I recently signed up with several Mystery Shopping Companies and after filling out my profile and completing their tests, the assignments kept flying into my mailbox. Well, reading the detailed instructions, l started to have second thoughts. These tasks consume time to initially prepare for the shop (quite some reading and instructions to follow) and can take up to 45 minutes for the actual mystery shopping. Not to mention the time for follow-up filling out the report, uploading photos and receipts and submitting them to the Mystery Shop website. In some cases I would have to drive back to the shop to return the item I purchased the day before. I would also have to pay for my own gasoline to drive to the shop. But the compensation is quite low, I found them offering anywhere between $7.00 and $20.00 per shop! How much does that put into my pocket? Does anyone have experience with Mystery Shops? Any comments and/or suggestion are appreciated. Thanks, Karl
I've done some mystery shopping in the past and really you do have to consider if it is worth your time because it might not be. There are ways to find ones that pay more but I've found that participating in local focus groups such as ones that you can find on craigslist pay a lot more.
I tried mystery shopping but that was like 5 years ago. It sucked for me back then...I didn't qualify for most shops, and most of the options were to "shop" at a bank. That meant I had to open an account there and then they would pay me $5. I had to pay money to join the mystery shopper site, and I never even earned back the money I made. Unless things have changed in the last five years, I am afraid most mystery shopping sites are a waste of time.
While I would never discount mystery shopping as a way to put a few bucks into your wallet, you are absolutely correct in saying that is the time spent worth it for what you get paid? There is certainly better uses of your time in terms of making money online
I did some mystery shopping years ago. I found that for my time, it just didn't pay what I was worth. Not only that, but it wasn't a steady, constant income.
I do some mystery shop! You have to do it to your advantage! Example If you want to go out to eat, well it's going to cost you gas money and food expense. but if you have a shop for a dinner that's here you go and you get to save your money for food and they will pay you for your experience. That's how you have to look at mystery shopping! It's a lot of work if you just trying to do it full-time! But You can use it too your advantage!
mreese601 is right about how when you mystery shop you have to do your best to make the shops work to your advantage. Mystery shopping CAN be a great side project if you have the right attitude (which can be said for most things... attitude really is everything.) The bottom line about MS work is that when you first start out, you'll be pulling a few low-pay shops. However, when you build a relationship with the schedulers that work at the companies you sign up with, you will find that the better work you do for them, the greater the rewards tend to be. They do reserve the more "prestigious" and higher-paying shops for shoppers that show that they can do a great job. Think of it like starting at the bottom of the ladder and climbing your way up. It's actually not TOO far to the top.
I have some friends that have done some mystery shopping and it is really tough work for the compensation provided. As the other poster stated, you have to really weigh if it is worth the time and effort put in. That being said, I'm sure if you continue with Mystery Shopping at some point you will come across better opportunities.
