If you’ve never mystery shopped before, you may think you need to have the “right connections” or a lot of luck to land a great job like mystery shopping. After all, people don’t just hand out jobs that require little training and unbelievably flexible hours, where you can pick and choose which assignments you want to work on… Except they do just hand them out, and YOU can be a mystery shopper, too!
It may sound ridiculously easy and too good to be true. The truth is that there is a little bit of work required to get started, but no more so than with any other job. It’s possible to get signed up with several mystery shopping providers in just a few hours.
It’s Easy To Apply. First, as with any job, you want to research which companies you should work for. If you’re looking for a part-time job, you don’t just walk into the first store or office you see. You probably will ask some friends if they enjoy working at their company first. Mystery shopping is only slightly different. You definitely want to research which mystery shopping providers you work for to ensure the company pays well, has good assignments, and so forth. Message boards are a good spot to find this information. But unlike with other jobs, you actually want to sign up with multiple companies to increase the number of shops you are assigned to.
To sign up to work for a provider is as simple as logging on to their website and completing their on-line application. As with any other job, some applications are just a few questions, and some are much more in-depth with essay questions and quizzes. You may be tempted to skimp on the quality of your answers after you’ve applied to a few companies, but you don’t want to do this. Make sure every application you complete is professional and free of misspellings and grammatical errors. Treat this application as you would any other professional job application.
In most cases, you will be approved as a shopper without issue, and you’ll move on to the next step.
And Now, To Find A Shop Assignment. Mystery shop assignments generally are assigned in one of two ways. First, you have the self-assign shops. As a new mystery shopper with no prior experience, the majority of the shops you work on initially will be self-assign shops. Use this type of shop to gain experience and increase your shopper rating by doing a good job on your shops.
As a new mystery shopper, you can qualify for the other type of shop, which are shops you must apply for and wait for a response to see if that shop has been assigned to you. The shops are assigned by a scheduler who works for the provider. Schedulers typically will first assign a shop to shoppers that have a higher shopper rating and to shoppers they have worked with successfully in the past. This means that as a new shopper, you are at the end of the line for qualifying for these shops. However, it doesn’t mean you won’t get them. There is no harm done at all in applying, so go ahead and apply. Just keep in mind that these shops are harder for a new shopper to come by initially, so try not to get frustrated if you aren’t assigned to them at first.
After you get a few successfully completed shops under your belt, you will soon see that you are offered and assigned more shops, and your income will become steadier. Providers will even call you personally to request that you complete shops for them!
You can apply to work with a provider in as little as an hour or less, and in many cases you will be approved that same day. As soon as you are approved with a provider, you can search through the available jobs and apply on-line for them. It’s possible and entirely realistic that you could be working as a mystery shopper in as little as one day!
So true. When I applied to my first company, I did not think too much about it, and did not check back on my computer for a couple of days. When I did get back to it, I found a e-mail from the company I applied to assigning me a job. It was only a 5 dollar coffee shop, but after I did it, I got more assignments. After that, I applied to several more companies with results coming in within a week. Now I work for several companies on a regular basis.
I was fortunate that my first assignment paid $120! It was for visits to 4 car dealerships. I love cars, so the assignment was fun. It is best to apply to many companies. I am registered with probably 60-80, but work with maybe 10 or more on a monthly basis. MSing is the best and most convenient part time job.
My first company application also brought my first job. One other factor that has helped considerably, when I’m called by any company in a “emergency shop” situation, if at all possible I take the assignment. I have gotten in with two companies because of this practice. When they have anything in my area, I get a call.