Hi
I log in to read as many as time will allow a day (usually 3).
I have seen some great post that I did not know at the time was preparing me for what was around the corner.
A little background. I live in a city of about 128000 people. It is nothing for me to drive (non work related) 25 miles to the store as the way the city and area is laid out. Thanks to you guys and gals I was able to learn more about asking for distance bonus/pay. I have spread out to do some shops that are about 115 miles away.
I started this road with a survey company (just1), then market-force movie theater audits, than a mystery shop company than i secret shop and sassie shop and now between all of it I am registered with 66 companies.
I did great in December with the movie theater at my local theater and one not too far out. Then in January nothing with them but that first MSC I signed up with had a lot in my area. I gobbled them up right away and then got angry a week later as they started adding bonuses to shops I had just completed that i was not eligible for. Next set of shops they had I waited a few more days after the were posted and lost out on a few but got bonus on a few others still averaging the same amount. Then I picked up a second MSC slow at first then picked up but the first MSC slowed down in my area. They only have grocery shops which I don't like and I don't like the pay to do them that they offer. So my dilemma I can't seem to keep steady shops with a company in my area. Any advice for that? Also since I travel so much without a second thought what is a good formula to use to calculate my time and pay for distance for a job regardless of distance pay? and just any good ole industry advice as a newbie who jumped in with 2 feet and has made some tumbles so far but is trying to make this a "full part time thing"?

Thanks for taking the time to read this caffeine induced post!
Sidhustler

Unless you hook up with some kind of ongoing project it is unlikely you will ever find one company to keep you busy. Keep registering and plan on completing assignments for many MSCs every month. Don't ignore ones with no work in your area right now since they could have something lucrative down the line. Often I go without shopping for some companies for months and even years. One of those had a large project the last quarter of 2016 that netted me a couple grand. Other times it seems all my competition must be out of rotation because suddenly there will be a month of highly bonused work from a MSC I normally ignore.

I'm still a bit in the learning phase too. But, here are a few things that I have learned.

Continue to try new MSCs. The 80th one I signed up with recently has been my best one this month. They have had lots of easy phone shops about a topic I know very well and they happen to shop one of my favorite restaurants. I'm doing that shop tomorrow.

If you see a shop you want then grab it and don't wait. I've tried the waiting game for bonuses and it doesn't always work. Do that for shops that you don't care if you do or not. (Just my opinion here)

Try a variety of things. Something might sound difficult in the guidelines, but then it turns out to be easy in practice. Listen to others here, but make your own decisions on what you like and what works for you.

Start building relationships with the schedulers. Call them, thank them, be responsive. Over time, they will start coming to you.

These are just a few things that I tell myself. I don't think there is any substitute for putting in the groundwork in mystery shopping and paying your dues. To get good at something you have to be educated about it. So, focus most of your attention right now on learning. Everything else will start to fall in place. You'll figure out what works for you if you stick with it long enough.

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 02/24/2017 02:24AM by Jk1nole.

OP (Original Poster)
After you successfully complete a few shops with each MSC you can that stop waiting for bonuses with that MSC. When a shop is available you want for a MSC you have proven yourself with then email the scheduler for said shop and ask for a bonus. You need to be proactive not reactive. Every day you don't have work sign up for another 5 MSCs. There is a wealth of information under the New mystery shoppers link. Read all the topics with pins next to them on the top.