Mystery Shopping

Have you ever heard of Mystery Shopping? It's when a individual is hired by a company to secretly evaluate various aspects of service in a store or restaurant. When I worked in retail we were always getting mystery shoppers in the store - never knew it at the time but we would get their report a few weeks later.

I've performed mystery shops for a few different companies and I have a few tips for you if you are interested in it too. First off, NEVER pay for a list of mystery shopping companies! If you do a search online the first thing you will see will be companies offering to sell you lists of mystery shopping companies. These are scams - most of the companies aren't real or aren't even in Canada.

Second - you will not get rich being a mystery shopper. There are not enough assignments in Winnipeg to even consider using this as your part time job. However, having said this, it can still be something worth doing.

So how can it still be worthwhile? Well, I can't name the actual stores I've shopped but I can give you a basic idea of what I've done. I needed new glasses and was able to get a shop for one of the big retail optical stores. Between the shop fee (what the company pays you) and the discount code the company gave me, my $450 glasses ended up costing only $75! Obviously this isn't a good deal if you don't need glasses but if you do, it's a great way to get quality glasses for cheap.

Another example is a recent one I did for a popular restaurant in the city. We went out to eat, had our dinner paid for and received a small fee! Free dinner, yep I'll take it. I also know someone who did a mystery shop at a gas station and had their gas paid for. Free gas, yep I'll take that too.

For all the discounts or free stuff you get there is the actual work you have to do. You can expect to spend anywhere from 10 - 60 minutes filling out the questionnaire or forms after your shop. It all depends on what kind of information the company is looking for. For some of the more desirable shops you may also have to complete little tests before you get the assignments - they just want to make sure that you know what you are supposed to be looking for.

Overall mystery shopping can be a good way to save money if you're willing to put in the effort. Here is a list of the reputable mystery shopping companies that I know about:

Consumer Connection
Frontline Focus
Beyond Hello
Tell Us About Us
Frontline Shoppers


If you're interested check these companies out and start getting paid to shop!