shopperpro

You’d be surprised how often I get this question. In a nutshell mystery shopping is a tool that companies use to get a ‘customer’s eye’ view of what is happening in their stores or franchises. Mystery shoppers are usually women, but there are quite a few men out there as well. The shoppers pose as regular customers and when they are finished with their shopping experiences they report back on what happened during their shop. Usually reports will be submitted online, but they can be taken over the phone or in extreme cases, mailed in. If a business deals with customers chances are they are mystery shopped. Assignments can range from a simple five minute phone call to a more complex hours long site visit.

I know on the surface it sounds like a lot of fun, and don’t get me wrong it is, but it is also a lot of work. For starters as a mystery shopper you are seldom, if ever, an employee. Mystery shoppers are more often independent contractors. Taxwise, independent contracting opens up a whole new bucket of worms for the uninitiated. When I was mystery shopping full time, back in the dark ages, one year when I went to have my taxes done I had W-9 forms from over 50 companies. That’s a lot of data entry. I thought my poor accountant was going to faint! On the plus side you also get to deduct your mileage, office equipment, and possibly even get a tax break on your home office. Please do not take anything here as gospel for the IRS, but instead if you are going this route PLEASE contact your LOCAL tax professional/accountant. They will have details and specifics as to what you will need to save for your tax deductions and how to prove it.

If you plan on making mystery shopping your full time job get ready for a lot of work and you had better love your car. Comparatively speaking, more time is spent in your car getting to and from assignments, than searching for jobs or writing your reports. Then again perhaps I just live in too rural an area.

The shops themselves can be a lot of fun, but always remember then you have to do the reports on your experiences. This can be a simple 5 questions yes/no form, or it can be a 30-page narrative depending on the assignment. The more narrative questions a form has the longer it will take you to complete.

The compensation for the shops you complete will also vary widely by assignment. Different companies pay different fees even for the same type of shop. What am I talking about? Take apartment shopping - you go to a complex as a prospective tenant and take a tour. Company A offers $35 for the report, but it’s shop form is very long and full of narrative answers while Company B only offers $15, but it’s shop form has more yes/no with fewer narratives required. Shop A will make you more money, but Shop B will take you less time. Perhaps even a lot less if you are not used to writing narratives. There is no one true way here. Do whatever suits YOU best. Yes, if you are required to make a purchase, and not return the item, you are allowed to keep it. However, fees for these shops will be lower. An information gather shop may pay $14, while a shop type shop might pay just $4 with a $10 maximum purchase. Some shops will even be reimbursement only - most car service, dining, and hotel shops fall into this one. Again - do what works for you.

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