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By Pragati Agrawal
Mystery shopping has become so popular that you certainly might think there's nothing more to be said about it. However, many beginner mystery shoppers get trapped either by the marketers' hype, or by the
harsh criticisms against mystery shopping that are both largely undeserved. This article will tell you the reality of mystery shopping and what successful tactics many wise mystery shoppers just won't share.
Mystery shopping has been acknowledged as an effective market research method. Many companies recruit mystery shoppers to test the qualities of their customer services, or to tailor their staff trainings in orderr
to eliminate weaknesses and improve consumer satisfaction. Competition in the product and service area has become so fierce, that many new quality evaluation practices have emerged for the sake of business
survival. Mystery shopping is one of these marketing mechanisms that provides unmatched feedback to merchandisers and service companies, and delivers reliable and up-to-date info on consumers' likes and
dislikes.
What are the benefits of mystery shopping?
Mystery shopping allows you to earn additional income that will either fill in the gaps in your budget, or simply fill in your consumer basket with freebies and products you otherwise wouldn't afford. Mystery
shopping is a truly exciting adventure, because you need to "perform" as you would if you were normally a client, and very often you will be required to play a character that is different from your own. Companies
hire mystery shoppers to pose as real customers, and role-play different situations that may occur while shopping. Therefore, you might often need to play angry, capricious, indecisive, picky, or obsessive, which
adds more thrill and excitement to your shopping tasks.
Even though mystery shopping can be tremendously amusing, you need to remember that it's a highly responsible job, as the hiring company relies on your objective feedback. Mystery shopping requires no
previous experience, but it leans on your honesty, objectivity, and common sense to evaluate the products and services you shop. Moreover, as you become a seasoned mystery shopper with successfully
completed shops, you will also build reputation with the marketing companies in your area. This will help you get more professional, highly-paid, and more responsible assignments that will not only get you
more cash, but will also single you out as an expert and reliable mystery shopper.
One of the big delusions, and yet one of the most exploited and misrepresented facts about mystery shopping is how much you actually earn. Many will tell you that it's a complete waste of time; others will
convince you that you can become a millionaire overnight. The reality is that you can get a decent additional income, and earn anywhere between $200 and $1,500 a month, depending on your input of time and
effort, and your ability to find assignments quickly and efficiently. It takes time to learn all the tricks of successful mystery shopping, but it's not impossible to turn it into a lucrative hobby or a second job. You can
learn how to heal your budget with all the cash, prizes and bonuses that mystery shopping can offer you.
How to tell legitimate mystery shopping companies and mystery shopping scams apart:
As a rule of thumb, it’s good to keep the following pointers in mind and avoid companies that:
Require that you pay for “certification.”
Guarantee a job as a mystery shopper.
Charge a fee for access to mystery shopping opportunities.
Sell directories of companies that hire mystery shoppers.
Ask you to deposit a check and wire some or all of the money to someone.
Mystery Shopper Scams, The Federal Trade Commission
Not all companies that employ any or all of these tactics are necessarily scams, but on the side of caution and understand what a genuine mystery shopping company looks like.
Most legitimate companies recruit their shoppers directly from their website, or through legitimate channels such as their social media accounts – only very rarely will they use newspaper ads or direct emails.
In addition, legitimate mystery shopping companies don’t require you to pay a registration or certification fee; they simply ask you to sign up to their platforms so they can keep you apprised of any open visits.
Further, they have a screening process: just because you’ve signed up doesn’t mean that you’ll automatically get a visit. Most companies will use a type of test, to make sure that your language skills are up to
scratch – after all, you’ll be recording data for them, it helps if everyone knows what you’re saying – and I know that here at AQ, we also require our shoppers to complete a questionnaire that proves a competent
understanding of the visit manual (the guideline that tells you how exactly to complete the shop in question). Any company that guarantees you work straight off the bat, is likely to be a scam.
Legitimate mystery shopping companies won’t charge you to access their shop boards; this beats the point for them after all, they recruited you to fill their shops, why make it so difficult for you to do so easily?
Nor will they ask you to deposit cheques or wire money. At most, there’ll be a restaurant shop in which you pay for your meal and get a reimbursement up to a certain amount.
Another good thing to remember is that most mystery shops don’t pay heaps. Depending on the type of shop, you may get $5 to $20. Most mystery shoppers do their visits beside their day jobs to earn a little
extra cash.
Pragati Agrawal MBA
Business Analyst
AirCrews Aviation Pvt. Ltd.
www.AircrewsAviation.com
Pragati@Air-Aviator.com
https://linktr.ee/pragatiagrawal
https://pragatiagrawal.vcardinfo.com
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