There are loads of mystery shopping opportunities out there again

It's that time of year for mystery shoppers. Christmas is over and done with and the sales are a thing of distant memory for most of us. And it is this time of year that mystery shopping comes back with a vengeance. Things really start to pick up now for mystery shoppers. Over the Christmas period the retailers and hospitality businesses want to concentrate on their busiest period so mystery shopping pretty much stops. They are too busy to think about their mystery shopping programmes.

Then as the new year arrives it all starts again. Business as usual means that companies want to know what service their teams are giving their customers. So it's over to the growing army of mystery shoppers to go out there and complete assignments. The mystery shoppers will work to assess the value, service and other aspects of the way they find retail outlets and hospitality places such as coffee shops, restaurants and pubs.

And they are looking for new mystery shoppers all the time. You can join this growing army. If you sign up today then you can find mystery shopping assignments like the following-

* A meal in a local pub for two. Here you have to assess the service and food available and report back on things like how quickly you were served in exchange for having your meal paid for.

* A clothing purchase at a national retailer known for service and quality. You get to keep whatever you buy and are paid a small fee too!

* Grab a quick lunch on the go and get someone else to pick up the tab. There are always mystery shops that need you to assess how quickly you are served at lunchtime.

* Betting shops want to know that their teams are engaging their customers in more than taking their money. You can get a free bet and keep any winnings if you pick up one of these.

* National coffee shop chains also want to know if their team ms are following procedures. If you choose one of these mystery shops then you can get a free coffee for you and a friend - and often a cake to go with it too!

Mystery shopping can bring you in some extra money, help with the groceries or provide the occasional treat. If you are interested in becoming a mystery shopper then my book is the best place to learn all the skills you need. Check it out today-

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-

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-

Two mystery shops in the same location produce very different results

I'll use this post to do two things. The first is to wish you all a Happy New Year. I hope that 2016 brings you everything you want. The second reason is to use two mystery shops to highlight what we do mystery shoppers.

I visited the same location as a mystery shopper two Sundays in a row, the second occasion being yesterday. The visits were very different and I'll use this to illustrate what we should be measuring. It's two visits to a national food pub chain.

Level of trade

The difference in level of trade on these two dates was staggering. On 27th December the venue was packed. I struggled to find a table and waited a long time at the bar to be served. Whilst ordering at the bar I was told that the wait for food would be around 40 minutes, which was a fairly accurate prediction. It took longer to use the toilets, longer to have the table cleared and longer to pay but all of this is expected when it is this busy. And it's here that I want to look at customer measures.

What could have been done?

The only potential change would have been to have more staff present. Now I know that at this time of the year people need their time off and there's more likelihood of someone calling in sick, so this isn't always an option.

As a measure of the actual service the team gave me on that day, they could not have affected the delays. It was purely down to the heavy trade. The service was friendly and as efficient as possible and the delays were explained. The visit yesterday was to a virtually empty place. There were no queues, speedy service and the food arrived quickly. The team worked as well as they did the week before, but with vastly fewer customers.

It's here that you need to consider what you are measuring. Service times in busier times can be extended and this is acceptable. If you're unsure then speak to your mystery shop company, they will help you along the way.

If you want more information about mystery shopping then take a look at my book, available now.

The last few mystery shops before Christmas - free meals!

Its very quiet now in the mystery shop front, and the only jobs I'm picking up to carry out now are those in restaurants and pubs.

I've carried out a few over the last week or so, and I've for two more set before the end of the year.

I went to a chain pub last week for a standard assignment. It was about ordering a meal and a couple of drinks and them assessing the customer service and quality of the food and drinks. Its a repeat assignment, so it's something I can do in my sleep but sometimes this brings it's own problems. It really pays to read through the notes thoroughly, as these assignments can change over time. On this occasion I read through but it was very similar to the way it always has been - in fact this same assignment was my very first ever mystery shop!

Fee = £3.50

Reimbursement = £5.00

Spend = £11.00

Profit/Loss = -£2.50

I also visited the catering outlet of a local government establishment last week. It was to test the quality of food and service age in, but with a slightly different agenda. The measures that the client wanted was to establish whether the outlet was closer in standards to a catering facility or a restaurant chain. The offering was decidedly catering outlet fayre and this will no doubt disappoint the client. They are hoping to be viewed as a food destination in their own right but on the basis of this visit, that is unlikely to be happening any time soon.

Fee = £3.25

Reimbursement = £9.75

Spend = £19.00

Profit/Loss = +£6.00

If you are looking to mystery shop, and this really take soff in January then take a look at my book. It's a guide on how to become a successful mystery shopper.

See how a quick mystery shopping trip ended up with a winning bet!

It's a blog today after a short trip to a local town to carry out three mystery shop assignments. It's the usual shop, lunch, shop scenario that has come to typify my mystery shopping activities at this time of the year.

This will quieten down soon so I'm just making the most of the last of the opportunities.

The first assignment is a home improvement store and this one is very similar to one I did last week I browsed the shop floor for literally 9 minutes and 50 seconds of the allowed 10 minutes before a team member came over and asked if I needed help. For the sale of 10 seconds I could hdve left without going through an enquiry and still earned the same fee!

Fee = £5.00

Reimbursement = £1.00

Spend = £0.71

Profit/Loss = +£5.29

The second assignment was to a national pub chain to assess service times and levels. The timing was about measuring how long to be served at the bar, brought food and plates cleared. The service was about staff knowledge and friendliness. There's very, very rarely a reason to mark these pubs down and this assignment isn't any different.

Fee = £3.25

Reimbursement = £9.75

Spend = £11.18

Profit/Loss = +£1.82

The third assignment is to a bookmakers and this gives me the opportunity to share a little insight of the type of overviews we have to produce for mystery shop reports-

"I entered the shop and I was greeted straight away by a team member from behind the counter. I then browsed the floor for approximately five minutes before a team member approached and asked if I was okay.The team member offered me a cup of coffee. I then looked at the betting football coupons before going to the counter to seek help. The team member was helpful and friendly and made conversation about the upcoming England match."

This is what is called an overview, and it's where the report wants a commentary on your visit. It's best to keep details fairly vague here, as you'll go into more detail in the full report.

Fee = £2.75

Reimbursement = £5.00

Spend = £5.00

Profit/Loss = +£2.75

TOTAL = +£9.86 + a tile, lunch for 2 and a free bet (which actually won and made a further £15.50!!!!)

If you are interested in mystery shopping and want to make a little money, get a free lunch or gamble with someone else's money then you can find out how with my book.