There were some subtle but important differences on the mystery shops Icarried out yesterday

I carried out two mystery shops yesterday, and both had subtle differences to the standard mystery shops I carry out that made then interesting. In my view these changes also made the shops more relevant to the companies I visited.

The first one was a visit to a discount store that sells all kinds of items for the home. The mystery shop in general was to check out the service - pretty standard I hear you say. But the difference was that I was to stand close to a member of staff and look at a product. This was to see how long (if at all) it was before I was approached. The measure is that a customer shouldn't have to approach the member of staff for help. The member of staff should approach customers and see if they can help.

The subtle difference is in the level of customer service and interaction. The fact is that customers that aren't approached may just go without asking, resulting in lost sales.

In this case, the team member asked if I was okay after only about 30 seconds. This was good service.

Fee = £7.00

Reimbursement = £1.00

Spend = £1.50

Profit/Loss = +£6.50

The second mystery shop was to a cafe situated inside another store. Again it was mainly standard fayre for most of the mystery shop-

How long to be served?
Cleanliness of the cafe
Quality of the food

The difference in this assignment was the fact that the instructions stated "be honest, fair but be strict." The honesty and fair are how you approach every mystery shop. It is quite rare that you are instructed to be strict. I feel that must mystery shopping companies I carry out shops for allow a little leeway for the place you are assessing. But the instructions here were to be strict.

I do feel as though I pointed out things that I may have overlooked in past shops so it does make a difference.

Fee = £0.00

Reimbursement = £11.00

Spend = £12.00

Profit/Loss = -£1.00

TOTAL = +£5.50 + a tube of toothpaste and lunch for 2

If you are thinking about becoming a mystery shopper then a great way to get into it is to read my book on how to become a mystery shopper. It will help you to apply to be a mystery shopper and then shows you great ideas on how to be successful.

Read about how someone else paid for my shopping trip today!

I've been out and conducted four mystery shops today as the search for Christmas presents and to earn some extra money takes hold. It was a visit to a local city, via a garden centre - and that's where I'll start-

Mystery shop 1 was that garden centre and I really like the way this assessment is constructed. It was designed to test the observation skills if the team member and their ability to ask questions, understand the customers needs and make a recommendation. It's really what mystery shopping was designed to do. The team members I encountered were good on a basic level and I bought a plant.

Fee = £3.75

Reimbursement = £5.00

Spend = £7.99

Profit/Loss = +£.076

The second assignment was to an outdoor products retailer and another really enjoyable assessment. It's the standard start - browse until you are approached - but then the enquiry becomes about a specific range of products. The idea is to test the colleagues knowledge and that they are following the procedures. It takes around 20 minutes, which is quite long for a single enquiry. It also tests your skill as a mystery shopper because there are quite a lot of pieces of information that you need to remember for your report. I really enjoyed carrying it out and will do it again when the opportunity arises.

Fee = £10.00

Reimbursement = £5.00

Spend = £12.00

Profit/Loss = +£3.00

The third mystery shop was to a higher-end restaurant chain and it's a really straightforward assessment. Customer service (always very good) and timings (always good) are the order of the day today. Everything went off without real incident and an easy report to boot.

Fee = £3.25

Reimbursement = £15.00

Spend = £25.65

Profit/Loss = -£7.40

The fourth and final shop today was to a discounter. It's more about the store than the team, which I always find a shame. The measures are about availability, cleanliness and the features of the store. I know that the team affect most of these things by their activities but it's nice to be able to assess team members directly by interacting with them. Generally it was a good experience and the fee is good for a quick shop and an easy report to complete.

Fee = £2.50

Reimbursement = £5.00

Spend = £6.83

Profit/Loss = +£0.67

TOTAL = -£2.97 + a plant, two tops for Christmas, groceries and lunch for 2

If you are interested in earning money now for Christmas, or to collect the free stuff that mystery shopping brings you, then my Amazon Kindle ebook is a great place to start. It's available now-

See why efficient searching for jobs helps the mystery shop process

I've been looking at all aspects of the process of mystery shopping and one area where I have worked hard on trying to be more efficient is the search for jobs. Each mystery shop company has a slightly different way of allowing you to see and choose the mystery shop assignments you can conduct for them.  I'll take you through my process this morning as I look through ten of the mystery shop companies I use-

Company 1 has an easy log-in and goes straight through to a map where you can draw your own search areas to make things easier for you to find the places that you are willing to travel to. Under the map is a list of those available jobs in your area, so you can search that way if you prefer.

This is my favourite mystery shopping company and I find most of my work with them. As I search today I see loads of bookmakers, quite a few drinks-only pubs and a lot of bakery mystery shops. None are really what I'm looking for given the time restraints I have this week, so I move on to the next company.

Company 2 used to have quite a wide selection of High Street names and the jobs were really interesting. Although the interest level hasn't dropped, the number of clients has. There are only really 2 clients available and, although both are good payers, both also don't have a many locations near to me.

The way of selecting jobs here is to go to each client in turn and then search your local area for available shops. It's nowhere near as functional as company 1, but with only 2 current clients to search it doesn't take long.

Company 3 lets you know by email whenever there is something available, but I always have a quick look at the website as well to make sure that I haven't missed anything. It's a little like company 1, where you set your own areas and the mystery shop company shows you what is available in those areas. You set up a postcode and it shows you everything within 10 miles of that postcode. As I expected, there's nothing here so I move on.

Company 4 is a company I still check, although I've not carried out an assignment for them in 20 months. They are very much focused on fast food companies and this just doesn't fit what I want to be shopping for. Again there is nothing there. As you progress with them you will need to pass accreditation for each client they serve to be able to shop that client. You then have a drop-down menu of areas and when you select an area it shows you what is available in that area.

Company 5 is another favourite, although their availability of jobs ranges from none to 30+ usually depending on what time of the month you go on their website. Today they have 17 fairly close to me but none that actually match what I'm looking for. The jobs have to either fit together (one visit to several locations close to each other) or be somewhere I'm already going to make me want to jump. A single mystery shop in a location that I have to drive to and potentially pay to park is unlikely to bring me a profit.

This company has a range of jobs from social media, retailers, concession stands and financial services - it's what makes it one of the best as you can often find something on there.

Companies 6-10 all use the same base system - it's a map with a list of available jobs underneath. You type in the postcode you want to search on and the radius you want and the system does the rest. You have to go to each mystery shop company individually but once you are on their site, the process is the same for all.

There's a range here from chemists, butchers, jewellers, clothing stores, charity shops, discount retailers, supermarkets, communication companies and more.

It's by having a set routine of the companies you will check and the frequency you will check them you will get the most out of mystery shopping. To have regular companies that you know will provide assignments that you can do and want to do will make your transition into a mystery shopper the more rewarding and will build confidence.


Like what you read? Want to become a mystery shopper?

Check out my book on the Amazon Kindle store-

Find out how I earned money with a shopping trip to a local coastal town

Yesterday brought about 4 mystery shops, all in the same town. It's a great way to pull all of these things together by having one trip, one lot of petrol and only one parking fee. I often try to find free parking but it's few and far between in big towns and cities.

The first visit was to a multinational supermarket chain and to check out availability of some of their ranges before making an enquiry with a colleague and making a purchase at the till. Browsing the store it became obvious that there weren't many staff in the location and it may take a while to find assistance. However, as I looked for the items I wanted to purchase, a team member passed me and I was able to ask their assistance.

There were no queues at the checkout and I managed to pass through quite quickly.

Fee = £2.50
Reimbursement = £5.00
Spend = £7.41
Profit/Loss = +£0.09

The second visit was to a discount store and the process was very straightforward. Make an enquiry on the shop floor, and a purchase at the checkout. The team member on the shop floor was very helpful and I feel sorry for him, as his service was excellent but he wasn't wearing a name badge so there were probably marked down for this. For a team member in a discount store to take the time to show you products elsewhere in the store and listen to your enquiry is rare, but this guy knew hi stuff.

Fee = £5.00
Reimbursement = £0.99
Spend = £4.01
Profit/Loss = +£1.98

The third visit was the final retail visit of the day and was to a national unisex clothing store. The remit for this store is always the same and I was required to visit the menswear department, which in this store was upstairs. This usually means that there is only one team member present in the upstairs and today was no exception. I was to make four enquiries and I like to make these with different team members to get a more overall view of the store rather than just one employee who may particularly good or particularly bad.  The team member was very good, but I feel most like a mystery shopper when asking the same team member several similar enquiries. I think it's when I'm most likely to me recognised as a mystery shopper.

Fee = £2.25
Reimbursement = £12.00
Spend = £12.00
Profit/Loss = +£2.25

The final visit of the day was for lunch (or dinner, depending on whereabouts in the UK you live - see here) It was to a chain pub, where the purpose of the mystery shop was to check service levels and whether the team were up-selling. The team were very good at discussing starters, larger size meals, sides and desserts so there was a huge tick in the up-selling box. And the service was definitely with a smile - three team members said "goodbye" as I left - how's that for a friendly team!

Fee = £2.75
Reimbursement = £12.74
Spend = £12.74
Profit/Loss = +£2.75

TOTAL = +£7.07 + groceries, clothing and lunch for 2

Like what you read? Want to be a mystery shopper?

Check out my book on the Amazon Kindle store-