Category: Tips for Mystery Shopping

The best way to schedule your mystery shops is around your extra free time. No brainer, right?  Yet I get asked this question from my friends or family who I suggest should do mystery shopping. They always seem to ask me, when do you have the time?

As with anything in life, you make the time. First step is to look at your calendar or planner. Determine when you have some free time, this includes when you watch TV. Then determine how many shops you want to complete during this time.
You can make this fun by choosing shops that involve food or exploring new apartment layouts to give you ideas for your next dream home.

From there, apply for the shops that you want, as soon as they are released. For two reasons, one is that they may be taken by someone else, if you do not send in a request and the other reason is that you want to get the best time and date that works with your schedule.

Consider choosing shops near each other, if you choose to do more than one shop within the same day. This allows you to use your gas and time effectively.

Many companies will offer route shops, if you ask for them. Another alternative would be for you to simply open google maps and pinpoint the locations of your desired shops. This allows you to create your own route with the shops to ensure you are not doing any unnecessary back and forth throughout the day.

To summarize, check your calendar or planner to determine your free time, choose mystery shops that fit within those dates and times, request those shops, and create a route.

When a mystery shop problem arises, the first thing to do is to reach out for support. You do this by e-mailing the shopping company at the appropriate e-mail address.

While you are waiting for a response, read through the mystery shopper FAQ for your particular company as they may have the answer listed there.

If the problem is urgent, you may need to attempt an actual phone call. This can be if you are onsite for a mystery shop job when it arises. The goal here is to be as discrete as possible. It may be best to step away from the establishment or return to your car.

Bonus tip: Employees have to go to the bathroom too. You do not want to risk being discovered by calling the mystery shopping company while hiding out near the toilet.

The smartest thing to do is prepare in advance for issues or shop problems. Many mystery shopping companies have a frequently asked question or FAQ section on their website. This area would, more than likely, cover many issues that could arrive for a new or seasoned shopper. The FAQ area could also lend suggestions on how to best address the issues.

Another area to check would be the actual shop assignment section. The shop guidelines will be posted here. Read them ahead of time. Read them right before the shop. This will save you lots of trouble later.

Again, if after all of the above, you still have questions, this is where you can reach out and e-mail the support staff for guidance.

A successful shop takes team work. If you choose a good mystery shopping company, they will have live and active support. You only simply have to reach out for it, when needed.

When you are reaching out for shop support, there are three components that should be addressed so that you can get the most beneficial and quick answer to your question or problem addressed.

Component One- Know what the problem or issue

Be able to roughly describe the problem or issue in a concise manner. More than likely you will be communicating with the mystery shopping company through e-mail. This allows for their team to read and respond appropriately and quickly.

Issues can include: Not able to get in touch with target agent on an apartment shop after multiple attempts or

Component Two- Determine best way to communicate issue or problem for fastest response

More than likely, you will be communicating with the mystery shopping company team through e-mail. This allows you to receive a quicker answer and for the staff to streamline support. Most reputable mystery shopping companies will have an area on their website or dashboard listing the proper e-mail addresses to reach out to for shop support. Make everyone’s life easier and use that one. If you send an e-mail to [email protected], it more than likely will not be answered quickly.

Bonus tip: Use the subject line to clearly state the issue.

Component Three- Be Patient

You do not need to send multiple e-mails to more than one team member to get a response. Wouldn’t that be annoying? On that note, if the problem or issue is urgent, state this in the subject line and body of the e-mail to the support team.

Overall, the best way to communicate and receive a response is to be concise, stating the most important facts such as shop number, 1-2 sentences about the issue or problem, if applicable, state what you have done prior to reaching out for help and if it the issue is urgent or not. From there, a support staff member will reach out with the appropriate next steps.

Once you begin mystery shopping for various companies, many mystery shopping sites monitor your timeliness and accuracy of your reports.

Being accurate and timely submitting your shops on time can make a difference on whether you receive more shops. If you want more shops, ensure that you always double check your work for accuracy, use spell check, and review your sentences for any grammatical errors.

If you need extra time to complete a shop, always notify the scheduler before your deadline date to ensure you keep your shop and obtain your extension. Further, this helps to provide a positive memory and feedback on your final submission of your report. Schedulers will usually withhold shops for those shoppers who do not finish their report on time or if you did not notify them for an extension before your deadline.

Always remember to communicate regularly with your scheduler or just send a simple email to prove that you are working diligently on your assignments. This regular communication with your scheduler helps you to obtain further shops. If a staff person contacts you on any corrections, ensure that you correct the report and resubmit it quickly. Also, ensure you note any changes that the staff person from the mystery shopping company wants done on all future reports so that way, all future submissions will always be correct.

When you do many reports from various companies, it is easy to not remember a new change that was requested from a staff person, so ensure you note any changes on your reports on your computer or notebook. If you respond quickly to any questions and submit those reports timely and accurately, schedulers will always remember to offer you numerous shops.

You always hear to Dress for the Occasion and this also applies to mystery shops. You do not want to stand out if you are a mystery shopper and always should keep a low profile about your visit to not arise suspicion that you are a shopper.

If you are assigned to visit an apartment, a shopper will usually dress in a casual to working type clothing.  However, if you are assigned to visit a high-end dealership, dressing in a nicer outfit will work better to your advantage.

Further, if you do not have an expensive car, parking down the street always helps to create the illusion of a high-end buyer. As always, you want to represent a reputable consumer who wants to rent an apartment, buy a car, visit a restaurant, or whatever shop you are assigned.

You need to remember that you were hired for a company to evaluate their employee’s performance on how well they would treat their prospective customers, and projecting a positive image both physically in attire and mentally help to quickly get the answers you need as a shopper. Showing up in curlers and jogging outfits usually do not work with these shops and can work to your disadvantage since the client may not take you serious in your endeavor. This could result in employee’s not willing to devote their best presentation on selling a product and cause you to not obtain complete answers for your visit.

Most shops do not allow you to take your children with you, but occasionally some shops allow you to take them to a shop, but in all cases, you should check with your scheduler if there is any doubt. You want to ensure that in all cases you dress for success, know the standard dress code for your particular shop, and conduct the shop in a professional manner.

How many times have you left that mystery-shopping job, and as you grab your pen to jot down important observations, you go blank?

How many shoppers struggle with those occasional lapses of memory on what color those walls were or if the flooring in the office was laid with carpeting or was it vinyl? As a mystery shopper, memory retention is vital in performing a complete and accurate report, but once in a while, brain fog sets in.

The good news is that memory retention can be strengthened just like working out your muscles. There are several simple memory tricks that can help you memorize those details of that apartment or facility that you just visited. Just repeating a detail several times can trigger the brain to remember it more accurately and quickly. If you need to remember wall colors, just repeat the color over and over again silently during the tour. Repetition is a great way to trigger the mind to remember a name or detail.

Alternatively, maybe you are more of a visual person and the coloring décor might remind you of your favorite color or it may even be the color of your pet. Associating a color or detail with a favorite object will usually trigger your brain to remember the item again. Repetition and visualization are two easy ways to remember shop details and this can help you quickly finish your evaluation report since retraining your brain to remember specifics can be fun and easy.  These tips should be helpful when shopping.

If you work as an independent contractor you will eventually encounter an issue with not getting paid. This is important for you to know when you go into mystery shopping. If your shop report was not rejected, payment should be made to you. The first thing you need to check on when you are missing your payment  is when the company usually pays.

If you have not worked for them before it is important to check their website for the standard payment time frame. Some companies pay the month following the shop, while others pay two months after the shop has been accepted. If you have worked for the company before and are familiar with the pay schedule, and still were not paid, it is still a good idea to check the company’s official payment policy.

Once you determine per the company’s policy that you should have already received payment, go to the company website and find the contact email address for payment issues. This will usually be listed in a company’s FAQ section or tab. Send a professional emailing with all the necessary information in it stating you were not paid. The necessary information will include all shop details such as the full location description. This will have the location name, store number, physical address, and usually a telephone number. It is best if you can copy the entire information block from your shop listing on your job board. That way everything is included. You also want to include a shop ID number if there is one, the payment amount broken down into shop pay and reimbursement, and, very importantly, the shop completion date. The email will usually sound something like this:

 
I am inquiring about payment for the following shop which was completed on 6/15/15:
Business Name (#0987)123 Main St. Some City, State Zip
As of today’s date, I have not received payment. Can you please advise when payment is to be expected? Thanks for your time.

 
Most companies handle numerous accounts, shoppers, clients, etc. Errors do happen, and they cannot rectify the situation unless you make them aware.  Most companies respond promptly to missed payments and handle your issue immediately. Everyone understands holding up someone’s money can put that person into a bad situation. However, if the company gives you the run around and strings you along, it is recommended you cease and desist from conducting shops for them until the matter is resolved. Even if the matter is resolved, if you do not like the manner in which it was resolved, it is recommended you no longer do business with them. No one likes to work for free, and your time is valuable. Simply find other companies to work for that compensate you as promised.

As an independent contractor, there are a couple of areas, to make sure are in order before and while completing mystery shops.

Create a Game plan.
Determine what kind of mystery shops you like to complete and how often you would like to complete a shop. Would this be weekly, monthly, or every so often? The great thing is most mystery shopping companies do not set a minimum shop limit. This gives you ultimate flexibility to complete mystery shops as you wish.

Once you determine how often you want to complete a mystery shop, watch your e-mail for monthly alerts. Many mystery shopping companies set out e-mail alerts with their available shops. Submit your request for your top pick mystery shops as soon as you see it. The good shops aren’t usually available for long.

Taxes.
Keep a simple spreadsheet, note pad, or computer folder to keep track of how much you are making each month. This allows you to determine if you need to pay taxes. Any amount over $600 should be reported on your taxes. Please confirm this advice with a tax expert.

Company Rules.
Make sure to check company rules for each mystery shopping company that you contract with so that you are in compliance with everything.

On Time Reporting.
If you want to continue to complete mystery shops, on time reporting will be key. This allows the mystery shopping company who hired you time to review and edit your report. It also allows their staff to reach out if they have any questions before the report is due to the company who hired them.

Overall, being an independent contractor allows you the flexibility that you probably only dreamed of prior to mystery shopping. If you follow the above suggestions, you will be off to a great start as an independent contractor for mystery shopping companies.