Hi. My name is Dee and I'm new to mystery shopping. Hopeing to do this as a part time job. Welcoming and suggestions or advise.

Hello Denise,

You'll find all of the information you need to get started here in the forums!

Here is your "Welcome to the Forums" letter!

Sit back, grab a drink and start *Reading*! It's the best way for you to learn the ropes and get started!!

~~~~~~~~~~~

You are probably feeling somewhat overwhelmed, wondering where to begin. Here are some facts and tips:

1. Mystery Shopping is NOT "quick money" or a "way to make a living". (True, few people do, but they are gone on over-the-road video trips for several weeks at a time, and they BUILT their Reputation by starting at the beginning.)

--> (A.) Mystery Shopping is work - hard work.
--> (B.) You are self-employed.
--> (C.) You pay taxes on ALL of your income (YES, EVEN on that single $7.00 Shop Pay you got from one company you did work for once in the year!).
--> (D.) You need to keep a spreadsheet and/or track of ALL of your expenses.
--> (E.) You should have an office with a good computer, internet, printer, paper, ink, a good camera (if you decide to get into auditing), or a good cell phone with a camera.

2. Your "pay"? As a new shopper, you can expect $4.00 to $10.00 AFTER you complete a job, submit a survey free of errors, have your survey accepted, and hopefully had no deductions!

3. You get paid - 95% of the time - 45-60-90 days AFTER your survey is accepted. (There are a few companies that may pay in 30 days, just don't count on it, and it really helps to learn how to balance/budget your future earnings.)

--> (A.) Most of the time, you will need to lay out money first. Example - that Fast Food shop? You need to pay in *CASH*. You'll get reimbursed - and also a "fee" - but that will come later (See #2 above)

4. You need proper Grammar, Spelling, Capitalization, and Punctuation. Yes, that should include our forums. We consider ourselves professionals, even on a forum.

5. READ - pull up a chair and Read. Tired of reading? Don't like to read? Well, you are not going to learn anything unless you start reading. Grab a soda, coffee, tea, whatever your preference and start going through all of the threads - at least threads on the first page of EACH forum. Forums are listed at the bottom of all of the pages.

--> (A.) When you get to "New Mystery Shoppers" Forum: [www.mysteryshopforum.com] - there are "Sticky Threads" at the top of this forum. READ through ALL of the information that a long time shopper/member (Flash) wrote for new shoppers. Then, go back and read it again. Some people have been known to print out the information that Flash has written (not all of the follow up threads, just her first post).

6. Get yourself set up with a spreadsheet to keep track of your future jobs. Search here on the forum "spreadsheets" - and you should pull up ideas on how others set them up. You NEED to keep track of your expenses - you will need those for tax time!

7. Get yourself set up with a PayPal account.

--> (A.) I would also suggest that you set up an Email ONLY to be used for Mystery Shopping - and use that email to connect with your Paypal account and the one you use signing up with MSC's.

8. I'd also recommend that you start a new checking account - Again, ONLY to be used for Mystery Shopping. At tax time - especially if you stay interested in shopping - you will be SO glad that you had separate accounts! Someone recommended it to me when I first started - and I am definitely glad that I did get one!

9. For information on what you can and cannot deduct for your Self-Employment Business - please make sure you DO read the following:

[www.irs.gov] or go to: [www.irs.gov] and search for "Publication 463"


Have fun shopping - but you do have to do the work yourself. It's the only way you are going to learn - and find out what type of company works best for you.


NOTE: The ABOVE INFO - is just a "very brief introductory" to Mystery Shopping and to alleviate some of your "what am I getting into" moments!

Please take the time to visit the following forums - print out the first post by longtime shopper & member, FLASH, and keep it for your reference & records!

1. Basic Needs for Mystery Shoppers: [www.mysteryshopforum.com]

2. A Game Plan for Beginning Signing Up: [www.mysteryshopforum.com]

3. Nuts & Bolts of Finding & Getting Shops: [www.mysteryshopforum.com]

4. Mystery Shopping & Taxes: [www.mysteryshopforum.com]

5. Useful Free Software for Shoppers: [www.mysteryshopforum.com]

6. Odds & Ends for Mystery Shopping: [www.mysteryshopforum.com]

Welcome to you! You will love mystery shopping and this forum has loads of helpful advice for you. For the summer, I am averaging about $175-250 per week...and I live in an area where I could literally be busy 24 hours a day!

Good advise and so true. If you truly need money the best jobs are phone calls. You dont waste gas and you can make $$$. I am finding most of these companies are shady and certainly not always on the up and up. Some pay every two weeks like Best Mark. Others wish to drag it out not caring if you truly need the money. Their own pay check is not every sixty days. I had to purchase a scanner but still dont have a digital camera. Just not in the budget. I hope and pray you have a good experience. If you live in a rural area you are going to have more difficulty obtaining shops. I live two hours from Houston and would love to shop there but have to consider the cost of gas, time driving. If I could combine a number of shops at one time it would be more cost effective? Feel free to contact me if you wish. Prayers your way!

Most of the companies are NOT shady. While payment terms may very, you will be an independent contractor, not an employee, so don't expect a weekly or bi-monthly "paycheck." Employees receive paychecks and ICs are on a par with vendors.

A digital camera is a good investment. Some people use scanners as well, but many of us stick with the camera to provide receipt photos and it can also be used for audits requiring digital photographs.

What txmedia says about rural areas is interesting. If you are willing to drive and learn how to set up an effective route, rural areas can be lucrative. I live in a major metropolitan area and make more on my rural routes than in the city. There are more shoppers in the city and that competition can keep the prices down. I could spend all day with $8 to $10 shops and have 12 or so reports each night or I can spend the day driving to the hinter lands and performing just a few shops with a large bonus. My time out of the house is the same, but having only 2 to 4 reports is certainly preferable.

LisaSTL Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Most of the companies are NOT shady. While payment
> terms may very, you will be an independent
> contractor, not an employee, so don't expect a
> weekly or bi-monthly "paycheck." Employees receive
> paychecks and ICs are on a par with vendors.
>
> A digital camera is a good investment. Some people
> use scanners as well, but many of us stick with
> the camera to provide receipt photos and it can
> also be used for audits requiring digital
> photographs.
>
> What txmedia says about rural areas is
> interesting. If you are willing to drive and learn
> how to set up an effective route, rural areas can
> be lucrative. I live in a major metropolitan area
> and make more on my rural routes than in the city.
> There are more shoppers in the city and that
> competition can keep the prices down. I could
> spend all day with $8 to $10 shops and have 12 or
> so reports each night or I can spend the day
> driving to the hinter lands and performing just a
> few shops with a large bonus. My time out of the
> house is the same, but having only 2 to 4 reports
> is certainly preferable.


I could not agree more -- I also live in the suburbs of a major city and travel to more rural areas on a regular basis. Just this week I did a shop that normally pays around $10 here in the city for more than $50 in a more remote location...I added to the route three other visits that also came with steep bonuses and made out pretty well for the day. Also, I try to visit my son at college each month and typically shop the small towns on the way there and back...again, at the end of the month when schedulers are fast & loose with the bonus $$. I am always able to make enough to pay for gas, hotel, and food.

Hello, my name is Dee Halter. I went to join your group and to my surprize, it said that I am already a member. I logged in under what I put in as my login information ,and was greeted with....Hello Denise. How can this person have my exact login name and password?

Hi, Dee. Glad you came back. Welcome.

Nice to meet you.