What is the competition like for shoppers? Do many people who start up in this business stick with it long term? I know that I turned my cousin on to shopping, but she only did it for a short time, I think.

My personal feeling is that when people find out that the shops are actually WORK, and that the pay may not be very high, and when they get shops rejected or sent back, or lose pay on a shop, they stop....

What is your experience with this? Just wondering how saturated the market is becoming, because I want to get more into it and do it more long term. (I've already been doing it off and on since 2005). And I am making a trip to Denver next weekend, and see that 90% of the shops I'm looking up are scheduled already. (Not to say that this is entirely accurate, as I am only signed up with +/- 30 companies).

My impression is that turnover is as high as it is here in the forum.

I think I'm considered an "old timer" here, and many of the posters I used to enjoy reading/jousting with are no longer active.

And I've talked to many people, trying to get them to try this; the almost universal response is "mystery shopping? They are ALL scams!", and "I don't have time."

My daughter and son-in-law spend over $500 a month eating OUT. I can't even talk them into trying it for the places they love to go! They spend another $500-800 a month at the grocery store, and I can't talk them into doing the shops at the stores they actually buy their groceries at. I haven't even been able to convince them to try Field Agent! They verbally AGREE with me, "great idea, mom!" but then just won't do it. I had a couple fine dining shops that one or the other agreed to accompany me to, then they failed to show (which hurt me A LOT).

1.Next weekend is the last weekend of the ninth month and the end of the third quarter of the year. A few considerations: Have the other shoppers picked up bonused shops already? How much time can you spend driving between locations? What types of shops do you like, and which shops will fit into your schedule?

2. I do not know what other shoppers think or do. I only know that each shopper is unique due to their demographics, preferences, available time, and willingness to perform as required. (How many generally diligent shoppers who post here have expressed a distinct distaste for some shop requirements?)

3. There are many, many things to do in the Denver area besides shops. Are you certain that you want to spend your time working instead of playing, eating, or exploring? After all, there are only a few weeks left in which to enjoy reasonable temperatures and whatever visibility remains in the smoggy place. (Oh, wait. There is mileage to consider. You might want to shop in order to acquire some mileage deductions.)



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 09/23/2018 05:44PM by Shop-et-al.

Wow....I'm so sad that they didn't show up! That would hurt me a lot too!

My daughter wants to do it. She turns 16 next week, and she wants to make money without having to "have a job" in the traditional sense because she wants to spend all her time dancing and going to college...I told her shopping is a GREAT way to make a little spending cash when in college. She is completely conscientious and writes very well. She's accompanied me on shops and seen the level of work it is...and how the reports have to be finished. I think she COULD do it.

My son, on the other hand, who is 17, wants to do it, as well. But he would have a hard time meeting deadlines, writing reports, and generally having his shop be accepted, I think (who knows? He could surprise me, if he tries).

Overall, though, I think people are easily discouraged from mystery shopping.

@ceasesmith wrote:

My impression is that turnover is as high as it is here in the forum.

I think I'm considered an "old timer" here, and many of the posters I used to enjoy reading/jousting with are no longer active.

And I've talked to many people, trying to get them to try this; the almost universal response is "mystery shopping? They are ALL scams!", and "I don't have time."

My daughter and son-in-law spend over $500 a month eating OUT. I can't even talk them into trying it for the places they love to go! They spend another $500-800 a month at the grocery store, and I can't talk them into doing the shops at the stores they actually buy their groceries at. I haven't even been able to convince them to try Field Agent! They verbally AGREE with me, "great idea, mom!" but then just won't do it. I had a couple fine dining shops that one or the other agreed to accompany me to, then they failed to show (which hurt me A LOT).

Bummer about the no-shows.

Just a word from the trenches. When we work too much and have too little time at home for cooking, eating, and cleaning up afterward, we eat out. It is an abominable and expensive practice, and we are changing our work schedules so that we will be at home more. We have not spent as much as $500 per month eating out, but we have faced a simple math problem. We get more bang for our food buck when we cook and eat at home. Even when we work less at another job and thus receive less revenue (in order to be home so that we can cook and eat there), this little calculation is true for us. It is good to do this because we know what is in our food, we are free to skip the restroom eval for the time being if that is not necessary, and we do not have to conduct timings or describe people. Sometimes, it is nice just to eat and never write about it.

@ Shop-et-al:
1, 3. I picked up a shop for a sort of theme park. I have four kids, and it will cost more than the payment that I will receive. Right now, we are on a tight budget, trying to save all we can for the down payment on a house. That said, we decided to spend Fri-Sun in Denver and make it a mini vaca... and to see some sights...all while we stay at my brother in law's house, so at least lodging is taken care of, in exchange for treating him to a meal. We live an hour from Denver, so we go into the city several times a year; and when we do make the trip to Denver, I hardly ever even consider taking the time to look for shops. This time, though, I just want to have a reasonably nice weekend, without the costs involved....

That said, I want to pick up some shops so we can eat, and to sort of "reimburse me" for gas and the extra money we will spend while there.

While there, we are going to visit (besides the shop location) the Museum of Natural Science, where we have an annual membership. We are going to the Aquarium and Children's Museum. And we are going to eat out a lot...hopefully with some shops that allow for larger parties. On our way back home on Sunday evening, we are going to eat at this fabulous restaurant called Cinzettis. It's a tradition for us that whenever we do something special, we eat at Cinzettis. I am going to try to pick up gas station shops along the way for gas reimbursement. I would like a bank shop or two because those have no cash outlay. That's all... 6-ish extra shops over the weekend to offset the cost of the Aquarium, Children's Museum, food and gas.

2. I agree that they are unique. I was just thinking about it as I was looking for shops, that maybe the industry is saturated in some areas; and pondering how likely that is. And as you said, the timing is a good consideration that I had not thought of....last weekend of the third quarter/end of summer....

Sounds like fun!

Oh, boy, you could sign up for Amusement Advantage! They have GREAT shops for families in Denver, in exactly the kind of places you like to go!

Signed up for them a long time ago.....

Just....the housing market is saturated in Colorado. Thinking maybe the shopping jobs are too

First, being signed up with only 30 MSCs means that you have greatly limited your opportunities. Most of us who stick with this sign up with 100 to 175, even if, in any given year we may work for only 10 to 20 of them. Case in point; this year I did a $200 shop for an MSC that I have been signed up with for 10+ years but never shopped before this year.


Also, the EOQ (end of quarter) is almost certainly why you cannot find shops for next weekend at this time. The bonuses on those have been in place long enough for them to be snapped up by vigilant shoppers i Denver!

Because I sometimes recruit for a couple of MSCs they have given me insight into the percentage of shoppers who have signed up with them (not having been recruited by me) who have actually ever performed a shop for them. It is around 3-5 %. In addition, several MSC owners have shared similar experiences at IMSC meetings and say that they attend those specifically to find dedicate, professional shoppers. I would imagine that they might go to MSPA shopper events for similar reasons. Finally, one MSC owner shared this tidbit with me; he paid an independent scheduler to recruit 1000 shoppers to sign up with him. Three of them did shops, two of which were failed. Three flaked on assigned shops. None of the others have replied to emails. And, they have been on his data base now for about 3 years, getting monthly notices that shops have posted. So, go figure.

Wow...thanks for that info., Walesmaven. Really interesting and indicates that there are far less actual working shoppers out there than I thought there would be!

I can understand why someone wouldn't want to do mystery shopping. Some people feel it's too much work or are not disciplined enough to follow shop instructions or don't like writing reports, etc.

I don't have a need to do shops but doing them helps offset expenses. Where else can i make a $10-20 fee plus reimbursement for a ff burger shop with the report taking 20 minutes ? Depending on where one lives, they can do this 3 or more times a week.

Or how about going to the bank to cash a check and be out in 2 minutes. Report takes 15 minutes and pay is $12 to $20 each.

Or i can make a 1 minute phone call, do a 10 minute report and make $5.

I'm not going to get rich but every bit helps.

I've been a shopper for about 17 years. I am signed up with over 100 companies. I have more work offered to me than I really need and sometimes I just don't have enough time to do some shops, so I have to turn the offers down. Like Wales said, you are limiting yourself by not signing up with more companies. You could also consider merchandising to fill in the gaps if you want some hourly pay as an employee to offset your SE tax in the spring at tax time. Most merchandising companies are pretty flexible and pay much better ($10-$15 per hour) than an hourly wage at a regular retail job where they are far less flexible with your schedule. Most of the people I know who are reliable and intelligent enough to do shops have professional careers making big bucks and aren't interested. Others I know who might be interested don't have the necessary linguistic skills. There are plenty of people who are so darned unreliable and it doesn't occur to them that when they "flake" on a shop they hurt the MSC and scheduler--they don't think about the fact that the person on the other end of the email or phone is a real person with deadlines to keep. Anyway, I pretty much don't tell people about this job or try to get them into it unless they live 300 miles or more away from me. I just don't need the competition.

I know of one forum member (Tarantado) who travels around Colorado and beyond who I am pretty sure does many, many shops.

As far as your daughter goes, while there are some age compliance shops she can do if you accompany her, there are very few MSCs who allow anyone under the age of 18 to do shops for them.

@Jill_L wrote:

Wow....I'm so sad that they didn't show up! That would hurt me a lot too!

My daughter wants to do it. She turns 16 next week, and she wants to make money without having to "have a job" in the traditional sense because she wants to spend all her time dancing and going to college...I told her shopping is a GREAT way to make a little spending cash when in college. She is completely conscientious and writes very well. She's accompanied me on shops and seen the level of work it is...and how the reports have to be finished. I think she COULD do it.

My son, on the other hand, who is 17, wants to do it, as well. But he would have a hard time meeting deadlines, writing reports, and generally having his shop be accepted, I think (who knows? He could surprise me, if he tries).

Overall, though, I think people are easily discouraged from mystery shopping.

@ 7Star,

I feel the same. I don't USUALLY actually NEED the money. But there ARE times that I DO need it: when we are going on a vacation, need a new roof, want to put down money on a car or house, etc.

And, I do have four kids, who have become very expensive! In the past, I have used shopping to offset costs of going places with them. Sort of a "lifestyle enhancement."

And because I have used it to help fund those things successfully, I feel like maybe I should "get more into it..." because I do have some lofty (financial) goals ahead! And I'm not getting any younger, so maybe I can even, at some point, use MSing to help fund a ROTH or other retirement venue....

So I'm starting on the list at the bottom of the page and trying to sign up for more companies

@ JASFLALMT,

Yes, my daughter realizes she needs to be 18. But she is learning a lot about it and I am excited to let her in on the secrets and the tips that I have learned along the way, because she would be a good asset and it would be good for her.

I agree about people. So many people today are not equipped to be a good shopper. I have only "flaked" on two shops that were with the same company on the same day. It was because I got into a car crash. I did explain that to the scheduler, but she decided to "flake" me anyway. I understand why....there are certainly many people who flake and have all sorts of excuses. But I've been doing this since 2005, got my "flake" in 2008, and have not shopped for that scheduler since.

I also agree that I would not like the area where I live to be too full of shoppers Although I know that when most people find out about it, they will most certainly find it is not for them, for the reasons you mentioned. On the other hand, I won't work nearly as much as schedulers ask me to work.

I have been shopping off and on since 2005, with MANY breaks that sometimes constitute YEARS. But I am now thinking about how I can use MS to fund things in my future. As my kids get older, I know I will have a lot more time on my hands. My boys are 17, 13, and 6. My daughter is almost 16. The breaks I have taken have been because of life events: the birth of my youngest had me on a four (+/-) year hiatus. I went back to school and got my graduate degree, also. In the beginning of that venture, I shopped like crazy (for me) to help pay for school (30+ a month), but then the demands of school got to be too much and I did not shop at all for a couple of years.

I have good work ethics, a good education, and have had good jobs. But since I've secluded myself so much, I have few references. I chose to stay home and home educate the kids. To be here for their needs at all times while they are still tender people. To get them involved in the things that they want to be involved in so that they can be more well rounded folks as they grow up; and to ATTEND those practices, rehearsals, games, and recitals, speeches, performances, etc. I've been super fortunate to have been able to do that; and husb and I have given up some things to make it happen. MSing has helped with some of that. But the fact remains that I have been out of the work force for 17 years; my kids are getting older; I'm getting older....and I feel as if it will be hard to get back into the traditional job arena. So I'm searching for where I will eventually fit in. And as usual, MSing is filling in the gaps. I'm so fortunate to have been turned on to MSing....

And... I'm not a "newbie." But I am rather inexperienced. So as I try to learn more about it, I'm hanging out on this forum a lot .

Hey Jill, good idea to invest. I have two TD Ameritrade accounts. One of them is a Roth IRA (I am 56 so I can put $6500 each year in it). The other is just a traditional account. I buy and sell stocks, though I do tend to keep my dividend stocks. I have made about $17,000 in the past 2.5 years from trading stocks. It's a great idea for anyone who has a little extra money to squirrel away. It's so much better to get a 15-20% return on your money rather than putting it in a savings account where you are not going to earn very much...though I do have two savings accounts, both online--one is Marcus by Goldman Sachs and the other is an American Express account, and they each earn close to 2%. I don't keep much in either, though (couple of hundred in each), since I am usually investing it instead.

Don't you have to have a good chunk to start off investing with? I don't have any spare money...haha

I do have a Roth and a Traditional IRA and husb has pension and 401k. We have 6 houses, but all have mortgages...so that's more of a temporary panic each month waiting for rent to come in than anything....but we do make good money on them...only because we are in Colorado, where rent and housing is sky rocketing lately.

My husb messes with penny stocks, because we really have nothing extra.

I've been thinking of putting my IRA's into FIA's, but not sure yet if that is what I want to do or not....

Very interesting to hear that the Goldman Sachs and AmEX accounts pay 2%. I do have money in CD's, but it is ONLY the security deposit for the rentals. It would be better to put those somewhere where they make more than .01%!

I'd love to do stocks. It's still a great market to try to get into that and see some growth. I just don't have a lot to start off with :'(

Yeah, you do need to have at least couple of thousand to start with to get some of the deals these brokerage firms have. When I first started with TD Ameritrade I had $3,000 and they had a special where I traded stocks for free for the first 3 months. After that promotional period, it cost a certain amount per trade. As of now it's $6.95 per trade (I think it used to be $9.95 a trade). I've got about $40,000 invested now and have made over $17,000 since February of 2016. Almost all of the money I make goes into these accounts. But, I have no debt. Our house and cars are paid for, kids are grown, graduated from college, and out of the house, and we don't have any credit card debt. I do believe that it is not a good idea to invest until you are completely debt free.

^^^^ Never going to be debt free.....

:p

Never say never. Work harder, spend less (be extremely frugal), and you can get there.

Well, I'm pretty sure I can come up with $3k after we buy this house that is being built. Just putting as much down as possible, so saving like crazy for the next few months.

I just have that love/hate relationship with debt: It fluctuates between YOLO and "bills for life..." lol

I'm thinking that we can get a handle on it. The cc's are maxed out because we took a pretty big trip in April/May. But other than that, we ended up with lots of really pricey surprises....I am doing what you said, trying to live more frugally; doing more work (shopping/baby sitting/tutoring) and cutting back on eating out, etc.

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 09/23/2018 10:53PM by Jill_L.

There are other ways to get things and save money, it's awesome to be able to shop and eat out for "free" (we all know we are working for food on those restaurant shops with sometimes a small fee) and get other products reimbursed, but there is also brand ambassador work. For example: several years ago I wanted a Keurig coffee maker. I found out there was a company who was doing demos for Keurig. I found out that if I did their demos ($11 per hour for a 4 hour demo on a weekend) they would give me a Keurig machine and a whole bunch of pods and other supplies. I ended up doing 3 demos for this company, and for some weird reason, they gave me 3 separate machines and tons of pods of different flavors. I gave 2 machines away and had leftover pods for about a year. Thank goodness they also gave me the refillable pods because it turned out that the pods were not recyclable and I hate filling up the landfill with plastic, plus so much cheaper to just use your favorite coffee. Then I did another demo for a competitor and ended up with the iCoffee machine, a similar unit that makes even better coffee, and more pods (the remaining Keurig sits in my pantry still). The market soon became over saturated with Keurig and iCoffee machines, andthey discontinued those programs. A couple of years ago I became enthralled with some particular nutritional products and I wanted them for free. I became a brand ambassador for a nutritional supplement company and I now get plenty of free products from them; really great, high quality and expensive products that would have cost me a bunch of money out of pocket. I also do a ton of convenience store shops each month and have a huge supply of bottled water, granola bars, and snacks. I definitely use the water, but I am also constantly handing it out to panhandlers at the on/off ramps, along with snacks to those who look like they need it. And I have a bunch of water and snacks to take on the road when I am working my various jobs.

My point about this is that often you are making money by not spending it. The more ways you can find to not spend money the more you get to keep or use for good things

The Internet is a beautiful thing.

Another way to save some dollars is by couponing. I spend about 3 hours per week cutting coupons and watching for deals (Couponmom.com and other sites). I get most toiletries free or nearly free which really helps the budget. Combine those with grocery mystery shops and you’ll see good savings.

@JASFLALMT wrote:

Never say never. Work harder, spend less (be extremely frugal), and you can get there.

''

Yes and yes. Just the other night at dinner at a friend's an acquaintance mentioned that I was "lucky" that I was able to own a house. I told her that luck had not much to do with it except perhaps that I bought my house before the prices skyrocketed but even when I purchased it over 30 years ago everyone thought the prices were too high and they were a stretch for most. I left it at that but I have always been frugal and thrifty and think it is fun to figure out how to get more for less and that includes shopping. That is how I managed to purchase a house when my salary was probably nowhere near what was imagined someone would need to have enough savings. My friends and I go out to lots of interesting places and eat out a lot but spend very little. There are so many wonderful free things to do and coupon opportunities at restaurants!

JAS-how did you become a brand ambassador? Is there somewhere specific to sign up or do you just research separately for each type of product?

Making money by not spending it department:
shops for hair care/cuts
hotel shops to gain rewards point for free hotel nights (Best if you also use the hotel chain' affiliated credit card,
oil changes (Haven't paid for one since 2005)
Join Choice Rewards and sign up when they offer one free night stay for every 2 paid nights. Then grab hotel shops at Choice hotel brands!
car washes (wish there were more around here)
solo lunch shops near where I am doing a bunch of city center shops and would need lunch anyway
grocery store shops, of course
credit card opening shops where the credit card offers a nice cash bonus after being used to buy $x in stuff. So far I have earned over $800 this year and am closing in on another $300. (Then drop the cc and look around for another)

Other approaches:
Buy a very fuel efficient used car (someone else took the depreciation big hit) and claim the federal mileage rate for business use of it. Better yet, make that used vehicle the best on from Consumer Reports' annual list of most reliable (and low cost to run) used vehicles.

It was a matter of being in the right place at the right time.

When I decided I wanted that Keurig, I happened to be in Bed Bath and Beyond and there was a demo rep there. She got me interested in the machine. I asked her who she worked for and she gave me the name and number of her supervisor. I called and was hired immediately.

I was doing merchandising work at a new Earth Fare store and met a sales rep there for the nutritional products I liked. I asked her if they ever had anyone demonstrate the products, and she said yes, they did. I asked how I could get a job doing that and she gave me her business card and asked that I call her and she would get me set up.

I am sure that there are websites you can sign up with to do demo work. I just did a quick search and found this site. I put "brand ambassador" and my zipcode, and there were a few hits for my area.

[jobtomic.com]

Also, I just started doing demos this past weekend for a company called "Pat Henry Group" and I will be doing both merchandising and demos for them. They got my name and email address from somewhere, maybe the Retail Recruiter website, and contacted me for demos in my area.

Most demo work is IC work, though some companies hire reps as employees.

@hnov29 wrote:

JAS-how did you become a brand ambassador? Is there somewhere specific to sign up or do you just research separately for each type of product?

Oh, additionally, different companies pay different fees to demo reps...PHG pays $15 an hour for experienced demo reps (6 hour demos) and the nutritional company I do demos for pays $25 an hour (3-4 hour demos). Most nutritional companies pay $20 to even as much as $30 per hour, I have heard from other reps. There is a good bit of intensive learning about their products and health benefits, that's probably why they pay so much. I remember when I called that sales rep and asked her how much it paid, she said, "It's $25 an hour, is that okay? Sorry we can't pay more."

Yes to the ideas mentioned above. You do not need to work so intensively if you cost less, can negotiate for more money, and/or have other unique ways to increase cash flow..

I love some demo projects and would do more if... and this is a giniormous biggie... I could sit between interactions. My leg and back will behave and not cause grimaces or the frozen face of a person who just cannot move anymore-- as long as I give them a break. I have an appropriate transportable, folding chair for this purpose. I would be delighted to more demos if I could be seated during portions of the shifts.e). hmmph. I understand that some clients believe that sitting means lazy or worse. I also understand about adapting work conditions when possible, which means work.