Mystery Shopping

Isabel

YLF is my "think tank". LOL !

I am thinking of slowly getting back to work. I have not worked in 11 years. I need something very flexible, since I help take care of both my parents and my disabled sister ( I have no other sibling). And my son is on the spectrum and I do a lot with him.

So after doing so poking around, I thought that being a mystery shopper might fit the bill. I don't need to make a lot of money. Even just a couple of hundred dollars a month would be great . ( My son does a lot of unconventional therapy not covered by insurance, so that would pay for a couple of sessions a month ). Or I could consign a few of my pieces of jewelry or fab leather bags..ok, no way, moving on from that. : ) Thankfully, it is not something we "need" but it would be nice.

Anyone have any experience ? I am scared to death of a scam.

12 years ago

Off Topic

8 replies

Latest reply was from ryanwalker

lyn*

(website)

Veteran

My aunt has done mystery shopping for many years, she is semi-retired and probably makes a few hundred a month, like you are describing. She does it mostly for fun, and she's never had an issue with scams, but she has been working on the inside of one big company for many years.

12 years ago

Isabel

Veteran

Oh, that is great to hear. I think that it is something that I would enjoy. I did some focus groups a bazillion years ago and I always love it. Thanks !

12 years ago

Classically Casual

Veteran

Isabel, I did it a few times when I first retired, but didn't stick with it. For me it was tedious interacting with SA's on topics I wasn't interested in, all the while trying to catch them in a mistake. I never seemed to graduate from grocery store gigs. I did develop a lot of empathy for the employees.

I found focus groups much more fun & lucrative. They're just not very frequent.

Do you have a hobby you can monetize? In my case, I started a part time gardening and pet sitting business. I dropped the gardening after hurting my back (unrelated), but still enjoy seeing my favorite furry clients. Good luck!

12 years ago

Isabel

Veteran

CC, those are great observations. I am not sure I would like trying to "catch" people make mistakes. That unnerves me a bit, a snapshot in time.

I do love animals. Pet sitting would be a great idea. Thank you.

12 years ago

Gigi

Veteran

If you want to try the mystery shopping, you could check out the web page for this mystery shopping trade association:
http://mysteryshop.org/

Somewhere on their website is a list of mystery shopping companies that are members of their association. These are supposed to be reputable companies.

I've never done mystery shopping before, but when you mentioned it, I thought I would check it out for myself. I didn't find much that I could do (I am limited for health reasons), but the above website looked like it would be helpful as far as seeing if a particular organization was legit.

12 years ago

Isabel

Veteran

Gigi, thank you so much. I will check it out. It is nice to be pointed some where because of the legitimacy. : )

12 years ago

Jjsloane

Veteran

I have had one experience with it and it was a LOT of work for a small reward. I secret shopped a Children's store and the requirements are quick strict as to when you have to go, what you have to ask for and do while there and I had to make a purchase which only part of it was reimbursed as my fee. I had to bring a small child (not difficult for me), note all the employees by name or detailed description and what they said to me at what time during my visit. I had to ask certain questions and use the dressing room and the restroom. Obviously I couldn't be taking notes during the shop, but unless you have a really good memory it's hard to fill out the final report in the detail they request. I had to really justify why I forgot to ask to use the restroom and could not recall if one of the salespeople had shoulder length or ear length hair. I was almost denied my claim as a result. This is just one experience, but I thought I would share.

12 years ago

ryanwalker

(website)

Member

In mystery shopping, it is really very important to make note of each and everything. As a mystery shopper, you need to be careful about it. But now many new techniques are also available such as video mystery shopping, audio mystery shopping etc. Using the hidden cameras, it is easy to make a note of any small thing which you feel important.

11 years ago

Category