Alison,

This is not a formal background check, which can indeed be very expensive. The service used relies on Public Records information. If there is a perfect match between the information provided by the shopper and the corresponding public records, the verification is immediate. If there is an imperfect match, the service scours Public Records and presents Challenge Questions (which may include past phone numbers, registered vehicles, names of other people associated with the applicant in Public Records, like Marriage Certificates, recorded Deeds of Trust, Vehicle Registrations, etc.) to help determine and confirm proper identity.

The reason there is a fee is because a lot has been invested to create a robust, sophisticated and secure system of verification, and the costs are ongoing, due to human review, challenge questions, etc. - resulting in ongoing costs to maintain the absolute integrity of the process.

As for the certification you are referring to, the Mystery Shopping Fundamentals - that is the only test on iSSPrep that has a fee, all others are entirely free. Of course, as all other tests, it is completely optional. It can be useful both to new shoppers, and those willing to engage in mystery shopping more actively and professionally. It's there to give shoppers an introduction to (and an overview of) the fundamental concepts applicable to collecting business intelligence from the field, as it provides insights into the the Mystery Shopping concept, complements the knowledge gained in the iSS 101 test, and gives a slightly larger points reward than any other test, ultimately equipping shoppers with the knowledge and shopper score increase that can be helpful in understanding more about the industry itself.

It was designed as a way for the people at iSecretShop that have been in the industry for over a decade and interacted with dozens of Mystery Shopping Providers, to share their knowledge and insights with shoppers that are really interested in fully understanding the entire concept, expanding their knowledge, and taking the "professional" approach to Mystery Shopping.

It is in no way a requirement for anything, nor promoted anywhere in particular, nor are the shoppers who take it favored over others - it's rather an optional "boost" to a shopper's knowledge, understanding of the industry itself, and their score, and can be handy for all shoppers that are eager to "dive into" the entire experience more and know more.

I hope this helps!

Hi David,

The service used relies on Public Records information. If there is a perfect match between the information provided by the shopper and the corresponding public records, the verification is immediate. If there is an imperfect match, the service scours Public Records and presents Challenge Questions to help determine and confirm proper identity.

Once again - this service is entirely optional. If the applicant does not want to answer questions necessary to complete the verification process, they are welcome not to.

Let us know how it worked out, and good luck!

Any way you look at it - it's a great way to make some money :)

Thank you for the very detailed info Denise!

I think they're free...but honestly not sure...anyone had experience with those?

You're welcome guys!

Denise - the Opinion Polls open up whenever a client requests them, so there aren't any rules or indicators of what that may be, but lately it hasn't been that often. I like doing those myself, so I hope more pop up soon :)

Badges can have various practical benefits, I'll list of them here:

1. As MFJohnston said, the more shops you complete, the more you can self assign. This is a consequence of leveling up the Reputation badge, which increases with with amount of shopper points you get, allowing you to self-assign more and more shops.
2. Obtaining a certain level of some specialty badges for specific types of shops will allow you to bypass the self-assign limit altogether on some shops. For example, if you have Price Audit badge at level 2, you'll be able to self-assign dozens of specific price audit shops at a time.
3. Some shops can be setup by the MSP to require shoppers to have a specific badge to be able to see them and apply for them - this allows MSPs to only offer their shops to shoppers that meet their criteria.
4. When you and other shoppers submit a request for the same shop, for the same date - they will look at your and their badges, and decide based on that who to assign the shops to.

These come to mind now, although there is probably more :) iSecretShop is always looking for ways to improve, and reward the active and reliable shoppers, so if you have any suggestions on what can be added to this, feel free to post :)

Hi Saqib,

There's no way to check the exact total number of points you have, since that information is stored in the system itself and not displayed anywhere - insted, it is reflected in the level of your Reputation badge, and its progress towards the next level.

Cheers!

That's a very productive way to spend your time! :)