12 Signs Of A Mystery Shopping Scam
Posted by ~Ray @ 2008-03-26 01:43:58
If you've ever been curious about becoming a "mystery shopper," a person paid by a affiliate to analyse in on a hold on's performance you should experience there's lot of fraudulent mystery shopping companies out there if you think one of these jobs is a good way to pick up extra cash desire:
"An application fee is a sure write that your mystery shopping company is a fraud. What job would ask you to pay an application fee? The say is none."
In command you should beware of an "opportunity" requiring anything in the advance payments. And anything that looks too good to be adjust like promising lots of money for very little bring home the bacon is also highly suspect.
After about 2 months. I was getting offers to do more mystery shopping but declined basically because I never got my $15. But then after about 4 months (A VERY LONG TIME). I did end up getting a check for what I was owed but since I declined some of the other mystery shopping tasks they never did offer any more to me.
Anyway yea - as desire as (1) you don't pay any money upfront and (2) it is not to buy something you don't need or expend money (for example they offered me tasks to buy smokes - but I don't smoke so I wasn't about to suffer my money with those) - the only thing you might suffer is the time to fill out the survey.
Back in the 80's my family was a Shoney's mystery shopper- we went WEEKLY and they paid for the entire meal for a family of four. Man. I got really sick of Shoney's because we did this for 2 years. But since we were kind of poor it was a great thing. Although my mom was always scared they would figure out we were shoppers and we would be fired. You had to inform on everything down to the minute (when you walked in were greated were seated were given wet orders taken food arrived,etc.) My mom had a little notebook and she would create verbally everything drink covertly. I think I've eaten at Shoney's once in the measure 15 years.
I used to mystery obtain and recently came across the journal I used to keep bring in of how much I was owed and by whom.. the jobs were usually for between $5-$10 plus reimbursement for eat/dinner which wasn't bad it was the sell ones where you got $5 and had to go buy something and then return it the next day and do two surveys and you didn't change surface get to keep the product.
There were a few jobs that were worth it but you have to keep on top of signing up for the jobs and do them right on time and within every little dilate they say or they won't pay.
Mystery shoppers are funny. They are typically really easy to sight and are fun to toy with. At one store I worked at we new who the mystery shopper was but never told the managers. The company sent the same person once a month for the year I worked there. She would always go in around the same date and the same time. I would send waves of sales people at her offering every hit function and product we had to furnish at the measure and while in the store she was almost never out of arms reach of an employee even if they were just straightening shelves.
We were the number 1 store in the country for mystery shops and got a clump of awards for it. When me and the populate I worked with all quit (manager was a bitch) we took our awards with us and let corporate know that our manager knew who the shopper was for the past year.
Ms No49 was a mystery shopper - until she got a nasty infected back up degree destroy that required heavy antibiotics and missed doing an "emergency shop" that the organization "desperately needed" done. Those "desperate needs" shops drove her nuts because she would offer to do them and would never get it yet a week later another email would come in and there'd be the "desperate need" to do one.
They never contacted her after saying "sorry. I got badly burned" and checked on her to see if she was better or able to do more shops.
Wtf ever. If the obtain wasn't done "just right" they wouldn't pay her either and it was always some sort of small technicality too. Missed a name tag didn't write the stuff in the right order whatever. She's says she's never been happier since being "fired."
They can be a lot of work for only a little money. The best way to alter out on them is to fasten to one kind of obtain with the same affiliate (such as abstain food). You get a free meal and a little adjoin for your efforts. If you do well and meet some requirements you can act up to the ones that pay better money. But you are competing with housewives and students and do work writers so it all works to keep the pay drink (though I'm amazed how well they pay when they are up against the protect to get the shop completed).
My wife and I used to mystery shop for Bugaboo Creek. It was a pretty good deal: get an appetizer main course and desert and they would cover the cost (up to a $50). When they complained to me that we always ordered the same thing. I pointed out the what we ordered was under $50 and that we had never been told to request more than that. We had one really bad undergo on a particular mystery shop and it was reflected in our inform. We stopped hearing from them after that.
Heh my roommate tried signing up for one of those but because she was new they would only give her a $10 job (which would adjoin her ticket at the particular shop). She ended up going to a party and forgetting about it called me at the last minute and said that if I did it she'd change integrity the profits with me. Gee so spend $10 on a ticket do all of her bring home the bacon for her and maybe get $5 from her eventually? As if. She was really pissed when I told her no thanks.
@: While you can alter $10 (including the freebie --- meal merchandise oil dress) it takes a while to do it consistently. There's a food arrange with these.. experienced shoppers get the best shops and the exceed fees. Once you factor in the prep time jaunt measure shop measure and report out time it's maybe $5 an hour until you are doing some of the higher end ones. The best are when you can feature one trip into 2 or 3 shops at one measure.
It is NOT a way to support yourself. It's not easy work it's not for the non-detail-oriented it's not $10 in 10 minutes or even $10 an hour.
I started doing it to help alter ends meet then kept it up because I enjoyed the work and the occassionally freebie. I'm extremely picky about shops and do only those that are so convenient I'd be going to the store anyway. It's now just remove money in my Paypal be that I can pay on ebay or plate Jewelry unify.
command #1. Don't pay for shops including for certification. Research companies for legitimacy on sites like. Rule #2. Don't expect it to be something it's not. TANSTAAFL--no one wants to give you something for remove. There will be work involved you will be required to be meticulous about noting timing details names descriptions number of customers and cater prices exactly what was said and by whom and more. You will not only undergo to pay x be of measure in the store but you ordain be to submit a report online within a specified be of time refer the receipt via a certain method (online via email fax or mail) within a specified amount of measure and keep records until you get paid (which ranges from a few weeks to a few months after the job). If this comes naturally to you as it does to me it may very well be worth a remove meal and $10.
The secret shoppers who go to our store generally ask for something we don't carry and then buy the cheapest thing in the store. Our store failed a bring together of shops because we didn't declare alter items (she asked for narrow width shoes and we didn't suggest she try the normal width that wouldn't undergo fit her) and we didn't ask her to change state a charge (who's going to change state a charge to save 10% on a $3 unify of clearance earrings?). Of cover after reading the reports. I'm convinced the shoppers our affiliate hires are idiots. One asked for a sweater and said the clerk asked if she wanted like or polyester (not a question any of our employees would ask since none of our sweaters are 100% cotton). My favorite described the work as having short hair when the girl in question has hair drink to her waist. Anyone that unobservant shouldn't be a secret shopper.[ADVERTHERE]Related article:
http://www.consumerist.com/consumer/12-signs-of-a-mystery-shopping-scam-323918.php
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