Does anyone know anything about mystery shopper jobs seen on the internet? Are they real or is it some kind of con that asks you to pay a 'sign up fee'? There's a bloke in work who claims him and his wife do this and though they don't make a fortune, they do get paid to eat out, buy baby food (which they get to keep) petrol etc. But I'm not sure if he's genuine or just a bit of a dreamer, what do you think? Has anyone out there done this sort of work? Thanks.
2006-12-07 00:27:07 · 18 answers · asked by Anonymous in Business & Finance ➔ Careers & Employment
There are companies out there (including some of our clients) who use mystery shoppers. Generally any company asking you to pay to "certify" or to "register" as a mystery shopper is probably a scam since they are already paid by the customer who wants to know what the experience is for their own customers.
What happens is usually you need to pre-qualify for this (they'll find you and not vice versa). Then yous it for a briefing and go do certain tasks. The way you do it is also very closely guided such as how you buy something or what you buy it with etc. Then after that there is a form to fill and a de-brief.
Companies which ask you to pay money and then ask you to be a "mystery shopper" are usually trying to get you to buy the products (generally over normal price).
Usually you don't get to be a shopper many times because the clients don't like to have "professional respondents" who are trying to get free stuff. They want the first impressions of "normal" people from the target group.
2006-12-07 00:31:46 · answer #1 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
NEVER pay a fee to become a Mystery Shopper. Just like any other job, it's the employer who pays the employee not vice versa. And yes, there are legitimate mystery shopper jobs. I have been a mystery shopper for over 7 years. The pay is sometimes not that great BUT I have dined out at nice restaurants, stayed overnight in hotels, gotten free oil changes, free stamps and parcel mailings, free family night out bowling, etc. Try googling "mystery shopping" and you'll get back millions of sites. Weed through them and only join those that DO NOT charge a fee. You may have to pass a quiz or two on some of the sites (to see how well you read instructions, check your grammar and spelling skills, etc.) but they're usually easy.
I recommend http://www.shoppersconfidential.com and www.beyondhello.com and www.weshop4u.com and www.sgmarketing.com Best of luck and Happy shopping!
2006-12-07 11:37:18 · answer #2 · answered by tdmatte 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
yes, it is a scam. Years ago, I participated in Mystery Shoppers programs. I would earn about US$10 - $20 over a month or two. Not something you want to do if you need to make a living. A legitimate outfit will never ask you to pay money to join.
2016-03-28 21:50:58 · answer #3 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
There are a lot of companies that hire Mystery Shopper. I was a shopper, now I do merchandising. Here are a few places to start and it's free. You should NEVER pay for work as a shopper. www.athpoweronline.com, http://www.mysteryshops.com I hope these help.
2006-12-07 00:44:58 · answer #4 · answered by papster 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
There is such a job known as mystery shoppers. They Act like regular customers and are hired and sent their by the company's corporation. They report anything that the employees might be doing wrong, and the overall appearance of the store. I would call the corporation of large company chains, like Walmart, Target, Blockbuster, and so on, They can lead you in the right direction if this is something your interested in.
2006-12-07 00:32:12 · answer #5 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
I'm a mystery shopper as part of my full time job. Mystery shopping over the phone. Making sure that customer services reps etc are doing their jobs correctly.
2006-12-07 00:31:15 · answer #6 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
i work in a call center for a company and we have Mystery Shoppers all the time to check the level of service we give customers. And you alway know its a Mystery Shopper coz they ask lots of questions and never buy anything. he he he
2006-12-07 00:39:30 · answer #7 · answered by Lucy 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
They tend to be genuine but your not going to make money from it.
They tend to give you a meal for one in the place they need looking at and maybe a £5 allowance for petrol etc. They dont accept everone though as you will need to be in the correct demographic and they may ask you to report infrequently ie 3/4 times a year.
Any such company asking for money up front is definitely a scam
2006-12-08 00:28:32 · answer #8 · answered by Paul D 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
You have to apply to become a mystery shopper at the websites of these market research companies. They will then contact you if they have any assignment in your area. List of companies where you can apply free and links to relevant websites available at http://tinyurl.com/n474j
2006-12-09 23:59:45 · answer #9 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
I have never done it but i used to work in a supermarket and we used to get secret shoppers every few months or so who'd rate us on service, attitude, helpfulness, cleanliness of the store etc. So they must exist.
2006-12-07 00:29:33 · answer #10 · answered by Diet_smartie 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋