General Questions and Answers

• What exactly is a mystery shopper?
• Why do organisations use mystery shopper companies?
• What sort of person makes a good mystery shopper?
• Will I need a disguise and specialist equipment?
• In what areas of the UK do you require shoppers?
• What sort of hours are involved?
• Am I employed by JKS?

Q - What exactly is a mystery shopper?
A – A ‘face to face’ mystery shopper is somebody who visits a company or organisation (stores, hotels, restaurants, local government offices, service providers etc) to assess levels of customer service whilst posing as a typical customer. By making observations and asking the staff relevant questions prepared by the mystery shopping company, and by completing an online report form following the visit, the quality of the service offered can be assessed. 

Q– Why do organisations use mystery shoppers?
A – Companies and organisations want to be fully aware of how their service quality is perceived - unhappy customers will often not complain but instead “vote with their feet” (and wallets) by taking their business elsewhere. By implementing a mystery shopping program, companies and organisations can identify specific shortfalls in customer service levels which can then be improved by offering further staff training etc.

Q - What sort of person makes a good mystery shopper?
Good mystery shoppers need to be over 18 years of age. They should be diligent, communicative, have a good memory, pay close attention to detail and be able to write objective reports with an excellent standard of English. They should be flexible and able to adhere to strict deadlines. As much of our reporting is done online, they should also be computer literate and have full access to the internet and email.

Q – Will I need a disguise and specialist equipment?
A – The main criteria of a mystery shop is that the staff are unaware of your true purpose. To this end you should adopt suitable clothing for the assignment so that you blend in as a typical customer. For example, wearing ripped jeans and a t-shirt is fine if you’re visiting a DIY store but not really suitable for a high-end department store or fine dining restaurant!

You will only need specialist equipment if you intend on becoming a video mystery shopper. Some of our assignments include telephone mystery shopping where shoppers call the organisation or company rather than visit. In this instance, calls are normally recorded but no specialist equipment is required. We use an online service that can record calls automatically. 

Q -In what areas of the UK do you require shoppers?
A- JKS currently have over 12,000 mystery shoppers on their database that are situated in all parts of the UK. Whether you live in the Outer Hebrides or the centre of London, you should still apply. Some surveys are internet and telephone based so are not area specific. As long as you have access to the internet and a telephone we can use you. Specific areas that we are keen to recruit shoppers with an immediate need are north London, Torquay and Cumbria

Q – What sort of hours are involved?
A – Mystery shopping is very much ad hoc. There may be times when we have no available assignments for you or times when we can offer lots. The work is not full time and although some assignments can be carried out at weekends and on evenings, many are available on weekdays only during office hours. An assignment typically takes less than an hour plus any travelling time. However, some may involve overnight stays to hotels or health spas. Within these parameters there is flexibility in the hours worked and the role fits nicely for shoppers of all circumstances, parents with babies or small children at home for example.

Q –Am I employed by JKS?
A – No we do not directly employ shoppers. You are self employed and responsible for your own tax and national insurance payments.

All shoppers are free to decide whether they want to accept an assignment or not, and we do not guarantee to award a specific number of assignments. However we do expect that when you accept an assignment for us, that you carry it out under the terms issued and do not disclose the details or results to any third party. Shoppers are also able to accept work from various other mystery shopping agencies if they wish.

How to find suitable assignments

Q- How do I find suitable assignments?  
A- Once your application has been approved and your account made active, you will be notified by email when assignments become available. The email will explain how you can log into our Sassie system to view the assignments using the built in Job Board. You can search for assignments either by county or country. You can then apply for any assignments of interest. Applications for assignments will show in your ‘My Apps’ section of Sassie as pending until one of our allocators or project managers assigns the work to the most suitable shopper. Suitability to individual assignments will be determined on a number of factors depending on the project involved, and will include such things as previous experience, test status, shopper score, location and other specific demographics. Once an assignment is allocated to you, a confirmation email will be sent and the job details will appear under 'Shop Log' in your Sassie account.

When logged into your Sassie account, clicking on the 'Help' icon at the top of any page will give additional information and tips on that area of your account.

Payments and Purchase Queries

• How much will I be paid?
• What about purchases?
• What about tax and national insurance payments?

Q – How much will I be paid?
A – This depends on the assignment you are given. A quick survey on the telephone will pay less than a detailed face to face survey. Full details concerning your payments are sent out with every shopper brief. Make sure you read them carefully as they will outline exactly what we are paying for that particular assignment and the work involved. 

Q – What about purchases?
A- Not all of our assignments involve purchases. However, you may be asked to make a purchase as part of your assignment. You will need to retain all relevant receipts to be scanned or digitally photographed before being returned to us. Sometimes goods will have to be returned, other times you will be able to keep them. You will be told what you need to buy and the spend limit/reimbursement level in your mystery shopping brief. All purchases are either refunded or an allowance is included to cover them within your shopper fee.

Q – What about tax and national insurance payments?
A- All shoppers are classed as self-employed and are entirely responsible for declaring payments and expenses to the Inland Revenue.

Apply Now

• Tips on completing your application form
• When will I know if I have been successful?
• Where do I find information on available assignments
• Do you give feedback and training to shoppers?
• Click here to apply now

Q - Tips on completing your application form
A – Treat your application as you would any other job application

• Convince us as to why we should consider your application
• Tell us why you would make a good mystery shopper
• Include any details of past employment and experience
• If we ask for a minimum number of characters, then please don’t ignore it as your application will be rejected
• Please write complete sentences that begin with a capital letter and end in a full stop. You should pay careful attention to your spelling, punctuation and grammar. Remember, this will be our first impression of your writing style and we need shoppers who can write comprehensive and objective reports following each assignment.
• Use paragraphs in large chunks of text

If you can’t be bothered to take the time to complete the application form in a professional and detailed manner, you are highly unlikely to complete detailed reports for our clients. Your application form tells us a lot about you!

Q – What are the JKS terms and conditions?
A – All shoppers need to read and accept our terms and conditions before submitting an application to us.

Q- Do you give feedback to shoppers?
A - Each time you submit a report to us, we quality check it for its accuracy, level of detail, grammar, spelling and punctuation. We check that you have followed the shopper brief correctly and have completed all components of the assignment fully.

A shopper score is then awarded (out of ten). The score and any relevant comments are emailed to you following each assignment and are also available to view via your Sassie account. This means we can congratulate you when you do well and offer constructive help to enable you to improve your score if necessary.

We can only work with high quality reliable shoppers who prove they can follow briefs exactly and write detailed, accurate and comprehensive reports. Shoppers who consistently score well are always offered more work than those that do not.

Q- Do you give training to shoppers?
A - We need to ensure that all shoppers are qualified to perform shops to our client’s high standards.

Introduction test:
We give all shoppers an online test when they first sign up with us. This ensures that every shopper we use is well versed in the mystery shopping basics.

Advanced shopper training:
Once you are in our database you can continue to demonstrate your knowledge of advanced mystery shopping scenarios, such as audits, industry specific shops, and product knowledge.

We also keep a database of shoppers who excel in certain market sectors. You will be given the opportunity to complete online tests and training before being permitted to accept certain assignments. This allows us to train you and assess your suitability in certain sectors or for particularly detailed assignments.

Q – When will I know if I have been successful?
A – Once you have completed your application form you will receive an email that says your application has been ‘manually deactivated’ This is because we vet each application form before we allow it into our database. If you have been successful in your application we will ‘activate’ your application within 10 days.