Has anybody here ever done one of those mystery shopper things?

[hopein08]

I keep seeing ads for it online and I could use a bit of extra cash. Does anybody have any stories to share?

Thanks in advance.

[WilmywoodNCparalegal]

1. I did a couple of times

There is a lot of record-keeping and you need to follow the instructions to the letter or else you may not get paid. One was checking out a wireless store and the other one was for checking out McDonald's breakfast offerings. Both projects involved noting things like time, how many customers ahead of you, etc.

However, I would not trust anyone who says you can make oodles of money as a mystery shopper. If it's too good to be true, it probably is.

[Broken_Hero]

2. nope

I thought about it, but never carried through with it...

[Oeditpus Rex]

3. My ex did it quite a bit

Usually she went to theatres and counted the house to make sure the box office reports were accurate. She got to see movies free (well, she was reimbursed) and got paid a bit for it.

But, yeah — caveat emptor.

[Jokerman]

4. Some of those are scams:

Please check out this link to snopes before agreeing to anything:

http://www.snopes.com/fraud/employment/shopper.asp