I started working from home a few years ago so I've trawled through the websites looking for home working opportunities. I never gave a second thought to companies that asked for a registration fee or money upfront to offer me work. Instead I went for well known, established firms.
I've been working as a mystery shopper for the last six years and enjoy it so much that I don't think I'd ever give it up! I must admit that unless you join lots of agencies you won't get a decent income from this type of work but you will get some extra cash and lots of free items, food and drink. Jobs offered are on a wide scale and include fast food outlets, electrical high street shops, mobile phone shops, retail outlets, pubs and bars, fitness centres, cinemas, hotels and more. I have enjoyed complimentary CD's, software, small electrical items,
groceries, magazines, free petrol, sandwiches and coffees, fast food, delicious pizza with a cool glass of Pinot Grigio and more! On an average scale, most jobs take about an hour to an hour and a half to complete including travelling and pay approximately £7.00 plus expenses, sometimes a lot more, other times a bit less. You don't need any particular qualifications to become a mystery shopper, so anyone can do it, any age, any background. What you do need though is an eye for detail, a good memory and have the ability to deliver an impartial opinion of whatever the job requires. Jobs are offered via the agency website and you apply to whichever ones your find interesting/suitable although some agencies telephone when an assignment becomes available and others still will send you an e-mail. At no time are you ever expected to take on a job that you don't want to do or don't like the sound of. Never feel that you have to accept an assignment that you don't fancy doing. Once you've applied, the system will then let you know whether or not the job has been allocated to you. When a job has been assigned to you, you will receive a copy of the questionnaire and a brief explaining what you have to do to complete the assignment. This will include times, dates and exact details of what is expected from you and what you need to look out for. Once the job is completed you will be required to fill in an online questionnaire of your findings and this usually has to be completed within 8 - 24 hours, depending on the agency policies. And that's it! Payment is made via bank transfer on a monthly basis. If you're interested in this type of work then visit http://www.homeworking4me.co.uk/mysteryshopping.htm
I've also recently joined some paid online survey agencies. I like these because you get paid either in cash or high street vouchers for just filling out a questionnaire. Again you won't make a lot of money from this but it's an easy way to make a bit of extra cash and vouchers always come in handy at Christmas. The more agencies you join, the more vouchers and cash.
One way of making good money from home is to sell at online auctions. I've made money from just selling stuff that I no longer need or items bought from car boots and charity shops and I'm now looking into buying from wholesalers and selling online. Once you get into the swing of online selling it can be great fun and very rewarding. The only bit that is a bit tedious is packing and wrapping the items at the end of sale and taking them to the Post Office. If you do decide to try this type of homeworking be sure to ask for a receipt from the post office as proof of posting.
Another way of making money from home is to either start your own website or Blog then use affiliate marketing or Google ads to make money. Depending on your subject and how competitive your chosen market is - you can earn a good income, but you've GOT to put in the hours and the time. Some people think that all they have to do is design a quick site or Blog and the money will come rolling in but it's not as simple as that. You need to advertise and promote your site in order to get the visitors so you've got to be quite dedicated and prepared to work to make it happen. There are a lot of free site builders on the web that you can use to design a website or you could use an inexpensive site builder to get a more professional look. They offer you a selection of templates and all you have to do is fill in the details and add your own pictures etc.,
Although working from home can get a bit lonely at times and it doesn't give you a guaranteed income, it can be very rewarding. You can work the hours that you choose and fit it around family commitments. If you try a few different types of home working jobs then you could balance your schedule. For instance, you could work as a mystery shopper and sell at online auctions, thus doing some interacting with people and work from home on your own. There are quite a lot of work from home websites out there claiming to help the freelancer, admittedly a lot of them are scams but a few are good and useful - www.homeworking4me.co.uk is one of the more helpful sites that offers good advice and information with decent resources.
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It is quite depressing to see the number of scams there are out there, I enjoy mystery shopping as well as a number of other worthwhile opportunities. Paul
welshwickedone 30.10.2006 18:30
Welcome to Ciao. Good detailed review..................Sam x
kingfisher111 30.10.2006 14:08
So much more info now - I found this revised review really helpful. Might even try and take up mystery shopping. Well done. Jo
Advantages: Can be very rewarding,more time with your family, no boss to keep happy, flexible, Disadvantages: Can be hard work to start, no work mates, needs dedication, Not for everyone
Supasava 21.05.2006 (15.06.2006)
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Review of Working from Home
Advantages: Get To Play the UK Lottery for Free and make a good second income Disadvantages: £5 a week to start but you do get 88 lines a week so not to bad
clare-wharvell 07.05.2008 (07.05.2008)
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Review of Working from Home
Oct 30th, 2006
(Oct 31st, 2006)
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