There is such a thing as a free lunch with mystery shopping

I have reached the end of my challenge. I set our last Sunday to feed myself a main meal every day for a week all paid for by the mystery shopping companies. I feel strongly that mystery shopping can aid your lifestyle. It can give you a little bit of freedom and free up the family budget. This week I have -

• Got a main meal for four people on three days
• Got a main meal for two people on four days

And at the end of the week I've managed a main meal every day without having to put my hand in my pocket.

But let me explain what that means. With mystery shopping you do pay for the food that you eat. You act just like any other normal customer. You must not reveal yourself as a mystery shopper, or mystery diner. And in many cases you are not allowed to use discount vouchers either. What happens is that every mystery shop is assigned two payments-

The reimbursement, which is how much they will give you to cover your meal.

The fee, which is what they will pay you to travel and carry out the paperwork.

So you know from the outset what you will be paid for the successful completion of the mystery shop. I use this as the figure to set my budget. Over this week I have broken even, so I made no income but didn't have to pay out for all these meals.

Mystery shopping is a way to get extra meals, get your hands on free things and earn a little extra money. If you are interested in becoming a mystery shopper then my book is a great place to start. It guides you through the process of applying and reveals the secrets of mystery shopping-

The 'feed myself for a week on mystery shopping' challenge reaches day 6 - Saturday

The week started with me setting myself a challenge to have all of my main meals for a whole week off the back of mystery shopping assignments.

This is to show some of the real benefits to mystery shopping and how it can save you money, make you money and give you some nice treats. I think that mystery shopping is a great way to add a little extra to what you do and the week has shown some of the aspects of mystery shopping so you can see what it is all about.

I said at the start of the week that I would back each day up with a short blog so you can see my progress.

We have reached Saturday!

This took in a visit to a national quality pizza chain restaurant. It was a visit for four people (the kids being off school at the weekend) so I had to stretch the budget a little further today. In fact we lost out by the tune of around £10. You can look at this two ways-

• Either £10 isn't bad to feed a family of four in a quality restaurant
• The surplus that was made on other mystery shops made up for this

I try to look at things with the second way in mind. As long as the cash evens itself out over a month or so then I am happy. I then get to walk away from my mystery shopping experiences with free food and goods while not being out of pocket.

For example I could do the following mystery shops in a week-

A no purchase visit to a jewellers that paid me £10

A restaurant shop that costs me £5 more than the combined fee and reimbursement

A visit to a cafe where I broke even

A mystery shop at a bookmakers where I had a £3 fee

A pub meal visit where I spent £8 more than the fee and reimbursement

So overall I broke even in cash terms, but I got a meal for two in the restaurant, my lunch in the cafe, a free bet in the bookmakers and a pub meal for four. Mystery shopping can open doors for you like this. You just need to know which doors to knock on. My guide to becoming a mystery shopper is available now and will give you all the information you need to make it a success.

Fish and chips rounds off the weekdays on my free lunch mystery shop challenge

My regular readers will know that I am on a mission to have my main meal paid for by mystery shopping company every day for a week. I am doing this to highlight the great things that mystery shopping can bring you.

Today was a lunchtime meal for my mystery shop. Many restaurant mystery shops are actually designed for one person to carry out. It can be difficult to feed multiple people without supplementing it with a little of your own money. Today was different.

Chain pub fish and chips for two!

The mystery shopping assignment itself is always a straightforward one for this client. They are very efficient at what they do and serve thousands of customers up and down the country every day. I like to do this mystery shop and there are a few of these pubs within a twenty mile radius of my home so they come up quite often.

This one saw a change in some of the requirements against what is usually asked do this is a good time to remind all you budding mystery shoppers to read the notes thoroughly before every visit. Sometimes you visit the same client so often that you know the visit like the back of your hand. But if the assignment notes change and you've missed it then you are high and dry - you won't get paid for the mystery shop.

Many different things can change, such as-

• The visit times that you are allowed to perform the shop in
• The required purchases
• How long you need to be in the establishment
• Any questions you might have to ask

It is always best practice to check all of this out before going on your mystery shop. If you are discrete then you may be able to check and confirm these details on your smartphone while you are here. However make sure that you do not give yourself away as a mystery shopper.

Always be prepared for what you have to do and you can become a successful mystery shopper. My guide to mystery shopping is available now on the Amazon kindle store. Check it out-

Can I survive for a week on mystery shopping alone?

A slight change today in my attempt to feed myself with my main meal for a week from mystery shopping. The rest of the week has seen me get my main meal from a pub or restaurant. Today I had a mystery shop in a supermarket.

There are often supermarket mystery shops available where you can scoot around the shop end pick up your groceries with someone else picking up the tab. You won't get your full weekly shop paid for but there is £10 to £15 on offer so it can go quite a way. I used my earnings today to feed all four of us and to pick up a few extras.

The mystery shop comprised of a few elements. There was a shopping list of items that I had to check stock levels on as well as the general cleanliness of the store. In addition I had to make an enquiry and record what was said. I was then to count the number of checkouts, the number open and whether there were any queues. It was quite an interesting mystery shop because there were different things to assess.

A visit to the supermarket is something that most of us do on a regular basis so if you can get you hands on one then it can help with the grocery bills. Keep your eye out for Market Force, Grass Roots and React Surveys as these are the most likely mystery shopping companies to find then with.

Mystery shopping is a great way to earn a little extra income and get your hands on some free things. With Christmas around the corner mystery shopping can really help you to fill those stockings.

If you are interested in becoming a mystery shopper then my book is a great place to start-

What goes into a mystery shop?

This week I have been trying to get my main meal every day paid for from mystery shopping. I have set up a mystery shop every day in a restaurant, bar or pub. I think that there are great benefits to mystery shopping and to prove it can feed me for a week!

But a lot of people ask me what mystery shopping is all about. Let me talk you through today's mystery shop so you can see what it entails-

First I had to read and print all the job notes and the questionnaire - 10 minutes

I had to plan the visit such as travelling there, parking and how long I'd be there - 5 minutes

Travelling to the venue in a nearby town - 10 minutes

I carried out the mystery shop itself with all the requirements that the company gave me - 30  minutes

For this one I had to buy a meal and a drink, ask a question about the meal - is the coffee you use Free-Trade?

This also had a requirement that is becoming more common, which is to take a photo of the meal before I eat it. I guess they are looking 

After the job I had to complete the questionnaire on paper soon after completing the mystery shop - 5 minutes

Then it was on to home to answer the questionnaire online - 10 minutes travel and 20 minutes online

The whole mystery shop from start to finish took around an hour and a half. So you have to weigh this up when thinking about whether mystery shopping will work for you. An hour and a half might be too much out of the day of certain people. It might be a good amount of time to earn a free meal for others.

On to the next meal!

Mystery shopping is a great way to earn some extra money. If you are interested in becoming a mystery shopper then my book will let you know what it is all about and guide you through the application process. Check it out now!

Mystery shopping for my dinner every day this week - Tuesday

Part two of my mission to get mystery shops for my main meal every day for a week was a success.

For those of you they don't follow my blog every day I have set myself a challenge. I firmly believe in the power of mystery shopping to earn a little extra money and get your hands on a few freebies. Family life can be tough on the finances so freeing up a little money can help.

For those of you that do follow, you will know that I have promised a small blog entry every day to let you know about the meals I have got from mystery shopping and how my progress is coming along. The next blog (later today or early tomorrow) will go into some detail about what I have actually got to do in return for these free meals.

One of the best things about mystery shopping to me is a free meal. There seemed to be a few around so I decided that I would try to feed myself (and others) for a week solely by mystery shopping.

Tuesday saw a visit to a national pub chain for one of their theme evenings. It focuses on a type of cuisine and gives you a choice of meals with a drink for a set price. The reimbursement and fee for the job was enough to cover a meal for two with a drink.

It's great to go out and mystery shop. There are several benefits-

• Extra income
• Free food and drink
• Gifts for others
• The chance to meet other people

When it is cold and wet out there (and it certainly is that in the North East today) then it's good to get warm food some place where someone else is footing the bill. You should try it some time!

If you are interested in mystery shopping then my book is a great place to start. It's a available on the Amazon kindle store now-

First day of my mission to mystery shop my main meal for a week

Mission one accomplished!

I have been and carried out my first mystery shop main meal of the week. It was at the catering facility of the local hospital. It is owned and run by a third party so I am not taking money from the National Health Service!

It was a simple mystery shop of buying food and assessing the service that was given. These facilities are never that busy so they are easy to navigate, get around and get the necessary elements of the mystery shop done.

This one included-

• selecting a main meal
• seeing if I was offered anything extra (an upsell in mystery shop[ terminology)
• gathering the name and description of who served me
• paying at the till
• gathering the name and description of the till person

The meal was good home-cooked food - a vegetarian cottage pie. It is always good value as well. The fee and reimbursement covered a meal for two people, including drinks and dessert.

On to the next one. Join me on my week where I attempt to feed myself, my wife and the kids at the weekend in mystery shops alone.

Mystery shopping in restaurants is quite easy when you know how. If you are thinking of becoming a mystery shopper then my guide to mystery shopping is a great place to start.

Can I have a full week without paying for my main meal through mystery shopping?

I often write about the benefits of mystery shopping and how it cab bring you some little treats and some much-needed cash to help ease the pressure of modern family life. This week I have set myself a challenge. There are a lot of mystery shops available at the moment for restaurants and pubs to go out and have something to eat. My mission for the week is to have my main meal every day for one week without having to out my hand in my pocket.

We are a family of four so this challenge is a little more difficult than it would be if you were on your own. The kids have a school dinner Monday to Friday so at the weekend I will have to find a mystery shop that will cater for four people rather than two.

Let's have a look at the challenge-

On Monday I have penciled in a mystery shop at the restaurant in the local hospital.

On Tuesday my wife and I will be having a main meal in a well-known British pub chain that is famous for its food offering.

On Wednesday we will be visiting a pub/restaurant chain locally.

On Thursday I have planned a visit for four in the evening to the cafe in a major supermarket chain

On Friday my wife and I will be having a main meal in a well-known British pub chain that is famous for its food offering - the same chain but a different location to Tuesday

Saturday is at a branch of a nationwide pizza restaurant

Sunday will be at an Italian chain restaurant in a nearby town

So, as you can see the plans are in place. Don't get me wrong, mystery shopping isn't a way to never have to buy a meal again but it can get you out to restaurants that you may not have been able to afford any other way or at least to loosen the pressure on the purse strings every now and again.

I will keep you updated as the week goes by with further small blog entries with a few details of how each one went and to let you know if I am still on track with my mission. Wish me luck!

If you are interested in becoming a mystery shopper then there is a lot that you need to know and learn. My book is available to help you understand what it is to be a mystery shopper and guides you through the application process. Check it out-