Why did you become a MS?

I started doing it because I worked at a place that had mystery shoppers. It scared the crap out of all of us. We would hang out in the waitress station talking about how we always thought they were sitting intersections. So I knew mystery shoppers were real. And it was really a bummer when we would get our reports (as an Employee) back and The boss Would tell us we didn't do something 100% correctly. It made us really sad.
We would have to recite, "welcome to the restaurant, my name is Jennifer. May I interest you in a glass of wine or a cold beverage. If Mystery shopper did not write that down exact, we would get dinged for it.
We always had a picture of what a MS would Looks like. LOl

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Most people become mystery shoppers simply to earn money.

Many centuries ago I saw an advertisement in the employment section of the classified ads in our local newspaper. An MS company was looking for shoppers so I thought it might sound interesting and applied since I needed some kind of job anyway. Ultimately I gave it a try and 24 years later I'm still doing it.

Her Serene Majesty, Cettie - Goat Queen of Zoltar, Sublime Empress of Her Caprine Domain

I have a friend who was a mystery shopper. She never came right out and said it but she was always posting pictures of her messy lunches. Then one day I got a mystery shopping scam email. I knew it was a scam but it connected the dots for me. I asked her if she was a mystery shopper and she hooked me up with the list of companies to sign up with and this forum. Two years later I'm still shopping.

I started with the apps. I made a few extra bucks when I was in the store to check a price or what not. I moved on to use it to support my (horrible) fast food habit. Then I started getting good bonuses to drive a lot and It became a great gig where I can make $300 a day a few days a month which is great while I'm in school.

My parents did some mystery shopping in the 1960's for a company called Wilmark Service Systems (which seems to have completely disappeared). They did gas stations, movie theaters, drive-in movies, department stores service assessments, and probably some other things. Those were the days of carbon paper, typewriters, telephone calls, and snail mail. Eight years ago, I saw an article in the AARP newsletter about mystery shopping, and I wondered how the industry had changed in 50 years. A few companies were mentioned, and I found them on the internet. I decided to do a few shops. I found out that I liked many types of shops. The rest is history,

Edited to correct the spelling of Wilmark

Shopping Southeast Pennsylvania, Delaware above the canal, and South Jersey since 2008

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 06/07/2016 10:07PM by myst4au.

myst, I wondered what the MS world was like before smartphones and computers. Thanks for that share!

I started mystery shopping as a way to learn the area when I moved here eight years ago. I would do maybe one shop a month, a quarter, or whenever. A year ago, maybe more, I signed up with more companies and started doing it more and more.

"I told myself to quit you; but I don't listen to drunks." -Chris Stapleton

Of course we do it to make money, but how did you ever discover there was actually this kind of job? Like I said earlier I worked in a restaurant where people came in and sat down in our sections, and freaked us out, and here I am today doing that to others.
I always imagined mystery shopper's being mean, But I just state the facts and timing of what happens During a shop, not my opinion.
Example:I did to shop at a restaurant one time had to tell them I was in a hurry. It took the waitress 14 minutes to come to my table and take my order she got a really bad report

I gotta eat, so why not be paid to do it? Most of the jobs I accept are lunch/dinner, and it brings my actual money spent on food outside of MSing to just $20/week. And that's groceries and dining out combined.

Illness forced me to not return to my old job, so I began searching on the internet for work involving writing. I found surveys, freelance writing, and from there mystery shopping. I started ms full time in 2008 and have not stopped. When I am eligible for full retirement pay, I will just slow down on my mystery shopping.

I started when I was considering a career change and talked to a friend who frequently referred to her "work from home" job where she did "projects for several companies." She didn't want to give up too much info, but she gave me a list of companies to check out.

About 10 years ago, I had a PT job doing printer demonstrations for HP on weekends. I was at an HP convention in Dallas and many of the folks who did the printer demonstrations were also MSers. I looked into it when I returned from the convention and started MSing shortly after that, but I do it intermittently. One year on, 2 years off sort of thing.

Interesting fact: when I first started, I did valet parking shops for $18. Ten years later, the fee is down to $15. It will come as no surprise that I don't do valet parking shops anymore.

I received an email from a scammer using Bestmarks name. One of those...if youll just cash this check for us scams. I was bored and decided to do a search for the real Bestmark. Then i saw that they had a shop where i could take my car in for an oil change and i knew the shopping location to be legit. I figured what do i have to lose, but to not get paid for the oil change i needed anyway. I did that a couple of times. Then i decided there must be other MSC out there. Two years later im working regularly for 30+ companies. Ive always wanted to try out acting, which is odd because im very shy. Mystery shopping lets me play different roles. The funny thing is, i no longer shop for Bestmark because the onlyhave car related shops in my area and i refuse to ever, ever take my car to the place where i had done that first shop. Forgive my lack of apostrophes. ..im using my styls to type and im being lazy.

Shopping up and down the Colorado Rocky Mountain front range.

What was the picture?

Back in 2005, I had seen several cars in my town with ads on them. So I started researching how to get paid to have ads on your car. Well, that didn't work out, but in the process of researching that, I ran across info on MSing. It sounded interesting to me, so I began signing up with a few companies. Now I'm signed up with about 120 companies. I still remember my very first MS job back in 2005...it was for a video store chain (now closed). I still remember how nervous I felt, and the difficulty trying to get a name off a lanyard that seemed to go down lower than any I had ever seen!! But I got through it, and got paid!! So here I am, 11 years later, doing a little bit here and there every month, but just for shops that I'm really interested in.

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 06/08/2016 01:38AM by guysmom.

I started to think about doing MS when I worked days at at a club warehouse store. I used to do the demos. We would get the copies of the MS reports and would mentioned the specific food item that was demoed during the shopper's visit. It listed the MS company's name that became Market Force. I don't remember that old MS name. Anyway, I wanted to supplement my income doing a part time job since I worked nights at a club warehouse store. I put in applications at stores for PT work. I never received a reply because employers wanted open availability. I started doing MS slowly to supplement my income about 2 years ago. I wished I started this earlier.

A good friend introduced me to it in 2008. Eight years later I am still at it. I am a strong believer in multiple streams of income.

Besides enjoying mystery shopping and having it as my main source of income, I wanted to make a difference out there.

We have all been to bad restaurants or retail stores where there was little help and "total disinterest" in the customer.

I often wondered how some of those places stayed in business with the way things were in some establishments? (before I began mystery shopping). We are given a chance to help these clients and since they can't be there all the time, we are their eyes and ears.

I remembered that my mother started to MS when I was a kid and my father had lost his job. I helped out when I could. It was still back in the days of carbon paper and typewriters, so my job was handling the stopwatch at the drive-thru, then loading the carbon paper and typing out the reports that my mom dictated to me.

As an adult, when I lost my job and started looking for ways to curb my expenses, I remembered MSing. A quick Google search led me to Volition and that was 13 years ago...

I started in college when a friend told me about it and focus groups. I started out with just one company Infotel and it was great, some fast food, some fine dining and retail. Then I moved to the SF Bay Area and it ended up that Infotel was based in the area so I just kept going with them. I never thought to branch out b/c I was just happy doing the casual and fine dining shops since I was working full time. They are no longer in business, sad b/c they had some great clients. Now, I'm signed up with over 100+ companies. It's odd out of the 100+ companies I have not seen the old Infotel clients with any of those.

@catgrannyof5 wrote:

It listed the MS company's name that became Market Force. I don't remember that old MS name.

Does the name "Shop N Chek" ring a bell??? As a matter of fact, I still have that name in my Bookmarks for Market Force...haven't changed it to MF yet there!! Good ol' SnC!!! Better bonuses back then, too!!

Why did I become a MS'er? Because I could. It is as simple as that.

I was online looking for ways to make money from home and mystery shopping was mentioned. I signed up with a few companies, including MF. Before I had even done my first shop-but after I signed up for the first one-they called me for two more bonused fast food shops. I took them. I figured I either got free food and payment or I still got to eat and no payment. I waited until I got my first paycheck and signed up for way more companies! That was less than a year ago and I am now saving up to go to Disney World. Secret shopping is going to be super helpful for that!

One income stream had dried up and I was interviewing for a retail gig at holiday time, a few years ago. The managers went on about mystery shopping in the interviews. I found an article in Forbes by a mystery shopper, and then found this forum.

I've more than replaced the old income stream.

I received an email which did not interest me at first. Then I remembered receiving another one asking me about my recent shopping experience and whether it was something memorable. It was like a conversation with someone I knew. I was asked to write something about it. So I did. Then I was invited to do a mall shop. I wanted more challenges to occupy my time after my late husband was diagnosed with a serious illness. My job at that time was so stressful so it was a bit of a change. That company introduced me to mystery shopping and somehow I was able to cope with everything I was dealth with at that time, albeit with difficulty.

I ran (still do) a market research company and we got a request for mystery shopping services. We don't do that - but it was a good client, so I began examining different options out there so I could make a good referral. My interest got peaked and I ended up doing some shopping for the company I recommended. Over the course of the next 15 years, I did more and more - it provides a respite from my very stressful occupation. It allows me to just do the job without having to deal with clients, juniors, or issues. It's a mental break that allows me to travel and see the world (nowadays I only do lifestyle shops or shops that earn me points that I can use in the travel space). I'm naturally introverted (though many who know me would be shocked to hear that) and it provides me space to just be me instead of having to be "on stage" directing everyone and making decisions all the time.

Yeah, that name rings a bell.Thanks, guysmom.

I was surfing the web one night and saw an article about mystery shopping. One thing led to another and I signed up with my first company that night. Ended up doing the first shop a couple of days after that.

Happiness is not a goal; it is a by-product. Eleanor Roosevelt

I was reading the Penny Hoarder, looking for ways to earn some extra cash to take my family on a vacation. The blog said that you can earn a free pizza by signing up with Trendsource and doing mystery shopping. So I started googling them and mystery shopping in general which led me to this forum.

I completed my first shop with BestMark which was a car dealership paying $34. I was STOKED. It's funny because now 1) I would never do a car dealership shop for so little and 2) I've never seen any pizza shops with Trendsource. Coming up on my one year anniversary mystery shopping at the beginning of July!

I moved to Ohio from Florida in 2001. I moved in with my boyfriend and his four children. I was a massage therapist in Florida but Ohio required additional school for licensure. I needed immediate work. I saw an article in a magazine about mystery shopping. As the internet developed, so did my opportunities.

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