Hi Glowbrain,

Most of what you speak of is about 85% accounting and 15% time management. Accounting can be costly and time consuming. Most of that is really bookkeeping or recordkeeping. People suggested Excel. This is great.

I do 4 major worksheets with Excel: Job Worksheet listing the jobs I do as I do them, Cash Receipts Worksheet listing money as I receive it, Expense Worksheet listing the money I spend and Income Statement Worksheet (income - expenses = Earned Income). It is work but with all the information you can conceivably come up with various ways to determine if you make money. It also helps on how to report to the IRS. This information gives you enough. This is some work.

Another accounting option is to get QuickBooks (and similar type programs) and do all these entries separately. In the outcome you would receive the information I told you above extremely easily. When you start it is hell and you probably need a lot of time. It probably calls for accounting knowledge also.

Time management is always the killjoy. There are hundreds of articles and ways to find out how you want to approach your problem. I saw a person mentioned organization. This is another monster. Also consider that you work for yourself. All this bookkeeping, data entry, time management, organization, research to find the work, apply for the work, prepare for the work and then to actually do the work is included in your profits.

Business type courses might help. The problem there is that it does not define your specific unique needs. To hire and get the information you want would suck all the profits away. Focus on what you are actually doing and work on organizing that first. Then you can think of expanding. You will not make more money but you will waste less time. I personally value my time much more than any amount of money. The richest, most comfortable person in the world is as strapped for time (if not more) as we are. Time is precious and without monetary measure.

If you want the free software for a spreadsheet that works with the one that is sticked in the new shopping thread, I highly suggest LibreOffice. It is the most active and IMHO the best free one:

[www.libreoffice.org]

Works with ALL operating systems. Open source and has developers who are ACTIVE unlike the others.

Microsoft is actually REMOVING features from Office 360 so it will run on everything from a phone, tablet to an old PC and is a monthly fee. Office 2010 is the last version of MS Office that is worth installing, even if it is free.

May I add one thing?

What are your goals for mystery shopping?

Goals or objectives? A very perceptive question. I have been unemployed for years, which drives most of my needs and wants.

I supplement my unemployment benefits with mystery shopping, so I would like to do it as a way to bring in about least $AU 60 a week, on average.

More importantly perhaps, the fact that MSCs sometimes reach out to me and ask me to do jobs that aren't being taken on (sometimes in my own or in other poorly covered districts) is a boost for my self-esteem as I have not had in years. I would like to be able to keep that going - but not let it drive me into taking on too much just to try and make myself look cooperative to the scheduler.

I really need a referee for job applications, so I do want to somehow get a reputation and a relationship going with at least some of the MSC staffers, but I must not submit to the point of exploitation.

So, I want mystery shopping help my get and maintain some self-respect. Is that asking too much?

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 07/18/2015 02:30PM by glowbrain.

It sounds like you are in Australia. I wonder if another Australian shopper has insights or information unique to Australia and the conditions you mention.

Anyway, welcome! There is no hard and fast rule about how you develop your business. Good luck!

mystShopper.com has a shop logger on their website. it lets you input your shops you have done. how much you are owed, and mark it off once you are paid. I have been using the site for a while now, pretty useful.

I keep a monthly spreadsheet with the date of the shop, the shop itself, the MSC, the shop fee - I add in the bonus and just reflect it as one shop fee, any parking/tolls, a total column, then a mileage column, and a payment column. I have it totaling across each row and down each column. I also have a calculation at the bottom that multiplies the total mileage by .575 which is the IRS allowed deduction for mileage per month.

Then, I have another spreadsheet that lists the shop, the MSC, the address of the shop and the mileage roundtrip for that shop from my house. This spreadsheet is HUGE and is a very helpful resource so that I don't have to go to Google Maps every time I do the same shop.

When I complete a shop, including the report, I use color coding, rather than moving the completed shop to another spreadsheet. I also color code shops by date so that I can look at the spreadsheet and easily identify what has to be done on what day. Once the shop is done, I color it light purple and that's that. And of course, they are all grouped by date.

And like CoffeeQueen, I also keep a month at a glance calendar beside my laptop. I like to see how busy I am and what days are open. I check of each shop on the calendar and when all shops are done for the day, I cross through the day.

The spreadsheets take some effort to set up, I used my trusty Excel manual to help me with the various calculations, but in the end, it makes things so much easier overall, especially at tax time.

And like another shopper mentioned above, I used to track payments diligently, but it became a hassle since they all pay at different times and it takes some research to figure out what that payment was for. I tracked it and it was always correct, so...

Lately, I have built a new spreadsheet where I track totals by month and I have a calculation for the average shop fee per shop. It has motivated me to hang back for the higher paying shops so that I do less shops for more money. At the beginning of the year, I was averaging just over $9/shop, then for last month, I'm up to just over $13/shop. Shop less, make more!

Good reading everyone.
How do I know if a shop is worth it? They are all worth it if I land them on my terms.

I benefit from over booked newbies!

My recommendations:
First concentrate on just a few kind of shops. When I help people get started, I recommend cell phone shops, storage facility shops and bank shops. Many companies offer these kinds of shops and you will be able to get a good perspective on how the companies differ.
Second - I use an Android phone and Google Calendar is installed on all my devices. This way I can always see what I am supposed to be doing and when. I can also share the calendar with other members of my family so they know as well.
Third: I use an Excel spread sheet to track my assignments I color code the assignments for assigned, completed, not yet paid and (since I do video work), the rare shop for which I will not be paid due to technical difficulty. (Assigned- Green bold; completed-unbold; Paid: black, Not paid: red). I also keep an address book in which I record my user name, password, when and how the company pays, and what format it likes proof of visit.

Since new assignments are available every day, don't accept an assignment that is out more than a week. Good luck!

@semmem1 wrote:

mystShopper.com has a shop logger on their website. it lets you input your shops you have done. how much you are owed, and mark it off once you are paid. I have been using the site for a while now, pretty useful.

Thanks for the tip!

@semmem1 wrote:

mystShopper.com has a shop logger on their website. it lets you input your shops you have done. how much you are owed, and mark it off once you are paid. I have been using the site for a while now, pretty useful.

I would not trust my business to a free service on a website. Websites go down all the time, get hacked and are not backed up.

What will you do when you wake up and the website is down one morning?

@MrsFrank wrote:

Since new assignments are available every day, don't accept an assignment that is out more than a week. Good luck!

Why is that?

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 07/19/2015 02:38AM by Sybil2.

@glowbrain wrote:

How do other shoppers keep a balanced schedule, meeting their own needs while making enough time for travel and reporting, without disappointing contracting companies?

I'm a recently experienced mystery shopper, and ahead of the end of the tax year I had been ramping up my efforts to register with mystery shopping companies (I'm up to 27) and take on multiple jobs to make a reputation with them and get some more money. In reality I mainly sabotaged myself - I damaged my health and my confidence with a lot of overwork and over-booked days and over-nights, sometimes missing deadlines.
Plus I got confused about who was paying me what and when.

I need a way to cull the companies I commit to, and a way to track my efforts to determine if it is worth doing particular kinds of assignments (allowing for travel and eating out while away); and whether I am getting pay and feedback reliably. For example, "pure reimbursement" jobs, particularly dining audits, are not really contributing to my income, so I would "discount" their utility, perhaps.

I figure I can average four assignments a week and make the supplementary income I need on average - but how do I ensure that unless I over-book myself with applications just in case, then withdraw applications if I get too many acceptances?

I also have a tendency to put off jobs with later due dates until the last minute, so I wonder if i should primarily make myself available for last-minute jobs where there was not another taker, and I have immediate motivation to tackle it.

I never commit to more than one "Bird in the Hand" at one time. If I have an application and the Mystery Shop company allows me to withdraw with no penalty I cancel the application before I self assign the "Bird in the hand". If you have an issue of canceling because the second shop is more profitable make sure you can cancel the application without penalty before you apply or self assign the new shop. It is better to lose the shop than your reputation. You can try to see if the scheduler can adjust the time of the shop but most shops give you "any open hour the location is open except the half hour after the store opens or the half hour before the location closes" . read the guidelines carefully.

I do what is called "a route". Like a mail man delivering mail. You can cross the stream if you have enough rocks you can step on so you do not fall in. You can space shops like rocks. Keep in mind traffic and estimated length of shops in mind. I went clear across the state and back to home base very profitability.

The schedulers paid me for a long distance run but the actual distance between shops made the "rocks in the stream" "local" between one shop and another. Do not schedule a lunch or dinner shop that has a small window to perform unless you know you can clear the shop previous to get to lunch or dinner on time.

You can "double dip" get miles paid for twice as one scheduler will not know if you have more than one shop contributing to your travel fund. You will not get those travel bonuses unless you ask. If you are going more than 20 miles ask. If a shop cancels on you at the last minute you may take a bath (lose money) without that "rock" to step on. It happens but not often.

Remember you have to do reports and you have deadlines. If you get close to the deadline contact the scheduler. They can often be accommodating if they know you did the shop and they will get a report before the rooster crows if not by midnight when scheduled.

Monthly travel log and good old paper and pen. Takes me shorter time to fill in than bringing up an Excel sheet. LOL!

Yes, MrsFrank , why the disinterest in "stale" opportunities?
I was inclined to chase jobs that had been sitting unassigned because that meant there was more chance I would be assigned it.
I would have thought chasing jobs as soon as they are published means you are always competing with every other shopper hungry for new jobs.

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 07/19/2015 02:10PM by glowbrain.

@MrsFrank wrote:

Since new assignments are available every day, don't accept an assignment that is out more than a week. Good luck!

I read it as the window of the earliest day to complete is more than a week away. Like, wait until those are bonused.

@Kakita987 wrote:

@MrsFrank wrote:

Since new assignments are available every day, don't accept an assignment that is out more than a week. Good luck!

I read it as the window of the earliest day to complete is more than a week away. Like, wait until those are bonused.

Or get the bonus early and pick up shops with base fees you know that's worth it to you.

I agree. Just stating how I read the original comment.

@glowbrain wrote:

Yes, MrsFrank , why the disinterest in "stale" opportunities?
I was inclined to chase jobs that had been sitting unassigned because that meant there was more chance I would be assigned it.
I would have thought chasing jobs as soon as they are published means you are always competing with every other shopper hungry for new jobs.

If you see a shop that is on the board repeatedly and no one is taking it it is a hint that experienced shoppers have seen the offer and it is not mutually beneficial being to far to go for the compensation offered or would take too much effort or would be a danger if you are not familiar with the culture in that area.

Perhaps when you see the offer it will be close to you or will fit in a route. If you do not know the area you may not fit in with the demographic and they will know that you are the Mystery shopper because your vehicle or attire.

You may want to check the forum to see if the MSC or scheduler had problems paying. If pictures are required their may be chatter about the fact that no picture is ever good enough to satisfy them.

I, for example, will not take a shop a few miles away because it is in New York City where the parking and tolls will wipe out any profit. I may take a shop in Staten Island if they pay the toll and the shop is in a shopping mall.Now if you work in the city and take public transportation you may take a lunch or dinner shop as you do not have the expense of tolls and parking.

I will take a shop in the urban area of New Jersey as I have been trained to perform properly. where suburbanites should not go after dark or if their vehicle or attire does not match as it says "You do not belong there, you are a mystery shopper or you are buying or selling drugs. I have "urban experience"and I am believable as I use an old vehicle wear appropriate clothes and I know the streets but there is always the risk of a random act of violence. It is an adventure and I ask for "combat pay". as bullets fly randomly even in the day time. Many urban areas around the country have those places you do not go to.

Flip the coin and you are in "high society" where you must dress and act the demographic. I can act wealthy. They buzz me in to jewelry shops and show me trays of merchandise and let me drive luxury vehicles that it appears I can buy for cash.

Geez, that makes mystery shopping in the USA sound like being an undercover agent behind enemy lines.

Here in Brisbane, Australia, the homogeneous suburban society that it is, the worst risk I have is not violence or exposure but the embarrassment of not being able to show ID to a service rep who asks to see it when I had started out the shop with a false name.

Nope! I tried to offer services like these, not just the forms, but doing all the secretarial/administrative duties of mystery shopping, and I did mention it here. I got so slammed that I was a "scam" by so many that I just gave up offering it here. I have trained around 15 mystery shoppers (one went on the become a scheduler) in the 6-7 years I have been a shopper and everyone of them said they felt they had been so much better off with me training them than they would have been had they started on their own. I thought that was a pretty valuable service (training plus all the other services offered) and just like getting paid for shopping I felt I deserved to be paid for offering services that took alot of time and effort and saved a lot of the mystery shoppers the same. BUT, it didn't seem like anyone on here agreed. Because I charged I was a scam. So if I have this really awesome "tracking" system that meets all the needs of this newbie and I charged for the system that I developed then I guess I would be accused of being a scammer again! I currently have 2 potential new mystery shoppers that want me to "help" them get started and I guess I should do this for free. I always told my clients that they could learn to do everything (including finding the shopping companies) online themselves, but all but one decided they did not want to do that and were willing to pay for services that helped them along and got them started without all the trial and error.
Anyway, I guess I was having a "I so remember what it was like when I got started all on my own" day, and I responded to this persons 'cry for help". Sooo, once committed if she were to contact me I would give her all the information she needs for free---that same offer is not for anyone else! Sorry, I DO value my time and feel it is worth something. Besides, you know what they say: You get what you pay for!
Guess you hit my button!

This is the kind of services I offered! And it did not cost all the shoppers fees they were making either!!! (Different fees depending on the options chosen) but as little as $10.00 a month. Glowworm get in touch and I will give you the forms info for free.

If you are helping people get started why not get paid for it? Email me and maybe I can hire you!

I personally found and use a program at: myshoptracker.com It is pretty neat and helps me keep on track. I am not good with spreadheets so this is much easier to me. It even tracks your mileage.

@Michael C wrote:

I can't answer how to keep records because I just don't. But if you take nothing else from this thread, remember that schedulers lie like rugs. Urgent! Do me a favor! Please help! Money talks. Never feel bad about saying no to work that is not profitable, or they will use you up and dump you when you figure it out.

I shop for a large MSC company that I shop for and have started saying no to some shops because I am no longer going near the place: because my other job is having a big push to get certain things done before back to school. Anyway this MSC is always losing my email account and the other day it happened two days in a row. And on the day before I had just turned down some shops because I couldn't commit to the times that they wanted me to do the arches shops.

@glowbrain wrote:

Geez, that makes mystery shopping in the USA sound like being an undercover agent behind enemy lines.

Here in Brisbane, Australia, the homogeneous suburban society that it is, the worst risk I have is not violence or exposure but the embarrassment of not being able to show ID to a service rep who asks to see it when I had started out the shop with a false name.

You mean that as an Aussie, you are not out boxing with kangaroos every day after drinking a few Foster's?

@ServicesForMysteryShoppers wrote:

This is the kind of services I offered! And it did not cost all the shoppers fees they were making either!!! (Different fees depending on the options chosen) but as little as $10.00 a month.

Since you want to charge forum members/shoppers for your "expertise," why don't you contact Jacob (forum owner) and PAY him for you advertising here in the forum.

@glowbrain wrote:

Yes, MrsFrank , why the disinterest in "stale" opportunities?
I was inclined to chase jobs that had been sitting unassigned because that meant there was more chance I would be assigned it.
I would have thought chasing jobs as soon as they are published means you are always competing with every other shopper hungry for new jobs.

Common sense is a good method to use when choosing jobs. To each there own method of selecting jobs but some jobs look normal on the computer but in reality you get there and "YIKES" flash across your brain. You are afraid to get out of your car. You went into a demographic that you you must have special training or you must live there . The scheduler could, if they had common sense, post a requirement. "This shop is in an urban area. Suburbanites should not apply as you do not meet the demographic and do not look and act like you belong there. if you are revealed the shop will be invalidated. " It would save the scheduler the panic of replacing the flake.

High end shops like expensive cars, jewels and restaurants need a shopper with the ability to display that demographic. I have been invited by clients to country clubs and high end restaurants to thank me for serving them I am comfortable in that environment. Mentors have brought me to the Jewelry shops, clothing shops and car dealers to touch and feel your "dream". They call it "dream building". When you know it exists you will put the effort in for that reality to come true (and it did come true). The self made millionaires act differently than the inherited millionaires in most cases they want to help you succeed. I often reward commission sales people the sale because they respected me a demographic below a person who could afford the item. I have driven and purchased high end vehicles I could afford to buy for cash although I did not look like I could. I have driven cars I would have to mortgage the farm to purchase, and I don't have a farm, because I acted the part.

Mystery shopping comes down to having it "piled hip deep" or looking and acting like you do.
Mystery shopping has entertainment value but I take it very seriously as "feed back" has helped me get to where I am. I am paying forward.

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 07/27/2015 03:40PM by Piled Hip Deep, PHD.

I use the MSC logs, payment history, as my records for the work done and payments. Also it shows the location of the shops, so proof of mileage . I also keep a mileage log for irs deductions, if itemized.

I hope you are keeping your own records separate from the MSC records. First, their site could be wrong so if you do not have your own records there would be no way to tell. Second, MSCs go out of business, merge or just change platforms. Any of those things can cause your shopping history to be lost.