Anyone that has ever worked in retail has wondered if they could make some money as a mystery shopper. The honest answer is yes, you can make some money as a mystery shopper. You shouldn’t expect to become rich when working as a mystery shopper, but you should expect to have a lot of fun, cash in on some fun perks, and make a little bit of cash on the side. Most people cannot afford for mystery shopping to be their only source of income, but it is a fun way to get some free stuff and make some cash while shopping, eating, and judging the experience!
What is a Mystery Shopper?
For those that don’t know, a mystery shopper is someone that shops or visits local retail establishments such as clothing stores, post offices, restaurants, electronics stores, jewelry stores, and more. The mystery shopper will be directed to interact with the store personnel and afterwards critique their services. A report will be generated by the company from the critique of the mystery shopper and that will be reported to the company. A mystery shopper doesn’t just visit any retail establishment, companies actually pay to have their services evaluated by someone that appears just to be an every day customer. The mystery shopping company will then give the mystery shopper a part of their revenue or will give them a small perk such as a gift certificate.
What Does Mystery Shopping Pay?
Mystery shopping usually isn’t a full time gig, unless you live in a big area where they aren’t many mystery shoppers. If you live in an area that doesn’t have a lot of mystery shoppers you might get a few assignments a month, but generally you can’t expect to have this be your one and only job. You can make as much as $30 or $50 an assignment, but more often you will get gift certificates to shop or eat for free in some of the establishments that you visit. This is a great way for the mystery shopper company to compensate you for your time and effort without actually having to put money out in the way of cash. If you don’t actually need the cash but you would like to shop or eat in the places that you visit as a mystery shopper it isn’t a bad deal at all! Just think, your mystery shopper job can get you and your family a free dinner a couple times a month. To some this sort of arrangement is just as good as being paid.
Making the Most of It
If you really want to maximize your opportunities as a mystery shopper you can register with more than one mystery shopper agency. This will allow you to stagger your assignments between the two agencies so that you can not only make more money because you are offered more jobs, but you can also visit a wider variety of businesses, which will also prove to be more exciting. You might find that some mystery shopper agencies specialize in one type of business while others have more of a variety. If you have a lot of free time you’ll find that these agencies can keep you reasonably busy.
Mystery shopping is a great way to earn some extra cash. It can be difficult to earn substantial amounts of money through mystery shopping, but if you are looking for something fun that pays to do in your free time this might just be it. Mystery shopping will likely bring you a mix of cash and other perks like free meals and such, which are just as good as cash if you enjoy eating out!