Four reasons why you shouldn't mystery shop

Mystery shopping isn't for everyone. Some people will get a lot from it, while others will just not see what all the fuss is about. If you want an excuse not to try it then this is the right blog for you. Mystery shopping isn't a full-time job and you can't make the £40,000 a year plus that some websites tell you is possible. I have worked in mystery shopping for long enough to know what difference it can make - it is a lifestyle thing that will bring you free food, shopping and experiences. here are the top 4 reasons NOT to mystery shop -

Nobody really wants free stuff

It's true. The kind of things that they give away free when you mystery shop are really not worth having. The free meals out at quality restaurants are just a chore. The free gifts such as designer label perfume and clothing would just gather dust in your cupboard. You don't want to look great or smell great anyway - it's so overrated. The fact that you can grab a free coffee or spot of lunch when you are out somewhere doesn't really help lighten the load. the fact that it only takes a few minutes to complete a mystery shop and fill in the online form when you've done a few and know what it entails isn't that appealing either.

It doesn't take much time

The fact that mystery shopping doesn't take up mic of your time doesn't really appeal either. In fact for many people, the mystery shops they carry out are in their own town or somewhere they were going to anyway. So you can get your hands on free gifts, extra stocking fillers for the kids at Christmas and be fed and watered at the same time with someone else picking up the bill. But why would that appeal to anyone?

It is easy to select assignments online

I'm sure we all want a return to the old days where everything was difficult. the fact that mystery shopping companies operate online just make things far too simple. You don't want to be able to select a mystery shopping assignment at the click or a button or complete the report online in a few minutes - that would be far too easy. There are also mystery shops that you can do online from the comfort of your own sofa - far too easy!

There is no such thing as a free lunch

I'm told this all the time - there is no such thing as a free lunch. I suppose that they are correct. In return for the lunch you have to travel to the destination, pay for the food and eat it. But you would have done that anyway for lunch. Nobody wants something for nothing anymore. They want to jump through a load of hoops and have life as difficult as possible. Take this 'free lunch' thing away from me. It's far too simple.

I hope that I have put you off sufficiently so that those of us that want to mystery shop have all the best assignments to ourselves. But if you still want to mystery shop then the best place to get ready is my book, available now -