Compensation for mystery shopping assignments will vary by a variety of factors. This includes which part of the country you are in, what the assignment requirements are, and the length of the report. Most mystery shoppers are pleased to earn $15 to $20 on a general assignment, but many savvy mystery shoppers know that it’s best not to choose an assignment based on the face value of the compensation alone. After all, that $20 assignment may take you thirty minutes to do, which would be a pretty good deal. However, it could also take you two hours to do, and in that case, it doesn’t look so good after all!
While many mystery shoppers have a certain figure in mind in terms of how much they want to work for per hour, many will automatically view lower-paying assignments on job boards and immediately write them off. It’s true that some of those $5 and $10 assignments may be more trouble than they are worth, but some of them aren’t so bad after all. Here are some points to consider:
The Time Commitment
First, you will want to consider how much time it will take you to complete the assignment. Be sure to factor in your travel time, your time on-site, and your time to complete the report at home, too. A $10 assignment that requires a 5-minute phone call from home, and then has a 10-minute report to complete really isn’t such a bad deal at all. So you should read the fine print on the requirements for these lower paying assignments to see what they are really about.
The Location
Another factor to consider is where the assignment is located. If you can pick up a $5 or $10 assignment en route to work or within walking distance of your daytime place of employment and the site visit isn’t to complicated, this may be worth your time. After all, you can write off the travel expense for the commute, and if the location is in a place you planned to be anyway, you may find that you make out ahead on the assignment.
When They Just Don’t Make Sense
Every mystery shopper has seen those assignments sitting on job boards for days and even weeks. These are assignments that are too complicated, too far away, or otherwise just don’t pay enough to be worth your time and effort. Every other mystery shopper seems to agree with you, too. Yet your mystery shopping provide desperately wants to find someone who can do the work. If you can honestly look at that assignment and say that you’d do it if it paid you $10 or $20 more, you can certainly toss that offer out to your provider to see what they say. It certainly doesn’t hurt to ask, and you may just come out looking like a hero and having some extra cash in your pocket for your efforts!
It’s pretty easy to pass over those low paying assignments on the job boards without giving them a second look, but you may find that with a closer look some of them actually do make a lot of sense!