My name is Shawn Spiers, and I have been mystery shopping for around six months now in the Fort Lauderdale and South Florida area...Some fellow shoppers and schedulers suggested I join a mystery shopping forum, so here I am!!

I would like to ask my first question to anyone listening out there, and let me title it "Blind Spot"...

Now I see lots of job out on Jobslinger and Volition for my area, but NOT for what I would call your classic "retail" shops in our malls down here...It seems impossible for me to believe that there are not more mall retail outlet shops going on here, but rather I just don't know where to look for these types of shops...I was in an Abercrombie and Fitch store at our Galleria a few months ago, doing regular shopping, and I overheard two reps discussing the fact that they always have to be on their toes because they are constantly getting mystery shopped...Yet I have NEVER seen any jobs for this chain listed on either the common job boards, or on the "private" job boards for those providers I have linked up with that maintain their own job boards...

As I understand the rules, it is difficult to learn which mystery shopping provider works with various retail clients, so how do I learn which provider works with which client companies?? What are the appropriate ways for a shopper to understand what companies are most active in my local area??

I look forward to receiving help from you guys, and I hope I can become a better shopper through listening to those with more experience than I have, and I also will be happy to give out advice as I learn more about this career!!

- Shawn -

Abercrombie is shopped and the shop postings are the job board of the MSC which shops them. The board is very public (to those signed up as shoppers with that company) and the company is one of the largest. I suggest that you probably are not signed up with enough companies. The blue link at the bottom of the page, Official List of Mystery Shopping Companies, is a list of reputable mystery shopping companies with whom you can sign up.

You are correct that we cannot tell you which clients are shopped by which mystery shopping companies. That is because when we sign up to be mystery shoppers with a company, every company requires that we sign an Independent Contractor Agreement (ICA), most of which include a confidentiality agreement in which we agree not to disclose the names of their clients or any details of the shops, the MSC or the client that we learn as a result of being signed up as independent contractors with the MSC.

The way you learn which provider works with which client companies is to sign up with as many companies as you can. When you are signed up with a company, you will be able to check the company's job board and most will also e-mail you when jobs are available and you can then log in and apply for the jobs. The more companies you are signed up with the more jobs you will see.

I also suggest you set aside some time and read as much as you can in the New Mystery Shopper area. There's a lot of very detailed information there. That gave me all I needed to get started when I began MSing in 2008.

Thank you AustinMom for giving me some hints and giving me some information to punch through that Blind Spot!!

The list of companies on here is very large, as it is at sites such as the MSPA, so let me ask my question in another way, so perhaps some folks can help me narrow down my search, while honoring their confidentiality agreements:

What is a short list, say 5 or 10, of the LARGEST mystery shopping companies??

Thanks for help from anyone!!

Having listed the client of one of the largest companies, I can not list the MSC for you and neither can anyone else who is signed up with that company. That would violate my IC. How many companies are you signed up with? I will say that four of the largest companies either have no shops in my location or no shops that I am interested in performing, so signing up with the five largest companies may not be the best strategy. I'm signed up with about 150 companies. Many posters here are signed up with more than 200.

There really aren't any shortcuts to getting started as a mystery shopper. The list below and all the info provided on the forum is free. Getting started as a mystery shopper is a very time-intensive endeavor. The time you spend is an investment in the new business you are starting. If you spend time reading here on the forum, you should easily be able to compile your own short list.

Shawn,
Since most MSCs have just a few clients, making a list of the "largest" may not help you much, especially when you consider what tends to make an MSC large. For instance, a huge company does almost exclusively fast food and fast casual food shops. And, several of the largest companies are "large" because they have clients that are thick on the ground. Abercrombe and its like will not make the MSC that has them "large" in this business. Having the client that has the most bank branches, or the third largest branch network, will make an MSC large. Having Crate and Barrel will not bring an MSC anywhere near the "large" category. So, the classic advice really is the best for finding "classic retail." Sign up with at least 75-100 companies. If you still are not finding enough mall-based retail to suit you, then you have not signed up with enough MSCs.

I would guess that I have signed up with around 50 companies so far...Many of them are on the SASSIE system, which I read recently handles smaller mystery shopping providers...Several others use the Archon platform...And I have tried to find out about other companies through doing Internet searches, and I have located several MSP's that have their own "private" job boards, for example Sinclair Customer Metrics and Corporate Research International...

But as I have been saying, so far, there seems to be this big gap for me in locating those MSP's that specialize in "classic" mall retail shops...There are a few exceptions, but I know that I have a very incomplete picture of retail mall shopping at this time in my area...

With the understanding that signing up for 100 or so companies is not really all that excessive, it is still somewhat time consuming, and I have already wasted time signing up for a few companies that are not active in South Florida...

When I review the lists of MSP's, either in this forum, or at the MSPA website itself, or on Volition, they are all listed in alphabetical order, which is not really useful as a selection criteria...

So please let me ask my question again: What MSP's specialize in national mall retail shops?? If this question can be answered with specific vendor names, that will be awesome...Otherwise, can you tell me how I can most easily locate groups of MSP's that specialize in varioius types of shops...I am focused with this question on retail mall shops, but your answers could be applied to other types as shops as well...

Thanks again to both WalesMaven and AustinMom for your advice so far...Hopefully, you all can help me select MSP's wisely, while respecting the confidentiality agreements, as I fine tune my question on here...

Hi again, Shawn, we get that by re-wording and resubmitting your post you still want to get to a short list of the best companies. A lot of information is provided here and many of us prefer that you do your own research, utilizing all the tools that are already available here. We get so many requests for personalized help in the form of being given short lists that one of our valued posters, minnie, wrote a post that explains better than I can, what the collective feeling of many forum posters is. You may better understand what walesmaven and I saying if you read it. Here is the link:

[www.mysteryshopforum.com]

Not only are confidentiality agreements a concern, there are other reasons that no mystery shopper can give you a specialized list of MSCs to sign up with. Regionality is a big factor. What clients a MSC has varies from one locale to another. You and I might both sign up with the same MSC, but due to our different locations, we might have access to a completely different roster of clients. Yes, it is does take time to research which MSCs have clients that appeal to you and have assignments in your area. But it's part of the groundwork in building your own business. I've been in this gig a few years now, and am still signing up with MSCs. Sometimes it pays off. Sometimes it doesn't. There really aren't any legitimate shortcuts to this process.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 01/15/2013 06:50PM by shopgal.

Five years into this and I am still registering with new companies. Maybe it would help to change your priorities. With very few exceptions, I don't really care who or what type of business is being shopped by any MSC. I do care if the fees are worthwhile for the work and if they pay on time.

Welcome, shawnspiers.

I agree that the sign up process is time-consuming. However, it's the only way to find exactly what you're asking for. We've all done it, and it is a worthwhile time investment. Even if you don't find gold immediately after signing up with a company, you may find it a little or a longer way down the road. The next MSC you sign up with may have the one client you really want. You may not see it on their job board right away because they may have all the shops assigned for the month. Or, they may have just signed the client (since it's the beginning of the new year) but they haven't posted the shops yet because they haven't finalized the shop requirements.

Just do a few each day. Invest the time to check out posts on the new shopper board of this forum. (Il'll give you the best hint you'll ever get: read everything you can that was posted by Flash.)

Since you were so polite, and didn't demand that we drop what we were doing to cater to you, I'll share a tip to make signing up much easier: use a free form filler software such as LastPass. (That's just one example of the truly useful information available on the new shopper board.)

Shawn,
Just make it part of your work day, each day, to add five new companies to your list. There is no simple way. Shoppers who prefer mall-based shops most certainly are not going to help you to go into competition with them by providing their list of the most active MSCs in that field. It is a niche within the MS world, after all.

Most of use cast a much wider net to make good money at this.

Finally, for plum assignments like Abercrombe, I can tell you, although I do not shops them, that when those hit the job boards, shoppers are waiting; the half life of one of those shops is about 20 minutes, or less. I know shoppers who email others, outside of their markets, to alert them when those shops hit. But those are all seasoned Abercrombe shoppers, so they are not violating their ICAs when they just say, "Abercrombe shops just posted." They have no need to name the MSC. Sign up with more companies, and diligently read the posts both about the companiesyou have on your list and about the retailers that interest you, and network, network, network.

Thank you to all the people who have replied to my question...I did not think about the competition aspect of what I am trying to learn...I am using the list on Volition to attempt a non-random method of signing up with new providers, as they have short descriptions of what each MSP specializes in...

Shawn,
Youwill find the volition lists woefully out of date when it comes to specialties.

I am growing a little frustrated with the lack of specific help on here...A forum is a place where I was told people would help other people out here...All I am getting are reasons and excuses NOT to provide me with valid and concrete answers...

After reflection, I don't buy the simple reasoning that "confidentiality agreements" are the main roadblock to getting answers here...It seems there are two attitudes that I don't like that I am observing, so pardon me for flaming, but I feel I have the need for venting, and so far as I know, I still have the right to do that:

1. A few of you seem to know the answer to my question, but you appear to almost be relishing in my confusion...I don't like any attitude that resembles a "holier than thou" point of view...When I am asked for help, I seem to be able to get answers to people without giving them a run around...You all have plenty of ways around confidentiality agreements, whether to send me a short list, refer me to a source that groups shopping companies by specialty, sending me private messages, or other means that the so called "experts" on here know about that I don't!!

2. I definitely disagree with lists of MSP's being so valuable that they should not be shared with new people, because, heaven forbid, I have not been doing this as long as others!! If the notion of forums is to share knowledge, then for goodness sake either SHARE KNOWLEDGE or don't say anything!! It is very frustrating to be aware of others who KNOW THE ANSWERS but won't share them with me!! So far, the concept that discussing questions with other shoppers so that I don't feel as "alone", as suggested to me by a scheduler, has failed to get me any results I did not already know about!! If there is a better way to get something done, then it should be shared...There is NO REASON to make every new person go through what every one else went through...Each generation should do its part to make it better or the next!!

3. Finally for now, I don't buy this notion that I am seriously in competition with any of you!! We live all across the country, so the chances that my entry into mystery shopping pose a threat to your turf is slim to none...This is laughable, although of course, as independent contractors, each of us is motivated by profit, which brings me to this thought:

How come noone has stepped up to actually REFER ME to any of the MSP's that work in the area I was inquiriing about??
It would seem that if somebody did this without telling me about which client works with which MSP, I might get my answer and somebody might make some more money!!

I am sorry if my tone is negative, but I am tired of getting a run around...I want a simple answer, and I know it exists...

Thank you to minnie for suggesting I read posts by Flash, who, by the way, doesn't seem to have the same problem of not naming some MSP's...even though I already had signed up with 2 of his 3 top suggestions...I had already researched those companies, but they don't seem to have the answer I am looking for...

So I ask one more time, and maybe somebody new will actually answer me: What mystery shopping companies specialize in shopping mall stores?? If somebody has an answer, thank you in advance!! But please, no more telling me generalities that I already know, or giving me excuses that simply don't add up!!

Shawn Spiers
MSPA Silver Certified
Shopping in South Florida and working hard to build a local network of shoppers to get things done!!

If you are signed up with 2 of those 3 companies, you have seen that there really is a disconnect between being a really big company and having clients who fit your request for mall-based retail. There are no fw SCs that have retailers that can be found in malls. A mall with 150 stores may have 50 different SCs. Some shop one store; some shop just one of the many make-up counters in one of the big department stores; some shop one of the restauarants in the food court; another shops that same restaurant for a competiotr; yet another shops the valet parking service. In other words, you really are asking for a list that does not exist since you want to know which companies dominate that market. The answer is that there is no one, or five, "big"mall retail market actor (s)".

As far as the competition goes, YOU may not live in my area and be a threat to my clients, but there are 20 or 30 other members of this forum that ARE in my area, and you better believe, if I told you about my favorite company almost every one of them would be signing up by night time.

You do sound very negative, Shawn, and I'm offended by your "I'm entitled to this" attitude.

As walesmaven said, the smaller companies tend to have the mall shops and they tend to have 1 or 2. If I wanted to spend the time (why do you believe your time is more valuable than my time?) to go back to my records and dig out the companies for whom I have performed mall shops, I could probably give you what you want. Why would I? You have told us you feel it is a waste of your time to sign up with companies and you have already "wasted" a lot of time signing up with a few companies that do not even have shops in Florida. Every independent contractor in business for himself in every industry has spent time on leads that do not yield immediate income.

I will say I did a quick scan of my records and I have performed quite a few mall shops..... for over 50 different companies. All 50 are in the long list below.

The info you want is very valuable. We're all in business to make money. Why not hire a consultant to help you get signed up with the companies you want? The value is $5,000. OR - you can save yourself $5,000 by doing the work yourself.

Your post is filled with assumptions and every single one of them is wrong. I don't know where new shoppers get the idea that most MSCs have specific regions and specialties because, with just a few exceptions, they do not. The category "mall stores" is not even valid since within a mall there is large variety of general retail, specialty retail, fast food, fast casual, full service restaurants and even movie theaters. And just like thinking there is some super secret list of MSCs, you now think there is some super secret streamlined method for targeting specific MSCs. Hate to disappoint you, but the reason we tell people to keep registering is because currently that is the only way.

You posted your questions very late on January 12 and today is January 15, basically just a couple of days. The answers you got were from members who happened to be around the forum and are all across the country. Why would we know which companies have jobs in your area? We don't have some panel of members in every region who monitor the forum on a regular basis. We are shoppers too and have lives and businesses to run. Like AustinMom, Maybe a couple of hours of researching my jobs over the last five years would yield some more answers for you, but then again, maybe not. Meanwhile, I have bills to pay which means I need to spend my time working.

If you want a fast track to mystery shopping, my understanding is there are a number of books on the market. Buy the books and see what information the authors provide in return for your $10 or $20. Meanwhile, don't insult the people who give you information for free.

Very flawed logic...

You stated that we probably don't live in the same areas, but complained that we're not telling you who shops your area. If we don't live in the same area, how would we be able to answer that?

Also, you mentioned confidentiality agreements. What we are referring to are Independent Contractor Agreements. These are contracts - legal documents that we have signed. We are serious about mystery shopping as a profession. The people who are professionals will not break a contract so you don't have to sign up with more companies.

Why is it okay that I had to spend my time signing up with each company and researching their clients, but your time is too valuable to do the same?

Just like you, I get to choose what I spend my time on, and what I post here. You do not decide that for me.

You are sounding rude. This is the last time I will respond to a post of yours.

shawnspiers Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> After reflection, I don't buy the simple reasoning
> that "confidentiality agreements" are the main
> roadblock to getting answers here
> 1....You all have plenty of ways around
> confidentiality agreements, whether to send me a
> short list, refer me to a source that groups
> shopping companies by specialty, sending me
> private messages, or other means that the so
> called "experts" on here know about that I
> don't!!

In a nutshell, the purpose of a confidentiality agreement is to prohibit a shopper from trying to "get around it". It doesn't matter how this is attempted, it is still a violation. That's just the way it is.

Here is my answer to "getting around" contracts by utilizing PMs. It is now my new sig line.

Love your sig line, Lisa! And so appropriate - in ALL aspects of mystery shopping.

Just because you didn't get the answer you wanted, please don't start with the complaints. The reality is that I don't think the list that you are looking for actually exists. I have not done a lot of shops at our local mall, primarily because of its small size. However, almost every shop that I've completed has been for a different company. There have been times when I've shopped the same store with in the mall for more than one company. This could happen because one was for the actual company and another was for a vendor that sells specific merchandise in the location or credit card applications or something else. There are many mystery shopping companies who have only a very limited number of clients.

You did ask about the biggest companies. One of the quickest ways to get to that information would be to click on the list of mystery shopping companies that's provided below. What you will see it as after each companies name the number of discussions about it. There are two reasons that a company might have high numbers. One would be that they are a high volume company. The other would be that they have lots of problems therefore lots of complaints. I would click on a few of the links to find out which it is.

And while you may not be my direct competition, once I post it here it is visible to my direct competition. The only way you can truly get what you want, which is a list of companies that shop locations in a mall near you, is to get somebody who is your competition to give up that list. I think that will be tough to do.

Hello, Shawn. We all make the contributions to the forum that seem right to us. There is a tremendous amount of helpful information already posted. Experienced shoppers will not break their contracts and provide company and client names no matter what your expectations may be. Because of the nature of the business, I don't believe anyone has been able to organize the information you want into any kind of useful presentation. As you become more active with more companies, you will gain a better understanding of the fragmentation and constant change existing in the mystery shopping world. The information you want would certainly be helpful to any shopper, but the possibility it will ever be available is remote. Perhaps you could make that a personal project of your own.

If I need more work, I sign up with more companies in the hope that I will find some companies who have work with clients in my area. I consider it futile to search for a company who may have a particular client. I would have more productive results raising a garden and keeping a cow. I look for companies who have work of any kind in my area, and then select my shops from what's available.

The forum has been a tremendous aid to me and I have learned much over the years from its members. Many new members joining the forum are critical of the way things are done and believe more information should be more freely given by more members. We all decide individually what we are willing to give, but we are under no obligation to give anything. I encourage you to continue with the forum and make the most of the best mystery shopping forum on the internet.

shawnspiers Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> I am growing a little frustrated with the lack of
> specific help on here...A forum is a place where I
> was told people would help other people out
> here

Trust me, Shawn, as business owners, none of the experienced shoppers on this forum would be spending their time here if your statement were in any way true. I, for one, am continually finding new information that will increase my productivity or make my work easier due to the information shared by others.

You're overlooking all of the benefits from these discussions because you are so hellbent on finding mall assignments. If that's your passion, hey, go for it. Just like dining assignments are mine, you have to do the research on your own to find the assignments that fit the style of business you want to create for yourself. All of the reasons for doing so have been posted and re-posted.

Forget it. Shawn obviously does not care.

It's almost to the point that certain rules should be considered for new members, such as:

-Your first posting debut should NOT be a bashing of an MSC, as this is a negative way to start off in the community.
-You should NOT demand a list of clients at any time for the myriad of reasons explained in detail on the forum.
-You should NOT start a flame war with other forum members because they are not willing to violate the forum guidelines.
-You should understand that for many forum members, mystery shopping is a business - essentially making participants friendly competitors if located in the same geographic areas.
-Do not expect others to empathize if you have willingly freelanced or ignored assignment instructions.

Why don't I stop wasting time explaining stuff to people who make it clear they don't care for me? Have I nothing better to do than educate the belligerent and ungrateful? Yes, I think I do.

Dear Shawn,

Let me be try to be "helpful".

IF mystery shopping is a business venture for you, then take the time or money to make the investment into it. I have compiled a list of over 500 MSC's (from this forum, volition, MSPA, and lists from shopper blogs) and I'm working my way through the list. The list at the bottom of the page is more concise and would be the best use of your time. You could be signed up with 200 companies in under 20 hours if you have any computer skills. If you don't wish to take the time, I will do it for your. For a fee of $5000.00 I will interview you, collect your information and experience, act as your agent, and sign you up for 200 companies. I will compose a spreadsheet with the links to each company's shopper board along with your login information. I will rank the companies based on how many shops are within 50 miles of your home at the time of enrollment. However, if you don't have the patience and time to do this for yourself, this is probably not the right business for you.

IF mystery shopping is a hobby that happens to make money (as it is for me) then relish the adventure. It's like a treasure hunt! I'm signed up with all the major players already, so I'm really scraping to find new shops. I probably find one viable shop for every ten new companies. When I do it feels like I have uncovered buried treasure! I am signed up with well over 100 companies, and so far I've only shopped four different stores at my local mall. I'm aware of potential shops at a few other stores in the same mall.

I relish uncovering the secrets of Mystery Shopping. Heck, "Mystery" is right there in the name! Enjoy the journey!