If you’ve never done a movie theater check assignment, you’re missing out on a great opportunity to make some relatively easy money. There are some nuances to this type of mystery shop that you need to know before you start out.
What Is It All About? The good news on a movie theater check is that there is relatively little interaction with the staff. Your assignment is to ensure the proper previews are showing at the beginning of a movie and to report back on how the audience reacts to the previews. Unlike with other types of mystery shops, you won’t have to purchase an item or take the time to return your purchase on a second visit. You also don’t have to check fitting rooms, converse with employees on certain subjects, or any of the other tasks you are normally required to do on a standard mystery shop assignment at a retail store.
Your time commitment is fairly minimal. With a movie theater check, you aren’t required to sit and watch the entire movie. You just need to watch about ten or fifteen minutes of previews. And the best news is that the report is relatively light. You usually won’t see a 60 question report with a movie theater check, although you may see more narrative or free-writing questions.
Are You Getting More Than You Bargained For? Read the assignment requirements very carefully before accepting the job. Some movie theater checks will require you to check the previews in all of the theaters playing a certain movie. If you catch a blockbuster on the first week or two that it is showing, this may mean you are checking three, four, or even more theaters. What this means to you is a considerably longer time commitment, so make sure you can manage that time commitment in your schedule. Keep in mind your downtime between movies as well. Doing four theater checks may equate to significantly longer than what initially may seem like 60 minutes at the theater. There will be down time between the movie start times. So what may initially seem like a one hour commitment may actually be two hours or longer depending on when the movies actually start.
Your assignment requirement typically will not clearly indicate how many theaters you will have to check, but simply say “all theaters.” So you will have to do some outside research and check the theater listings for a future date.
Time Is Of The Essence. With many types of mystery shopping assignments, the job starts when you get there and it ends when you leave. A movie theater assignment starts when the previews begin, so you need to be sure to be at the movie theater well ahead of the scheduled start time for the movie.
Movie theater checks are a nice change of pace from your standard mystery shop assignments. You can make great money for the work involved, and if the theater staff doesn’t mind you may get to sit through a movie for free. Just read through the assignment requirements carefully and be on time for your movie!