What to expect as a QSI Shopper

QSI Shoppers, as mandated by Nevada Law, are employees, not Independent
Contractors. Just like any other job you seek, you will need to apply and meet the requirements to obtain a position as a Shopper with QSI.

Mystery shoppers must possess the ability to read and follow instructions to ensure that the client’s specifications are met. They must possess the observation skills to notice specific details, as well as the skills to describe those details objectively and concisely in written reports. They must have the ability and responsibility to meet deadlines inasmuch as most clients require detailed written reports within 24 to 48 hours of the completion of the shop. And since many of our report forms and instructions are transmitted back and forth via email or submitted via the Internet, a computer, Internet access and basic computer skills are required.

If you reside in Clark County, Washoe County or Carson County you will need to obtain a work permit from the Sheriff of your county. There will be a $90 charge to obtain the permit, which will be paid directly to the county. This should be your only expense to become a Mystery Shopper in Nevada. If you are applying to be a shopper with any other companies and they attempt to charge you for signing up as a shopper, don’t do it! It is probably a scam!

You will also need to be registered with the Private Investigators Licensing Board (PLIB), and while there is a fee for this, QSI will be paying to register you. But keep in mind that only registers you for work you do through QSI. If you decide to become an employee for more than one Mystery Shopping company in Nevada, you have to be registered separately for each company you are working for.

After filling out your application, W-4 and additional company policy documents, and obtaining your Work Card, you can begin to do shops for QSI.

As an employee you will also be given access to client websites to directly view and obtain certain shops.

NOTE: The work card you receive is only a temporary card; it will expire after 3 months. When you receive your card they will tell you when to come in for the permanent one. If you do not go in and pick up that card and give QSI another copy of it, you will be barred from doing shops when the temporary card expires. You will be barred until you deliver that new copy of the work card. Don’t forget to pick up your permanent card!

One of the documents you will be asked to review and sign is the MSPA Code of Professional Standards and Ethics Agreement for Mystery Shoppers. As a proud MSPA member, it is incredibly important to follow these standards and ethics. You may review this document here.

You may obtain shops from QSI in a number of different ways. You may receive an email assignment directly from a QSI project manager. You may also receive a request directing you to a client’s website for you to select from a variety of shops available. You may also check these sites on a regular basis and self assign shops that you are interested in.

Please Note: When you do receive a direct assignment letter, you must respond to it! The Project Manager will not assume you have accepted the shop until they hear from you. If they don’t hear back from you, there is a chance they will assign that shop to another shopper.

When you are reading the shop instructions, please make sure you meet the requirements. For example, is there an age or gender requirement? Is it for an activity that you can do? If you are not interested in ever laying in a tanning bed, never take a shop for a tanning shop. It won’t do QSI or our clients any good for you to accept shops that you aren’t qualified to complete. The purchase of alcohol is often a requirement for some assignments.

We recommend that you not only read the instructions when you first receive the shop, but also make sure to review them completely before you go to do the shop. Email or Call the Project Manager if you find any of the instructions confusing. Do not take your paperwork with you into the shop itself, but you can transfer them onto index cards, to put in your wallet or purse, which you can then review in the privacy of the bathroom or other hidden location. Never consult your notes in front of the employees you are reviewing.

Once you have been assigned and accepted a shop, you MUST make sure to complete it! If you have an emergency that prevents you from completing it, please make sure to notify us as soon as possible.

Wait time for a Project Manager after sending an e-mail to a shopper.

After an e-mail is sent out to a shopper offering an assignment, that shopper has 24 hours to respond with an acceptance or a refusal of that job. After 24 hours that job can and will most likely be reassigned to another shopper. Upon receipt of an assignment, please help us out by immediately checking your calender, determine if you can or cannot perform the shop within the required deadline, and respond to the project manager immediately.

After you have completed your shop, follow the instructions for submitting the report properly. Some reports are short, fill-in-the-blanks, and others require detailed comments. Detailed comments mean just that. Something like “Jim did a good job” is not a detailed comment. The client needs to know what Jim did or said that led you to the conclusion that he did a good job. We need complete sentences, proper grammar and punctuation, and tell a brief story about your interaction. Most of your computers have spell and grammar checks. Please use them. If our staff or our client’s staff has to continually edit and change and correct your reports, the number of assignments you are offered will drop significantly.

Do remember to keep the records of all the shops that you do. You will refer back to that information to fill out your timesheet so you can be paid for shops and reimbursements. Also make sure that whether you are spending your money or our money, always obtain a receipt. They are almost always required for reimbursement and their timely submission is just as important as your report.

Everyone who starts in Mystery Shopping wants to jump in to doing the “High End” shops, the night at the really nice hotel or dinner at a fancy restaurant. However, while these shops sound wonderful, please keep in mind they are also very intensive. It is not unusual for a hotel shop to have a questionnaire that is more than 50 pages, and some are even 80 pages. Some fine dining reports require many hours of writing at a very high level of intensity to complete. The high-end shops also usually require that you attend additional training to complete.

Experience, time and training will pay off for the QSI Shopper. As you show your skills and commitment to being an excellent shopper, the Project Manager’s will assign you more shops directly, as well as assign you those “High End” shops or even give you shop types that you have requested. Every Project Manager has “favorites”, those shoppers who they know will always perform at the highest quality.

QSI tries very hard to pay its shoppers better than any other Mystery Shopping company in Nevada. We also give bonuses for certain shops. We work hard to make sure the business works great and we need that same commitment from all our employees. Our first priority is making sure all shops get done and done well for our clients. We also believe that taking care of our Shoppers is the only way to make that happen.

Check our shopper hints to get more tricks of the trade.
Check out the FAQ to learn even more about being a QSI Shopper.