List of Legitimate Secret Shopper sites - Get paid to shop & reimbursed for purchases

kaija

kaija

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List of Legitimate Secret Shopper sites - Get paid to shop & reimbursed for purchases

As mentioned in the general Online $/survey thread, I got the list of Secret Shopper websites that one of my father-in-law's co-teachers works with. This is the list she sent him. I haven't signed up with all of them yet, so I'm not 100% sure what each one's process is like, but I BELIEVE that they're all FREE to join (please let me know if you find that they aren't. Don't sign up w/any that ask you to pay them!).

I have started my 1st one with MysteryShops.com. I'm doing a big-name pizza shop tomorrow -- they will pay me a few bucks (under $10) for the work I'm doing plus the cost of my purchase (in full) -- however they specify exactly which types of pizza you can get (4 topping options) and you have to take pix of it (kinda weird shots) exactly to their specifications to be reimbursed.

After browsing all of the "audits" they had available on that site, it seems only a small segment of them are REALLY worth doing (ie: pay anything + a decent purchase reimbursement of your purchase). I found one for (blank)-mart that was like $5 for the shop and $1 reimbursement. ... REALLY? $1? Most had an ok payment ($4-$10) but the reimbursement part was crappy.

However, on the other side of that spectrum, I found a fancy local restaurant that would pay $27 for lunch or $47 (approx) for dinner purchases and you had to get a bar drink, appetizer, dinner, & dessert. (ok, I can't complain about that!). I don't even remember if there was a $ payment with it, as the reimbursement part was incentive enough. They allow you to sign up to be a backup if any of the ppl that are doing it bail before the due date.

Anyway, here's the list. I hope you guys find it useful! Let us know how they work out for you! I'd love to hear (in general terms) about your experiences w/each site. (Don't want to break any confidentiality agreements!)


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(p.s. MODS - I tried to change the title and it changed it IN the thread, but not in the search results?? Why is that? Will this update on its own?)
 
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While filling out the Shop N' Chek form (it's long and kinda tough!), I found out that they are part of a larger company called MFI with the following affiliates:

- Certified Marketing Services, Inc.,
- Hiller Sales & Marketing, Inc.,
- Speedmark, Inc.,
- SG Marketing

Also, Shop N' Chek requires you to give them your Social, job history, & 2 references.
 
i worked with service intel they have pretty good options most of the time and usually if no one has signed up for their assignments and it gets closer to the dead line they usually throw in a pretty good bonus..... back when i worked for them i did a home depot assignment that was on its deadline... it consisted of walking in the store seeing if anyone greeted you ask someone where the tile center was, then ask where the bathroom was, when you left the bathroom you were to go to the check out and get an item under 5 bux and see if the cashier offered you a home depot card.....pretty simple and i got paid the 15 buck rate for the assignment the (upto 5 bux) for the item which i got to keep, and the bonus of 30. just to ask for tiles and a bathroom
 
I've participated in various mystery shopping associations for several years and it's fun. It's somewhat lucrative if you have the spare time and lots of attention to detail! It feels like they are paying less these days than they did when I first got involved about 8-9 years ago...I think it ends up being a better deal to stay at home and not waste gas and continue do the surveys and product tests!
 
I signed up. I hope the shops are close by or Otterkim is right, it wouldn't be worth the gas.
 
yeah, I agree -- The only ones I'd sign up for that aren't necessarily a 5-10 min drive are ones that pay really well --- Like that one restaurant that paid approx $50 for a really nice meal. That's a pretty good incentive to me! :)

Thanks for the additional links & info guys!
 
Hey SouthernStar I tried the sassie site, but it didn't have a place to sign up. It only let you sign in if you were already signed up. Is there another way to do this?

Also I havent' signed up for any of the other ones yet. Do you have to give your credit card # to these sites?
 
All of these sites are asking for social security #'s which I understand for tax purposes, but does anyone know for sure that these are all legitimate. The last thing I want to do is sign up for some site thinking I'm going to do secret shops for them and find out they stole my information for some other purpose. Anyone worked for these people before?
 
I've been doing mystery shopping, selectively for almost 6 years. All the companies that I have shopped for require social security #'s. I am signed up with all the companies listed in this thread, have done work for almost all of them and they are all legitimate.
Here is another company that I do a lot of work for and that I really like.

https://www.maritzmysteryshopping.com/home/Default.aspx
 
Okay thank you Gardenia. I just wasn't sure b/c you always hear about those scams. But it all sounds good. Thanks again.
 
www.jobslinger.com is also a very good resource for finding legitimate mystery shopping jobs.

I have been doing this a while as there are many jobs near to me. I don't take anything that pays less than $10. Also it is a must to read the details before accepting the assignment to know how much work time you will put in, and don't forget to figure in your report time.

You should never have to give your CC # to a legitimate mystery shopping company.
 
So, I would like to know if you have to pay anything for any of these? to be a member or something?

I've always wanted to try one of these, but not sure which. I'm vegetarian, so do they make you order certain food items? Can you shop at your leisure, or do you have to go on a certain day? (Can't shop on Saturdays.)

Oh, and do you get the money to shop first, or do you get reimbursed?

I don't necessarily want the highest paying one, but it would be nice to get a free meal, or clothes, etc.

thanks for your input! :)
 
lbow2006 said:
Also I havent' signed up for any of the other ones yet. Do you have to give your credit card # to these sites?
Click to expand...

lbow2006 said:
All of these sites are asking for social security #'s which I understand for tax purposes, but does anyone know for sure that these are all legitimate.
Click to expand...

Talean said:
You should never have to give your CC # to a legitimate mystery shopping company.
Click to expand...


Hey! To address the comments above...

The only reason I posted the links I did is because my father-in-law works with a teacher who uses ALL of the ones I listed. I didn't post any that I just found on the web, but ones that were personally referenced to me.

NONE of the ones I posted should require you to use a credit card. DO NOT SIGN UP WITH ANY THAT DO...

Mysteryshops didn't require me to give my social, but 2 others that I filled out did. They do it to verify you can shop for them, are who you say you are, etc.


Talean said:
Also it is a must to read the details before accepting the assignment to know how much work time you will put in, and don't forget to figure in your report time.
Click to expand...

After doing my 1st one (for a pizza place) I can tell you this is essential. What should have been pretty easy, turned out to be pretty difficult.


kskeene@hotmail said:
So, I would like to know if you have to pay anything for any of these? to be a member or something?

Can you shop at your leisure, or do you have to go on a certain day? (Can't shop on Saturdays.)

Oh, and do you get the money to shop first, or do you get reimbursed?
Click to expand...

All the ones I've seen, you pay (if there's an item to be purchased) first and they reimburse you. Read the terms carefully because SOME only want you to make a couple dollars purchase, while others will reimburse a larger amt (like a full meal). The first few retail shops I clicked only offered $5 or less of purchase reimbursement, and much more work than I wanted to do for the payment price.

You can pick and choose which assignments you want and often they'll let you pick from a range of dates, but once you accept an assignment, you need to follow through with it.
 
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kskeene@hotmail said:
So, I would like to know if you have to pay anything for any of these? to be a member or something?

I've always wanted to try one of these, but not sure which. I'm vegetarian, so do they make you order certain food items? Can you shop at your leisure, or do you have to go on a certain day? (Can't shop on Saturdays.)

Oh, and do you get the money to shop first, or do you get reimbursed?

I don't necessarily want the highest paying one, but it would be nice to get a free meal, or clothes, etc.

thanks for your input! :)
Click to expand...

I'm also a vegetarian. All the FF shops require a meat sandwich. Some of the restaurants do too. When a shop is posted, the directions will let you know the required purchase before you take the shop. You need to lay out the money for a reimbursed shop. Some companies pay/reimburse quickly others don't.
 
I haven't seen any offers for FF shops but the restaurant ones I saw just said you need to order an app, dinner, desert, & bar drink.

Nevertheless, just read the guidelines for any items you're interested in & you should be able to weed out which ones you'll want to complete pretty easily.
 
Has anyone heard of viewpoint survey insight? Is it a legit company???
 
New List of Mystery Shopping Sites

I have been mystery shopping for over 6 years now and I love it. I opted to forgo the Pizza shop that was mentioned because they were so specific in their instructions that it wasn't going to be worth it. That's the nice thing....you can pick and choose. Some email you with opportunities in your area while others, you have to visit their site on a regular basis to find what's open. I am taking some photos tonight at 2 different hotels, just of outside signage and the entryway. One is in my town, the other is 15 minutes away but they each pay $25 so I can't go wrong. There are no questions to fill out either. You need to visit www.volition.com. Click on "get paid" then "get paid for shopping". There you will find a legit list of all mystery shopping company's in the US. I do provide my SS# as they send you a 1099 at the end of the year, if you have made over $600 with then. Otherwise, it's all TAX FREE!!!! I have never gotten a 1099 as I shop for about 25 or so different places. I have never been scammed and always paid. Some of them call me on shops, others email me and the communication is great. I even have one site that I mystery shop online businesses. If there is an expense, they pay that to me upfront using PayPal, then when I complete the shop, they put that money in PayPal too. Most companys use PayPal for payment. I got a free PayPal debit card to I can have access to the money instantly. Some have overnight hotel mystery shops for you and a guest, there are amusement park shops, grocery, restaurant, convenience stores, etc. It's tons of fun but beware of any company that wants money from you upfront. There are NOT legitimate. Don't shop for them and don't give them money. I routed out our vacation and did some food shops on the way...saved money on dining out!!! I'm cheap!!!!!!!:tongue:

Lots of luck to all of you. Email me with any questions about mystery shopping at gloriabaldwin at aol dot com.
 
Thank you Gloria! I was doing Inbox, but then I didn't know that you couldn't have more than one person in a household, so my $30 dollars was gone! *sob!* My hubby is getting his though. I'm trying the sendmoreinfo one. I may try the secret shopping with them as well. I work through Certified and Marketforce.
 
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