FAQ
Am I an Employee or an Independent Contractor?
As a Mystery Shopper, you will work for The Realise Group as an independent contractor. This means that you are not an employee of The Realise Group, and will not be paid holiday pay, sick leave, superannuation, workers compensation, or other employee entitlements. The rate of pay offered for the assignment is the full payment that you will receive (if required to make a purchase you will be reimbursed for the cost of the purchase on top of your payment). You are expected to cover all costs associated with you completing the mystery shopping assignments, including stationery, travel expenses etc.
Tax issues
As you are a Mystery shopping contractor and not an employee, an annual Statement of Earnings or Group Certificates is not provided at the end of the financial year. As a contractor, it is your responsibility to keep records of all work you carry out for The Realise Group. This includes all fees and reimbursements that we pay you. We recommend that you keep all of your ‘Allocation Emails’ (which notify you of the payment amount for each assignment.) as a record of the work you have undertaken with us. Many Mystery Shoppers use a spreadsheet in Excel to keep track of their earnings.
How and when you’ll be paid?
Your payment for successfully completed evaluations will be made directly into your nominated bank account within 3 - 5 weeks of completing the mystery shop. You will be notified by email when payment has been made.
How much will I be paid?
You will be paid per assignment, not an hourly rate. The payment varies depending on how simple the questionnaire is, how much time you are required to spend in the store completing the assignment, and whether you are required to make a purchase (which you will usually get to keep).
What if I receive an email to notify me that payment has been made, but the money is not in my bank account?
If you are a new shopper, this means that you have probably not sent us your completed Shopper Contract, Bank Details Form, or supplied us with an ABN or Statement by Supplier. Forms are available here. Contact us on 03 9687 2360 and we can tell you exactly what information or forms we are missing.
How will you communicate with me about Mystery shopping assignments in my area?
We will communicate the availability of assignments to you mainly via email. Sometimes we will email you about a specific assignment we have allocated you, and sometimes we will email many shoppers on the database about a particular assignment that is available in order to determine who is available to complete it. From time to time we may also send SMS messages regarding assignments. Receiving these emails and SMS messages regarding assignments is a central part of the mystery shopping process. If you do not wish to receive these electronic messages, please do not register to become a mystery shopper.
How many Mystery shopping assignments will I receive?
The quantity of assignments you will receive will vary dependent upon where you live (are there many shopping centres nearby for example) and the distance you are willing to travel. Also your reliability and commitment to deadlines, as well as the quality of your work will affect how much work you receive from us. It could vary from 1 to 10 assignments per month, less or more depending upon you and your location.
Do I need access to the internet to become a Mystery Shopper? What other equipment will I need?
To become a Mystery Shopper you are required to have very regular access to internet, email and a printer, as well as a car. You will be given a brief and questionnaire on each assignment explaining what is required, and what you need to assess at the store. These documents need to be printed out.
You will accept or reject work and download all documents from our website, so internet access is essential. Once you have completed your assignment you are required to data enter your results on our website.
A good memory and attention to detail are essential!
How long do assignments take to complete?
Some assignments may take 2-3 minutes to complete inside the store, however you also need to consider the time taken to read the instructions before completing the assignment, and also the time to submit your results online after you do the assignment. In total this may add another 10-20 minutes or more to an assignment.
On average, you should not need to spend more than 30-60 minutes on each assignment. Obviously the first time you do a shop for a particular client you may have more reading time, but if you are doing several shops for this client on a regular basis it should take you less time from then on.
There could be other assignments which take an hour or even more (ie. enquiring about a complex product, such as a home loan or computer). We factor in the time required and complexity and pay accordingly.
Do I need to make a purchase?
Some assignments require a purchase, and others do not. You will be instructed when the assignment is first given to you if a purchase is required, and what that purchase is. You will be fully reimbursed for all purchases, in addition to your assignment payment.
Do I get to keep my Mystery shopping purchase?
On most occasions you will get to keep your purchase (and if it is a food item, you will always get to keep and consume it!). Occasionally we may ask you to return the purchase either to the store, or to our Head Office.
I’ve registered to become a Mystery Shopper. What happens now?
After registering your details, we will review your application and if successful (and there is work available in your area) we will ask you to undertake some training.
Trained and accredited Mystery Shoppers are then selected from our database to complete mystery shopping assignments – we offer shoppers assignments through our system and by phone or email. After accepting a Mystery shopping assignment, mystery shoppers prepare for the evaluation by reading the briefing material and the questionnaire.
Mystery Shoppers then visit the store, make their observations discretely, and complete the questionnaire (away from the store). Findings are reported on-line via our website within 24 hours of completing the evaluation. The information provided by Mystery Shoppers is collated and turned into a series of reports for the client.
How do Mystery Shoppers receive work?
All Mystery shopping assignments are allocated to specific shoppers via Realise Online (our web-based software system. The Realise Group then sends the shopper an email to notify them of the assignment requirements (such as deadline dates, purchase required, special instructions, etc). Mystery Shoppers are required to login ASAP to Accept or Reject their work, which officially notifies The Realise Group if the shopper will complete the Mystery shopping assignment by the deadline date or not. By Rejecting the assignment promptly, this will allow The Realise Group to find an alternative Mystery Shopper to complete the assignment before the deadline date. If a Mystery Shopper must reject or cancel their assignment at the last minute, a phone call or email to The Realise Group is also appreciated.
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