Pawn and Jewelry Mystery Shops
Pawn and jewelry mystery shops is a great way to utilize those unwanted jewels you have and don't know what to do with. You can use them over and over again for many pawn shop assignments. These assignments are great for people of all ages.
This is mostly an evaluation of the person who is helping you – the pawn broker. You'll be given a list of instructions on what to look for. You'll also take note of the selling process from the person you're interacting with.
These assignments involve both selling and pawning scenarios where you hand over your precious gems for a pawn broker to evaluate. The pawn broker will take the jewelry and examine it on the spot. They're usually well-trained to look at every facet of the item. They'll take a magnifying glass to check the condition of the jewels and potential resale value. They will have other tools to test for gemstone quality and metal purity. If it's a diamond they're looking at, they'll assess carat, clarity, and cut of the gem.
Once the pawn broker has made their assessment, they'll turn to you and give you an offer. Precious metals are priced on the fluctuations of the daily market.
Some directions have you go ahead and make the trade but return to the store an hour later and ask for a refund. In this scenario, business owners and managers want to know how their employees handle refunds.
Most of the assignments I've done required me to change my mind during the transaction. Some instructions will require me to give an objection to see how the employee responds to it. I usually tell the pawn broker that I was expecting more money for the jewelry. Business owners and managers want to see if they will bargain with you.
You're also there to check out the cleanliness of the store. If they have a public restroom, you may be asked to walk in and report your findings on how presentable it is.
Pawn and Jewelry Mystery Shops with Video
The majority of these assignments I've done involved wearing hidden camera and audio equipment. Video shopping helps the business owner and manager to hear word-for-word what the employee says to you. I've been told that many of these videos are shown to the employee for training purposes. They have the opportunity to correct a wrong path the employee may be taking or praise them for doing a good job. As a mystery shopper, you really don't know what happens after your video and report have been submitted. I've heard people have received raises on their performance and others reprimanded.
The mystery shopper submits everything to the mystery shopping company before deadline. Tea mystery shopping company will finalize the report and send it to the Client.
You also deal with the legitimacy of mystery shopping with the pawn and jewelry mystery shops and the credibility of pawn brokers. Both mediums can be monitored to a high standard to ensure that the consumer benefits with honest dealings.
Beware of these mystery shopping scams.
These assignments take anywhere from 15 to 45 minutes to complete on location. The questionnaire to fill out is usually not terribly long, but it could take an hour. There will be some narrative to write to explain the interaction with the pawn broker. The more information you write about your experience, the better the client learns about their business. That, in turn, will put you in a positive light when applying for future pawn and jewelry assignments.
The pay can range from $10 to $15 for a short assignment to $50 or more for longer evaluations. Video assignments will usually pay double that of a written assignment. There may not be as many questions to answer on a questionnaire as well. However, if you have any equipment failures, a written report won't do you any good. The client was expecting video. You would not be paid for the assignment.
There is no age restriction for pawn and jewelry mystery shops. It's an excellent side hustle for the retiree, especially someone who has a lot of jewelry around. It's also good for a student to earn some extra spending money for school. They can borrow jewelry from a parent or relative. The only age restriction is that you have to be 18 years and older to do any mystery shopping.
There are tax advantages of mystery shopping. You can write the mileage you drive from your residence to the pawn shop. Plus, any costs incurred while buying items in this pawn and jewelry shop can be considered as a tax deduction. I always advise people to consult with an IRS tax professional during the tax season.
Here's a podcast with a tax professional Tim Kiker talking about the mystery shopping Business.
The mystery shopping business is always looking for new faces to visit different places. Learn how you can start your own mystery shopping business from my book, "Take That Job And Mystery Shop It!." I also list close to 200 mystery shopping companies that you can click on their website and fill out an application. There's information about each company and I indicate which ones I've worked with.
