How to Get the Mystery Shopping Assignments You Want

Many mystery shoppers have trouble getting the assignments they want. Whether these assignments are higher paying gigs or at coveted locations like popular restaurants and stores, assignments that are in high demand can be difficult to get. This is especially true for new mystery shoppers, but even seasoned mystery shoppers can have trouble getting the assignments they want, too.

Check Your Shopper Rating. Not all mystery shopping providers use a “shopper rating” system, but for the many providers that do, your shopper rating can make or break you. For these providers that use a shopper rating system, your shopper rating may need to be at a certain level in order to get better assignments. There are usually plenty of assignments that accept a lower rated mystery shopper, but the best assignments usually require a higher rating.

If you check your shopper rating and find that it’s too low, you can pick up a few lower rated assignments and try to boost your rating by doing a great job on those assignments. You can also talk to  the provider to see what can be done to get a higher rating.

Check The Job Boards Often. For some assignments, mystery shopping providers will look at all of the mystery shoppers who have requested the assignment and hand the job to the best shopper available – regardless of who asked for the assignment first. However, there are many assignments that are handed out based on a first come, first serve basis. So the first one who requests the assignments get the jobs. What this means is that if you are only checking job boards once every day or two (or even less frequently), you are missing out on jobs. Be sure to check the job boards often, even several times a day if necessary, to make sure you are the first one requesting the most coveted assignments.

Get Some Experience. If you are new to mystery shopping, chances are you aren’t going to get the best assignments right from the start. As with most other jobs, with mystery shopping you often have to prove your skills on some of the assignments nobody else really wants to do. These assignments may include harder assignments, those with lengthy reports, or those that have low compensation. With a few of these assignments under your belt, you can show your providers that you can handle the assignments that are in higher demand.

Keep in mind that while you may not really want to do a few dud jobs, your work quality shouldn’t reflect your lack of enthusiasm. Your effort and skills on these jobs are what will show your providers what you can do, so be sure to do quality work on these assignments.

If you aren’t getting the assignments you want as a mystery shopper, chances are there is some reason for this. Consider your experience, your shopper rating, and how often you check the job boards for assignments. Take some time to figure out why you aren’t getting those jobs you want, and then make the necessary changes.