Getting Started part 2 The Job Listing

Okay, so you are at the MSPA job board, and hopefully you have found some shops that are available in your area!

Let's understand what the job posting means. Note: clicking on a job link will cause a pop-up window to appear, so check if your pop-up-blocker is stopping it.

The yellow bar at the top of the listing is probably the most important part of the page. This contains the name of the company which is hiring for the shop. Note: you cannot sign-up for shops directly on the MSPA website. The rest of the listing describes the type of shop and the requirements.

If you find a shop in your area you are interested in, click on the link of the mystery shopping company who is hosting the shop. You will need to sign up for this company, and any other company you want to work for, before completing any shops.

You could sign up for any company you see listed at MSPA (under member companies), but don't waste your time signing up for companies if they don't have shops in your area. Check the job board first and then sign up only if there are shops in your area.

Most company's sign-up forms are different, but they are all straight forward. Go through the steps they ask and you will be ready to go.

There are a few tips and tricks about signing-up for companies which I will cover in part 3 of the Getting Started series.

Getting Started part 1 Job Search

The first thing to know about mystery shopping is do not pay anyone to become a mystery shopper! I made this mistake when I first got started. A website will promise to get you set up as a secret or mystery shopper and ask for $20, $30, $40, or some other amount of money. They promise secrets of the trade and lists of companies who are hiring. Let me say again, do not pay for that stuff. Being a secret shopper is free.

Allow me to define some general terms here. I will create a glossary page for your reference later.

shop - refers to a one time job you complete. It includes requesting the shop, being assigned the shop, going to the location to complete the shop, and finally entering the shop information on an online form.

job board - an online list of available shops. You use the job board to find shops and apply for them.

I would recommend going to the MSPA job board to find shops in your local area. Enter your zip code along with a radius you are willing to travel or search by state. Leave the rest of the fields blank except for the CAPTCHA (the letters and numbers that make sure you are human), and click search.

The other fields are filters that help you find specific types of shops. For now, though, you just want to see what shops (if any) are offered in your area. You can click on the blue hyperlink of each shop for more information.

Tomorrow we will look at the job posting on the MSPA search results page to help you discipher what's going on there.

What I like about mystery shopping

I am a graduate student and I find it very difficult to find extra time for work. Most of my time is spent with my nose stuck in a book, studying, or "working" at my internship (unpaid internship that is).

It is flexible. Secret shopping is not an ongoing commitment, so I work only when I can find the time. For example I will do many more mystery shops during semester breaks than at any other time. It allows you to manage your own time.

It doesn't require much time. Most mystery shops jobs take about an hour or two to complete. That's less than any part-time shift work I could get. Sometimes I will schedule them during a much needed study break. I am able to shift gears and come back to the school work refreshed.

You get free stuff! Its difficult to pay for entertainment when you are a grad student without a real job. I use mystery shopping to pay for dates with my wife (like the bowling alley, casual dining, and even fine dining!). I've also received free oil changes because of mystery shopping.

Its a pretty good gig. If you want to dive in and get started (before I write some getting started guides) head on over to mysteryshop.org and find some shops in your area.

What is Mystery Shopping?

Here I want to give a quick overview of the mystery shopping concept.

Companies want to know what a customer's experience is like. The best way to do this is through mystery shoppers.

Mystery (or secret) shoppers visit a location and report back to the business everything they would want to know from a customer's point of view. With this information the company can improve it's policies, reward or correct employees, and hopefully provide a better customer service experience.

The process

1. A company (for purposes of illustration, lets say...) Spacely Space Sprockets is interested in how customers preceive the company.


2. Mr. Spacely, the CEO of Spacely Space Sprockets, contacts (for the purposes of illustration, lets say...) 007 Secret Shop Co. to conduct mystery shops at Spacely Space Sprockets.


3. Mr. Spacely and 007 sit down and decide the criteria for the mystery shop.


4. 007 tells their schedulers that they want to do a shop at Spacely Space Sprockets.


5. The schedulers send out emails to mystery shoppers and put the shop on the job board at the 007 Secret Shop C0 website.


6. A secret shopper (lets say me) finds out that a shop is available and applies for it.


7. The scheduler schedules me to complete the shop by a given due date.


8. I read the guidelines and look at the form I will have to fill in when I am done and familiarize myself with the requested information.


9. I go to Spacely Space Sprockets and shop there according to Mr. Spacely's instructions which I received from 007 Secret Shop Co.


10. I type in my information into the internet form at 007 Secret Shop Co.'s website, and upload my receipts.


11. A reviewer/grader looks at my report, makes any changes, and gives me a grade.


12. The report goes back to Mr. Spacely. I get reimbursed and paid.

So, to clarifiy: Businesses contract with mystery shopping companies to conduct mystery shops for them. The mystery shop companies subcontract the work to mystery shoppers.

Welcome

My name is Joel and I have been a secret shopper for just under a year now. My first mystery shop was on May 2, 2008 and I got a free oil change!

In 2008 I made over $1,000 as a secret shopper. This includes payments and reimbursements for goods and services. Secret shopping (or mystery shopping, depending on who you ask) is a fun way to make some extra cash, but you won't be able to quit your day job.

On this blog I will share tips, mistakes, how-tos, and the basics about mystery shopping. Thanks for visiting!