Mystery Shopping: The Truth

For over a year I worked for a company that scheduled shoppers to perform mystery shops all over the US. There is a great deal of confusion over this whole subject matter and I am going to clear some of this up for you here.

First big question, "Is it a Scam?"

The answer is No! Literally thousands of legitimate companies have mystery shopping companies contracted to check up on how well their employees are treating customers and how well they are following established procedures.

So why do people think it is a scam?

This is a wide-held belief due to companies that are out to make a buck at the expense of the potential evaluators. Some companies will charge you anywhere from $25.00 to $300.00 to have you become a "certified" mystery shopper. Then they will promise you to be assigned numerous mystery shops and could make $50,000 or more a year. Well, here is the truth:

You should NEVER have to pay a fee in advance to mystery shop. You may have to pay for a product that you are buying for the shop, but most of the time you will be reimbursed.

Most shops pay $10-$25 and you need a good memory and be observant. Most forms look for you to pose a certain scenario and may involve purchases and/or returns of product. You may get to keep the product in some cases. To be a good mystery shopper and get additional work, the first rule is "Only apply for shops you can do" the second rule is "If you get selected to do the shop, do the shop" the third rule is "complete the forms correctly".

Sadly, over half of the people that sign up to do a mystery shop for the first time, never go. In the industry they are called a "Flake". I have no idea to this day why people would sign up for something they are not going to do, but it happens.

To make $50,000 a year doing mystery shopping is EXTERMELY unlikely. You would have to be very well-connected and live in a large city and be able to schedule mystery shops 7-days a week, and since they don't reimburse for gas, you would not get to keep all $50,000 since half would go into your gas tank. Realistically, you can make some extra money doing mystery shopping, but to live off of that money is not likely.

Most anyone can mystery shop and not pay a fee. There are numerous sites you can sign up at and a good place to start is the Mystery Shopping Provider Association. They will keep you working with legitimate businesses.

http://www.mysteryshop.org/