I have been mystery shopping for a while now so thought I'd share my thoughts on it and tell you what companies I use.
Mystery shopping can be a great way to get a free meal or try out a new product. They often don't pay too well so don't give up your day job just yet! The earnings can range from a couple of pounds for a quick product enquiry in a store to overnight hotel stays all paid for. I have many years experience in catering and retail management so I've been on the receiving end too! The reports you give can be a very valuable tool for businesses to learn from so it's important to be completely unbiased and honest.
Some weeks I'll have no mystery shops to complete and some weeks can be jam packed so you really can't rely on it for a regular income. It is a great way to earn a bit extra as you can generally pick and choose the days and times you complete the mystery shops. I'm saving all my earnings for my holiday fund!
Once you're all signed up I find the best thing to do is to check the jobs available every day, or a few times of day if you're having a slow week! They do email you with jobs as they become available but the best jobs go so quickly I like to be ahead of the game. Always read the briefs very carefully, sometimes I feel the assignment is really not worth the fee they want to pay you so I pass it up. When you've been accepted to do a mystery shop print out your paperwork and read through it carefully to make sure you understand as you might not get paid if you make a mistake. Always check the dates, time and address etc (I once mystery shopped the wrong shop!). When you've completed your tasks fill in your paperwork as soon as possible and with as much detail as possible. Keep your paperwork for the time stated (usually 6 months) as you may get asked questions at a later date. If you have any queries it's best to get touch with the contact for that assignment as soon as possible, they are usually really friendly and helpful.
I find the websites for these mystery shopping companies are pretty basic and can be a little confusing at first but do persevere and you'll soon get the hang of it. Do keep a good record of your earnings, fees with dates so you can check against bank account to make sure you've been paid correctly. You will also need to declare your earnings but I believe not the reimbursements, please do some more research if you're unsure.
The payments are sometimes a few days after you've completed the assignments or sometimes a month, it varies between each company but they all will require your bank details.
Here's the list of companies I've actually used, please let me know if you've used others that you think are good!
http://www.gapbuster.com/ - McDonald's, Morrisons, Screwfix, Pizza Hut, Spar and Shell.
https://online.mystery-shoppers.co.uk/shoppersignup.asp - various high street shops and financial.
https://www.grassrootsmysteryshopping.com/msw_pnlExtApply.aspx - various high street shops.
http://uk.marketforce.com/register/?ref=198&reu=1075358 * - various shops, restaurants, opticians, hotels etc.
Please leave comments if you have any questions and want to know more!
*Referral link - I get £1.50 for every person I refer when they have completed their first mystery shop with market force - you can then refer your own friends to get the same!
I am not sponsored in any other way and all opinions are my own.
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