Hello Everyone,
In reading some of your horror stories, I guess I better count my lucky stars. I have had an incredible, awesome response to my applications to Mystery Shopper sites. When I was a teenager a few decades ago I did Mystery shops, and I had a lot of fun. Because the managers and owners would never guess a teenager as a mystery shopper. As I am sure you all know, when do you pay any attention to teenagers, yea right! I have raised my family, and decided I wanted some pocket money each month. So I started at the end of February 2007, signing up when I ran across a Mystery Shop site. By the middle of March I had done about 25 shops. I also had signed up at about 35 Mystery Shop sites. Now at this point I have not paid any money to any Shopper sites. I did this on my own. By the end of March 2007 I had done 75 Mystery Shops of all kinds. And I was up to 95 sites I had put my application into. Even if they said they didn't have jobs in the state I was in, I still signed up. You never know if they might get a stray shop, and they look in their files and low and behold there you are. Sorry I guess I am getting wordy, can tell I have done a few shops, huh!
Anyway as of now, from the first of March to the first of May I have done over 100+ shops, and I am still going strong. It's been incredible.
My Advice for what it's worth:
1-Sign-up with every site you can find, and they are not hard to find. Yes, you will have a lot of testing to do, and a ton of reading, but it's worth it.
2-Learn the names of the people that send you job prospects from each company. Call them, send e-mails, stay real close to them, you will end up at the top of the pile to be called.
3-Make a name for your self, these companies and schedulers talk among themselves, they trade names, who does the best surveys, etc.
4-Complete your jobs when you say you will, and get it in early,they will love you for it.
5-Make sure your debriefing is par excellence, the best of the best. Your ratings will be perfect everytime, if you take the time and do it right.
6-Stay close to the computer, check your e-mails every couple of hours, or you will miss some of the shops that were just posted. Respond quickly to them, first come, first served.
7-I have learned, unfortunately, I don't sleep much at night, but a lot of postings happen in the middle of the night, and you can snag the good ones then. Usually between 2 AM and 5 AM, is the best times.
8-Have fun, don't ignore your family responsibilities, and take time for yourself, and then you won't get burn out. If you do you will start to resent doing it, then you will know it's time to get out of doing Mystery Shops.
Take Care One and All, Pamela