Can You Tell Good Service From Bad; Recognise Value For Money; Compare Prices, Staff Efficiency, Product Range, Customer Service Between Rival Firms?
If so you might easily find work as a 'Mystery Shopper' and be paid to comment on service in shops, banks and building societies, hotels, cinemas, veterinary surgeries, restaurants, even on long distance flights and holidays.
Poor service is the number one reason customers turn their back on a business and start shopping elsewhere. Worse still, one dissatisfied customer tells on average sixteen more people about their experience, meaning even greater loss of customers and profits for business owners.
Even taking too long to answer the telephone or replenish the shelves, inadequate parking facilities, crowded toilets and poor staff-customer relations can alienate customers quickly.
No company can afford to be complacent or fail to check its own operating standards for long.
Companies need to know how they are perceived by customers and if rival firms are setting higher standards and attracting custom from them. Hence the need for regular checks to be made on all aspects of the business from product range and quality of choice, to staff attitudes, customer care, after sales service, and so on.
But there's no easy way for firms to investigate themselves.
Staff who know they are being watched work harder, giving a false impression or, worse still, they consider their employers are spying on them, intent on catching them out and threatening dismissal.
So, mystery shoppers go undetected into a business, seeing things as they really are, through the eyes of people who really matter - customers! What they see and the service they receive will not be affected by who they are and what influence they have over staff!
As one leading mystery shopping agency puts it:
"Mystery shoppers serve as the eyes and ears of clients in retail and service outlets."
As competition grows, especially in a recession, and pressure increases on companies to maintain or better still improve their own market share, more and more openings will appear for mystery shoppers in all areas of commerce, including banks and building societies, shops and supermarkets, hotels and garages, and more.
So a cinema wanting to improve attendance figures might hire regular cinema-goers to view the same film at all local outlets to investigate prices, noise levels, staff efficiency, car parking, toilets and amenities, and so on.
People of all ages can apply to become mystery shoppers, even children with their parents' consent. Special opportunities exist for representatives of particular groups, such as the elderly, disabled, housebound, or of specific ethnic or religious persuasion. You can even be a mystery shopper working entirely by telephone or on the Internet, without ever leaving home and still claim a handsome fee and valuable freebie incentives.
Not All 'Shopping' Involves Buying Something
For example, you might be asked to telephone a company service hotline, posing as a customer with a problem to see how well your case is handled and how long it takes.
The manager of a high street supermarket might commission you to stand outside another firm's store to count the number of customers entering the premises and determine which are the busiest times, what complimentary transport is offered, how many packages are carried out, whether staff help customers to their vehicles, and so on.
Most tasks are simple and quick and involve little more than shopping, making a mental note of the event, and later submitting a written or telephone report to the employing company.
Marguerite Hegley who was instrumental in writing Get Paid to Shop has several years experience as a mystery shopper.
She says:
"I first mystery shopped a supermarket. It was a lot of fun being asked to spend a specific sum of money on goods which I kept, and I also received expenses and a tidy fee for my work.
The pubs were fun too and I was asked to order a meal and a drink in some and just a drink in others. The eight pubs I had to visit over a ten day period were in a twelve mile radius of my home.
I particularly liked working with a chemist chain, checking their photo service and make-up counters. The girl on the make-up counter gave me some good advice about my skin type and a useful range of freebies testers which I am still using three months later. And I got paid of course!"
No Better Time to Become a Mystery Shopper ?.. No Better Time to Start Your Own Mystery Shopping Business
The business is pretty new in most countries but catching on fast, and as talk of recession grows opportunities will grow for people to work as mystery shoppers for established hiring companies or even start their own business in this fascinating field.
Avril Harper is the author of Get Paid to Shop and The Ultimate Guide to Starting Your Own Mystery Shopping Business www.castleedenbooks.com
About The Author
Avril Harper is a UK writer specialising in business opportunities. This article may be freely distributed or used on and off the Internet as long as no changes are made. More articles and free-to-distribute books and reports are available at: www.articlefactory.com; avril@publishingcircles.com
Are you one of the thousands of job seekers who... Read More
Job-hunting is not the most exciting thing in the world... Read More
If you are thinking about a career in culinary arts... Read More
Need a great resume to land that great job coming... Read More
Let me ask you a question: are you tired of... Read More
There are hundreds of varieties of Consultants these days. We... Read More
Ugh! Arg! How can a survivor type job be good... Read More
What do you want to be when you grow up?... Read More
What makes for a rich career? It is more than... Read More
This article relates to the Career Opportunities competency and explores... Read More
As an executive recruiter, I interview a lot of people.... Read More
It's never too early to update your resume, even if... Read More
So you are interested in seeking a job with an... Read More
Obviously, there are RIGHT ways to move UP the ladder.... Read More
Do you find yourself easily becoming bored or tired at... Read More
I am having a hard time understanding why a valuable... Read More
The right certification trainingTrainings vary a lot when it comes... Read More
Your resume is your sales document. It tells the world... Read More
What is a Career Portfolio?The original portfolio used by artists... Read More
The whole job search effort is completely exhausting and at... Read More
Looking for work can be difficult, frustrating, anxiety-provoking, and demeaning.There... Read More
The message came from Human Resources. There's nothing to worry... Read More
Building a career as an artist takes hard work. Because... Read More
1. Employee Backdrop in AustraliaThe whole arena of Industrial Relations... Read More
The Internet is the most powerful employment tool on earth.... Read More
Is your working life in the doldrums? Do you feel... Read More
Are you a new graduate with little or no work... Read More
What are the worst mistakes job hunters make? It turns... Read More
When the word "networking" is used, we tend to think... Read More
Today, it isn't that uncommon for some children and teenagers... Read More
Deciding on a resume format is the first major decision... Read More
Well what is a good mechanic worth these days? You... Read More
Many job seekers tend to overlook job fairs. They can... Read More
Other than actually landing the interview itself and living through... Read More
Finding a legit telecommute job can be difficult. Telecommute jobs... Read More
Deciding to leave a job isn't easy. In fact, quitting... Read More
Got your attention? Great. That was my intention. Who wouldn't... Read More
Making a career change is nothing new in today's job... Read More
It is often said that the majority of people are... Read More
Many job seekers miss a golden opportunity when they are... Read More
You're just getting over the shock of having become unemployed.... Read More
"WOW! I can work from home and make money? I... Read More
1. Do you REALLY know what you want?2. Do you... Read More
Enter into a state of relaxed concentration. This is the... Read More
Your resume is your sales letter. It may not get... Read More
1. Begin focusing on what you want instead of how... Read More
5 tips to win over an executive head hunter or... Read More
Despite what some job seekers think, it is not illegal... Read More
While most professionals hire a professional resume writer, some draft... Read More
For nine years Jeff worked for company G as an... Read More
You can benefit from sample cover letters as they can... Read More
Options for Resume LayoutsThere are many options of available to... Read More
Job dissatisfaction is a driving force behind individuals seeking employment... Read More
1. GET THE POINT ? OF LIFE, THAT IS.... Read More
When you go in for a job interview, you're not... Read More
Many people in the last decade have experienced either a... Read More
There is nothing more frustrating and depressing when you are... Read More
Do you remember your parents asking you what you want... Read More
Headline from AP via Yahoo News! January 11, 2005: "Chrysler... Read More
As a job seeker, you shouldn't overlook the importance of... Read More
Throughout the past decade, workplace diversity issues have allowed organizations... Read More
So you are interested in seeking a job with an... Read More
"Who is that hot babe in the picture?" isn't the... Read More
A client who has a fine arts degree wanted to... Read More
You finally did it. You made the decision to leave... Read More
The success of any business or organization depends largely on... Read More
Careers, Jobs & Employment |