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12 Legit Ways to Become a Mystery Shopper Today! (Seriously)

September 8th, 2011 No Comments

12 Legit Ways to Become a Mystery Shopper Today! (Seriously) Ever wanted to be a mystery shopper, but didn’t know what was legit? Well for every great opportunity to make extra income that exists, there is 100 fake ones claiming they’re legit too, often making you pay for the opportunity (which you rarely ever should) and leaving you empty handed.

Well 3+ years ago I put some time in as a legit Mystery Shopper, and was able to make some cash while doing some fun enjoyable things, like dining out at restaurants, ordering food in, going to movies with free drinks + popcorn, shopping at the mall (for clothes or even jewelry sometimes – although I never actually bought the jewelry), visiting my local bank, etc.

And so after some recent conversations with a few friends about my experiences, I figured I’d share the (limited but useful) resources and advice that I’ve gained in a blog post.

Listed below are the links for the mystery shopping companies that I’ve been a mystery shopper for (I tried to link you to the sign-up page for each one, but if you don’t land on it – it should be very easy to find it)…

https://www.sassieshop.com/sassie/SassieShopperSignup/Signup.php?EmsID=tKoOb8SkyNY%3D
https://www.maritzmysteryshopping.com/home/Default.aspx
http://www.serviceevaluation.com/index.php/become-a-brand-agent
http://www.gapcentral.gapbuster.com/mysteryshop/
http://www.gamefilmconsultants.com/secret_shoppers
http://lpinstore.com/demonstrator.aspx
http://www.jobslinger.com/
http://www.crg-web.com/Registration/register.asp
http://www.hsbrands.com/
http://www.coylehospitality.com/evaluators/
http://www.volition.com/mystery.html
http://www.mysteryshop.org/shoppers/

I will say, however, that the bigger the perks and/or pay that’s involved in the job, the more requirement you will usually have to fulfill.

For example, whenever I shopped a movie theater I had to keep the movie stubs, concession items (popcorn tub and soda cups), and fill out paperwork – answering 10-15 questions. Usually it’s nothing too extensive and time consuming outside of the actual mystery shopping itself, but it’s good to keep in my mind that some jobs will take more time than others.

As you’ll see, the cool thing is, some of the companies in this list provide mystery shopping opportunities that include hotel stays, free airfare, sea cruises and a bunch of other rare and fun ways to make extra cash. But like I said above about the perks and/or pay, the better they get, you usually need a proven track record as a mystery shopper in the small jobs.

Disclaimer – There are many other companies out there providing mystery shopping opportunities, however, 99% of them will NEVER charge you to become a shopper, so if you find one that does, I’d recommend checking them out through http://www.mysteryshop.org – they are a good resource to detect if one is legit or not.

Well I hope this helps Any questions feel free to ask – I don’t know a whole lot in the area of mystery shopping – just enough to (hopefully) help you find the legit ones and have fun and make money in the process. If you have suggestions, experience or ideas to share leave them below in the comments.

Enjoy the shopping!

Get Your Groupon!

August 23rd, 2010 No Comments

have you heard the buzz about Groupon yet? i was gonna tell you a fictional story to help explain what Groupon is, but then i found this great lil’ cartoon video that does a much better job…

click here to get your groupon —>

*did this help you? let me know – no/yes

6 Extreme Ways to Go Frugal and Save

August 7th, 2010 No Comments

I thought I’d share this intriguing article that I read today (enjoy!)…

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How far would you go to save a buck in today’s tumultuous economy? People are finding more ways than ever before to scrimp and save. But some take it to extremes.

Read on as expert penny-pinchers detail six bold ways to cut costs — and in some cases, generate a little revenue — during tough economic times. Are you extreme enough to give them a try?

Get Rid of Your Car

Trading in your beloved wheels for public transportation is definitely extreme — especially if you live in the suburbs. However, doing so saves a bundle.

“If you can walk, bike, or take public transit where you need to go, get rid of your car entirely,” says Francine Jay, author of “Frugillionaire: 500 Fabulous Ways to Live Richly and Save a Fortune.”

$25 Dinner for as low as $2

May 7th, 2010 5 Comments

if you love to eat out as much as i do, then you’ll want to pay attention to this…

last year i wrote about how you can get $25 dinner for just 3 bucks. and then i mentioned how you can get those same certificates by forking out (stupid pun, i know – a friend forced me to use it again) just $2.

all you need to is to just click on the “Restaurant.com” banner below, and then copy and paste (or if you’re not sure how to do that – just write it down) the special promo code i’ve provided you.

the great thing about it is that you just buy it and print it and you’re ready to go. or you can buy one as a gift and impress someone with how much money you supposedly spent on them.

i’ll be on the lookout for more deals like this so sign up in the box to the right or just keep checking back.

How to be a Cheapskate at the Grocery Store…

February 22nd, 2010 11 Comments

(read time – 4 mins)

here’s a little habit i got into about 2 yrs ago that has helped me save a good chunk of money on groceries.

i don’t buy the sunday paper too often. but when i do, it’s for the same reason a lot of people buy it – the coupons.

well, being the cheapskate i am, i’m often not very satisfied with the kind of coupons i find, compared to the ones i really want. mainly because i’m forced to buy certain brands or food i may not usually buy, and so my thought is, “there’s gotta be an better way to get the coupons i want”.

so to solve this problem, here’s how i have become a cheapskate at the grocery store…(of course i realize this may seem more laborious than some prefer)

I need your help please…

January 18th, 2010 8 Comments

(read time 30 seconds)

i need your help please…

in the pursuit to make cheapskatekeith.com better – i want to know something…

what kind of deals would you like to see here?

i’m currently in the works of creating a very large store and category section where you can find the most current deals; online and offline. but until that time i also want to know what you’re looking for, so it’ll be easy for you to find it.

trust me – chances are, you could be getting a better deal than what you’re used to paying already.

so being the movie lover i am, i’ll just sum it up with the (cliche) words of mr. cruise…

just post your reply in the section below.

Winter – It’s a Great time for Deals on Vacation!

January 10th, 2010 3 Comments

(read time – 3 mins)

if you’re considering taking a vacation during the winter or sometime soon, this could help you save a good chunk of money.

just a few days ago, a good friend of mine was about to book a pretty expensive flight on a website that travel agents use. understandably, he was assuming that he was gonna be get a real good deal.

but when i found out what he was doing, i rudely interrupted him and quickly forced him (as friends do) to let me challenge the deal he found, to see if i could find him a better price.

well, 2 or 3 mins later, i happily met the challenge by saving him about

What to do with that Christmas cash…

December 31st, 2009 No Comments

(read time – 1-2 mins)

if you’re like me, and you got some christmas money burning a whole in your pocket . well, you might wanna hold up on spending it to quickly because there’s many ways you can make that cash go farther than you might expect.

for example – there’s a website called halfpricedeals.com where you can just type in your zip code, and then it’ll pull up a list of vendors in your area that sell gift certificates for half the cost of their value. in my area, there’s just under 80 different places i can go to cut normal costs in half.

you might be surprised of how many different types of places are on the list. you’ve got salons, restaurants, golf courses, electronic stores, auto service stores, gyms, toy stores, and the list goes on.

how to get 2 movie tickets for the price of 1

December 28th, 2009 1 Comment

(read time – 2.5 mins)

to some of you, with a local coupon book in hand, this might seem like a dime a dozen kinda deal, but i ask that you suspend your assumptions and read on, and i’ll show you how this is different.

granted, there are some restrictions here, just like with the coupon book, but the nice thing about this is that you don’t have to wait in line to nervously hand over your coupon to the teenage shift manager, wondering if they’re gonna slap you with some fine print. in fact, you can walk right past them and the crowd proudly displaying ticket in hand and head straight to your movie.

and with that, here’s how you can get 2 movie tickets for the price of 1…

35 free mp3 downloads – you own the music forever

December 21st, 2009 5 Comments

(read time – 2 mins)

if you’re a music fan like me, you’ll definitely want to check this out.

i realize this may be somethin’ you’ve heard of before, but you may not have taken advantage of because you thought, “what’s the catch?”

well if you take a few seconds here i’ll show you how the catch is on them – emusic.com.

this site gives you access to over 7,000,0000 tracks to download. but the cool thing is with the link i’ve listed below you can legally burn 25 mp3′s for free, and they’re yours to keep.

one thing to note: this is a trial offer. which means that they want you to permanently join their program (about $12 a month, plus the cost of each track). and of course, since it’s a trial offer they will ask you for you payment info, but rest assured, you won’t be charged unless you keep the your account beyond the trial period.

personally, i’ve taken advantage of this trial period twice (once for myself and the other for my wife) and i didn’t get charged either time. and here’s how you do it…