Hi, I'm interested in getting started. I'd love any tips, especially which companies to apply to, etc. I'm a full time stay at home mom, and my husband is recently retired, so we are looking for somethings we can do to supplement our reduced income. Thank you.

Welcome ! Start with joining the list of companies at the bottom of the Forum Page. Join as many as you can. You may also want to read the forums to get an idea of what companies you may want to join. By reading the forum you will get an idea of what companies are more difficult to work with than others.

Good Morning!
I have been doing this for a little over a year and the best "advice" I've gotten has come from this forum. Check in frequently and you'll get ideas on everything from how to handle odd situations, to what sorts of shops are available, to warnings about scams, to different personalities of MSC's and more.

I would start in two places: iSS (isecretshop.com) and presto instashops. iSS is a platform on which different companies post their jobs. You can sign up for these companies very quickly through the iSS webstite. Presto Instashop is a map of work offered by different MSC's on the "sassie" platform. For this one, when you locate a shop that interests you, you'll need to go to that MSC and register for it individually. You should then check their job board.

Thereafter, as you read things on the board that interest you, sign up for that company and see what's in your area. There are over 300 mystery shopping companies and not all will have work in your area, so the registration process can be frustrating. Just keep at it.

If you can think of a business, it is almost certainly shopped. In the last year, I have gotten my car serviced, eaten at high end restaurants, eaten at more moderate restaurants, opened bank accounts, run bar integrity audits, shopped new cars, shopped apartments, asked retailers about credit cards, had pizza delivered to my house, inquired about cell phones, inquired able cable TV services, gone to professional baseball games, attended rock concerts, mailed packages ..............

Some do this to augment their incomes. Some make a living doing this. I was able to bring in nearly $1000 my first month doing this - in addition to my full time job.

Good luck!

Marketforce is a good beginner company. They have shops in most areas of the U.S.

Yes, MF is a good beginner company but be cautious with them as they can sometimes be a stickler for reporting and its well known on the forum you could have problems filing reports. Also, in some areas they are notorious for very low fees. Bestmark is another good company, not high fees but their website and reporting are very straightforward.

I highly recommend Customer Impact, if you and hubby want some good medium priced dinners without pages of reporting, great company. I also recommend TrendSource for grocery shopping and a few restaurants, easy report. Everything depends on location, as prices differ, but do your homework and find companies close to you that have the best jobs. I think this is purely a choice of what works for your lifestyle.

Best of all, amble on over to the New Mystery Shoppers area od the forum and be sure to read all of the topics "pinned" to the top of the list there. That will help you to avoid potentially costly mistakes!
Welcome and enjoy!