Mystery Shopper Jobs: Make Money Shopping

Mystery shoppers are paid to pose as regular every day customers and grade various aspects of customer service in a place of business. Mystery shopping companies hire shoppers to visit several different types of businesses including fast food restaurants, grocery stores, movie theaters, hotels, book stores, banks, department stores and amusement parks.

A mystery shopper secretly evaluates the customer service quality by taking mental notes, or using a concealed tape recorder to record conversation and then enter this information onto an evaluation form later.

Shoppers are paid hourly and receive free goods and services as part of the job. Most mystery shopping companies reimburse job expenses, which sometimes includes gas expense. Most mystery shoppers are paid $10 – $50 per hour, depending on the type of assignment and the task at hand.  Reliable and trustworthy mystery shoppers can acquire assignments with better pay after completing several jobs for a company. Most newbies start off with lower paying assignments in the beginning.

It is possible to work full time as a mystery shopper, but most people choose this opportunity as a part time gig, or as a way to score freebies and extra money on the side. If you can prove yourself as a reliable shopper, it’s possible to receive a steady flow of shopping assignments at local businesses. There are no special skills required to land a mystery shopping job. Companies want reliable shoppers who are capable of following instructions and socially interacting with business employees. Legitimate companies will not ask for your money to get started.

You can find mystery shopping jobs online, but beware of scams and companies who sell job guides and instructions on where to find jobs. This information is always available for free on job boards and work from home sites that post new legitimate jobs for the public. If possible, try to find a mystery shopping company that will reimburse you for your gas driving to a mystery shopping job. Not all jobs are close to each other in distance, so it’s possible you would have to drive far between jobs.

Apply for multiple mystery shopper jobs by sending in a professional application and a resume if required. Most companies want you to submit a registration form. Do not pay fees to get jobs and carefully choose a company to avoid scams. If a company accepts you for a job then you will start receiving email notifications for available jobs. Complete the jobs correctly and professionally and you will start receiving additional notifications for jobs that pay more.

Most mystery shoppers work part time to supplement income. If you love to shop then you would enjoy getting paid to do it. The income from this job is not very reliable, so it might not always be possible to work full time mystery shopping. If you live in a rural area then there will be less shopping opportunities available.