With some jobs, you can sit at a desk all day long and really get paid the same amount regardless of how productive you are during the day. As a mystery shopper, the amount of money you earn, and more importantly your net income from each assignment, can vary due to a number of different factors. The truth of the matter is that some assignments can be highly lucrative and others can actually cost you money. Yet most assignments on the surface appear to be paying roughly in the same range in competition. So what is going on here?
Travel Costs: One of the biggest hidden costs, or hidden benefits, of mystery shopping assignments are those travel costs. These are costs associated with filling up your tank to travel to and from the assignment location as well as the cost of your time to travel to and from these locations. While there are costs associated with traveling, you may actually make out ahead on travel after you factor in the tax write-off for business miles travels as well as a travel bonus, if there is one. Of course, there is the factor of how much gas mileage your car gets, too.
Required Purchases: Most assignments, although certainly not all of them, do have a required purchase. Most require you to spend a certain dollar amount on-site, such as $5 or $10, and you will have to present a proof of purchase in the form of a receipt when you turn your report in. Likewise, most will reimburse you the full amount of the minimum purchase, but some will require a $10 minimum purchase and only reimburse $3 or $5. Another factor to consider here is if there is something at this store or venue that you needed to purchase anyway, or are you being forced to spend your money on something you don’t need or want? Also consider if there is anything in the store that you can buy for that minimum purchase amount. After all, if the minimum purchase is $5 and the cheapest thing in the store is $20, clearly this purchase is going to eat away at your profits.
Your Time: With a job like mystery shopping, where you get paid based on productivity, time is absolutely a factor when it comes to how profitable your assignments are. Your goal is to get the most money you can in the least amount of time, after all. So as you factor in the travel costs and purchase requirements costs of an assignment, you also need to pay attention to how much time it will take to earn you that paycheck. This, of course, is just an estimate from the outset as you cannot be certain exactly how much time it will take to travel to a certain location or walk through the site visit. However, do your best to estimate the time, and then calculate a rough “hourly pay” equivalent for that assignment. In some cases you may be shocked to see that the hourly pay equivalent for some assignments is actually less than minimum wage, but in other cases you can walk away with over $20 per hour as an equivalent.
As you can see, there are quite a few factors that come into play when you are looking at how profitable mystery shopping assignments really are for you. Keep these things in mind as you explore the options, and you will better people about to pick and choose the more profitable assignments to work on.
It makes sense to be concerned with the mileage that you do when going to the mystery shops. I live in an area which a few cities are close by. When you live in an area where you have to drive 20 or 25 miles to go one place, you think, “is it worth it to this this assignment when I have to go 35 miles one way to the shop?”
I agree with Jennifer when she ashs whether its cost-effective to go to a particular location where the pay is not worth the drive. I consider my approximate gas mileage to get both to the gig and back (you have to look at a round trip, after all). The other thing I consider is whether there are locations close enough to each other to make the overall trip worthwhile if you go to several of them. I live in San Antonio, Texas where the outlying towns are relatively far apart. I would consider going to them if the pay was enough to justify it.
Being relatively new to mystery shopping, I try to accept jobs in my local area and try to do them while I’m out in that area for other reasons, personal shopping, lunch with friends, etc. There are shops available ‘across the river in GA and I consider doing them if I have to be in that area. Recently I was notified of a shop in GA paying more than $20., as I have to be in that area for an appt., I’ll accept the shop and get ‘paid’ to go to my appt.
Some shops have the NERVE to ask you to make a purchase that is not reimbursable. Why would a shopper take a fee of under $20.00, drive, spend time, a purchase for proof that you were there, put in the report..and be HAPPY with that? I have complained to the schedulers and they have all agreed with me All purchases should be “reasonable” AND reimbursable. As for mileage, I travel 35 miles one way for many shops.. I give all the miles, tolls and gas costs to my acontant…and I THINK it pays….since they are all legitimate expeses…We have to speak up if we feel we are being taken advantage of….and we need to ask for MORE MONEY…we do a very important job.