Has anyone ever worked as a mystery shopper?

I am thinking about signing up to be a mystery shopper and just want to ask some questions to someone who has been one before. First of all what site or mystery shopping business did you work for? What types of things did you have to look for when you were checking out the stores? How much money did you make? Would you recommend being a mystery shopper for someone who just wants to make some extra money? and any other information you have about it would be soo helpful, thanks!

Hi,
I do mystery shopping on the side for extra money. I am a teacher full time, so I am only able to work in the evenings and on weekends, or in the summer. I work for lots of different businesses, as they have shops in my area at different times. The best thing to do is go to www.volition.com and click on get paid, then get paid to shop. They literally have over 100 different companies. Some may have shops in your area, some may not. I just went down the list and I'm signing up with ALL of them. Just in the past week I've mystery shopped at K-Mart, McDonalds, and CiCi's Pizza. They give you a detailed list of what they want you to look for - and believe me, it's VERy detailed. You have to look for everything and be very discreet so that you aren't found out. The pay is different between companies and shops - some pay $5, some pay $10-12, and really big (extensive) shops pay up to $50. It is definitely not something I would do full time - you are an independent contractor and you aren't "guaranteed" a certain number of shops or amount of pay each month like a real job. But it can be fun and it's an easy way to make some extra cash. Check it out and see if it's right for you.

OH! And don't EVER pay to become a mystery shopper. None of the companies I work for have asked me to pay to shop for them. The only thing I pay for are the purchases at some stores that I am required to make for the shop - but I am usually reimbursed. And if you ever get a check in the mail that you are told to cash and send in money - that's a scam too.