How To Start Your Own Mystery Shopping Business The only book recommended by industry professionals The Business of Mystery Shopping - New Edition will help you start a mystery shopping business ...and, make it a success! In addition to the topics below, the new edition covers: - How to put your mystery shopping questionnaires on the net WITHOUT being a computer genius and WITHOUT going broke in the process. - How to put your business on "automatic pilot". - The magic trick that will enable you to get money out of any late paying client. - The "Golden Nugget of Promotions". How to get ahead of the competition and stay ahead. - Using Paypal to pay your shoppers and invoice your clients....step by step. LEGALEEZE (sorry - our attorneys made us do this!). Due to the internet's plagiarist reputation, our clever internet-saavy attorneys are hard at work making sure this outline does not turn into someone else's book! Copyright 2007-2008 Shari Joseph. All rights reserved www.mystery-shopper-business.com Updated 2007 How to start your own mystery shopping business - OUTLINE This Mystery Shopping Business book contains 5 sections: I Get ready to open your doors for business - The "start up" technicalities made easy. We also have several "tricks up our sleeve" to save you money on start up costs. II Running the business - Now you are open for business. What do you do when you get your first client (and, every client after that)? III How to rise above the competition to get clients and how to make them thrilled with you! This is where business becomes an art form. IV Mystery Shopper's Treasure Chest - the latest and greatest ways to get mystery shopping jobs V Mystery shopping company listings I STARTING THE BUSINESS Choose a name and keep it for yourself! Obtain a formal business name (Doing Business As) Choose your business structure. Positives and negatives of each option. What to discuss with your accountant Set up your accounting system - the easy way! Open a checking account Open an office - the options Phone lines and the internet - important considerations Equipment purchases Your stationary City business license State licensing and the Mystery Shopping industry Insurance Business Plan II RUNNING YOUR BUSINESS Overview - running a mystery shopping business - step by step Degrees of automation - how automated do you want your business to be? Specific Options to put your forms on the internet and automate your business Set up a new client Prepare shoppers for your new client 1. Where to find shoppers 2. The shopper application 3. Mystery Shopper Independent Contractor Agreement 4. Set up a database for your shoppers Create a questionnaire for your new client 1. Develop your standard questionnaire 2. How to customize the questionnaire for your client 3. Methods to deliver reports to your client 4. Basic questionnaire design - some options 5. Statistics 6. Point system - learn from our mistakes! 7. Length of questionnaire - how much is too much? 8. Mystery shopping questionnaire samples and generic industry questions - Banks - Car dealerships - Department and Retail stores - Convenience stores - Realty/housing companies - Theaters Set up shopper restrictions 1. Special assignment requirements 2. How often should a shopper return to a location? Link shoppers to client's locations Shoppers assignment notifications and instructions Create your assignment schedule Assign the shops 1. When? 2. How? Assignment reminders Complete the assignments and assignment log How to handle overdue and incorrectly completed assignments Edit and verify completed questionnaires 1. How do you verify reports? 2. Report editing - know what to take out and what to leave in Finalized reports are made available to the client - the options spelled out Pay shoppers 1. How to handle shoppers with incorrectly completed shops 2. Create the shoppers payment log 3. Pay your shoppers - when and how to pay - Includes using Paypal to pay shoppers - step by step Invoice your clients 1. Create your client invoice and how often to invoice - Using Paypal to invoice - step by step 2. Accounts receivable log 3. When, who, and how to call for late payments 4. When it appears a client won't pay at all! - The magic trick to get money out of any late paying client! Count your money - plus a great method to make paying taxes easier and less painful. III. GETTING AND KEEPING CLIENTS General sales approach The "Golden Nugget" of promotions! Leave your competitors "in the dust" How much time and effort should you spend on promotions Promotions to obtain small local clients Promotions to obtain national accounts 1. What to include in your promotional package 2. Who do you send promotions to? - How to choose an industry for your promotions - Industry guide books - Finding companies headquarters 3. Five ways to get business using industry associations - Over 40 associations listed by industry with web addresses The following is an example of one listing. There are over 40 associations listed. HOTEL INDUSTRY American Hotel & Motel Association (AHMA) 1201 New York Ave NW suite 600 Washington DC 20005 Phone: (202) 289-3100 www.ahma.com A federation of state and regional lodging associations with more than 10,000 members. Note: This can lead you to other Hotel Associations. - Book of Lists - businesses in major metropolitan areas 4. Use the internet to get more clients - Host your web site "on the cheap" - Easily create your web site just by typing in your text - it's that simple! - How to rank high in Google and other Search Engines - How to submit your web site to Search Engines If you find yourself in a bidding war Sign up clients 1. Perform a trial shop 2. How much to pay your shoppers and a neat trick to easily determine this 3. How much to charge your mystery shopping clients 4. How often to do your shops for a client 5. How soon can the client expect to receive their reports 6. The mystery shopping client contract How to keep clients happy (and wanting more work from you!) To Do list to start your company IV. MYSTERY SHOPPER'S TREASURE CHEST Determining the types of jobs you want Finding jobs - the latest and greatest - Job Boards - apply directly to companies - paid services - organizations and associations - certification - training - newsgroups Get jobs over and over again Stay organized Uncle Sam wants his fair share Keep track of your reports and income V. MYSTERY SHOPPING COMPANY LISTINGS Includes specific web addresses for shopper applications and specialization for each company. For more information, go to mystery shopping business