend my money and wait for it to come back, it did and I kept on until I started doing banks and things that brought in cash instead of me putting out. The forums have given me a lot of ideas. I read where one person used credit to buy and make purchases and then pay off the bill with MS money. I did that, built up credit and now 6 years later in a home and finally working to pay off my student loans. LOL. I am diligently paying student loans now because I have started video shopping. You can go do a video shop for 1 hour and get paid between $40-$60. I'm waiting on 1099 but I know I've done more that $6,000 in video alone. That is on addition to grocery, gas and banks. So Mystery shopping is my supplement income. It also affords me to buy things for my inner city children.

will anyone train you to do video shopping? and do you have to buy te equipment? i have been avoiding it...kind of nervous about it.


prettygul1 Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> I teach full time. I got into Mystery shopping
> because I read an article where someone paid off
> their student loans by doing mystery shopping. I
> started researching the web and finally got a call
> from Bestmark (who did not charge). It started
> out as fun, I would spend my money and wait for it
> to come back, it did and I kept on until I started
> doing banks and things that brought in cash
> instead of me putting out. The forums have given
> me a lot of ideas. I read where one person used
> credit to buy and make purchases and then pay off
> the bill with MS money. I did that, built up
> credit and now 6 years later in a home and finally
> working to pay off my student loans. LOL. I am
> diligently paying student loans now because I have
> started video shopping. You can go do a video
> shop for 1 hour and get paid between $40-$60. I'm
> waiting on 1099 but I know I've done more that
> $6,000 in video alone. That is on addition to
> grocery, gas and banks. So Mystery shopping is my
> supplement income. It also affords me to buy
> things for my inner city children.

I wonder what kind of products you sell on ebay. I know ebay is a good place to sell, but the fees are high. Just curious what are popular sellers.


ArtFromNY Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> eBay does a lot for me, but as many others here,
> shopping is just a paid hobby ora minor income
> supplement - I can get so much more for my time
> from businesses that I own than shopping that I
> find myself doing only very highly bonused shops
> for a few companies with which I have built
> friendships with the schedulers - I dont mind
> driving a few hours each way to do a single shop
> for the right $$ and that endears me to the
> schedulers, so my local work tends to be overpaid
> as well when I decide to do it
>
> I guess I am lucky in that my businesses are of a
> sort that I can wrap a 4 hour round trip shop
> around a field visit for one of the businesses and
> a buying trip for the other, so in essence the
> drive time for the shop doesn't really exist
>
> Anyway, back to the topic - eBay is a low entrance
> cost potential income producer, selling stuff in
> your own house can often get you a quick half a
> grand and you can use part of that do re-inventory
> at garage sales, thrifts, etc
>
> Art
>
>
> WestCoastWilson Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > I was just curious to know how do you
> supplement
> > your income as a Mystery Shopper?
> >
> > In my case, in additional to being a mystery
> > shopper, I also do Merchandising work . . .
> while
> > I try to find a regular full-time job in our
> very
> > poor economy.
> >
> > Last year, I had heard that people can make a
> few
> > bucks doing surveys, if you end up working for
> > several survey companies at one time , where
> you
> > would end up making $100 to $200 extra each
> month.
> > I am not sure if those survey companies are
> legit
> > or not, yet I have seen survey company ads
> listed
> > in reputable job sites (i.e. Monster.Com, The
> Los
> > Angeles Times). Now that it is a new year, I am
> > thinking about exploring doing surveys as a way
> to
> > supplement my income, as I really do need some
> > additional ways to supplement my income between
> my
> > mystery shopping and merchandising work. Has
> > anyone had any luck with survey companies?
> >
> > Lastly, what do you do to supplement your
> income
> > as a Mystery Shopper?
> >
> > Wilson