As of late, I have gotten some really neat, and high paying mystery shops from a certain company, that I cannot name…it’s a Mystery…LOL

I’ve been with them for a few years now…

However, I can refer you over there, as they enjoy receiving personal referrals from their already experienced shoppers who work with them.

If you’d like me to refer you, please just leave a comment with your email (which I will never post for others to see), and let me know that you’d be interested in giving them a try.

Then, I will personally refer you to this great mystery shopping company, and you’ll receive an email from me with the information you’ll need.

I look forward to hearing from you, and hope that you’ll try them out. They have shops all over Canada and the United States, among other countries.

Talk to you soon…

***

I hope you find this information helpful on the Mystery Shopping Minute from Mystery Shopping Today! Until next time…

Happy Mystery Shopping,

Kimberly Edwards

P.S. Discover How You Can Get Paid $10 To $125 Or More Just To Go To Your Favorite Mall To Shop, Eat At Your Favorite Restaurant, Golf At Your Favorite Course:

Get Paid For Shopping & Eating Out

Technorati Tags: mystery shopping, shopping, mystery, secret shopper, secret shopping

There was a time that I was doing mystery shopping assignments, and one happened to come up about 1 yr ago or so that was one I thought I couldn’t refuse.

It was for me to perform an optical shop…meaning I would go into a shop where they do eye exams, choose lenses, buy glasses and report on the entire thing.

Knowing that glasses were very expensive to buy I jumped on this opp, as the mystery shopping company would reimburse me for the eye exam and 1/2 of the chosen frames and lenses…

I figured this would be a great way to get some new glasses that I wanted without all of the huge expense.

To make this long story short, I performed the entire shop from beginning to end with tons of paperwork to submit. The frames and lenses at this particular store were very expensive. For the frames I wanted, the only ones I wanted, they came to about $475.00. Wow…not expecting that, but since I was getting reimbursed, I figured I would get the ones I wanted.

When my payment came in, they sent me less than 1/2 of what the price of the glasses was, not including the eye exam on top of that. Best believe it that I was right on the phone with them immediately.

They said they didn’t realize how much they would be…I never did get my 1/2 of what the glasses were…

I just wanted to ensure that if you are performing mystery shops, don’t be afraid to call them on the telephone to clarify questions you may have or concerns that you think might arise.

***

I hope you enjoy this post on Mystery Shopping Today! Until next time…

Happy Shopping,

Kimberly Edwards

P.S. Find out How You Can Get Paid $10 To $125 Or More Just To Go To Your Favorite Mall To Shop, Eat At Your Favorite Restaurant, Golf At Your Favorite Courses…Click Here!

Technorati Tags: mystery shopping, mystery shopping tips, optical mystery shop

There are exciting career opportunities for individuals interested in becoming mystery shoppers. Mystery secret shopping enables individuals to not only earn cash but to receive goods for their services.

A mystery shopping company works with numerous businesses and individuals across the nation. The mystery shopping company has a number of mystery shoppers that are contracted out to visit local businesses and rate their shopping experience.

Often time’s businesses are rated on cleanliness, customer service, speed and many other important factors. The results from the secret visit are used by the business in order to figure out ways to better serve their customers.

Mystery secret shopping reports also allow businesses to figure out how to train and motivate employees more effectively. This is a great way for a business to find out first hand what areas may need improvement.

Mystery secret shopping is a rewarding and fun opportunity that allows individuals to earn extra cash. The mystery shopper is able to choose where and when they want to shop. Never is a mystery shopper obligated to accept an assignment.

Legitimate mystery secret shopping opportunities never charge an individual a fee for becoming a mystery shopper. One of the greatest benefits to becoming a mystery shopper is that no experience is needed. Once registered with a mystery shopping company you are given access to free training materials.

There are thousands of mystery secret shopping jobs available. Anyone, from teenagers to adults, can participate in mystery secret shopping. Mystery shopping is a dream job that allows people to earn cash while having fun shopping.

Earl Taylor is an expert opportunist with 8 years experience as an internet marketer. He is the author of CareerJobs. His diligent research and recommendations has been known to help thousands. Get his Free home assembly job listings just for visiting. Or send a blank email to: cashfaqs@freeautobot.com

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?Mystery-Secret-Shopping-Earns-Cash-and-Goods&id=643960

***

I hope you enjoyed today’s installment of Mystery Shopping Today! Until next time…

Happy Shopping,

Kimberly Edwards

P.S. How You Can Get Paid $10 To $125 Or More Just To Go To Your Favorite Mall To Shop, Eat At Your Favorite Restaurant or Golf.

Get Paid For Shopping And Eating Out

Technorati Tags: mystery secret shopping, mystery shopping, secret shopping, secret shopper, undercover shopper

After all of the fun and excitement of your first Secret Shopping assignment, now comes the part that gives many people the most difficulty, putting together the report.

It’s worth noting that there really is no such thing as a standard report. Each assignment will have been compiled based on the specific requirements of the sponsor company and in collaboration with the Secret Shopping Company a list of questions will have been devised and assembled into a unique questionnaire.

Having mentioned that, there will normally be a basic structure to the questionnaire that will apply to most assignments. This will include:

• First impressions
• Salesperson approach
• Salesperson selling skills
• Closing the sale
• Customer satisfaction
• Overall shopping experience

Many of the questions will require answers in a multiple choice format, Yes/No, Excellent, Very Good, Satisfactory, Poor, Unacceptable etc. and these will be in a ‘tick box’ or radio button format. These tend to be straightforward and cause little difficulty.

Some questions will then ask for additional information, and this is where most difficulty is experienced. Just remember that all your sponsor is interested in are the facts relating to your experience and not your own opinions. Keep this in mind all the time you are completing your report and so long as you have followed the brief to the letter, the whole process will become much easier.

The following is a sample section summarising the whole shopping experience based on the purchase of a small inexpensive digital camera from a retail branch of a major chain of camera stores. This sample will give you an idea as how to structure your report and can be broken down into the relevant parts depending how your questionnaire has been put together.

“I arrived at the store at 11.00am. There were 6 customers in the store, one of whom was being served at the counter. There were 3 salespersons behind the counter, 1 was serving the customer and the other 2 were having a conversation. Neither of the 2 who were not serving acknowledged me.There was shelving around 3 sides of the store with a large display of cameras behind a glass frontage along the longest wall. The cameras could be accessed by sliding 1 of several glass doors. All of the doors were closed and had locks although I was not able to check whether all of the doors were locked. I browsed the shelves for a while and after approximately 3 minutes I approached the counter where the 2 salespersons were continuing with their conversation.

As I arrived at the counter they immediately stopped their conversation and a young man, in his early twenties, smiled pleasantly and asked how he could help me. He had a name badge with the name of Tim, in large letters which was easy to read. I could not see the name of the other employee as he turned and went into a room at the back of the store. He appeared older than Tim, I estimate early 30’s and was taller at about 6 foot. He had dark curly hair and wore glasses.

I explained to Tim that I was looking for an inexpensive digital camera that I could take with me on holiday. Tim asked me if I had any model in mind and also what my budget was. I told him that I didn’t know much about digital cameras and that I didn’t want to spend more than $150. Tim was really helpful and went over to the glass cabinet, unlocked one of the sliding doors and picked out 3 cameras. He re-locked the cabinet and brought the cameras over to the counter. He then used one of the cameras, a Sony, and spent about 5 minutes explaining how digital cameras worked, the features of this particular model and the best way to get your photos printed. He also explained that most cameras come with a fairly basic memory card and that it would be a good idea to purchase an additional card with extra memory. He then went on to explain the key differences between the 3 models he had selected and the one which he would recommend, the Sony, which was on offer and was being heavily advertising in the store with posters on the wall and a display in the store window. The Sony was not the most expensive of the 3 but fell in the middle at $139.99. Tim seemed very knowledgeable and enthusiastic and answered my somewhat loaded basic questions without appearing bored.

I told Tim that I would like to buy the camera at which point he asked if I would like to purchase an extended guarantee in addition to the one issued by the manufacturer. I asked him what the benefits were and he provided me with a leaflet which he then talked me through. I told him that I did not think the additional cost was worthwhile and he accepted this and did not try to persuade me any further. He then suggested that I should consider a camera case as the Sony did not come with one as part of the package. He showed me 2 cases that the camera would fit and when I chose the cheaper of the 2 at $9.99 he said that it would be perfectly adequate for my camera and did not attempt to push the higher priced case.

I paid by credit card which was processed quickly. Tim placed the camera and case in a plastic bag, displaying the store logo and also gave me a voucher for free printing for 30 - 5” x 7” photographs. He had not mentioned the voucher earlier. He smiled, said he hoped I would enjoy using the camera and if I had any problems to get in touch. By the time I left, the other 2 sales assistants were both helping customers and there were no other customers in the store.”

You can find a more detailed Secret Shopper Sample Report at the Secret Shopper Guide together with much more information about life as a Secret Shopper.

Jennie Clapham is an avid Secret Shopper as well as publisher of the Secret Shopper Guide website.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Jennie_Clapham
http://EzineArticles.com/?Secret-Shopper-Sample-Report—How-To-Take-The-Pain-Out-Of-Submitting-Your-Mystery-Shopping-Report&id=697182

P.S. Discover How You Can Get Paid $10 To $125 Or More Just To Go To Your Favorite Mall To Shop, Eat At Your Favorite Restaurant, Golf At Your Favorite Course:

Get Paid For Shopping & Eating Out

Technorati Tags: secret shopper sample report, secret shopping, mystery shopping, mystery shopper

Can I become a mystery shopper? Do I have in me, which is required to be a successful mystery shopper?

The answer to all these questions is, yes! You can do it. You can avail mystery shopping opportunities if you have some extra time and are willing to make some additional money while having fun and enjoying your favorite pastime like shopping, eating out, going to movies or playing a game of golf at your favorite golf course.

This moneymaking opportunity is available to you at your own convenience, and you can work and make money whenever you have spare time.

The mystery shopping opportunities is good for students, homemakers, retirees, senior citizens, employment seekers and start up entrepreneurs who would like to add an extra stream of income to their purse. This career option is also available to part timers, freelancers and creative persons like musicians, artists and writers.

You have the freedom and opportunity to take your kids and family members along with you for the mystery shopping assignments. This makes it easier for sit home dads and moms to take up the shop assignments. Even assignments like crèches, day care centers, toy stores and play groups it is a requirement to take them along with you.

Going with your spouse, kids or family adds the credibility to your mystery shopping assignment because in that case you look like a genuine customer for that restaurant or business establishment. However, you should ensure that your kids are well behaved.

You must always keep in mind that the objective of your visit is observation and presence of your family or kids should not distract your attention from the assignment.

In majority of cases, the persons taking up mystery shopping assignments should be above 18 years of age, however in case of certain establishment where the mandatory age limits are higher you should match that minimum age requirement. This may be the case with shop assignments where a purchase of liquor may be involved.

It is helpful albeit not mandatory to have a valid driving license or a document to prove your age. The mystery shopping assignments allow you the flexibility to decide your time schedule yet you should have sufficient amount of spare time to complete the assignments within a stipulated period.

Qualifications of Mystery shoppers

There is no specific academic qualification required to become a mystery shopper. Persons from all lifestyles, occupations and with all levels of academic qualifications can take up mystery shopping assignments. The people opting for mystery shopping assignments should have reasonably fair oral and written communication skills.

Mystery shoppers should be observant and should have an eye for detail. They should have good imagination and should be reliable. The mystery shoppers need to have a reasonably fair memory and retention power to remember their observations and report the same accurately after the shopping is over. They should have an unbiased attitude and good personal integrity.

Since most of the mystery shopping assignments are available on the Internet, the basic ability to browse the Internet sites and operating e-mail functions are necessary for those seeking online shop assignments. The reporting requires basic knowledge of PC, word processing and spreadsheet skills.

You may need to create spreadsheets but your job is limited to entering the necessary data in the pre-designed spreadsheets. Neat writing and documentation skills are necessary when you have to file a handwritten report at the end of the mystery shopping assignment.

Experiences and Skills for a Mystery Shopper

There is no preset experience parameter required to take up mystery shopping assignments. The person should have good written and verbal communication skills. The oral communication skills are necessary because you have to interact with the employees at the business establishment.

It is helpful if you have some background information and experience in customer care. Persons with an exposure to business areas like retail, leasing and finance, education, travel and hospitality have an edge over others while seeking the mystery shopping jobs. A prior exposure to market research and experience in market surveys and focus groups is a definite help to those seeking mystery-shopping assignments.

Good memory, an eye for detail and ability to accomplish objective observation are the key skill requirements for mystery shoppers. Another factor that is vital for your mystery-shopping job is your reliability and impartiality.

The assignment requires you to report the facts “as it is” and not your personal preferences; therefore, it is necessary that you do not let your personal bias to interfere with your objectivity while taking up mystery shopping assignments.

No specific training is required for taking up mystery shopping assignments. However, if there is a specific assignment that requires training, the mystery shopping companies provide you the necessary training. The companies also provide the background information and observation parameters before commencement of each assignment.

How to become a successful Mystery Shopper:

Every profession has its own do’s and don’ts and there are certain factors that determine your success in that vocation, and mystery shopping is no exception to that doctrine. You have learnt that mystery shopping is fun and it involves a great amount of leisure and flexibility, however, you should remember that this is also a serious business.

The business owner uses the inputs provided by mystery shoppers to decide on the business strategies and business plans. Therefore, you should be careful and attentive and take the assignment seriously, because carelessness would not only affect your prospects for getting future assignments but also may affect the client’s business.

You should never reveal your identity during the shop process, because any such eventuality would be detrimental to the very basic objective of mystery shopping. Once you reach the establishment, employees should think of you as a potential client, who is there for buying grocery, lunch, leasing an apartment, or opening a bank account.

You should not be carrying notebooks or paper for making notes publicly. If you forget something that you need to observe, you should avoid taking out the questionnaire in public, because doing so may expose your identity. You can make use of checkbooks, grocery lists or newspapers to make notes at a store or a restaurant. If you are required to note the time taken for a particular service, you should use your watch or cellular phone instead of using a stopwatch.

You should be careful to observe and report all the details including the minute things and should not forget to observe whatever you are directed at the time of assigning you the shop.

It is helpful that you go prepared when go for the shop assignment. You should evaluate and clearly understand what all you need to observe. You should follow the guidelines and be objective with your study. You should also prepare the questions you need to ask from the employees. You should also carry a buying list if you are on a store shop assignment. If you have the basic understanding of customer service, it would enable you to make comparisons and observe the pitfalls.

The successful mystery shoppers are the ones who make the mystery shopping company feel that they themselves have done the assignment in person. You should also be careful to keep a record of all your receipts and mileages and submit them in the required format.

Your attitude should be that of a person interested in improving the service quality of the place he is visiting. You should be careful about timely submission of the reports because it may determine your chances of getting future assignments.

Mystery shopping is an attractive career option and a serious opportunity for making money. However, it is not a scheme for making fast money. You should take it up as a serious business and not a joke if you really want to become a successful mystery shopper.

To Your Immediate and Lasting Mystery Shopping Success,

Kenney Jr.
Blog-n-Butter
Director

P.S. Discover How You Can Get Paid $10 To $125 Or More Just To Go To Your Favorite Mall To Shop, Eat At Your Favorite Restaurant, Golf At Your Favorite Course:

Get Paid For Shopping & Eating Out

Technorati Tags: mystery shopping, make money mystery shopping, how to become a mystery shopper, mystery shopping opportunities, business opportunities, make money

Different companies employ mystery shoppers to evaluate the quality of the products, the setup and environment of the establishment and efficiency and performance of the front line staff.

Generally, the mystery shoppers need to evaluate the customer service of a particular business establishment. These business establishments can be department stores, a retail chains, restaurants, hotels, health clubs, movie theaters, recreational or gaming facilitates or resorts; virtually any establishment that has a retail customer interaction.

In this process, the mystery shoppers visit the client’s business establishment. They need to behave like normal customers while keeping an eagle eye on all the happenings at the establishment.

Mystery shoppers are remote eyes and ears of the business owners. They observe maintenance, display, quality of merchandise or services offered and the staff’s response and behavior at the establishment.

The primary role of the mystery shoppers is to evaluate the quality of customer service and customer care at the business establishment. However, they also need to evaluate any specific parameter like performance of the key front line personnel, cash handling skills and efficiency of the cashier, knowledge and behavior of the salesperson and to assess whether employees are making appropriate and effective use of suggestive selling techniques.

In some cases, the mystery shoppers involve in evaluating and observing the similar aspects at the competitors’ establishments and find out the features that give them the competitive edge.

In addition, the “shoppers” also need to observe how the employees greet a customer at the establishment and how they behave while interacting with clients. They need to notice whether the staff is making use of phrases such as welcome to xyz store or thank you for dining at our restaurant.

Once the mystery shopper has completed his shopping assignment, he should fill up a detailed questionnaire about the customer service and overall atmosphere of the business establishment and submit the report to the owner of establishment. The management of the establishment uses this data for a number of purposes like, improving appearance and looks of the establishment, improving customer service, deciding on employees’ rewards, motivation and training.

Overall, the findings are utilized for making improvements that help in better customer retention, enhanced client loyalty and improving the bottom line of the company.

The questionnaire filled at the end of a shopping assignment varies from one company to the other depending on the type of business or establishment. The type and scope of observation also depend upon the objective of the study. Therefore, the parameters of study and questionnaire are very vital for the mystery shopping.

Generally, the questionnaires to be filled at the end of mystery shopping exercise contain objective or close-ended questions with answers in yes or no or the answers have to be checked in particular boxes. However, some questions may require descriptive or narrative answers.

At the time of handing over the shop assignments, mystery shoppers receive background information about the company. The mystery shoppers need to evaluate the customer service and overall atmosphere at the establishment in relation to the information provided and make comparative evaluation.

The general parameters on which the mystery shoppers need to evaluate and report are:

• Customer care and customer service at the establishment

• Cleanliness and arrangement of the establishment

• Visibility of the product on display

• Product Quality

• Product related knowledge of the employees

• Adherence to rules and procedures

• Waiting time for shopping or service delivery at the establishment

• Honesty and integrity of employees

• Efficiency of the employees

• Dressing, appearance and grooming of the employees

As mentioned earlier, the observations and evaluation vary from one organization to other. However, some common points observed by mystery shoppers visiting a store or a restaurant are:

• How employees greeted them at the entrance of establishment?

• How was the general atmosphere and upkeep of the establishment?

• Are the signage and window display attractive?

• Are they maintaining the establishment properly? Is it neat and clean?

• Have they stocked the racks adequately? Is the arrangement convenient and accessible to the customers?

• How is the table arrangement?

• Is the menu self explanatory and tempting?

• Have they stocked the salad with fresh vegetables and fruits?

• What is the service time of the restaurant?

• Are the rest rooms clean and hygienic and have timely refills of soap and tissues?

• Does the salesman/steward have adequate knowledge about the merchandise/cuisine?

• What is the quality of products/service/food?

• Are they handling customer queries properly?

• What is the turn around time for delivery of goods and services?

• Did the cashier greet you and how do you rate the cashiers’ service?

• Did they explain you about the customer loyalty program or the promotional schemes?

• Did they greet you when you left the establishment?

As a team effort me and my Kim were made just short of $3,000 in our 7th week and were already booked to make over $4,000 in our next month. We worked when we wanted and how we wanted. Now mystery shopping takes a lot of effort to make that kind of money, but it’s so fun and well worth it.

I remember we had our 14 year old niece come down from Canada and just about every activity we did that summer we did for free or were reimbursed for. It’s great.

To Your Immediate and Lasting Mystery Shopping Success!

Kenney of Edwards
Blog N’ Butter
Director

P.S. Discover How You Can Get Paid $10 To $125 Or More Just To Go To Your Favorite Mall To Shop, Eat At Your Favorite Restaurant, Golf At Your Favorite Course:

Get Paid For Shopping & Eating Out

Technorati Tags: mystery shopping, work at home, work from home, make money, how to make money mystery shopping, what do mystery shoppers do

Are you passionate about seeing movies?

What if you could do these activities for free? Or better yet, what if you could actually GET PAID to do them? Well, you can…

No, we are not suggesting any shoddy business opportunity or talking of a magical wand or of someone being too generous. We are talking about a fast growing career option called mystery shopping. Mystery shopping is a process in which the trained customers or shoppers visit the stores or business establishments where they pose and interact with the staff like normal customers.

They also shop for products and services. At the end of process, the mystery shoppers make a detailed and in-depth report about their experiences during the shopping.

Mystery shoppers get a list of parameters on which the detailed feedback is required. They follow the guidelines and instructions during the shopping activity referred to as “shop”. Thereafter they file the detailed reports on the pre-designed questionnaires.

Generally, the business establishments with direct retail customer interaction employ the mystery shoppers. Some examples of businesses/establishments that employ their services are department stores, retail chains, restaurants, banks, movie theaters, hotels and resorts, gaming and recreational centers, health clubs and many more. It is an attractive career option whereby people enjoy shopping their favorite items free of cost.

The remuneration for mystery shoppers depends on types of assignments. It may vary from business to business. However, the mystery shoppers can expect to get anything in the range of US$10 to US$40 per hour. Apart from it, they also get reimbursement of the bill if their assignment requires a purchase at the store or establishment.

Many times, mystery shoppers also receive remuneration in kind in addition to the fee in the form of gifts, gift vouchers, and free passes. In certain types of assignments, the mystery shoppers get the traveling cost reimbursed.

Mystery Shopping is a flexible career option in which the person has the freedom to decide the schedule according to his/her convenience. It is suitable for students, retirees, homemakers, freelancers and part timers. It is an ideal career opportunity for the people who would like to make some extra money while having fun in their leisure time.

The terms synonymous with mystery shoppers are secret shoppers, anonymous shoppers, quality auditors and trained customers etc.

Mystery shopping is the latest services evaluation tool employed by the business owners to evaluate the service delivery at their business establishments. Nowadays, customer behavior is very unpredictable and to maintain good customer relations, gaining customer loyalty has become a tightrope walk.

Many customers would not complain if that they dislike something at an establishment, they simply walk away. The establishments rarely come to know of the reasons why they have lost a precious and potent client.

Mystery shopping helps the business owners and the management to get information, which they require to improve their businesses. It is an observation that getting an objective, unbiased evaluation of the products and services is a difficult task, and that is where the mystery shoppers come in handy.

Mystery shoppers are very useful in providing vital background information required by the management to make improvements in their customer care efforts and product quality.

The observations of the mystery shoppers are then put to use in improving the product quality and service delivery of the business. Effective use of this tool can help the establishment to plug gaps in its products and services and to improve its business and profits.

Mystery shoppers also come in handy for performance evaluation of the staff and in the process help in making decisions regarding the excellence awards and other motivational programs for the employees. Moreover, the mystery shoppers can also point out if there is a need for training and development of the employees.

Mystery shopping system acts as checks and balances system for the employees and they have to be always alert and prompt in their duties because they never know whom the “shopper” is. Mystery shopping has helped the businesses/establishments to:

Improve Customer Care: Mystery shopping has helped the businesses and establishments to improve their customer satisfaction level and increase customer loyalty because the employees become more attentive and customer oriented.
Improve Sales: Establishments are able to improve their sales because the sales staff becomes more active and practices suggestive selling techniques.
Minimize Theft: Mystery shopping helps the establishments by considerably reducing instances of theft and shoplifting as the employees are more attentive and alert when dealing with clients.

Better Motivation: Mystery shopping is being used for performance appraisals and deciding on employees’ rewards. This helps the employees to perform better and as a result, the other employees try to excel in their respective spheres to get reward.

Enhance Profits: Mystery shopping helps the businesses/ establishments to increase their profits because of better customer care, reduced thefts and improved sales.

Overall, mystery shopping is a win-win situation for the shopper as well as for the client because it helps the former to make additional income while it improves the business and profits of the latter.

To Your Immediate and Lasting Mystery Shopping Success,

Kenneth of Edwards
Blog N’ Butter
Director

P.S. Discover How You Can Get Paid $10 To $125 Or More Just To Go To Your Favorite Mall To Shop, Eat At Your Favorite Restaurant, Golf At Your Favorite Course:

Get Paid For Shopping & Eating Out

Technorati Tags: mystery shopping, mystery shopper, how to become a mystery shopper, what is mystery shopping, can you make money mystery shopping