One of the biggest complaints mystery shoppers have about the job is that the money just isn’t worth the effort and time involved. Oftentimes, assignments seem to pay close to minimum wage, making it more lucrative to work at another typical part-time job. If you’re stuck in the rut of working assignments in the $5-15 range, and on assignments that take over an hour or two to complete for this low pay, take a step back and look at the situation. There may be something you’re missing!
Not All Assignments Are Equal. Before you get discouraged at working for what seems like peanuts as a mystery shopper, take a moment and consider how you select assignments. New mystery shoppers, and even some seasoned mystery shoppers, are so eager to work on assignments that they will request any and every assignment. Not all assignments are equal, and some require much more work for far less compensation than others. If you aren’t in the habit of spending time analyzing and reviewing assignments before you request them, this could be costing you time and money!
Stuck In A Rut. On the flip side, you may have found a few assignments that you enjoyed doing the first time or two, and now have found yourself stuck in a mystery shopping rut. It’s good to have a few “staple” assignments that you work on regularly every few months or so on a rotation. But likewise, if you don’t branch out and try something new, you will find your paycheck stagnating. You won’t know if you can get more pay for less time and effort on other assignments until you’ve tried. So make an effort to try some new assignments on a regular basis to continuously seek out better assignments.
What Other Mystery Shoppers Are Doing. Some mystery shoppers have had a lot of success with certain types of assignments. Ranking high among these are audit assignments. Some of these assignments include just walking into a waiting room and making a quick observation, pharmacy audits, observing stores as opening and closing hours, and more. Just as with other types of assignments, audits can vary quite a bit in terms of how easy the money is. If you haven’t looked at audits lately, spend some time looking at how much easy money you can make from these assignments.
Other “easy money” assignments include college tours, overnight hotel visits, and certain retail and restaurant assignments. These “easy money” mystery shopping assignments are not always easy to find, but they are worth your time and efforts in looking for as they can reap big financial rewards for you.
Mystery shopping doesn’t have to be a drag on your schedule, barely putting pennies into your pocketbook each month. While not every assignment you work on will be “easy money”, completing a few of these more lucrative assignments regularly will make you more satisfied with your job as a mystery shopper.