Mystery Shopping: Who's Done It, Where Can I Find out More about It? What Would You Like to Know?

The Wololo Wombat on 06/09/2016 - 15:08
Last edited 09/09/2016 - 15:34

Hi,

I've been a 'mystery shopper' for years with various different companies. I got into it as a hobby when I was in uni. If you are not sure what mystery shopping is, see here: (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mystery_shopping)

I've mystery shopped boring places like spec savers, athlete's foot and car dealerships when I first started, but now I mainly do it for free food like Sizzler's, Hog's Breath, Maccas, Dominos, Mad Mex etc. I've even had a couple of really awesome experiences like free flights with Virgin Australia and testing a new Pepper's Resort! In fact, this Friday, I'm mystery shopping an Italian restaurant; I get $150 to spend and $20 on top of that for payment. :)

My reason for writing this post is - does anyone know of a mystery shopping community website? I want to know which companies have which particular clients (so I can sign up and do more cool shops!) I also want to share what I know with other mystery shoppers.

On that point, does anyone have any cool experiences they would like to share? Do you have any questions for me?

Cheers!

General Discussion

Comments

  • ykwon10 on 06/09/2016 - 15:12
    +1

    how do you sign up as a mystery shopper at the first place?

    • The Wololo Wombat on 06/09/2016 - 15:15
      +2

      When I started, I just did a google search for various Mystery Shopping companies. I went through their induction process (some are quite lengthy).

      Some of the companies allocate you mandatory jobs (I don't like that or do them if this occurs), but most companies post the jobs on a 'job board' and you can then select the assignment if the date/time suits you.

      I've done work for all (I think) of the first seven that come up on a google search: https://www.google.com.au/webhp?sourceid=chrome-instant&ion=…

      I'm not sure if all of them give you the best jobs straight away. I feel like, for some companies, you need to do some of the more basic jobs first. Mystery shopping isn't going to pay the bills, but it's a fun hobby :)

      Oh and don't pay any money to sign up. No need to get 'officially certified' or any of that crap.

      • ykwon10 on 06/09/2016 - 15:21
        +1

        if you dont mind sharing your experience, is it worthwhile in terms of effort invested vs return value? how much work is needed for reporting/shopping?

        • The Wololo Wombat on 06/09/2016 - 16:08
          +1

          It really depends on the client. Some require a lot of work, others a really easy. The hardest thing is to get names, remembering to ask specific questions and not forgetting to ask for a receipt!

          I find that i can go on a mystery shop for a dinner with my gf, and it doesn't detract from the evening much at all. It's a good excuse to have a sporadic date night. For a typical food client, you will get paid/reimbursed between 80%-120% of what you spend ($30-$60). For me that is worthwhile. It takes me around 10-20 mins to put the info into the system online.

      • PVA on 06/09/2016 - 16:55

        whats the name of the company you deal with now?

  • supnigs super skids on 06/09/2016 - 15:38
    +1

    This an an awesome hobby! Free stuff

  • Ughhh on 06/09/2016 - 16:48
    +1

    I've done some mystery shopping too, a little less now unless it's a store I was going to visit/purchase from anyway.

    Which mystery shopping company had the free flights and testing a resort?

    • PVA on 06/09/2016 - 16:54

      whats the name of the company you deal with?

  • PVA on 06/09/2016 - 17:03
    +1

    How much time a week would you spend on it?
    If you work full time, are you able to do these jobs on the weekend for example?

    • The Wololo Wombat on 06/09/2016 - 17:08
      +1

      I can choose how much I want to spend a week because I choose what jobs I accept. I work full-time as a teacher, so I usually do weeknight/weekend jobs.

      • PVA on 06/09/2016 - 17:13
        +1

        so you could do one or two a week (if there is that much work) or if you want, a lot more?

        • Ughhh on 06/09/2016 - 18:11
          +1

          Some jobs require you to visit the store on certain days and time eg. Monday from 10am to 4pm. Some jobs may not be suitable for you, eg. if youre a male visiting a lingerie store targeted for women. Also, you may not be the only person applying for that job. Some jobs are regular- job reappears every two weeks, if you've applied and been to that store in the past 6 months you may not be allowed to visit that store again. Each job has a flat payment and not by the hour. If you spend 2 hours on a car dealership because of a test drive which you have to say yes to, the originally attractive $40 payment may not be so worth while now.

          It helps if you're comfortable with speaking with strangers, with an ulterior motive in mind- be good at lying and acting! (I get nervous every time). Good memory also helps. Remembering what you are supposed to do and ask, what they said or did etc. You will have to provide a report on your experience and many stores will have cameras in store (some may show the crew the footage), so you can't make stuff up. If you don't do it properly, you either won't get paid or you wont get any more jobs.

        • PVA on 06/09/2016 - 18:23
          +1

          @Ughhh:
          Ok, I'll ask. Is it a lot about trying to trap an employee so the business can sack or whatever to them (I hope not) or do you think it really is used for training and to help staff (in turn help the business)

        • Ughhh on 06/09/2016 - 18:30
          +2

          @PVA:

          When you've been offered a job, you're given this briefing that tells you what you need to do. It gives you a time frame of when you need to do it and it often requires you to wait for a staff to come to you. If staff doesn't come to you, you pick a staff. So no, it's not to trap an employee. More like HQ ensuring that the staff are exercising the training procedures given ie. greeting a customer and saying hi to you as soon as you walk in and giving you the marketing speech that you hate.

        • PVA on 07/09/2016 - 11:30

          @Ughhh: thanks.

  • Banana on 06/09/2016 - 21:24

    SO does this on his RDO. Effort wise it's not worth it. But he doesn't do much on his off days anyways.

    • PVA on 07/09/2016 - 11:31

      thanks. gets him out of the house and walking around I guess.

    • [Deactivated] on 07/09/2016 - 16:05
      +1

      And it is income that you have to declare to the ATO, so quoted 'earnings' need to be adjusted accordingly.

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