Mystery Shopping Info (+ Merchandising)

My son's father asked me today for this information on Mystery Shopping, so I figured it was time for me to finally compile a good list of links and info!

General Tips:
- NEVER give money to a mystery shopping company! Those are scams!
- It is OK to give your SSN to a mystery shopping company, as long as the connection is secure (check the bottom of your browser for a lock icon). They need it for tax purposes since you are technically an independent contractor.
- NEVER reveal what companies shop which chains to a public audience. This is grounds for banning from working as a mystery shopper, as it is against most of the companies' rules.
- Purchase and return shops usually suck and I don't take them.
- Purchase with reimbursement shops are cool if you actually want the product and the assignment/report isn't extremely labor-intensive.
- Judge the value you get from the shop on the time investment you have to put in vs what you get out of it (monetary value or a good meal, etc). You could drive yourself crazy trying to do every shop you can get.

If you're interested in merchandising (usually like $10/hour(ish) for stocking/setting shelves in various locations as a contractor), check out http://www.volition.com/merchandise.html, which is a comprehensive listing of merchandising companies. Great way to make money while you're out of work (or if you want work on the side).

Check this out to prepare yourself for merchandising (NARMS Merchandiser Training):
http://www.narms.com/training/chap1.html


Here is a list of companies I am signed up with/have shopped in the past:

Kinesis
https://shopper.kinesis-cem.com/ShopperMenu.pl?Action=ShopperSignup
Bowling

Kern Scheduling:
https://www.sassieshop.com/sassie/SassieShopperSignup/Signup.php?EmsID=ggGNDwmEsOk%3D
posts and schedules for Kinesis shops (sign up for both)

Corporate Research International
https://www.mysteryshops.com/prospective.asp
lots of different types including, gas, retail, and pizza

Mystery Guest:
http://www.mysteryguestinc.com/contact.asp
Restaurant

Amusement Advantage:
http://www.amusementadvantage.com/
kind of self-explanatory ;) Amusement stuff

Beyond Hello:
http://beyondhello.com/shoppers/featured-locations
sunglasses, travel centers, optical

Intelli-Shop
http://insite.intelli-shop.com/index.norm.php
travel centers, convenience stores, oil changes, car dealerships, automotive

GameFilm
http://www.gamefilm-consultants.com/index.norm.php
Restaurant

Focus On Service:
http://www.focusonservice.com/
Restaurants

Ritter Associates
http://www.ritterassociates.com/become-shopper.html
Gas, Storage

SCI
http://www.shopperscritique.com/
Haircuts, Wireless, music store

aTH Power
http://www.sassieshop.com/2ap123/index.norm.php
Financial/Banks

National Shopping Service (NSS)
http://www.nationalshoppingservice.com/public/mystery_shopper_registration.asp
Quick-serve food service, Retail

BestMark
https://www.bestmark.com/
quick-serve food service

Market Force
https://www.marketforce.com/
quick-serve food service

Also, check out this comprehensive list of shopping information, job listings, and companies (pay attention to geographical area). This includes all of what I have listed + many others, it just depends on what you're interested in:
http://www.volition.com/mystery.html

Random Money-Saving Tips (practical ones), and easy low-cal frozen dessert

I rarely ever purchase printer paper due to this tip (and also use it at work):
Use Backs of School Notices As Scratch Paper

Great tip for squeezing (literally) every last bit of stuff out of... stuff:
Cut Tube Open Before Throwing Away

This is sort of a "duh" tip, but bears repeating. Also a few good ideas on how to do it with limited hassle:
Save Lunch Money Instead of Eating Out

I always forget I want to try to make these, but it's been in the back of my mind for a while. Good substitute for an ice cream sandwich if you like those:
Frozen Graham Cracker Sandwiches

Rewards/Points Programs and How to Use Them Wisely

I've been meaning to post this, and may have actually done it in the past also, but this is a better, more condensed version.

These are just for extra cash/gift cards a few times a year, not going to get rich or make a steady income off of any of them, so keep that in mind.


By the way, I only refer to services I have tried and proven worthy first!

General tips:

• Make filters for these "read and earn" emails or else they'll fill your inbox.
• "read and earn" emails do expire, so you should click through every couple of days to make sure you get the points.
• Don't give your CC for anything or pay any money unless you are going through the site links to earn points for something you were already going to order online.
• Use NoScript and WebOfTrust add-ons for FireFox to avoid running a ton of adverts when you click on certain links and to warn you if certain sites are questionable.

Swagbucks
This is basically a search and earn site. You use it as your main search engine and sometimes you'll pop up with a "you've earned x amount of Swagbucks!" notification. I use it as my main search even though it's not as good as Google, and then if I can't find what I'm looking for on there, I'll Google it instead. I'll also "search" sites I know the URLs to and click through the result instead of going directly just so I have a chance to get SB ;)
What I usually redeem (have done so 9 times so far) is $5 to Amazon.com

 for 450 Swagbucks. They add up pretty fast if you search a lot. You can get other things too, you'll have to look through the rewards catalog. I just spend a ton of money on Amazon so it's worth it for me to redeem for that.

Mypoints
You earn most of your points with this one with "paid to click" emails. They send you an email and you click the link, and most of the time it gives you 5 points per email. You can also earn points by purchasing through their links to certain sites (that you would already have shopped). Say you were going to buy some shoes from zappos.com - if you go to MyPoints and then click the zappos link, it'll reward you per dollar spent if you use the same email address. You're basically ordering through their referral.
You can also earn points by printing grocery coupons through MyPoints and using them at the store. I'm a big coupon user, so that's beneficial to me.
I redeem from MP about 2 or 3 times a year anywhere from $10 - $25 gift cards, though you can save your points up for something bigger if you want.

InboxDollars and RewardPort
A bit more "spammy", but basically the same as MyPoints. You earn slower on each of these, though, but I have redeemed $30 from InboxDollars and $10 to Amazon from RewardPort.

EvReward
If you're shopping and want to get rewarded for it (i.e. points or cash back), this is the place to check. Find what you're looking for and then plug the site into this site to see where you can link from to earn points. The best cash back sites are FatWallet and Bing Cashback. I don't really do a lot of the other ones.

If you have any questions about these or other programs you might have run across, I'll be happy to give you some more info or opinions!

About couponing, and REALLY COOL Lowe's "Build and Grow" clinic 5/22

Short one today - been out all day but wanted to post up these two things.

I read this one at like 4:30AM and still think it's valuable enough to share. It regards how couponing REALLY works and busts the myths associated with it. It's a good read. You don't have to get crazy with coupons for them to still help you save money.

http://www.getrichslowly.org/blog/2010/05/17/busting-the-myths-why-coupons-are-a-valuable-part-of-your-financial-arsenal/

Lowe's has a REALLY COOL "Build and Grow" clinic this Saturday, 5/22, for kids 1st to 5th grades where they can BUILD A CATAPULT! That's pretty awesome. Also, FREE. If Bobby is going to be here, I'm going to sign him up. Pre-registration required. Go here to register.

CVS 1st attempt - WOW! That was cheap!

So I haven't really tried out this extra bucks thing before, but they threw a bunch of coupons at me, and I saw posts on the blogs I follow about the match-ups (extra bucks + coupons = saving a lot of money), so I figured I'd try it. Here's what I got:

• BIG OL' PACK o' Huggies Naturals Wipes (214 wipes)
• 36 ct Huggies Size 2 Diapers
• 40 ct Huggies Size 1 Diapers
• (2) Pantene Shampoos
• (2) Kellogg's Raisin Bran
• 6 ct Bounty Select-a-Size Paper Towels
• Schick Hydro 5 Razor
• Honey Altoids

Total Cost: 7.93

Coupons I used:

• $15 Extra Bucks on any purchase (this came through email)
• $4 off $20 @ CVS (this came through email)
• $2 off 2 Pantene
• (2) $3 off Huggies
• $5 off Schick Hydro
• $2 off Huggies Wipes
• $2 Extra Bucks (used on 2nd ring up, earned on 1st ring up)
• $3 Extra Bucks (used on 2nd ring up, earned on 1st ring up)
• $4 Extra Bucks (used on 2nd ring up, earned on 1st ring up)

This is like a game to me. I love it!

Want to know the funny thing? We went for half price frappuccinos at Starbucks afterward and I spent $7.14 for 3 frapps - almost the same as what I spent at CVS for all that stuff. This makes me LOL.

Diaper Coupons (High Value!), Rewards, FREE Book for Kids, and Movie Rental Deal

If you have kids in diapers, don't miss these coupons for Huggies. Match them up with sales at your local stores, and you've got cheap diapers! If you'd like me to look for the deals on these to match up the coupons at the store you shop at, let me know and I'll be glad to post. I can usually find those things very easily/quickly.

Speaking of diapers, if you're not a member of Pampers Gifts To Grow and Huggies Enjoy The Ride, you should be! The secret is, you don't have to have a kid in diapers or any kids to benefit from these programs! I haven't bought any diapers in the past 5+ years and I keep getting the free codes these programs give out, and you can redeem for some pretty cool rewards. Check them out.

Here is a free 10 point code to Pampers Gifts To Grow.

Kids ages 12 and under can earn a FREE book from Borders for reading 10 books over the summer (5/4 through 8/26). The list of free books is limited, but you can more than likely find one that your child would be interested in, and this gets them reading. They do it every summer.

Blockbuster Express is having a rent 2, get 3rd free deal for this weekend only. Code is G215D2. Here are the details. They have a lot of new releases. Movie marathon, anyone?

Dollar Store Shopping Tips, Chocolate Recipes, & Free Portal (video game)

Came across an article today called How to be a Smart Dollar Store Shopper, which had some good info and also reminded me of a couple of articles I had seen previously about the dollar store. I endorse the $ store for certain things A++ 100%, but it's true that you have to be careful about what you get. Here are some more good tips:

http://notmadeofmoney.com/blog/2010/03/shopping-at-the-dollar-store-items-we-buy-and-what-we-avoid.html

http://stretcher.com/stories/09/09nov23b.cfm

Celebrate National Chocolate Chip Day with these recipes or make a quickie Chocolate Cake in a Mug with this recipe! BTW, if you don't keep cake flour hanging around (I don't), you can make a substitute with ¾ cup regular flour and two tablespoons of cornstarch. That tip is courtesy WiseGeek.

Never played Portal? On that off chance (or the chance that you want to play it again), you can get it for free via Steam until 5/24:

http://www.heyitsfree.net/2010/05/13/free-portal-video-game-download/