Can anyone tell me the best place to buy inexpensive spyware?

My answer would entirely depend on your definition of inexpensive.

I don't know if it's the best. But I was referred to Lawmate. It's based out of Austin. I took a certification class under Video Shopping Pros. And they suggested having your own video equipment and buying new. So far, it's still working. You might give it a try.

Thanks.

For more help and questions, there is also a Video shopping forum that someone else here referred people:

[videoshoppingnetwork.org]

Inexpensive and undercover shops don't necessarily go together. You need to have equipment that will get you the results and be reliable. Be prepared to spend $500 up to around $800. More than double that if you will be traveling and need back up equipment.

I don't totally agree with the idea of a new video shopper purchasing their own equipment immediately. Since my goal was to earn a living MSing, I took the plunge and bought a rig. At that time loaner equipment was not as readily available. I was also willing to do whatever traveling was required to make it work. Now several companies loan video cameras and even provide some decent training. It is a good way for a shopper considering video to try before they buy. Normally a shop with borrowed equipment has a slightly lower fee, $10 up to $50, to offset the shipping. Its a relatively cheap price to pay compared to purchasing and finding out you really don't like the work.

The current standard equipment is a PV-500 with an upgraded camera. The camera upgrade is required to reach the specs set by the video MS companies. For details, please go to the VSN site given above, sign up for free, and once you are approved, you can read the thread on minimum specs for video shopping products. Cody at Lawmate is the preferred vendor at this time. His prices for members of IMSC are discounted more than the cost of an annual IMSC membership, as I recall. And, they are much lower than when MCP was selling the same equipment!

Be very wary of purchasing equipment from unknown sources.

Thanks forum members, you all are awwwwesome! I will take your great advice.

LisaSTL, are you doing well in the video shopping biz?

Well enough

walesmaven Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> For details, please go to the VSN site given
> above, sign up for free, and once you are
> approved, you can read the thread on minimum specs
> for video shopping products.

I am still awaiting approval to access the forum. I believe I was already accepted to the main site. I really want to see these specs. If it is not a real long post, can you copy and paste the specs in this thread? I already bought the equipment at the NOLA conference.

P.S. I am assuming that they will e-mail me when the application process has been accepted or not. Or do I need to keep trying to log in on my own?



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 08/15/2014 08:16PM by Shop2LiveinFL.

The following was cut and pasted from the VSN site.

The technical requirements for an acceptable camera/pvr set up are as follows:

Camera:
420+ Lines of resolution(LOR)
Full Color- NOT Day/night color
Verify that audio is INCLUDED- many cameras are video only

PVR:
480X640 minimum
25+ Frames per second (FPS)
ability to store on SD Cards or at have at least 8G internal storage space (that will allow for 8 hours video at 480X640)

Batteries:
minimum 2 1/2 hours recording time per battery
removable batteries so you can carry back up (each rechargeable battery usually needs about 4 hours charge time- not feasible on a car charger between shops)

You also need to take into consideration what types of shops you are doing. There are several gadgets out there that fit the above requirements but aren't logical to use. Many have asked me about the pens. They are great for shoppers who do an occasional short shop on targets that are not looking for a video shopper. The pens are VERY obvious to those of us experienced in the industry, including targets in the housing industry and apartment industry. Glasses have also been mentioned. The problem with glasses is that you can't continue to stare at your target when they are demonstrating a home, apt, or car. You need to be able to naturally look at what they are showing you. The glasses won't allow for this, as the video will be more footage of the item being demonstrated than the target salesperson.

ALL of these things need to be taken into consideration when purchasing equipment. If you want to have several recording devices to change things up on occasion, that is fine, but if you are only purchasing one camera/pvr set up, be sure it is versatile enough to do ALL types of shopping. This is why I recommend the PV500 for new shoppers.

Thanks, walesmaven.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 08/15/2014 09:24PM by Shop2LiveinFL.

I have considered adding the glasses to my current set up. I never would have attempted most of my shops with them. They are a few applications where they might actually be preferable, but not enough. To me they would be ideal for short interactions at counters and solve the problem some of us have had when counters are tall. I just thought of how they could be disastrous on new home, apartment and senior living shops. We need to cover the camera when faced with our own reflection or to keep people out of the shot. Can you imagine trying to walk around covering your eyes

I could see glasses being useful on Signal Audits, so you can actually make sure you're capturing "X" time of the TV. My question though is can the lenses be replaced with a prescription lens?

At the IMSC conference, Cody from LawMate speifically stated that the lenses can be replaced with your prescription lenses.

I many cases that would turn them into a very expensive piece of equipment.