July was slow and now August has me filling up my calendar. Looks like things are picking up around here.

I have changed the way I'm shopping and doing different shops than the normal so that could be a reason I'm getting a full schedule for August.

How is it going in other areas?

Hey Billie,

It's a bit slow here in the Northeast. They must have shifted all your way. There have been some odd ones like this. . .Take your pet to check a boarding facility and then reveal yourself in order to check out exit paperwork for an animal leaving on the day you visit. Supposedly only 20 minutes for the whopping fee of . . . .$8.00! Another is playing the role of an interior designer to visit a high end furniture store and that pays $20.00. It sounds like fun but 3 pages of survey to fill out does not.

I have been extremely selective in accepting shops that are in a short radius. Mainly because of gas prices. Yesterday, our Governor made an earth shaking statement to the public about our economy. It was quite unnerving, so, I try to stay close to home.

I understand moderio. Things are bad all over. Our gas prices have dropped dramatically compared to what they were a month ago. I was out shopping day before yesterday and was awed by the racks of clothes with 70% off and no one was buying, including me. (I was shopping between shops for myself and hubby)

I've changed the way I'm shopping too. I can drive over 20miles one way and still be in the city limits of my town. I can drive 30miles and be in the city limits of Nashville. Or drive 30miles and be in KY.
There's bonus money involved in going to these areas to off set the gas price.

I've quit doing reimbursement shops for the post part. If the pay is high enough I'll catch them on my way to another shop with no reimbursment.

And it appears the change in the type shops I'm doing and where I am doing them is paying off.

I do a lot of apartment shops and if I can do apartment shops in Nashville in one day, pick up a couple mall shops and stop and do a couple nursing homes on my way back home. I've had a great day.

And I've learned the higher paying shops pay faster than the lower paying shops.
I did a shop last Friday and was paid on Tues of this week.

Anyway, my schedule for August if filling up quickly with shops I didn't have any idea were available. But I have signed up for a lot of different companies recently and they seem to be coming through quickly.

> Anyway, my schedule for August if filling up
> quickly with shops I didn't have any idea were
> available. But I have signed up for a lot of
> different companies recently and they seem to be
> coming through quickly.


Which companies did you recently sign up for??

What state are you in Modario? I did a state Google search of companies in TN doing mystery shopping. Seems to have been a great way to get shops for my area.
And I signed up for everyone they listed.
Try it Moderio it might work for you too.

I'm certified to do "video/audio" shops too and they are great paying shops. Takes about 30minutes and the survey is just two pages long. I upload into the site and I'm done. Get paid within 2 weeks.

Another thing I have done is if it's been over a month and I've not been paid I will NOT do another shop for that company until I'm paid. I just tell them straight up when they call...Pay me and I'll do what you need. Works!!

I've decided I'm not going to be at the "mercy" of these companies. I'm a business woman and a independent contractor. I'm not giving them my money to work for them be it by having to buy something for a recipt or what ever. They pay me then I will do their work.

Thanks Billie. I'm going to Google what you said.

I am in NY but I have kids that are in and out of camp. I've had those offers for video shops but, realistically, it would be longer than 30 minutes what with the drive, the shop, the drive back and filling out the survey. It's not so easy to conduct and fill out some of these shops with the kids in tow.

I have learned to always ask for a larger shopper fee when I get a phone call and it always pays off. After all, if they are calling me it's because I'm either the closest or most reliable.

I agree with about not being at their mercy. Who needs who here??? I think most of us are doing this for extra income and not to be stressed or bullied by anyone.

It's funny that you mention buying something for a receipt. I just had two shops where they asked me to purchase a 50 cent item but then did not even want a copy of the receipt sent to them. What???? No more. I am with you!

See if we all thought "who needs who here?" things could change for the better for mystery shoppers.
I had to smile when I got an email to do a "fun" shop. Visit a store, buy $50 of stuff and get paid $25. Well DUH!!! What about the other $25? Needless to say I did not take the offer. :-)

We need to think like "business men and women" and not like someone's lacky. We are all doing this to make a little money and have fun doing it.

And when my outflow exceeds my income it's time to make a change. And change the way we think.

I think the general consensus, what with the way the shops are worded, is that "If you cannot commit to this shop it will negatively affect your status."

There has to be an ample amount of shoppers that can intelligently interpret this as, "This is and can be lucratively extra money if you are committed."

Apparently, there are too many that cannot fulfill their end and adversely affects the rest of us. Let's hope for a better way to do business with them. Maybe as an employee and not an independent contractor.

BTW did you get an email from Jacob about boycotting $5.00 shops???

PS I Googled NY mystery shopping companies and found that there are MS companies on Myspace and more than likely on Facebook. This could be a good way to advertise ourselves too!!!

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 08/02/2008 12:10AM by modario.

I tried Googling my area and got a bunch of places that would sell you lists for a "Low one time fee".

I got those too Flash. You have to get passed the Google advertismentes. I went into several different pages of the search pages.
Then I refined my search...mysteryshopping/Tn....mysteryshopping/TN/apartments...mysteryshopping/TN/medical...mysteryshopping/TN/gov..
Everything I could think of that could be shopped.

You know me I am NOT paying for lists. :-)

I haven't had time to do all the googling. I get enough hints from all the posts. Originally, I was keeping two sets of records, one for companies I've registered with and one for those I haven't contacted. Actually, originally, I had a 3x5 card file (until I dropped it). It was too bulky, anyway, and I might as well use that opportunity to computerize it. So, now I have searched all my files and found all the company names I've kept, and I have consolidated them, at least on paper. I am going through the list slowly and putting the companies in the computer alphabetically as I make contacts with the companies. In a few months, I'll have all of it in the computer, and not just on some notepad I used while reading posts.

I also have a Quick Chart with the companies that allow self-assign, so I can check them quickly. It includes those that contact me often enough that I need the user name and password at hand.

Informa Research Service is on Facebook. I can't remember if they do mystery shopping or just merchandising. I'm signed up with them and have had offers but haven't done anything for them yet.

If you search through <www.dogpile.com>, you can get Google and other companies together.

I have had many more telephone assignments in the past month and this one than ever before.

I have very nearly gone non-stop for the past three days. Nice bonus shops from the July shops that couldn't be done. I've done audits and mystery shopping. Some companies I have signed up 6weeks ago are now calling wanting to get their shops done. Plus the one's I have worked pretty consistently for as time as gone along.
My husband and I were talking this morning as we looked at my list for this month to date. Next week is completely full. Most are audits and mystery shops requiring a $1 receipt item or just mystery shops with no receipt.

I have major video/audio shops coming up next week.

No, I didn't get the email about "boycotting" $5 shops but I have never done $5 shops. I get a list of them nearly twice a week but the pay is much too low for the work involved.

I'm really enjoying the audits!!! Great pay with bonus!! Easy paper work..just have to upload the pics.

Tomorrow we get to go out and eat TWICE!!!

Might as well catch them all while the catching is Great!!

Hello everybody;

I see by some of these posts that the US is doing okay but for some reason Canada not so much. I decided to not take five dollars jobs and the first one to come across this screen was one that needed to be completed next day. I e-mailed the scheduler and asked if there was any kind of bonus for doing this job on such short notice. I was quite surprised to be ignored. I guess they don't like initiative. Anyway, I have not heard back from that scheduler since and it's been almost 2 weeks.

That is upsetting since I have done many jobs for them on very short notice and some of them were huge like seven shopsin a day. I find it quite incredible that suddenly there are no jobs.

My main reason for wanting extra money for the jobs is because in Canada our gas is priced by the liter. A liter is similar to a pint in the US. So at about $1.40 per it works out to close to six bucks gallon. So no matter how close the shop is unless I walk it doesn't pay.

Anyway, I hope I haven't messed up my jobs completely and that the last few couple of weeks it has just been a normal slowdown and will pick up soon.

Because except for those low-paying jobs with the 2 mile forms I have really enjoyed doing this job.

What are those video jobs that I hear about? Are they something I can do on my computer or are they a store?

Fortune8. We have friends who live in Canada and they have complained about the gas prices. $6 a gallon? I paid $3.90 Saturday but I get my gas through a grocery chain that gives 15c off a gallon for every $100 in groceries you buy in a two month period.

The video/audio shops are apartment complex shops. They pay $60 per shop.

I did two restaurants shops with paid bonus yesterday. It pays to ask for bonus. And ask for extra monies for gas.

During my slow period I signed up with a lot more companies fortune8. Then everyone hit at once this month.