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In today's economy, every bit of extra income helps. And if you can work out of your home to provide that income, and be your own boss, so much the better.
Mystery Shopping programs give you that opportunity. You can get paid to eat at restaurants, go to movies, and buy merchandise. TopConsumerReviews.com ranks the best Mystery Shopping programs available.
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Mystery shopping programs can offer you a simple and fun way to earn money. Companies pay you to shop at their stores, buy their products, attend movies, and eat at their restaurants. In return, you send them a survey reporting on your experience. You are your own boss, and only work the assignments that you choose.
There are a variety of mystery shopping programs available today. The best programs provide you with supporting materials in addition to a large number of job assignments. You can earn a substantial income as a mystery shopper.
When evaluating mystery shopping programs, you want to consider a number of elements. Some of these include:
• Selection. Does the program offer a variety of mystery shopping jobs?
• Support. What services does the program offer to help you maximize your potential income?
• Cost. How much does it cost to participate in the program? Is it a one-time fee or a recurring expense?
TopConsumerReviews.com has reviewed and ranked the best mystery shopping programs available today. We hope you find these reviews helpful in starting your Mystery Shopping adventure!
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Cost: $29.95
Elite Mystery Shopper offers the best overall value of any mystery shopping program we reviewed. Their website is the best organized with easy to find navigation tabs, well laid out text and pictures on the homepage, which is not too lengthy, making it easy to find what you are looking for. A video is automatically loaded when you open the page that shows a special report done on Good Morning America in regards to the
opportunities available with
mystery shopping.
With your one-time membership fee, backed with a 60-day money back guarantee, your membership gives you access to over 175 companies that are hiring mystery shoppers. There are also a few bonuses that are offered including free business cards, access to online surveys that you can get paid for, and the option to get paid to read emails. Elite Mystery Shopper offers the flexibility to work from home or on site
at the actual location. This allows shoppers to choose the jobs that best fit their needs and keep the projects interesting.
Elite Mystery Shopping provides the best mystery shopping experience for those that want to earn extra money working part time. With an excellent website, low membership fee, project flexibility, and a strong return policy, Elite Mystery Shopping earns our highest rating.
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Cost: $34.00
Paid Shopping Providers pays for the type of "mystery shopping" many people think of when they hear that term. You get paid to shop at local establishments and share your experience about the merchandise and service with the company. It is more than just shopping for merchandise but can also be for hotel stays, golfing, spa experiences, going to the movies or getting an oil change. The website answers the questions
of where you will be shopping, how you get the jobs, what will you be doing and how much you can make.
Paid Shopping Providers states the shopper can make between $800 and $1,200 a month working part time. Paid Shopping Providers has been around since 2002, proving that it is a reputable company.
The website is attractive and easy to navigate with a good balance of text and pictures. There are tabs at the top of the page that tell you more about Paid Shopping Providers, Give examples of recent shopping jobs and a new shopper FAQ section. Some of the recent jobs posted are cosmetic, Movie Theater, oil change, donut store and clothing. Each job gives a quick run down on what that specific job entails and the pay for the
job. The FAQ section is thorough and will answer most typical questions that would be asked. There is also a 60-day money back guarantee that allows peace of mind in giving the mystery shopping a try, knowing you have 2 months to decide if it is a fit for you, otherwise you can get a full refund.
Paid Shoppers Providers is a reputable company, relatively low membership fees and offers great incentives. The only drawback for some is that the shopping is limited to in store visits and less convenient for those that need to stay at home.
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Cost: Normally $59.95, currently $34.95
The initial appearance of the Paid Surveys Online website does not seem to set it apart from other websites reviewed. It is mostly one long page that has a lot of information among the length text. It was organized well enough to read, simply laying out the different amounts that can be made for different options chosen. You can make anywhere from $5 for a survey to $150 an hour for participating in an online focus group.
Like other companies reviewed, Paid Surveys Online expressed how you are in control of how much money you make by how many hours in put in. You are also in control of your schedule, working from home the hours that fit your lifestyle. Examples are given for what you can make per month by working different amounts of time, and free bonuses are offered for signing up.
The FAQ’s section sets Paid Surveys Online apart from most of the other companies. The questions and answers really solidify the company as legitimate in our eyes. Topics include; the process of how companies are selected to work with, how you get paid, the difference between a survey and focus group, the amount of surveys available, questioning if it is a scam, and much more. This section of the website can be found at the
bottom
of the webpage and in our minds, shows that Paid Surveys Online takes their business serious, giving you peace of mind.
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Cost: $34.50
Dollar Frog is easy to navigate and presents a wealth of information. The homepage is separated into sections based on the information you are looking for: Mystery Shopper or Paid Surveys. You can also make your choice from the navigation bar at the top of the page. The quotes from shoppers are helpful but not as convincing as the meat and potatoes program information.
The Mystery Shopper page gives thorough information about how you get paid, including a dollar per hour range and a sample of what a "mystery shopping" job would entail. The FAQ's are very insightful and give you confidence to continue with the process. After signup you receive a free bonus ebook of mystery shopping tips and techniques. The site offers step-by-step training for registrants, a directory of
more than 150 online applications to choose from, a job log and unlimited access to a job board.
The Paid Survey page is equally enticing. Registrants to this program can get paid to take surveys, read email, participate in focus groups or surf the web. Again, the sample survey and FAQ section is very informative. A quick link to sign up for a free newsletter is at the top of the page. The site also offers multiple easy links to refer a friend.
Dollar Frog offers good information and quality companies to sign up with. However, the relatively higher cost for registration, along with a lack of quality bonuses, dropped it in our ranking slightly.
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Cost: Normally $69, currently $24
According to the website, Paid Surveys and More was started by a single mom who left her job after discovering the benefits of how online surveys financially helped her friends and family. Paid Surveys and More is similar to many of the other websites reviewed in that it is one long page, with much information and text. This page, though long and wordy, is much better organized and easier to read than many of the other sites.
The website does a good job of explaining the benefits, and the process of the online surveys. Right up front, it explains that this isn’t a get quick rich scheme, and that it takes time and effort to make money. It even goes as far as saying if you can’t commit to an hour or two each day, that this opportunity might not be a fit for you. There is a handy calculator that helps give you an appropriate estimate of how much money
you can make by how much time you are willing to put into the business.
There is a 100% 60-day money back guarantee offered by Paid Surveys and More. Once you have signed up you have access to a member’s only area that has resources and assistance in getting assignments and learning tips to cash in on some of the best surveys. Check out the website for more bonuses that are available when you sign up.
Paid Surveys and More is clear about what it takes to make money working with them, they are more upfront than other companies about the expectations and effort required. Unfortunately, no companies are listed to give you an example of what you’ll be working on.
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Cost: Normally $69.95, currently $49.95
Highest Pay Surveys advertises the highest amount of money to be made by taking online surveys and focus groups, stating you can make up to $300 with each of them. They guarantee access to a $300 survey everyday. They do not clarify if everyone person will have access to a $300 survey, or if there is one survey a day that is worth $300 that all members have access to.
The website has a lot of text to wade through, with much of being testimonies that we feel don’t give you the information that you need to make an educated decision. There is contradicting information posted on the website. Specifically, on the homepage they state members have access to over 1,300 guaranteed highest paying opportunities and on the FAQ page it states members have access to over 350 opportunities. The membership
fee is higher than most of the other companies reviewed.
A few of the positive options Highest Pay Surveys offers is a 60-day money back guarantee, a good example of a survey that you might fill out, three bonuses included in your membership. The bonuses include getting paid to eat, shop, hand out samples, and the possibility of getting a free car and getting paid to drive it. Even with these offers, Highest Pay Surveys does not have good organization, seems to have contradictions
in their advertising and attempts emotional promises to get you to sign up.
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Cost: Normally $69.95, currently $34.95
Paid Surveys Plus is another website that is very long with much text to manage through. There are no tabs for navigating, it is one long homepage. It is cleaner in appearance then some of the other websites reviewed. The first part of the website uses emotional pull tactics luring you in by stating you can now work from home, on your own schedule, making enough money that your neighbors will wonder if you won the lottery.
It explains why companies are turning away from random call surveys and now choosing to pay individuals for their opinions. There are testimonials down the side of the screen from every day people who have made money working with Paid Surveys Plus.
A few large companies are listed to give examples of companies that are paying for “market research.” The website does not state that these are some of the companies they work with, they just state their names as examples. There is a list of different amounts you can get paid depending on what you choose to participate in, surveys, focus groups, phone surveys, trying new products or watching movies.
Currently your membership free also includes a few bonuses for free, special software that allows you to finish surveys more quickly, getting paid to drive, eat, shop and read emails. Importantly, no money back guarantee is offered and this left us feeling uneasy.
Paid Surveys Plus has better bonuses then some of the other companies, but less factual information then others and does not offer a money back guarantee. We suggest you look elsewhere for you mystery shopping needs.
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Cost: Normally $99.95, currently $49.95
Online Home Surveys website initially looks like it might be an informative website, it has a decent amount of text and graphics, including the logos for many large, well recognized companies, implying they are companies you might be taking surveys for.
After reading through the website, we discovered this was a poor attempt at luring in mystery shoppers and lacked credibility. It reads more as a story of an individual and what their day looks like making a living off Online Home Surveys. There are also testimonies that are not very convincing. The information presented seems very general about companies paying people for their opinions, but does not explain which companies
they work with, or even the number of companies they partner with.
Start up costs are more expensive than many. You would have to churn out several projects before you made up your out of pocket expenses.
There are no bonuses offered, no training tips, no money back guarantee, no FAQ section to answer some of those lingering questions you might be considering and higher start up costs than most other companies reviewed. Most of the other companies reviewed had at least some of the information we were looking for but Online Home Surveys is seriously lacking quality information. Because of the problems listed above, Online Home
Surveys received one of our lowest ratings. We would suggest you trying another company ranked higher.
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Cost: Normally $134, currently $67
Quick Paid Surveys has a database of over 490 companies that will pay you to take surveys, be part of focus groups, or simply try their products and give your opinion on the product. You can get paid from $5 for a survey or up to $150/hr for participation in a focus group.
The website is contradicting in its marketing. At the top of the page words like quick, easy, guaranteed, and stating you can make up to $3,500 a month, from anywhere in the world, without leaving your home. Later in the middle of a lot of text, the company states that if you are looking for a get quick opportunity for money, they aren’t the ones for you. They also state that it takes time and you have to put in the time to make the money. That seems contradicting and odd.
The initial glance at the actual website can be overwhelming. There are no options for assistance in navigation, no headers, no tabs, no search options, and just one very long, very wordy home page. We do not feel like this website is organized well at all, and lacks a professional appearance. It has the feel of the scam emails that you receive in your spam inbox. The same information is stated in multiple ways, adding more text to the website than necessary. The company tries to express a sense of urgency,
that if you don’t sign up now, you will pay more later and miss out on many opportunities.
A positive option is the 60-day money back guarantee. Quick Paid Surveys offers a full refund if you are not completely satisfied with your experience within the first 2 months. Even with the money back guarantee, due to the lack of professionalism and questionable credibility, Quick Paid Surveys received a very low rating.
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Mystery Shopping in the News
Mystery as Mark Elliot furniture shops in Norwich, Southwold, Holkham and Bury St Edmunds launch closing down sales - EDP 24
Mystery surrounds the fate of a well-known luxury furniture business after it unveiled closing down sales across its seven branches. To send a link to this page to a friend, you must be logged in. The EDP understands that managers at Mark Elliot furniture ...
Publ.Date : 2012-01-21T18:25:06Z
BBB: Avoid mystery shopper scam - Topeka Capital-Journal
If you are one of the millions of Americans who love to shop then there is a scam that is tailor-made for you. Or if you are one of the many who are unemployed, or underemployed this same scam may have your number. It is called “mystery ...
Publ.Date : 2012-01-22T16:07:54Z
Mystery Guest Program for Churches Expands Nationally - ChristianNewsWire
2012 /Christian Newswire/ -- When Faith Perceptions was founded in 2008 offering a mystery guest program (similar to mystery shopping in a business context), they knew they were onto something. It turns out they were onto something big. Faith Perceptions ...
Publ.Date : 2012-01-17T18:15:32Z
Secret shopper's new twist on old scam - msnbc.com
If you love to shop 'til you drop and need some cash, be on the lookout for a fake secret shopper offer of big money. Several Hoosiers are getting emails about becoming a secret shopper with an opportunity to pocket some of the cash.
Publ.Date : 2012-01-20T19:45:02Z
A Best Kept Secret - Fergus Falls Daily Journal
The secret. Maxine Adams, executive director of Lake Region ... Ten years ago, Becky’s family bought a glass shop where they lived in Ohio and she, her mother and two brothers learned the glass business together. Originally from the Fargo ...
Publ.Date : 2012-02-01T17:36:16Z
FSA fails to use mystery shoppers - BBC News
Responding to a Freedom Of Information request, the FSA said no mystery shopping exercises had been carried out since March 2010. At that time, the FSA chief executive, Hector Sants, said he would step up mystery shopping and onsite visits. In reply the ...
Publ.Date : 2012-01-12T02:00:46Z
San Francisco Bay Area Carnival Games Company, Fun Services Taking Reservations for 2012 Santa's Secret Shop/Holiday Gift Shop Program - YAHOO!
San Francisco Bay Area’s carnival games company, Fun Services is excited to announce that it is now accepting reservations for its 2012 Santa's Secret Shop and Holiday Gift Shop program. Fun Services truly offers the best programs for students, ensuring ...
Publ.Date : 2012-01-28T08:08:21Z
Diana’s former butler Paul Burrell: 'Caller threatened to kill my sons, kidnap my wife and blow up my flower shop' - Daily Mail
Diana's former butler Paul Burrell yesterday told how a mystery caller threatened to murder his family and blow up his flower shop. He said he had been left ‘sick to his stomach’ by the calls in which he was told that his wife, Maria, had been kidnapped.
Publ.Date : 2012-01-31T16:47:20Z
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