So you want to become a Mystery Shopper? Here’s what you Need to Know First

As a struggling artist and full-time student, I was scouring the web for means of supplemental income. That’s when I came across mystery shopping. A lot of the “ads” that I saw seemed to good to be true. Mystery shopping was paraded as a glamorous, fun and easy career path that anyone could follow. One company I saw even promised an income of $150 a day as a mystery shopper. With seductive axioms like “Can you really get paid to shop? Yes, it’s true!” I was hooked on the idea, and wanted to start as soon as possible.

But can you really get paid to shop? Well, yes and no. There are many legitimate mystery shopping providers out there, and I have been an independent contractor for over 30 of them. Legitimate mystery shopping providers will never charge you to join, but you won’t make up to $150 a day, and, in most instances, you will only be reimbursed for minor purchases. Still, you can and will make money. The most important thing to consider is that as a mystery shopper, you are an independent contractor and not an employee. This means that there is no specific wage a mystery shopping provider is required to pay you. You will be payed per completed assignment, not per hour or on a salaried wage. It is your responsibility to search for assignments, and a shopping provider has no obligation to provide you with a specific amount, even if you are accepted as a shopper.

To give you an idea of what a typical mystery shop is like, I will describe an assignment I completed recently for you. It was a Lowe’s mystery shop with a commission of $9 and a $1 purchase reimbursement. For the shop, I had to interact with 6 employees and record exactly what happened. With shops like these, I am often required to feign interest in a specific product, such a ceiling fan. By pretending to be interested in the fan, I had to see what options the employee showed me, if he/she talked about installation, special delivery, etc. Corporate is interested in knowing whether or not the selling skills they desire their employees to have are being enacted, and that is why the conduct these shops. I was not required to purchase the fan and would not have been reimbursed for it had I done so. This is where the glamorous façade of mystery shopping fades away. More often than not, I feign interest in a product I can’t actually afford for my shops.

That being said, considering that I only spent 40 minutes in the store, $9 plus $1 purchase reimbursement seems like a fair amount, right? Well, the other thing to consider is the time and money it took to drive to the shop. 15 minutes there and back added to a total of 30 minutes of driving. Very few shopping providers will reimburse for gas, so this was out of my pocket. Then there was the training. Before I could accept this type of shop, I had to view a 40 minute training presentation, and then pass a test. Training is always unpaid for mystery shoppers. Once you have viewed the training presentation and passed the test, you are not required to do it again. However, shop specifications can change monthly, and I always review the shop guidelines before I complete a shop. This takes me anywhere from 5-10 minutes. In addition, I had to print out the questionnaire for the shop. Shoppers are not reimbursed for ink or paper, which means more out of pocket expenses. As a mystery shopper, you will need reliable access to the internet. You will also need a scanner, a watch or a cell phone that can time in minutes and seconds, a printer, and in some cases, a fax machine. Once you complete your shop, you have to enter your questionnaire information online. The questionnaires are lengthy and can take me up to 30 minutes to complete, and I have been shopping for quite some time now. You also have to scan your receipt or business card that you got from the shop. The total amount of time spent preparing for the shop, completing the shop and entering it online is usually about and 1 hour and 35 minutes for me, though it will vary depending upon the type of shop. $10 for an hour and 35 minutes of work equates to $6.45 an hour, which is below minimum wage.

That being said, mystery shopping is still a worthwhile venture. The data compiled from mystery shoppers shows corporations what they are doing right and where they need to improve. As a mystery shopper, I am proud of the fact that I help make the shopping experience better for the customers, which spurns customer loyalty and growth in turn. Although my goal is to be as objective and accurate as possible, there is nothing more rewarding than knowing an employee I interacted with will be praised or perhaps even rewarded for excellent customer service. As a mystery shopper, I don’t have to be cramped up in an office all day, I get to interact with new people constantly, and I get to travel (though this is out of my pocket). As you begin mystery shopping, you will find that there are certain shops that are easier or more enjoyable for you than others. In these cases, the commission for the shop can make all the difference in the world.

Market research is a wonderful tool for corporations, and they will spend millions of dollars on this to improve their experience for customers. That is why there is a market for mystery shoppers, and as a shopper, you are more valuable then you know. Many mystery shopping providers have an obligation to get their shops completed in a certain time frame. Because of this, the commission, or rate you are paid for the completed shop, will increase by the end of the month for many companies. It is always a good idea to wait until the commission is as high as possible before accepting a shop. However, you run the risk of another shopper scooping the shop out from under you while the commission is still low if you do this. That is why as mystery shoppers, we should band together and only accept fair commissions. If you are a new shopper, it is understandable to accept a shop at a low commission, just to get your feet in the water. As your ventures in mystery shopper progress, however, you will find it is more beneficial than not to wait for a higher commission.

If you are still interested in mystery shopping, send me an e-mail at fuzzydoged@hotmail.com. Many mystery shopping companies will pay you if you refer other shoppers who sign up and complete a shop. That is why I am asking you to e-mail me. This benefits me, since I get a bonus if you complete a shop, and you, since you get paid to complete it. Thanks for taking the time to read my thoughts on mystery shopping and best of luck to you!

(Please do not copy this text without my permission. If you wish to re-publish this article, contact me).