I have a question.about full time mystery shopping. I would like to do this full time, is it possible financially? Also one other thing if it is how do I schedule all these different companies on the days I want to work when they're all different days the shops and different areas? How do people do this?
Thanks
Lisa

Mod note: Your two threads asking the same thing have been combined to keep replies in one place. Please do not start multiple threads in different parts of the forum asking the same thing.

Lisa, there has been a lot of discussion about both your questions. Try using the search function for "all dates." You also need to look at threads on route shopping.

How does anyone working at this full time and just doing this as a job and nothing else find enough jobs to do it full time?

Actually I responded to the other thread you started on the same subject.

That is going to completely depend on 1) where you are located, 2) the reputation you build with the companies you work with, 3) how much competition you have with other shoppers in your area, 4) what shops you are willing to do and 5) how organized you are in going about looking for work.

There are, of course, other factors, such as how far you are willing to drive to do shops. And inevitably there are cost of living issues. It really does not matter to the MSP what the cost of living in your area may be. Whether you are in an area where a 1BR apartment costs $3000 or $500 doesn't matter, the pay for the XYZ shop will be $12 with a $5 reimbursement. Whether your gas costs $4 per gallon today or $1.95 doesn't matter to the MSP. These factors will weigh heavily on whether a full time job shopping is economically feasible in your area. Your personal tastes in expenses will also weigh heavily on whether shopping is economically feasible.

Thanks Lisa and Flash for your responses.... I am just trying to figure out how to get myself organized to one be able to do it full time. I would like to retire and travel around and do this so that I can pay expenses but not sure if it is feasible.

It takes awhile to get established, leicholtz. Most people who are doing this full-time have been doing it for years. I too have been doing this for years (a little over 14 years) but I have other sources of income such as merchandising. I suppose you could get established in much less time if you focus on it. Signing up with as many companies as possible, building a rapport with schedulers, etc. all takes time. Many of the video shoppers are doing very well. I am going to the IMSC conference in Indiana next month where they are offering free video training...hoping it helps me beef up my income.

Edited because I replied to the wrong thread.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 04/23/2016 06:22PM by LisaSTL.

What exactly is video training? Sorry for all the questions ........ I imagine they want you to video tape something but is this secret or revealed?

video mystery shopping. Unrevealed.

Go to the New Mystery Shoppers sections and one of the stickys is devoted to video/audio shopping. It is definitely something to consider after you have been shopping for a while and performed some of the more complex mystery shops available.

You really ought to check out the new mystery shopping section on this forum. It will answer a lot of your questions.

Thanks JASFLALMT

@leicholtz wrote:

I have a question.about full time mystery shopping. I would like to do this full time, is it possible financially?
Lisa

That's kind of like asking if you can make money as a house painter or if full time work as an ice cream vendor is financially possible. It depends on how well you train yourself for the work, how you set up your business plan, how much time you put into it, how hard you work, and how well suited you are to the particular demands of the job. Your geographic location and the amount of competition in your area are also factors.

The best thing you can do is to read as much of the forum as you can to get an idea of what is involved. After you have a general idea how it works, you can decide whether you have the traits, skills and abilities that might make you a successful mystery shopper. Then you can decide how much time you want to put into it.

One of my friends started mystery shopping a few years ago when I did. I do it part time and work full time at something else. She wanted to mystery shop full time. But she soon quit and I learned that she wanted a full time salary but wanted to work about 10-20 hours a week. She had learned that she couldn't live on what she could earn in 10-20 hours a week, so she gave it up and got a full time job with a full time salary.

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 04/23/2016 07:58PM by roflwofl.

I am willing to put in the work but I noticed some of the mystery shopping companies in my area don't seem to have a lot of work. It disappears so quickly. I was just wondering how many companies people use? Do you need a lot of companies to make money at it..... I started out with Corporate Research and they are low paying but I have experience now. They pay every week and other companies only pay once a month. Is the norm once a month?

@leicholtz wrote:

I am willing to put in the work but I noticed some of the mystery shopping companies in my area don't seem to have a lot of work. It disappears so quickly. I was just wondering how many companies people use? Do you need a lot of companies to make money at it..... I started out with Corporate Research and they are low paying but I have experience now. They pay every week and other companies only pay once a month. Is the norm once a month?

Here's a link to a list of when the companies pay: [www.mysteryshopforum.com]

A lot of information is available on the forum.

There is a wide spectrum of when companies pay. One company closes their books on the 15th and the 30th and anything that they can get approved by then gets paid within a few days. One company I work with quite a lot pays at the end of the month following the month of the shop. So around the end of April they will cut a check for my March shops and I will have the check in hand probably around the 4th or 5th of May. Then there are companies that pay in 90 days, but of course it isn't 90 days from the day you report the shop, it is 90 days from the time they get final approval of the shop and it is the next pay cycle after that. It is just one of the aspects of this that many beginning shoppers or those waiting for payment to send the check for the electric bill get frustrated about.

Pretty much all of that information is in the "new shoppers" section of this forum. Sign up with as many companies as you can. There is a list on this website. Many of us are signed up with 100+ companies.

I saw the list of companies I am trying to get opinions @JASFLALMT

I think the point JASFLALMT was trying to make, most of the specific questions you are asking are in the New Mystery Shoppers forum. The forum is set up to allow you to learn a lot about mystery shopping and to do so at your own pace. It is why we always recommend new or newer shoppers read, read, read and then read some more.

When you look at the company list you will see links to discussions about the companies. The discussions will offer a lot of insight and could help you decide whether to pursue working with them now, later or not at all.

While we are here to help, we are also mystery shoppers ourselves. People visit the forum for a variety of reasons. To offer some advice, see what mystery shopper friends are up to or just to procrastinate on reports, LOL.

Okay I will refrain from asking any questions or opinions... .thank you for your time

Nobody said not to ask questions. We simply directed you to the place where the questions you have asked so far have been answered. The stickys are thoughtful and were written by expert members to give newer shoppers a great leg up on the business.

@JASFLALMT wrote:

You really ought to check out the new mystery shopping section on this forum. It will answer a lot of your questions.

I've been mystery shopping since 2005 (but only a member of this forum since 2010) and STILL visit the New Mystery Shoppers section from time to time, just to review the excellent advice that's on there....it's like taking a refresher course!

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 04/24/2016 02:38AM by guysmom.

Yes, I've been shopping for about 9 months.I could do this full time in my area, but I like my other jobs. I'm signed up with 40 ish companies but I really stick to 5-10.

I find that with this type of work it's hard to do it full time I have been doing it part time for a year but I can't imagine you can make enough to do it full time.

Full time and part time are misnomers when it comes to this business. Full time implies something around 40 hours per week, each week of the month. With MS you could be working 60 plus hours for several weeks then hardly at all for another week. Or you may end up on the road for anywhere from a week to six weeks. Another key factor for many of those making a living are the ongoing steady projects. I've had as many or three to four regular gigs going at one time. It means my base income every month is already booked.

People who say they can't imagine making a living usually have similar perspectives, they are basing it strictly on what they have seen on job boards from a limited amount of companies and within a limited range from their home. A lot of projects are not posted on job boards. They go to shoppers who either have built relationships with companies or who have been recommended.

Okay so by working for companies on a regular basis and doing good steady work they will eventually send you offers that they don't send to others is what I'm gathering from your post. Do you ask for these opportunities or are they just offered to you?

It is certainly part of the equation. Building relationships is about much more than just doing a lot of shops for a particular company. I've completed over 500 for Market Force and have no relationship with any schedulers. On the other hand, there are companies I've done less than 50 shops for and have had the opportunity to develop great communication with the schedulers, both by email and phone.

You need to sign up for as many companies as you can.
I'm a day router. Some days are fabulous and other days just suck.

I don't know your market. My relative local areas are tight with competition, so I do long day routes. I'll admit it out loud, my routes kick my butt.

If you think you can call off work because you're sick;, give up that idea in this business, You commit to a shop, you get it done.

Making a living can be done, in the beginning it will be tough.

Good Luck!

leicholtz,
Cultivating good relationships with schedulers is essential, and it does not, btw, include any boot licking (in case anyone was wondering). I know that the full time MSers that I know can be counted on to stand up for themselves, and in a professional and collegial manner. And, the schedulers worth cultivating tend to be a good match for that characteristic; they tend to be straightforward and willing to learn from shoppers. That's just very unlikely to happen with schedulers who work for mega-MSCs (but, there are some great exceptions!) and/or who have not done much MSing themselves.

Two important guidelines for cultivating schedulers:
1. When something goes wrong, let them know, immediately.
2. When something goes right, let them know immediately.

There are others, of course, but practicing those two will soon let you know which schedulers are really interested in working to develop shoppers that they know they can rely on. Schedulers usually only hear from shoppers when there is bad news, so just adhering to guideline #2 will set you apart. Adhering to #1 lets the scheduler know that she/he can rely on you to to help them to avert and/or recover from disaster.

As for the schedulers who don't really give a rat's bottom about all of this, you soon will have enough work so that you can ignore them.