You’ve probably come across the concept of mystery shopping before now – and may even have given it a try at one time or another. In the past, mystery shopping was a long-winded and complicated process, however, in today’s digital world, things are much simpler for those who own a phone and have a little spare time. In our mission to find sneaky ways of earning a bit of extra dough, a visit to a local bakery seemed ideal so, we decided to check out some mystery shopping apps. First up is Birmingham-based, Roamler:
And, just what is Roamler
In case you weren’t listening, Roamler is a mystery shopping app that rewards members for visiting local shops, bars, and restaurants and reporting back via their phone. Roamler works on behalf of brands across the country and offers a large number of mystery shopping tasks wherever you may live.
How does Roamler work?
The process is very similar to that of old-style mystery shopping. Members are required to visit a local establishment and complete a task in order to get paid. Tasks can include a wide variety of activities such as taking photographs of shelves, ordering a product or quizzing a shopkeeper on stock holding decisions. Members download the app and then choose tasks in their local area and, once complete, get paid with what Roamler calls XP which translates to credit in your account and, moves you up the ranking to receive higher-earning tasks. Credits can be transferred into cash which, subsequently, can be transferred to your Paypal account.
Will I earn enough to roam the world?
As each task is different, payment varies widely. Some very quick and easy tasks pay around £2 each whereas others pay around £5 (although these are few and far between). If you have the time to complete two or three tasks in quick succession, it’s not impossible to earn around £15 for about half an hour’s work. When figuring out your earnings, you need to take into account any traveling costs – if you can walk to the venues then, great but, if you need to take a bus or drive, you need to factor in these costs to see if the task will be worthwhile.
How do I start Roamler’ing?
This bit is simple – just go to their website and download the app. After filling in your online vital statistics (name, email address, locale etc), you’ll be asked to complete a short test to make sure that you understand how it all works. After that, you’ll be required to complete one short, unpaid mystery shopping task. Once you’re done with your task, you’re free to accept any tasks which are offered to you (you’ll receive notification of these based on the vital stats you provided on sign up).
The pros and cons
Sounds too good to be true? Here are a few pros and cons of signing up with Roamler:
The Pros
Plentiful tasks – Even for those living in small towns or out-of-the-way areas, Roamler has plenty of jobs available.
Clear instructions – Each task includes very clear instructions which limit the chances of payment being withheld for a task being completed incorrectly.
Quick payout – In most cases, Roamler will hand over the readies within a few hours of a task being completed – which is great if you’re looking for quick cash.
The Cons
Low payouts – In many cases, tasks pay only a pound or two – which may not even cover your bus fare.
By invitation only – In order to become a Roamler member, you need to be sent an invitation code which can be tricky.
Check-in or check out?
We’ll be honest, you’re not going to get rich with Roamler, however, that’s not to say that it’s not worthwhile. If you live within easy (and cheap) access to the establishments involved, you can complete tasks just when you happen to be passing – which makes this a great way of earning a couple of quid for very little work. If, however, travel is involved, you may end up spending more than you actually earn.
