It has been said and written over and over but I will state it again – never, never pay to shop. You should never pay to a membership fee to a mystery shopping company or pay to “join” a company as a shopper. These companies need the mystery shopper and they are paying the mystery shopper to provide valuable market research information.

There are organizations and “networks” out there trying to get you to join to get access to mystery shopping companies. They may even promise that you will get the highest paying mystery shopping if you are member. I have seen no evidence that there is any truth to these statements.

Some mystery shopping sites will encourage you to purchase manuals or how-to book or obtain certification. None of this is necessary to be successful as a mystery shopper. None of this is necessary to find mystery shopping jobs.

While it may be a stretch to call these enterprising “offers” a scam, it is important to note that you should stay away from offers. Instead, search for boards and forums where mystery shoppers are networking and offering free information.

There are serious and real scams out there. You can find details on most scams with a simple Internet search.  You should always be cautious of any offer of an unusually high payout. Use common sense and ask yourself why a company would pay so much for shopper information or market research.

Be concerned if you are approached by a secret shopper company that you have never heard of or if you receive a packet by mail from a mystery shopper company, you have not contacted.  Never participate in any activity which requires you to wire money or accept money into your own checking or savings accounts for future use.

There is a common scam where a company will send you a fake certified check and ask you to wire an amount of money and keep the remaining balance as a fee. This is a scam.

For more information on mystery shopping scams, visit snopes.com at this link.

http://www.snopes.com/fraud/employment/shopper.asp