How to get started in the mystery shopper and make money, any suggestions in Havelock NC

Hi Marty. You'll need to sign up with a large number of mystery shopping companies so you get lots of job offers. At the bottom of the page you will find a link to a list of mystery shopping companies. Also, you can read up in the Mystery Shopping Company section of the forum and see which companies are talked about the most. Those will be the ones with the most work. Read the first several threads in the New Mystery Shopper section of the forum for general information. I'm in Texas and I don't know anything about your area.

First, are you Military? You would qualify for base shops! Second, what kind of car do you drive? MPG will determine your bottom line. You will be a route shopper, covering Jacksonville, New Bern, maybe Kinston, and any community that has a Bigbox between or near those. Not that you'll shop Bigbox , but Bigbox towns where the shops usually are. Third, do you like to drive? You'd better!!

The companies that I would recommend first are Confero, Bare, and Market Force. Then work your way down the list from there. sign up with as many different companies as you can. I have shopped a certain small town hardware store in every town in a 100 mile radius! Rural shopping has it's challenges, but with careful planning you can make some money at it.

When you plan a route, always try to make it a round robin, and don't just run out and back if you can help it.

Best wishes!!

Jacksonville is too over-shopped. Too many military wives dabbling. Shops there go for crap pay because people will take them at crap pay. They are never bonused. It is not worth the drive, especially now that we're not allowed to use Catfish Lake Road as a cut-through anymore.

As a Havelock shopper, you are better off going towards Farmville, passing New Bern along the way and doing shops there as well. Farmville shops are often overdue, and often heavily bonused. Same distance, less shops, better pay. The car dealerships and smartphone stores in New Bern are great, no-purchase required shops, if you aren't ready to start putting out money on shops yet. As a new shopper, I'd advise doing no purchase required shops (unless it's somewhere you'd go anyway!!) during your initial learning process, so that way it doesn't suck so bad if your report isn't accepted because you made a rookie mistake.

For a longer route, I'd suggest Havelock to Myrtle Beach.

The gas station shops in this area are often bonused, two of the base fast food places have a higher fee than out in town, and like Hymnsinger said above, Confero has numerous base-only shops.

I am not sure of your age, but if you are 21-25, you have an abundant amount of work available in alcohol and tobacco compliance shops. I am outside of the age limit now, but still get extended to do compliance shops. The companies I shop for on compliance visits pay $25, plus reimburse $5 + $10. The reports are quick, six answers tops. If either you or your husband smoke or drink, this is a great way to score free beer and get paid for it.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 08/21/2014 06:21AM by BBird0701.

Jacksonville, NC overshopped? Really? In the last month, I picked up an apartment shop in Sneads Ferry [about 20 miles outside of town] for $90, and a car dealer in Jacksonville for $75. Perhaps you need to be looking at a wider selection of MSCs.

She won't get those kinds of offers starting out, so I was recommending nearby areas where she can start from the ground up, with little competition and reasonable amount of bonuses.

Need work

Hi Lee. If you need work, read the New Shopper info to understand the process. You generate your own work by applying to companies for assignments.