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[B279]Becoming A Secret Shopper

by Jennie Clapham, Jen

Secret Shopper or Mystery Shopper programs as they are sometimes called, have been used for decades by some of the world's largest corporations and franchises and shoppers can earn a good part-time income of anything from $10 to $40 per hour. Some even manage to work on a full-time basis and can potentially earn up to $50,000 or more per year.

A Secret Shopper is someone who acts as a regular customer in a designated establishment like department store, restaurant, amusement park or movie theatre. They are hired by an independent company to honestly and anonymously evaluate the quality of customer service they receive.

It is extremely important that during your assignment, you remain totally objective as you will be required to present both the good and bad elements of your shopping experience. Once you have completed your shop, you will be required to submit a detailed report concerning your experience. These can range from the very basic to extremely detailed depending on the complexity of the assignment. The need for a more detailed report will normally mean that the assignment will pay better.

Becoming a secret shopper is often a simple matter of registering with a legitimate agency and waiting for assignments. Pay can range from say $8-$10 for a simple assignment, up to $20, $50, $100 or more for larger or more complex assignments. As a shopper, you work as an independent contractor and will take work from many different companies.

You will need to develop the skill of being able to write up a detailed account relating to your shopping experience. You will also need to be objective and pay particular attention to the specific questions that your agency will have requested you to answer. If you work hard on this particular aspect of the job it will pay great dividends in the long term as you will find you are offered more interesting and better paying assignments in the future. Building yourself a good repuatation is extremely important if you want to earn a good and regular income form your shopping activities.

I am often asked if any special tools are required to become a secret shopper?, and the simple answer is No. The only thing that you will really need is access to the internet and I guess that as you are reading this report online then you already have this. There are a few items however, that you may already have that can be a great help. A digital camera for example can be very useful, but don't get caught taking photos or your cover will be blown!. Also, a small tape recorder could be very useful, particularly if you use it to record your thoughts as soon as you leave the store. The more tools you have at your disposal, the easier and more effective your shopping assignment will be.

More and more companies are beginning to see the value in experience measurement techniques such as secret shopping, and as such larger organizations such as Hotels, Retail Chains, and even Airlines have engaged companies for these purposes.

Secret shopping is not a 'Get Rich Quick' scheme. It is however a rewarding and enjoyable way to make money, particularly if you are like many people in this world who actually enjoy the shopping experience. It is of course even better if you are able to do it at someone elses expense. Many people have proved that it is possible to make a full time income from secret shopping and even if you only want to work on a part time basis, you can still earn enough to pay for that extra special holiday or pay the car loan off and you even get to have fun while doing it!.

Businesses are looking for people like you, as independent contractors, to assist them in this very valuable customer service process as a secret shopper.

In today's extremely competitive business environment, those companies which fail to provide excellent service will surely not survive. Studies have shown that a satisfied customer will tell three other people about his experience while a dis-satisfied customer will tell ten to twelve people.

Not only do companies face loss of business from poor service, the actions of their employees may even cause them to be sued by customers, or fined by the government. With so much at stake, you, as an independent secret shopper can provide a valuable and essential service by identifying potential problems which the business owner can correct before they result in a major liability.

The big question that every business needs to have answered is: How do their employees treat their customers when no one is looking or listening?

The reality is that in any business environment is that employees will put on their best performance when they know they are under the watchful eyes of management.

Unfortunately this is not a perfect world and ownership or management is not always present. The question then becomes, how does any owner/manager know what is happening when they are not present? How do they know if the trained policies and procedures are really being practiced?

The answer to these questions is quite simple, they don't.

That's why many companies hire marketing research companies to evaluate the quality of service in their stores, on the telephone and use of their website and these companies use secret shoppers to get the information anonymously.

They assign the secret shopper to make a particular purchase in a store or restaurant, telephone for customer service, or visit their website for customer support, for example, and then report on the experience. The secret shopper is typically reimbursed for required purchases, can keep the product or service, and receives a shopper fee.

Secret shopping is considered a part-time activity, but many secret shoppers are earning a good income, while having fun shopping and dining at fancy stores and restaurants. The secret shopping opportunities are generally posted online by mystery shopping or merchandising companies, or offered via email to those secret shoppers who are in their database.

Secret shopping is a fun and rewarding way to shop and dine at stores or restaurants you would normally not patronize, and is a great opportunity for you to improve your community by helping to ensure that good customer service is the norm, and not the exception.

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Both Jennie Clapham & Myrna Marshall are contributors for EditorialToday. The above articles have been edited for relevancy and timeliness. All write-ups, reviews, tips and guides published by EditorialToday.com and its partners or affiliates are for informational purposes only. They should not be used for any legal or any other type of advice. We do not endorse any author, contributor, writer or article posted by our team.

Jennie Clapham has sinced written about articles on various topics from . Discover all the tips and how to tricks to help you be a succesful and how to. Jennie Clapham's top article generates over 590 views. to your Favourites.

Myrna Marshall has sinced written about articles on various topics from Careers and Job Hunting. . Myrna Marshall's top article generates over 590 views. to your Favourites.