Flexibility is what we all want.  But flexibility does go both ways.  This weekend, I decided I was going to sign up for a few grocery shops and get somewhere between $24 and $8 in free groceries.  One problem, when I went on the site to book my mystery shop, the company didn’t have any shops listed for this weekend.

If you need a regular income from your shopping or merchandising business, you can’t expect to always find shops to do when you want or need the money.  You have to plan to make your income by choosing the times you want to shop from the jobs posted.  To keep a regular income, you have to consistently book mystery shops.

So, are you willing to do what it takes to maintain the “flexible” work schedule?  You should start by checking the secret shopping sites on a regular schedule.  Decide the times you want to work and fit as many jobs as you can into those times.  Make a determination about the amount you need to earn and book enough mystery shops to meet your goal.

As I have pointed out before, it always helps if you are flexible when you are contacted directly by a mystery shopping company.  If you can make yourself available to book a last minute mystery shop when the company is in a crunch, they are likely to contact you again about a last minute shop.  This will help you start your mystery shopping business and will show that you are a professional shopper.  When the company contacts you about last minute shops, they usually offer a bonus.

Mystery shopping and secret shopping companies offer jobs that can provide a flexible work schedule.  The skills you must focus on to be successful at mystery shopping are consistency, organization, scheduling and producing quality reports.