1. Forums
  2. New Mystery Shoppers

Good First Company to deal with. ??

August 11, 2010 03:28PM
I am looking for a company for someone (me) to deal with as a beginner.

Since I am new, I want to deal with one company only until I get the hang of it.

I am in college and I have 3 days a week off. I would like to do something with one assignment a week (at the MOST).

Any suggestions?

(sorry if you saw this already, I realized that I should have put it here rather than in the introduction section of the site)
Reply
Log In
x

Create an Account or Log In

Membership is free. Simply choose your username, type in your email address, and choose a password. You immediately get full access to the forum.

Already a member? Log In.

August 11, 2010 03:40PM
That's fine Jay, note my comment to you in the introduction section :^) But you have certainly found the correct place to look for beginning information.

You haven't mentioned if you will have transportation, so as a Freshman, I have to assume you won't.

Be aware that for many of us this is a "business" and as such, there are tax advantages to it. So when you see discussions, realize that most of us file a Schedule C as a business. As a student, my guess is that the occasional shop will rather be a "hobby", which has no tax advantages. What you earn in fees will just be "additional income".

Both Market Force and Corporate Research offer reasonable instructions for beginner shops. If you have a car on campus you may want to consider Corporate Research as well as they do a number of tobacco compliance jobs at gas stations. As you get older, you will find that there are alcohol compliance jobs also available to the young.

Best wishes with your studies and try to keep shopping to a minimum as these are the years when you will be making friends for life as well as preparing yourself for a hopefully great future!
Reply
August 12, 2010 02:50PM
I will actually be living at home for the first 2 years of college, so i have full transportation. Thanks for the tips, I will check out those sites.

I will be sure to come back here for questions and of course report my first assignmenT!
Reply
August 12, 2010 02:59PM
Corporate Research asks for a ssn. is that safe?
Reply
August 12, 2010 08:55PM
Yes. Most companies will ask for a ssn. Just make sure you are dealing with a secure website (https:// in the URL bar)
Reply
August 13, 2010 03:42AM
Thanks!

Any other companies I can look into that are good for a first timer? I would like to find one that sends a check rather than direct deposit or paypal methods.
Reply
August 13, 2010 03:48AM
Off the top of my head, the ones I can think of that send checks are ACE, A Closer Look, Service With Style, and Sinclair. I believe you can have Corporate Research International send a check (they charge to process by PayPal, so snail mail is a better deal). I believe Ritter pays by check. And of course Market Force can send checks, but you indicate they are looking for 20 year olds and older.
Reply
August 13, 2010 04:24AM
Other MSPs who pay by check - Shoppers Inc., EPMS, Mystery Shoppers, Bestmark, Strategic Reflections. Checks are my least favorite method of payment, so be careful for what you wish. Checks lost in the mail are not fun to recoup.
Reply
August 13, 2010 04:32AM
And checks can be cut and held (and often times are, but not by the friendly to newb companies, necessarily.) I strongly prefer paypal. If it is not there when they claim it is, the investigation becomes immediate (unless you have a Melissa of DSS situation, and for that you need to read the DSS thread to figure out what I mean here.) If a check is supposedly cut but not sent, they can always blame the PO when it has never been sent at all. Direct Deposit and PP are the way to go. If you are dealing with the friendly to newbie companies who accept people in your age group and pay via these methods, you can be fairly assured that the (lowish) pay you get will be on time.

**********************************************************************
“Lying in bed would be an altogether perfect and supreme experience if only one had a colored pencil long enough to draw on the ceiling."
~Gilbert K. Chesterton
Reply
August 17, 2010 01:58PM
thanks everyone. i went with CRI (Corporate Research international)

its easy to get around the site and I have already completed my first assigment.

Its a lot of fun and I'm looking forward to more oppurtunities in the area
Reply
August 17, 2010 03:02PM
I got a notice from Kern Scheduling this morning that they have tobacco compliance shops through Sutter Marketing at a common drugstore with lots of locations. They need folks with ID proving they are 18-19 years old. These pay $17 and will reimburse up to $10.

It looks to me as though Sutter no longer has a direct signup, but you can signup with Kern at [www.kernscheduling.com] Be aware, however, that these jobs will pay only through Paypal.
Reply
August 19, 2010 03:11PM
Jay_Linn, if you use paypal through CoRI, they will deduct a percentage of your pay as a "fee." MOST OTHER COMPANIES DO NOT DO THIS!

I wasn't bothered by enough by the fee to avoid paypal for my first assignment. It was a tiny fee, and I thought the direct deposit signup process would be time consuming and difficult. My second assignment paid a lot more, so the paypal fee was a lot more, and I was annoyed enough to switch to direct deposit.

ICCDS has tobacco compliance shops for a major discount store. Pay is $25. One of my kids turns 18 in a few months and plans to clean up.
Reply
August 21, 2010 03:08PM
Bare Int'l will pay by check, as does TNS....both are good companies with no history of not paying.

Live consciously....
Reply
August 24, 2010 03:10PM
I am fairly new and like Second To None. Easy shops and easy reports. They have a lot of shops in my area. They pay by Pay Pal but I like that. I can just let it accumulate until I get a good amount then cash out. It beats having to keep running to the bank with a small check.
Reply
August 24, 2010 03:14PM
With PayPal I get the notice the $ have landed, immediately start the transfer to my bank and mark my records 'paid'. When the money hits my bank I delete the PayPal email that indicates the money is being moved while retaining the email announcing its arrival as my 'proof of payment' from the job. I am not thrilled with PayPal sitting on my money, so want to get the transfer started ASAP.
Reply
October 12, 2010 05:24AM
Dont forget certified field associates... they pay by check as well

shopping north west PA and south west ny
Reply
October 12, 2010 08:14AM
Warning: This User Has Been Banned or Is No Longer Active
Any other company I can look into that are good quality for a first timer? I would like to find one that sends a check rather than direct put down or paypal methods.
Reply
October 25, 2010 04:49PM
I did my first 6 shops with Best Mark. Thay pay very well and I allways get my check in within 3 weeks. Only down side is their surveys are a bit long. Beyond Hello is also a good one if you live near a Mall. Has anyone done any shops for Ath Power or ICCDS? Please let me know as I have done shops for them just recently, and was wondering about how fast they pay.
Reply
October 25, 2010 04:55PM
Ath Power tends to be slow. The last shops I got paid for were paid 2 months after performing them. I have late September work that has not yet been paid. The work is not yet even marked as "Paid" on their website and usually it is a week or two after that that I receive the money. ICCDS seems to have their own games. I did work about 2 weeks ago for them and although the invoice and receipts were immediately submitted, the work is still showing "In Process". It seems to take a while after that for it to get paid, but my last shop for them was paid in about a month.
Reply
October 25, 2010 05:52PM
I just checked my email and ICCDS just sent my check out that I did the shop for on 9/23, YEA!!! Ath power just shows that they have received my work but no mention of when payment will be processed. Their remarks for my shops were excellent. I did those 2 shops on 9/27 and 10/08. If I recall now, I think it said it could take up to 45 days before Ath Power pays. Thanks for the info Flash!!!
Reply
October 25, 2010 09:19PM
My August shops with Ath were paid by check, dated Oct. 1, postmarked Oct. 15 and received a few days later. My last ICCDS shops were paid, PayPal, about five weeks after the shop.
Reply
October 25, 2010 09:45PM
So, Ath does pay slow. How long did it take to see that pay pal had your money that ICCDS sent? Thank you Mert
Reply
October 26, 2010 01:48AM
Charlene Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> So, Ath does pay slow. How long did it take to see
> that pay pal had your money that ICCDS sent? Thank
> you Mert

The email regarding the ICCDS payment came four weeks and four days after the shops. The transfer from PP to my bank account was two days later.
Reply
October 26, 2010 02:48PM
Has anyone heard of Jancyn? I keep getting e-mails from them to do shops. They call them easy or light shops. But when you check out what needs to be done at the shop it's crazy.The pay is not to bad, but the work involved dos'nt seem to be worth it. Also, does anyone know how difficult they are to work for, and how quick they pay?
Reply
October 26, 2010 03:43PM
I do a few of their shops, but not the audits. They don't appeal to me. They're a good company to work with and pay via PayPal about a month after the shop.

Charlene, the Search feature on this forum is helpful. Type in Jancyn, and select all dates, or 30 days, and you'll be directed to threads containing discussion.
Reply
October 26, 2010 04:25PM
OH, I did'nt know I was in the wrong place. Sorry. So when I log in go to Search? I'm really new to this. Thanks. Oh, and thanks for the info on Jancyn. Just signed up with Granite Starr, any info on them, or should I just go to Search?
Reply
October 26, 2010 04:32PM
Granite Star recently changed their name from PROs, which before that I think was PRO Shopper. They have been around quite a while. Some of their shops I do, others I wouldn't touch with the proverbial 10' pole. They do mostly bank shops in my market (and perhaps everywhere) and both the pay and requirements on most of them are pretty standard. They pay the 10th of the month following the shop (except where the shop is done and reported fairly late in the month, when it is paid with shops from the following month).
Reply
October 26, 2010 06:05PM
Yes, I did notice that they do financial. I dont know what happen, but when I went into Search,I put in Granite Starr,selected 30 days, and left the wording as it was. But what came up was their listing of jobs and at the top MY LAST message from today at 12:25. AM I in trouble?? I had know idea my message would appear. Gosh, I feel like I'm being a pain to you all.
Reply
October 27, 2010 12:20AM
The "search" feature pulls up all occurrences of the word(s) in the time period selected. You absolutely are not in trouble. You simply have mentioned the name and so your post was pulled up. Obviously there has not been much discussion of the company in the past 30 days so just their postings on the job board came up.
Reply
October 27, 2010 01:43AM
Thank you again Flash.You are wonderful!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Reply
Sorry, only registered users may post in this forum.

Click here to login