Mystery Shopping

Advantages: Opportunity for additional income, freebies, flexibility
Disadvantages: Low rates of pay, often very dull assignments, huge number of agencies to work for

...in undercover. This is where mystery shopping or mystery visiting comes in. Mystery visitors are paid to provide an assessment of service, quality and standards exactly as they experienced them on a given day and time. Nature of the Work Mystery shopping covers an enormous breadth of different types of work. Physical mystery shopping involves actually visiting a store, enacting a scenario and then reporting on your findings. Video mystery shopping ...
...a hidden camera. Telephone mystery shopping is exactly what it sounds - you simply contact a business via the telephone and record the details of your contact as per the requirements. Price checking is often carried out undercover as well, and many mystery shoppers will undertake this kind of work to establish the promotions that are on offer in a particular store and its different competitors. Nearly all this kind of work is conducted on a freelance ... Read review

Advantages: Lots of perks. Flexible hours. You can choose.
Disadvantages: Can be hard work for low pay. Steady income not guaranteed.

I saw mystery Shopping in the cafe, and thought I would like to join in. So I'm wading in right now in the deep end and see what comes out of my mouth! Are you ready to keep a secret?! 1. Where do you work? All over the place and I love it! This is the best thing about Mystery shopping -it can be anywhere and everywhere. Flexible hours you can choose what you want to do,and best of all-fit it around an existing commitment,scedule job etc. An extreme ...
...job title? I'm a Mystery Shopper. Occassionally, I'll say I'm a private detective! 3. What does your job entail? Working quite hard for often low pay- but the upsides are Getting free perks like food clothing a service or just your weekly shop;and getting pay for sussing out a company. Praising where due and expressing constructive critiscim when they fail. There are all sorts of questions based around general standards like the staff, cleanliness,overall ... Read review

Advantages: Shop and get paid for it.
Disadvantages: Rules, regulations and uncomfortable espionage.

...How do you imagine Mystery Shopping if you've never done it? In my mind, I flounced through the streets of the West End in a fur coat, a little light snow drifting down. Brightly lit shop windows glistened with goodies and I was carrying several sturdy bags (the kind you get from expensive shops) and probably even a hat box. The doorman at Harrods held the door and assistants rushed to greet me, bringing all I could ever want. Everyone fell at my ...
...was even further from the mystery shopping destination and I just didn't feel inclined. I heard nothing for a while (served me right), then last week on a windswept platform 2, I got the phone call. We'd had a rather drab and penniless Valentines day in a 'at least we've got each other' kind of way. I felt sad that money wasn't permitting us to celebrate something as great as 'being happy together' on a sun drenched mini-break. Money's certainly ... Read review

Advantages: A little money, a lot of fun and some nice freebies
Disadvantages: Work can be sparce and it won't make you millions

...here goes. What is Mystery Shopping? Let me first explain that I am a mother of two young children and I do mystery shopping assignments between school runs, housework and school holidays. If you think that you can give up your job to earn millions then this is not for you. I know a lot of people who do this work as a supplement to a full time job and others that do it like me because it fits in with my every day life. You get allocated work from ...
...asked if you are a mystery shopper you should always reply, “what is a mystery shopper” It is imperative that you never reveal yourself unless you are asked to do so. After the assignment you then enter your results via the MS company website or wait for them to call you or send off paper questionnaire in the post. Some reports can be lengthy and others can be a doddle. It really does depend on the assignment. What qualifications do I need? You ... Read review

Advantages: Fun and varied assignments, extra income
Disadvantages: Sometimes poorly paid, hard work, stressful

...spare time to play with, Mystery Shopping could be the answer for you. It's fun; rewarding, not too time consuming and assignments are varied and interesting. So what exactly is Mystery Shopping? Do you really get paid to shop? It's not as simple as being paid to do your weekly shopping, if only! You're normally asked to complete an assignment at a specified store, or restaurant, or hotel and to act out a scenario whilst posing as a normal customer. ...
...is reveal yourself as a mystery shopper - posing as a normal customer is essential! Some assignments require you to make a purchase to assess customer service and efficiency at the till, some may ask you to return a purchase to evaluate the stores return/refund policy. Be prepared to be flexible! How do Mystery Shopping Companies select their shoppers? Is there an interview process? The selection process differs from company to company (and there ... Read review