Click on the following for more information on Secret Shopping, or for Tips.
Showing posts with label Secret Shopping. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Secret Shopping. Show all posts
Friday, May 25, 2012
Free Texas Roadhouse
Click on the following for more information on Secret Shopping, or for Tips.
Thursday, May 24, 2012
Secret Shopping Tips From the Experienced
1. NEVER PAY TO JOIN A SECRET SHOP COMPANY. There are a lot of companies you can join for free. Yes, you will have to purchase items and be reimbursed for, but don't pay just to sign up. Also, if you're spending a lot of money on the shop (see point 3 for an example), I would suggest doing a smaller shop for them first to make sure they're legit. I haven't run into a scam company yet (except one I heard about in the newspaper classifieds that asked you to pay to shop). But it's always better safe than sorry.
2. Write things down. Make notes inconspicuously as you shop so you remember things for the surveys.
3. Check out the surveys that you will have to fill out for each shop. Some get long and detailed. (The Qwest one always took me an hour to full out) So make sure it's worth your time.
Example: We did a secret shop for an Iowa State football game. (We cheered for the opposing team who obviously won. lol) We got free tickets, reimbursed for parking, and up to $110 in food. Seriously! It was great. But we had to secret shop at least 6 different concession stands and fill out a survey for each of them. I spent the whole second half of the game going from place to place, buying things and taking notes. Then two hours that night entering the info in. It was totally worth it, even if it was Iowa State.
4. Check the requirements for receipt submission. Sometimes you're required to scan or fax them, so you'll need a scanner or access to a fax machine. Make sure you can fulfill that part of the requirements.
5. Be thorough. They will contact you if you leave something out, but make sure you check your e-mail often to see if they are following up with you.
6. Check often. The good shops go fast, and things become available all the time.
7. You can cancel shops after your "sign up" for them. So if you're not sure, sign up for them right away before they're gone and you can always cancel them. But make sure you check to see the deadline for canceling them. And, if you cancel a lot of them, you may not be eligible for those shops for a little while. But it's not too bad.
8. Occasionally, as a member, a company will e-mail you with a job that really needs done. Sometimes, they are pretty desperate to get them done. If you feel that is the case, and the money offered is not worth your while, make them an offer. They don't always accept it, but its helpful to them to know that you're available if needs be for the right price.
For Example: When living in Ankeny, Qwest needed a job done in Ames (About 30+ miles away). I told them how far away it was and gave them a price for mileage to travel there and back. Or once, I just said I'd do it for $50. On several occasions they either paid my mileage or the dollar amount I threw out there because they were so desperate. This doesn't happen very often, but it's good to know in case something comes up.
9. If you sign up for a job, and forget, don't do the shop. Chances are you won't be reimbursed if you're late. But you can call them, tell them you forgot and ask them to reschedule. Also, if you forget to enter in your info, don't just give up. Call/e-mail them and explain and see if it's still OK. It's always best to check.
10. Some of the companies have phone shops you can do from home. They might be in another city or state, but you can still do them. Watch for those! They are usually the best money makers because you don't have to drive anywhere and they're short.
For Example: I did about 20 Dominos shops one time. (3 a day for a few days, there was a limit on how many per day) They don't pay a lot, but you just call and order a pizza, then call right back and cancel the order. Takes about 2 minutes, plus time to enter the survey.
2. Write things down. Make notes inconspicuously as you shop so you remember things for the surveys.
3. Check out the surveys that you will have to fill out for each shop. Some get long and detailed. (The Qwest one always took me an hour to full out) So make sure it's worth your time.
Example: We did a secret shop for an Iowa State football game. (We cheered for the opposing team who obviously won. lol) We got free tickets, reimbursed for parking, and up to $110 in food. Seriously! It was great. But we had to secret shop at least 6 different concession stands and fill out a survey for each of them. I spent the whole second half of the game going from place to place, buying things and taking notes. Then two hours that night entering the info in. It was totally worth it, even if it was Iowa State.
4. Check the requirements for receipt submission. Sometimes you're required to scan or fax them, so you'll need a scanner or access to a fax machine. Make sure you can fulfill that part of the requirements.
5. Be thorough. They will contact you if you leave something out, but make sure you check your e-mail often to see if they are following up with you.
6. Check often. The good shops go fast, and things become available all the time.
7. You can cancel shops after your "sign up" for them. So if you're not sure, sign up for them right away before they're gone and you can always cancel them. But make sure you check to see the deadline for canceling them. And, if you cancel a lot of them, you may not be eligible for those shops for a little while. But it's not too bad.
8. Occasionally, as a member, a company will e-mail you with a job that really needs done. Sometimes, they are pretty desperate to get them done. If you feel that is the case, and the money offered is not worth your while, make them an offer. They don't always accept it, but its helpful to them to know that you're available if needs be for the right price.
For Example: When living in Ankeny, Qwest needed a job done in Ames (About 30+ miles away). I told them how far away it was and gave them a price for mileage to travel there and back. Or once, I just said I'd do it for $50. On several occasions they either paid my mileage or the dollar amount I threw out there because they were so desperate. This doesn't happen very often, but it's good to know in case something comes up.
9. If you sign up for a job, and forget, don't do the shop. Chances are you won't be reimbursed if you're late. But you can call them, tell them you forgot and ask them to reschedule. Also, if you forget to enter in your info, don't just give up. Call/e-mail them and explain and see if it's still OK. It's always best to check.
10. Some of the companies have phone shops you can do from home. They might be in another city or state, but you can still do them. Watch for those! They are usually the best money makers because you don't have to drive anywhere and they're short.
For Example: I did about 20 Dominos shops one time. (3 a day for a few days, there was a limit on how many per day) They don't pay a lot, but you just call and order a pizza, then call right back and cancel the order. Takes about 2 minutes, plus time to enter the survey.
Wednesday, May 23, 2012
Secret Shopping
Are you interested in Secret Shopping? This isn't the best way to make a lot of money, but it's fun and you get free stuff, car or computer services, other services, food, or many other things. And a little compensation for your time too. Check these out. If you sign up on the website, they will show you the shops available. You don't have to do any of them, you just check whenever you feel like it and see what's available. So you're not obligated when you sign up, and if you don't do any for a year, you're still eligible to do them. So no worries!
Make sure you read them carefully. If you don't do them correctly, you may not get reimbursed or paid. But as long as you read the requirements, you'll be fine. I've never not gotten paid.
www.mysteryguestinc.com This place has Cheesecake Factory Shops. You can do one every 3 months. These are the easiest secret shops I have ever done as far as the follow-up survey is concerned.
www.applyshopnchek.com This website has places like Panera, IHOP, Car dealerships, Aldi.
http://www.sgmarketing.com/ This one has Bank of the West. (and others)
http://www.jobslinger.com/js/exec This is a good place to go to find other Secret Shopping Companies. This is where I found the hotel secret shop. You just search for jobs in your area and sign up through the company offering them.
http://shoppers.jancyn.com/ I have never actually done a shop for this company, but they have Buffalo Wild Wings, and a few others. The only thing is you have to order an alcoholic drink from the bar or something like that. You can dump it out, but we don't like to do these.
http://www.xec.gapbuster.com/ This is a good one if you take time to do the training thing. It's not that long. I've never done a shop but they have Mc Donalds and stuff.
http://www.intelli-shop.com/shoppersignup.html This is another good one. This is the one I go through to do Scheels, Qwest and Pilot gas stations. They have some big paying ones too that you have to go pretend to take some test or something, or at tax time you can get your taxes done through a secret shop.
Monday, May 21, 2012
Free Cheesecake Factory!
Go to the Mystery Guest Website and on the left column, click "Register to shop/dine with us"
Fill out the application and it should bring up a Cheesecake Factory close to you.
They will send you e-mails occasionally with open shops, or you can log onto the website and look for open shops.
How it's Free:
They no longer reimburse you for your purchase, but now they give you a gift card, regardless of how much you spent! You're only required to buy one meal (big enough for two people to share) or an appetiser, and one beverage. You could do this as cheap as $15!
For a lunch shop, they send you a $30 gift card after you complete the shop. (Takes about 6 weeks) For a dinner or late night shop, they will give you $40. If you only spend $15-20 the first time, you could almost double your money with the gift card.
You can shop once every 3 months, so save your gift card if you want and you'll never have to pay again!
(We recommend the Louisiana Chicken Pasta. Mmmm!!)
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