Certification

I'm a newbie to MS and I'm wondering about this so-called MSPA certification. Does earning it really help you get new jobs or is it just more money out the window? What's the difference between gold and silver?

Thanks for your input, folks!

Marie1

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More About Certification

Yes, it does help you to get jobs. Almost every company you apply to will ask you if your certified. I think they pick those people first to do a job.

Hi Tammie. Could you please advise how one gets certified?

Thanks.

To get the silver certification is @ MSPA through www. MSPA.com and it cost $15.00 and worth it. Im now getting ready to move up to gold but that requires an all day certification session and a extensive testI will have to let you know how it goes from there.
Lorraine Szala

I think the certification through MSPA is worth it. I have a silver certification. Besides paying, you have to take and pass a test on mystery shopping. You just read over the information they provide and take the test. You can take the test more than once, if necessary.

I am gold certified and have found with some companies it has help to be gold. I went to the all day "class" and took my online test after the class. Kathy Stuck was great teacher and re-inforced some rules with me. I encourage anyone that is interested in shopping to give it a try.

~ ~ Diane ~ ~
Gold Certifide
MSPA - KY

Yes, try to get gold certified if you can. You will learn much and have more confidence. It is well worth the time and effort. Try to find a class as near to your home as possible so that it will not involve an overnight stay.

Yes, do try and get gold certified! The one day workshop is well worth the learning and confidence that you will achieve! This workshop will help you understand the whole world of mystery shopping from the company requesting, editors, schedulers,etc.
We had Cathy Stucker as our instructor and she is fabulous! A superb teacher!!
There will be new teachers soon teaching the MSPA gold as told by her in the workshop!

British Columbia, Canada
MSPA Gold Certified

Shopping the Okanagan Valley

Hi, I've been thinking about starting to mystery shop. So, where do I go to get certified?

I am a mystery shopper and have been for 2 years. I have not paid out any money. I look up my own shops to do. I do a good job and I get asked to do more. I have more shops than I can do. I am not certified. If you are good, they will hire you without certification.

I agree with Sitnpretty, most companies are looking for a shopper with experience. Most shcedulers want someone they can count on to complete the assigned shops. I am not certified but did pay for shadow shopper, it was worth the money. Shadow shoppers gave me a starting point and some leads, I no longer pay for shadow shopper not with sites like volition and wallet bosters out there that list the shopping companies. I have been shopping for 9 months now and do between 30 and 50 shops a month and i am not certified.
Mike

I have applied at several jobs,and they all ask for a certification number.

I have just applied for several jobs as a Mystery Shopper and I did take the certification test and passed it. You can get jobs without it but it helps if you can get certified and when you fill out your applications you already have it and you feel good putting it in that little box they provide for it.

Please get Cathy Stucker's book believe me you will not be sorry it will be the best money you ever spent. Another thing just take your time on the certification test and look over all of the answers carefully and you will be surprised.

I have read many postings, both pro and con, on this topic. I believe it is a personal decision. In my area, it has not been necessary. If you live in an area with lots of work and lots of shoppers it might be to your advantage. I am a firm believer that reliability and great reports will get you farther than any certification ever will.

Making the world a better place to shop, one assignment at a time!

I am silver certified but I can not see that it has helped me to get any jobs. I still get the same ones offered to me as I did before. It still depends on how many companies you are signed up with and what is available in your area.

I am certified as a Bronze shopper through Shadow Shopper. I am very familiar with Mystery Shops because where I work, we get 'Shopped' 4 times a month. My question is...is it worth, financially, quitting my day job?
Should I pay to be Silver or Gold just to find that there aren't enough jobs to replace my income? I cannot ask for time off at my job to do a mystery shop. On the other hand, I don't know how much longer I can take what I am currently doing!
Any suggestions?
Sherry

I would not quite your paying job to do Mystery Shopping until you really get established. It took a long time to start getting good paying jobs and enough of them to make it pay. It depends on where you live and how many jobs are available. I have to travel a lot to get enough jobs to make it pay because I am in a rural area. If you live in a city where there are a lot of jobs available until the Companies know what you are capable of they will give the jobs to someone they know is able to do them. Just hang in there and take your time getting applications out and get your work known. Fill out 100 or more applications because a lot of companies may not have much in your area. All at once you may find one or two companies that can give you all the work you want. The big thing is DO NOT GIVE UP.

If I were to get certified, what types of things would I know that I don't know now? What do they teach you in the certification class?

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