Unusual Mystery Shops

There is a growing trend of mystery shoppers being used by government agencies and non-profit organizations. These are service oriented organizations and they want to be sure the public is getting appropriate and comprehensive service.  In addition, they wan to make sure the public is getting helpful information.  Some government agencies are even using mystery shoppers to evaluate their online presence and test usability of their websites.

Recently the American Medical Association released a recommendation for mystery shoppers to evaluate physicians as a way of promoting quality improvement. Within the mystery shopping system is a built in control of having “patients” who are trained to evaluate the same office or physician to make sure service is consistent, questions answered and that the accurate care is given.

Merchandising and Assembly Job

You may be more interested in stocking or assembly jobs but want to choose them on a per job basis. Theaters are looking for shoppers to check and assemble cardboard movie displays.  Retailers are looking for merchandisers to straighten stock or restock. Most of these jobs are quick jobs taking less than an hour of your time. Some of these jobs are reoccurring jobs offering you the same job twice every month.

Mystery Shopping on Black Friday

I recently saw a shop posted for black Friday, the day after Thanksgiving and one of the biggest shopping days of the year.  This shop, a merchandising job, is a five hour job, 7:00 AM-12:00 noon paying $8 per hour.  The shopper/merchandiser will work with a representative of Mattel to keep toys stocked and straightened on the shelves.  How easy is that? $40 and you will get a little exercise after the big Thanksgiving dinner.

As you see, there is a wide range of jobs offered by mystery shopping companies. All shoppers will not be interested in the same type of shops.  Being able to search for and choose the type of mystery shop you are interested in is one of the benefits of mystery shopping.  The flexibility and variety offered by mystery shopping is just another reason it is becoming one of the best job opportunities for flexibility.

The top priority for this type of company is service.  The success of their business is based on good service.  The best way to evaluate the service a customer is receiving is to ask the customer.  That is what mystery shopping companies do – they ask you!
Banks

You may go to a bank to evaluate the answers you receive when asking about a particular service they offer.  You may be asked to count the number of people waiting for service.  The bank may test for consistency by having you check the latest promotion or interest rates posted.  The mystery shopping company that you shop for will give you the exact scenario and questions to ask.  I’ve found some of these shops to be the quickest, easiest and best paying.

Fast Food

As a mystery shopper, you may place an order for a certain meal and record the time it takes to receive your order.   You may also evaluate your meal for taste and appearance. This helps the company maintain a particular standard throughout the chain.

Retail

Retail organizations might evaluate the customer service that their employees are offering by having you make a purchase and return the purchase a couple of days later for the purpose of evaluating the return process.  The company may ask you to record of how many employees are on the floor or ask if you are approached by someone offering assistance.

Apartment Complexes, Health Clubs and Automobile Dealers

These shops may take more time as you will need to listen to the details of renting, tour the health club or test drive a car.  These shops might also take a more extroverted personality as you will have to ask some questions and listen to the “sales pitch.” Those that have dreamed of acting, these are the shops for you, break a leg!

Grocery Chains

Grocery stores are another quick and easy shop.  The companies require you to evaluate several areas in the stores but they are not time consuming.  You might be required to ask a customer service question, purchase something from the deli or count the number of people in line at the pharmacy.

These are a few of my favorites. Try them yourself, you’ll find one or two you like then start signing up for them. Enjoy!

Any place you can find retail locations there will be a mystery shopper job. Once you become a reliable mystery shopper, schedulers are going to be very eager to give you shops when they are available.

The purpose of your mystery shop is to find out whether a store is following customer service standards set by the company. Mystery shoppers call or visit the stores acting like ordinary buyers and then report back detailed information of what they experienced via questionnaires or written reports.

The mystery shopping companies look for shoppers that are detail oriented, observant, and reliable. As a mystery shopper you will have jobs evaluating many different industries like entertainment, travel, department stores, service suppliers, gas stations, convenience stores, banks, restaurants and retail stores just to name a few.

While doing a mystery shopper job it’s important to understand all the instructions for every store, be accurate, detailed and unprejudiced. Shoppers could be required to document the employee’s descriptions and names, how clean the store is and if the employees are knowledgeable about the services or products. You will also have to submit your reports on time.

Many companies now require their mystery shoppers to be able to have access to a fax machine, a scanner, email and internet access. Some may even require you to own a digital camera to record product placement, cleanliness, signs and other focal points.

A mystery shopper job can be exciting and a fun way to earn a great income. You get to pick the jobs you want. This is why it’s the ideal job for students, stay at home moms or anyone looking for a part time or even full time job.

In this uncertain economy, more and more of us are opening our eyes to save money anywhere we can.  Recently while waiting for the car to be serviced at my local Jiffy Lube, I noticed plaques in the waiting area commending the staff on their superior performance observed by secret shoppers.  Interesting…someone has to be doing the mystery shopping. Why can’t that be me?

There are also secret shopping jobs available at Auto Zone.  While Jiffy Lube can help you with your car servicing, Auto Zone shops are perfect opportunities for you to handle any needed car repair needs.  In addition, they have general accessories and even some items not limited to automotive use.  For instance, I purchased a small outside power generator to power the outside patio lights that are along way from a power outlet.

Some of the service jobs offer little or not pay but can help out the household budget by saving you money on a service you would otherwise take money out of your pocket.  Whether it is money coming in or reimbursement coming in, it is always great to get paid to shop.

Auto sales shops are also available and these shops usually pay large amounts.  They also may take more of your time.  These automotive dealer shops evaluate customer service provided by salespeople at the dealers.  In some, but not all cases, these secret shopping jobs will require a test drive.

With any secret shopping job, you should be very observant and try to remember details.  The companies appreciate the feedback you give so they can modify training programs to address any problems identified in your report.  Just remember, getting paid to shop is the goal, don’t be sold on purchasing a new car unless you really need one.  If you are, in fact, in the market for a new car, you might be able to negotiate a discount or rebate with the secret shopping company.