Been a shopper for the past 15 years....never needed to be certified. Is this just another group making money from the under-paid shopper?

Yup...

With fifteen years of experience, you won't learn anything from the certification program in place now.

Exactly

I became Silver Certified when I started, cost 15.00 and I'm glad I did it then when jobs were plentiful, now, not so sure its necessary.

Hi I am new to this forum and was wondering if getting certification really makes a difference. I am becoming a full time shopper and wondered if it makes a difference in the shops you get? i.e. more shops offered, picked to do shops before others that are not certified.....

sandymae Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Hi I am new to this forum and was wondering if
> getting certification really makes a difference. I
> am becoming a full time shopper and wondered if it
> makes a difference in the shops you get? i.e. more
> shops offered, picked to do shops before others
> that are not certified.....


There are differing opinions on this, and it has been debated before. Just do a search and you will find plenty to read up on. welcome to the forum!

Sandymae - Everybody has an opinion on this. Here's mine. I started shopping in 2009 and I certified early on. I was a newbie, and I picked up some helpful information from the certification program that an experienced shopper would already know. It couldn't hurt to get gold certified, but keep in mind it does cost about $115 ($15 for the silver, required ahead of the gold, and $100 for the gold). You mention becoming a full time shopper, so I'm thinking maybe you already have experience and reputation.

If you've been shopping for a long time, I don't think you're going to learn much if anything from the program in place now, which I hope MSPA will expand and improve. I have had contacts and job offers come down the stream as a result of being certified, but nothing that made me do a happy dance.

The upshot is that my experience has been it does help, but it is not going to move you to the head of any line I've seen.

MDavisnowell Wrote:
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> Sandymae - Everybody has an opinion on this.
> Here's mine. I started shopping in 2009 and I
> certified early on. I was a newbie, and I picked
> up some helpful information from the certification
> program that an experienced shopper would already
> know. It couldn't hurt to get gold certified, but
> keep in mind it does cost about $115 ($15 for the
> silver, required ahead of the gold, and $100 for
> the gold). You mention becoming a full time
> shopper, so I'm thinking maybe you already have
> experience and reputation.

Much of this is true. I will say though that I worked as a scheduler and now only shop and there were times I was required by the client to only offer the shops to Gold certified shoppers. Others will not see those shops because the requests ONLY go to the Gold shoppers. I know personally as a shopper I have recently done several shops that were only assigned to Gold shoppers.

That said, as a scheduler if there was absolutely no one in an area that was Gold then I could send out the request to others and then shop numbers and experience would jump the shopper to the front of the line.

Liz
>
> If you've been shopping for a long time, I don't
> think you're going to learn much if anything from
> the program in place now, which I hope MSPA will
> expand and improve. I have had contacts and job
> offers come down the stream as a result of being
> certified, but nothing that made me do a happy
> dance.
>
> The upshot is that my experience has been it does
> help, but it is not going to move you to the head
> of any line I've seen.

Liz - I'm glad to hear that certification may be doing more good than I realize. Since I haven't been a scheduler, you have insights on this not available to me. It would be really helpful if the MSCs who support the MSPA gold certification program would make it absolutely clear they favor certified shoppers. But actually, I don't think that's true. I suspect they favor the known, dependable shopper first in all cases. I believe when considering choosing among the unknown shoppers, they will choose a certified shopper. Because of this, I think there is some advantage to certifying. I believe it positions the certified shopper above other unknown shoppers, but not at the head of the line above the known, dependable shopper.

Thanks for all the information and replies. I will consider getting Silver and see how that goes and what it does and from there maybe going on to Gold. I have been shopping on and off for about 6 years so have experience. I find I can just make more money mystery shopping then at the job I am working now (sad as that is...lol). I am in a position now that I can make this decision and hubby is behind me 100% and he is even liking some of the shops I do.

MDavisnowell Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Liz - I'm glad to hear that certification may be
> doing more good than I realize. Since I haven't
> been a scheduler, you have insights on this not
> available to me. It would be really helpful if
> the MSCs who support the MSPA gold certification
> program would make it absolutely clear they favor
> certified shoppers. But actually, I don't think
> that's true. I suspect they favor the known,
> dependable shopper first in all cases. I believe
> when considering choosing among the unknown
> shoppers, they will choose a certified shopper.
> Because of this, I think there is some advantage
> to certifying. I believe it positions the
> certified shopper above other unknown shoppers,
> but not at the head of the line above the known,
> dependable shopper.


This is correct - on a regular batch of shops if I didn't "know" any of the shoppers I would choose a certified over another unless one had dozens of shops under their belt with the company. But IF I was sending out a batch that only went to Gold shoppers there would be no choice to chose the known uncertified shopper because the email to apply would not have gone to that shopper...so it that case it absolutely puts the certified shopper above the known dependable shopper.

The schedulers (depending on the platform being used) can send out the emails only to the Gold shoppers. Sort of like you typically (unless the scheduler is desperate) don't get emails for shops that you are not eligible for age wise (compliance come to mind). If I was sending out for alcohol compliance the shop notices would ONLY go to those whose profiles indicated they were within the target age group.

Liz