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Mystery Shopping FAQ

 

What is Mystery Shopping and who uses this service?

Mystery Shopping is the practice of using trained shoppers to anonymously evaluate customer service, operations, selling skills, employee integrity, merchandising, and product quality. Any business that needs to monitor its employees, facilities, and service performance uses mystery shoppers.  Our clients include banks, restaurants, auto dealerships, insurance providers, retailers, and more.

 

What are some examples of Mystery Shopping assignments?

We may ask you to eat dinner at a local restaurant and report on the dining experience.  We might want you to visit a local bank, role-playing as a prospective new customer to inquire about checking accounts.  You may be asked to visit an auto dealership, as if you are in the market for a new car, to test drive a new vehicle and report back on the salesperson’s effectiveness. We have assignments that require our shoppers to be senior citizens, and we have others that require us to only use shoppers between 21 and 25 years old.  Sometimes we have special programs that require only Spanish-speaking or African American shoppers.

 

Who are Mystery Shoppers?

Mystery shoppers are independent contractors, NOT employees.  They are people like you who want to earn some extra money in their spare time completing assignments that are interesting and convenient for them.  Mystery shoppers are a diverse group: stay-at-home spouses, retirees, young professionals, graduate students. 

 

How much Mystery Shopping can I do?

As an independent contractor, you can do as much or as little work as you like. Unlike being an employee, you choose the assignments you want and the dates you want to do them, within the guidelines provided.  Some shoppers complete just 1 or 2 assignments per month for us, and some complete 10 or more.  All we ask is that once you accept an assignment, you complete it on time and follow the instructions provided. 

 

Can I quit my day job to become a full-time Mystery Shopper?

For most people, it will not be possible to replace income from a full-time job as a mystery shopper.  But mystery shopping can be a great way to supplement your income and have some fun.  Many of our shoppers earmark their mystery shopping income for their kids’ or grandkids’ college education, or for a vacation or home renovation projects, or just to have extra spending money.

 

How are Mystery Shoppers paid?

We pay our shoppers using PayPal, the popular online payment tool used by eBay and many other companies.  With PayPal, all we need is a valid email address to pay you.  Registering with PayPal is simple at www.paypal.com.  You can link your PayPal account to your bank account to make it easier to transfer funds.  Payments typically go out towards the end of the month following the month in which the shop report was submitted. For example, payment for all shops submitted in May goes out near the end of June, and so on.