@iamloved1 wrote:

There are many pros but the cons really suck. Like, right now, I am 6 hours from home in a hotel with a rental car outside because I attempted to do a route with an old car and it broke down. Not only did I not get to do the shop (deadline: today - which was why it was so heavily bonused that I could not resist), I'm set back $450 in repairs (although that could have happened anywhere!) I just hate accepting a shop, then not being able to complete it in a timely manner due to unforseen circumstances. I will probably get a major flake citation from the MSC.

The other con: a scheduler that says, "Oops, my bad. Well, since you didn't ask for clarification on the unclear guidelines and did one little thing wrong, we can't accept the shop." No pay AND no reimbursement, so that shop COST ME money!

If you scan your auto repairs invoice, and send to the MSC, you would think they would not punish you? Did you try that?

I believe mystery shopping is helping me prevent Alzheimer's. Seriously, all the attention to detail; trying to remember names, times, quotes, etc helps to keep my mind sharp as I advance in age.

kenasch, I've been told by my neurologist that nothing known to medicine at this time slows down or prevents the progression of Alzheimer's disease and the subsequent loss of normal thought processes. Based on that information, I have to disagree and say that I don't think you can prevent Alzheimer's with any known method.

However, I've also been told by my neurologist that keeping the mind engaged is helpful in delaying somewhat the onset of confusion associated with Alzheimer's and with senility in general. I agree that mystery shopping is helpful in maintaining focus and organizational skills and therefore it is helpful in dealing with the symptoms. The most important thing we can keep in mind as we age is that the brain is truly use it or lose it. This applies to all of us, whether we have ALZ or not.

The pros of mystery shopping are:
- Working and choosing your own jobs/schedules
- No limitations on which companies to work with/for.
- Wide variety of assignments that sometimes expose you to new industry trends
- Valuable income for a student like myself.
- Small investment required.
- Awesome way to take friends out for expensive dinners.

The cons of mystery shopping are:
- Dealing with competition within territory
- Assignments that are not upfront with guidelines until you accept.
- Vehicle wear/tear
- Exhaustion from over mystery shopping
- Strict schedule and detail is required to make money
- Low pay on heavy reports.
- Long turn around time for pay.
- No pay at all (instant replays)

It's definitely interesting reading the replies from many different corners of the MS universe. Although I've been mystery shoppping for roughly two years now, I've just moved away from home for college so my response is different than had I been asked a few months ago.

Pro: I won't starve and it's nice not having to cook meals every day.
Pro: Shopping places like Publix allow me to buy & afford produce and other household items so I can spend money on more important things.
Pro: The profits from shopping allow me to buy books and afford crazy high tuition or rent.

Con: While not common, I've had to argue to get reports through and get paid. This bothers me the most as if I have all information in a report, it takes up valuable time from both me and everybody from schedulers to editors to QC in needlessly explaining what I've already written likely multiple times.
Con: Now living in a college town, I've noticed this the most - if I don't grab those shops at the low fees that I used to be able to sit on, I won't have any shops!

I think many employees go mindlessly through their day, when they are at work, with no particular need to remember everything that happened to them in their day ...

But for us, the mystery shopper, we DO have to keep our mind sharp, keen observations, attention to detail, recollection at a moments notice, organizational skills, a penchant for names, a strong drive, to stay in there to get the assignment done and done correctly

Pros: Like most, I am my own boss, can make my own hours pretty much

Con: when I call (I do mostly calls) a bank, a teller answers and I do my spiel, she tells me
she will get a banker and as she puts me on hold, very loudly says to the banker: "It is a shop".
So of course the banker is as polite as can be when he gets on the phone. This makes it very hard to call or visit
with a "story" knowing they know you are a shopper.
I never do the same story, and try to add to it but I am sure they don't get many calls for this stuff and know who we are.

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 01/23/2015 10:37PM by krystlerose.

Pro - I can pick and choose what shops I will except. My time is more value then to so little, shops over 5 miles for $5.00 is just not worth it. I generally accept shops that pay a minimum of $10.00. or more. I have been doing shop for 20 years.

Pro - I do except last minute shops, based on location, and if it is close enough to time to pull paper work and read it, and get ready, and drive to the shop location to be able to perform the shop in a timely manner.

Pro - Last minute shop or end of the month, left over shops that have not been completed. It is in your best interest to negotiate the amount of a bonus within reason.

Con - Called to perform a last minute shop and expect it to be conducted with a $2.00 bonus on a $5.00 shop, if I have to do all of the rushing it needs to be a higher bonus.

Con - Shops that pay only $5.00 and then need to wait 4 to 6 week to get paid. I just do not apply or except these shops.

A couple of pros are being able to decide how valuable my time is and unlike those happy to not cook dinner, it allows me time to cook every single day if I want. I do have to disagree with my friend dixiewhiskey about the whole meeting new people thing. Since I'm rarely me and never seeing them again is preferable, there isn't much benefit to that

Pro: I can schedule my own time for doing shops. I can work it around my daughter's bi-polar ups and downs, lack of sleep from helping her deal with these ups and downs as well as working around scheduling and taking my mom to a huge variety of shops. As well as being able to take a nap when I need to for my own health issues.

Pro: Being able to schedule as few or as many as I can handle at a time.

Pro: The variety of jobs available.

Pro: Being able to help companies to improve their customer service.

Pro: Having taught special education for so many years, I had to evaluate children, now I evaluate adults.

Pro: Being able to work around my tutoring schedule.

Con: The pay for many of the jobs is too low. And to all of those who say wait for better pay, I do.

Con: The time it takes to set up jobs and keep them in a specific area.

Con: The pay given for jobs that have narratives that can take for 1/2 hour to 1 1/2 hours to write, besides the time it takes to fill out the rest of the report.

Con: The time it takes to get paid except for a few companies that pay every 1 to 2 weeks.

Con: Schedulers not understanding when you tell them, you do not have the money to put out and then they say okay, but ask you to do the same job in another location anyway.

Con: For those jobs that one has to put out money first and then don't get paid for 30 to 45 days.

Pros:

This doesn't hurt my back.

It's portable. If I move, a simple profile update, and I'm still in business.

The educational benefits as a consumer, in areas that I know NADA

Income in a bad economy

The "abstract interest" rate that my bank is now paying me, every month. This thought popped into my head, yesterday.

Potential pre on the job training, and company research. One car dealership offered me a job.

Getting discounted and free merchandise.

Cons:

Having to get the reports done THAT day.

Amount of money paid for time spent doing job.

The buy and return assignments. The WAIT time prior to the return IS working time.

Limits on how many of a given shop that can get done in a given time frame.

Pros:
I work when I feel like it.
My family and I, have visited many places with very little out of pocket money, by doing gas station, fast food, restaurants and hotels on the way there and back.
We have 2 vehicles and can't remember when is the last time we paid for a synthetic oil change or even gas.

Cons:
Some reports can be a little long.

My biggest Pro is the shops offering practical expenses to be to taken out of your monthly budget. But with that said some of the reimbursment practices (time frames are really tough) to have your money away from you that long. I have declined many a shop for that reason. 6 -8 weeks for reimbursement is not fair. What do you all think?

Barbpete, I think that's one of my pet peeves. There's one bar integrity shop I do that reimburses up to $40 and pays the $15 fee in 90 days. I'll do it 3-4 times a year, because I enjoy eating there. At the same time, I do wish the reimbursement was faster. I don't mind the 90-days for payment...I know that going in. But holding the reimbursement for that long isn't right. It would be nice if MSCs would pay the reimbursements when the shop was accepted, with the fee as a second payment per the ICA.

I think if I were a MS compnay, I'd only hire sucessful shoppers or former shoppers to be editors or schedulers. My hat's off to this scheduler who at least want's to know what in our heads.

I am retired. If it is not fun I am not going to do it! Therefor I have no "CONS" the client does not get my services if the shop is not MUTUALLY BENIFICIAL.

The Pros are that I have fun. I choose what I want to shop when I want to shop. I do not do it for the money although I would not do it for free. I do it to help people. As a retired business person my successful businesses were as the result of listening to positive and negitive feed back and choosing to evaluate both I made the right choices. Now I pay forward.

I can go to the beach. I stop at a convenience store or fast food shop and instead of doing crossword puzzles on the beach I do the report(s). Going out to dinner is like getting a discount. Most of the time it cost me more that the shop offers in payment. I would have had to pay full price without the shop.

Since I get to choose what shops I want and I have been shopping for six years I know a "Fun shop" or an "Easy shop" will not be fun or easy. If it is offered every hour using different words to describe the shop with no real details the scheduler is hiding something and nobody but novices are biting.

If I can not see the compensation, guidelines or reports before committing to the shop it is not my fault if the scheduler advertised a shop but did not reveal the details before asking me to accept the shop. I will conditionally accept a shop to see the guidelines and other details. I will not flake a shop if the date and time of your shop conflict with my schedule nor will I proceed with the shop if it is not mutually beneficial. I do not care if I do not work for you in the future. Your attempt to Shanghai me (trick me) does not commit me to a shop as there was no “meeting of the minds” until a complete understanding of the terms had been revealed and set to writing.

I do not do shops that embarrass me or the subject I am shopping. The guidelines ask male shoppers to stare at a female's chest to read a name tag that is much too small or ask a young woman for there name at an Ice cream store. I have no desire to know the name of the server at an ice cream store. When I was a teenager I did not stare at a female clerk's chest for a name tag. I had no problem asking the female clerk for her name at an ice cream store. Most young ladies thought I was cute. The forum has many posts where men report they are not comfortable reading name tags as the females react as if the men are perverts or mystery shoppers. At other retail stores it may be appropriate to ask for the clerk's name.

There is a shop that asks a shopper to go to a pharmacy of a competitor. The shopper is to browse the shelves taking data from the inventory but not buying anything. The shops were in neighborhoods were people shoplift. How long do you think it would take before a security person is asking you what you are looking for? You can not say you are doing a comparison shop. The security person may plant something on your person and you may have legal problems. The schedulers do not suggest how to explain your activities. The person who wrote the guidelines for the shop should try the shop before sending shoppers out.

The "Golden Rule" is not “Those who have the gold make the rules.” It is "Do unto others as you would like them to do unto you. Schedulers should talk to clients about what is fair. 100 questions for $5.00 fee is not reasonable as you must perform which takes time and you must go home and answer the questions that take time. If I offered that opportunity to the client it would not be worth the client's time. If you offered 100 questions for $5.00 fee to a college student or senior desperate for cash to buy food you get what you pay for. If you raise the pay you raise the quality of the report.

If I were truly and independent contractor I would get the option to walk out of a restaurant at lunch time because I allegedly got to get back to work. I would not have to wait over two hours and have the manager comp me because he knows I am the mystery shopper. I got nothing for the two hours that should have been a 45 minutes shop. The client got a negative report. Taxi Cabs get "Waiting time". Mystery shoppers should get compensated for time or be allowed to act as a real shopper would and leave without penalty.

Some guidelines require the shopper to get business cards as a requirement to be paid. Many shoppers will do the report and send it without the business card and they will not be paid. The client will get a free report as the manager knows which salesperson serviced the shopper. The salespeople will seat the shopper to get contact information. They should offer a business card. Many do not.

Salespeople do not want to loose their spot in rotation to service a mystery shopper. Even when I was not performing a shop the salespeople asked if I was the shopper when they greeted me. This is another shop where the person who wrote the guidelines should attempt the shop themselves. If I am told, “I left the card case in my other pants”, or “I am new and my cards have not been printed”, or “I ran out of cards.”, I reserve the right to act like an independent contractor and a REAL SHOPPER. I want to tell the salespeople I want a manager if I do not get a business card. If the salespeople can not offer a business card they can not have my business as they are not professional. I usually get a business card and they know I am the shopper.

Clients want shoppers to take pictures. Most clients are legitimate and do not use this as a scam. Some shops like Pizza shops want you to buy and mutilate a pizza. You get to eat the cold pizza but the forum has many posts where the shoppers never get paid as the shots are at the wrong angle or blurred or the moon was shinning to bright, any excuse is a good excuse not to pay the shopper.

I do not know what shops you offer but if you have shops in New Jersey I would like to offer you my services if we can have a mutually beneficial experience.

What about the shops that require a first and last name being written by the associate. I get the craziest looks when they have put their first name on the card, but not their last. Most of the time, they immediately know that I am a shopper as I ask for the last name. Most customers are satisfied with the first name.

@sandrapdunne wrote:

Hi,

The typical person identifies mystery shopping as a hobby.

A "hobby" is an activity done regularly in one's leisure time for pleasure. My "hobby" was, and still is, to help people.
I did not start out making a lot of money because that was not my goal. I helped people for nothing when I was in high school and it gave me pleasure. I developed that hobby and over 50 years it evolved into a vehicle that funds my comfortable retirement. I mentored people who attempted to use that concept because one person performing that service does not make it popular. Even today when I see people struggling to copy that concept I approch them, I teach them and everyone enjoys the experience.

My other businesses were "hobbies" also. The common theme was to help people. I had a job for 30 years but treated the boss like a client. I was often proactive in building his business. The people I worked with, after being mentored, evolved into professionals. They came back to me after they left the firm and asked me to help them grow their practices or businesses or they asked me to do "favors" for clients and made offiers of compensation I could not refuse. They did not offer the same services I offered. They were not competing with me.

I had no intention of starting a business but "word of mouth" gave me clients before I even knew I had a ligitimate service business. Professionals wanted my help. They asked me to help people and made offers I could not refuse because the compensation was good, but more important I left people in a better condition than when I found them.

I am a mystery shopper because I owe my success to mentors and clients giving me feedback. I am paying forward.
I make a little money and I hope my observations help businesses with their need for that information I provide. I have fun doing it. If it is not fun I am not going to do it.

Pro’s:
1. I get to go on great date nights with DH.
2. I get to take my adult daughters on some shops.
3. I get to take my youngest (or anyone else I want on my dime) to Chipotle.
4. I get some great perks such as candy, chocolate, accessories, socks, sporting goods, jewelry, popcorn, candles, clothing, toys,
5. I get a nice lunch when I’m able to get out at work.
Con’s:
1. Repetitive questions on reports.
2. I find it annoying when I write the whole picture only to find the following questions ask for only a part of it and I need to break my answer up. Yes, I should read ahead.
3. Requiring the names of managers or other staff when they are not wearing name tags.
4. Reimbursements that do not cover a reasonable dinner or lunch tab.
5. 18% max reimbursement for tips. 20% is what I tip and I wind up covering the extra.
6. Having to name a certain day/date when to do shops. I find a window of time works so much better. That’s why I LOVE CHIPOTLE!
7. Having to put in a bid for a job and waiting, waiting when you can assign yourself other jobs. I’ve learned to retract my app when something else comes along.
8. 12 hour turnaround time for report submission; especially for a dinner shop.
9. Low pay for the time and expense involved. The exception to this is fine dining shops which I find totally worth it even if I have to kick in some bucks. I will do other shops when they are on the way or if I’m planning on being in the area but the pay is so low! i.e. $5 reimbursement and $10 report pay. If I had to drive to the job I would be in the negative!
10. It should be noted, I do this for pleasure, perks and fun.

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 01/27/2015 02:23AM by Madetoshop.