Here we are in a time when the “unemployment rate in the United States fell to 8.3 percent in January of 2012, the lowest since February 2009” (TradingEconomics.com). There are many families who are now doing more side/odd jobs that we have seen in a while. You may be one of those families; whether it’s selling on eBay/Craigslist or even starting your own business.

But let me ask you this. Do you make your dinner at home or do you still go out to eat? Do you still attend the annual charity or do your children still give presents during the holidays or birthdays? Well, so do I! And guess what?! I make money off of it.

MYSTERY SHOPPING! When I was younger, and I heard the word mystery shopper, I automatically thought that it would be for someone who already had money and just ate at upscale restaurants and had to do lots of paper work. But that is not the case now-a-days. It’s super easy to start and you don’t need any experience to start getting paid from $5 - $50 per visit. Here’s what you need...

1.       Internet Access and Printer (you can use the local library)
2.       Notepad and pen OR a good memory
3.       Confidence

That’s it! It would also be a good idea to have the mystery shop stops to go along with your daily routine; that way you are saving even more money rather than wasting gas. So the next step would be to visit www.MysteryShop.org. That is the Mystery Shop Providers Association website so that you can learn all about becoming a mystery shopper and all of the legitimate companies that are associated with this association.

What do you do as a mystery shopper? Well, once you register with a few companies you will get sent some emails and you can accept or reject the jobs you would like. They range from fast food to shopping and even movie screenings. For the most part you will just confirm that you will complete it and print out a short survey and fill it out once you complete the shop. You would be evaluating customer service to quality of food/merchandise of the establishment. Return to the website and enter in the information. A few weeks later you get paid.

So take a casual summer day of a full-time mystery shopper. Wake up, stop for some coffee at the local donut shop (customer service mystery shop = $10 +reimbursement), then go to your work place or go back home. Then you have to stop at the post office and pay a few bills (Postal mystery shop = $23 + $5 reimbursement), stop at the grocery store to pay the bills (grocery mystery shop = $15), then stop to pick up nuggets for the kiddos (timely mystery shop = $8 + reimbursement). Put in some Facebook time and Johnny has his birthday party next weekend so you stop at the local party store to pick up some last minute goodies (party mystery shop = $10 + reimbursement). Call it a day and end up with $60 plus reimbursement for just one day. Can’t beat that!

I have been a mystery shopper for over 8 years and well over 50% of everything we spend we get paid back to us, gotta love it! 

See below picture of my "Hubs" and "Eli," my 2-year old on the carousel at the biggest mall in our area. We go here every month for FREE because of mystery shopping (it's 30 minutes away and is like our little "vacation" time).

Feel free to contact me if you have any questions about mystery shopping.

-Cinella @ The Mami Blog (http://cjrthemamiblog.blogspot.com)
Facebook: www.Facebook.com/themamiblog
Twitter: www.twitter.com/cjrthemamiblog 

A large chunk of small businesses actually do not have a website, and an even higher percentage are not actively involved on social media sites. So the first question may be, why should you jump start your business online? The key reasoning to building a presence on the Internet would be to differentiate yourself from other businesses, to connect with the growing population of online and social media users, and to engage with your clients and prospects at any time (whether your store is closed or your sleeping, there are people out there browsing the WWW). Given this reasoning, here are a few quick suggestions to help make your business stand out on the web:

1. Create a strong website that will attract visitors.
2. Develop content that will intrigue and engage your target audience.
3. Implement an automated system for collecting client and prospect details so you can appropriately follow up with them.
   
4. Establish a presence on social media sites (Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, YouTube, etc.) so you can be more interactive.
5. Offer a way to connect your network with a larger network of individuals, so you can expand your reach.

Given the significance of this topic, we will be creating a series of posts on related issues, with additional actionable steps. For more information and immediate access to resources related to building your business on the Internet and generating more revenue online, please subscribe to our Inkwhy mailing list.