So, you’ve read the Mystery Shopping Introduction and How to Get Started segments. You’ve signed up with the two recommended starters, read the materials, and successfully completed a number of shops. Congratulations! Now you’re ready to expand your business base by signing up with more companies.
Everyone has their favorites, for various reasons, but these are companies that I personally would recommend.
Fast-paying. Often in mystery shopping, you have to wait 45-60 days to be paid. For some people, that’s not an option, especially if you have laid out money up front. With these three companies, I have experienced unusually quick turnaround in payment, sometimes within 24 hours (usually within the week). Mystique Shoppers – Hands down, the fastest pay in the industry. They deal mostly with companies in the Northeast, Midwest, and South. GFK – This is a great company all-around, shopping nationwide. Reflections – a smaller, northwest company with fantastic staff.
Training. Feeling like you’d like a little more instruction on your shops? These two companies will give you very detailed instructions, and require you to take a short test before your shop. Sensors Quality Management – They’re a Canadian company that shops all of North America. There is so much information on their website! Their “Ask Sally” section can make you a shopping expert if you read it all. Service Evaluation Concepts – Good training materials for their shops. If you are still feeling a little shaky, their shop instructions are quite detailed.
Pay. Okay, I know a lot of you just skipped to this one right off. It’s not always about the money, though. I would much rather take a lower paying job from a company that I know will pay me that a higher paying one who I have to “remind”. But there are a few companies who pay on time and well. Kern and GFK (previously mentioned) are two. Another two that pay well relative to the time spent are Feedback Plus (difficult to get signed on with, but worth trying) and Reality Check, a fantastic company to work with.
Specialty Shopping. Some companies specialize in particular types of businesses. One really excellent benefit to mystery shopping is free (or reduced-fee) admission to amusement venues. Two companies that I really like who do this are Amusement Advantage and Spies in Disguise. Two summers ago, we took an amusement park vacation. We visited five different parks along the I-5 corridor from Seattle to San Diego. It was a blast and not something my four children will ever forget – and we did it on the cheap. With six of us, it would’ve been prohibitively expensive to pay retail price for tickets. I mystery shopped them all. You can, too.
Related Blogs:
Mystery Shopping: How to Get the Highest Pay