genacc.ca

Get paid to shop! Make $$$!! We’ve all seen the ads or received the spam emails. And admit it, we’ve all thought about it. But how does one go about getting this kind of work anyway? It is money for nothing? Well, let’s run the mystery shopper obstacle course together and we’ll see if you have what it takes.

Round One: Dispelling The Myths

Let’s put some card on the table. You are not going to get rich being a mystery shopper. I’m sure a lot of you are collecting your belongings and heading for the door right about now. For those of you still with us, let’s continue. You don’t get to shop where and when you want. You are told where and when to go and what precisely to buy. Glitz and glamor? Not right away. Starting out, you’ll most likely get fast food joints and malls and you won’t get steady gigs. Plus you’ll only make $15-$25 dollars a gig with maybe one or two assignments a week. If you’re okay with that, then let’s move on to Round Two.

Round Two: Signing Up

This is the only easy part of becoming a mystery shopper. Just sign up. It’s that simple. Reputable companies like Mystery Shoppers Providers Association or Volition.com are good places to start. The only rule of thumb here is that you should never have to pay to sign up. Let me repeat that: Never. If you’re asked for money, it’s a scam. It’s important to realize here that signing up does not guarantee assignments. Competition is fierce.

Round Three: Shop ’Til You Drop… Free

Okay, here’s what you’ve all been waiting for. The part where you get free stuff. Well, you do and you don’t.  When you go to an assigned store to make a purchase, you pay out of your own pocket. Companies reimburse you, but that can take anywhere from 60-90 days so if you can’t spare the money or wait that long to get it back, then you can’t take the assignment. Also, you are responsible for any and all travel expenses though some companies will cover a part of these. You’ll also need a full, varied wardrobe on your own dollar. There’s no shopping at swanky stores in shorts and flip-flops. You’ve got to dress the part.

Round Four: You Call This Work?

Yes, they do. And you will work. You can’t breeze into an assigned store and make a purchase while chatting on your cell phone. You are obligated to observe every aspect of the experience. The appearance of the store. Exactly how fast the service was. No estimates here. You’ll need a stopwatch.  How knowledgeable was staff? Were they polite?  Everything. And you’ll sometimes have to play a part, pretend you’re something you’re not. And you’ve got to be convincing. When the job is done, you’ll have to file extremely detailed reports covering every aspect of the experience and you’ll have to file them on time. Failure to do so, cancels the contract and you don’t get paid. Fail to buy precisely what you are told to buy and you don’t get paid.
Still with me? If so, then mystery shopping might be for you. It can be a fun way to earn a few extra bucks and have some interesting experiences while getting ‘free’ stuff. If the job requirements don’t scare you, then sign up and have fun!

This article written by A. Salmon.

Well the last week of March didn’t exactly hold too many surprises with respect to mortgage rates in Canada. The 5 largest banks in Canada all hiked their rates in light of the recent rise in interest rates.

I for one am glad to see this occurring and the Canadian government being proactive in guarding against undue inflation. Considering our relative bounce back from the fallout of the subprime fiasco in the states, I’m hopeful that we also learned some lessons about borrowing huge sums of money. I think it’s safe to say that the housing market is alive and well in Canada, and maybe a little too well so hopefully this recent jump can help cool its jets and bring housing back into the realistic pricing range for the average single family.

Ronald is packing his bags and heading to the far east.

I read an interesting article featured on the National Post’s website. To give a quick summary it talked of certain (and some rather unexpected) areas of growth in China’s emerging market. One of the biggest surprises I found was the growing numbers of McDonald’s Corp. that are opening in the far east.

Interestingly enough the mega fast food giant says that it expects to have 2000 stores open by 2013. Another interesting statistics are those from KFC which boasts 2000 stores itself. Unsurprising that these mega corporations are looking to the asian-pacific market to drive growth, but also a little unsettling.

What is unsettling? For me it’s that what we seem to be injecting into the China culture seems to be deep fried and packed with calories. According to wikipedia the overall obesity in China’s cities are as high as 20% which is a huge jump from even 10 years ago. Far be it from me to judge, but I just don’t see how I could ethically invest in fast food considering the health risk associated with these types of food.

Canadian Dollar Continues to Rise

It’s an exciting time to be a Canadian given the strength of our dollar. Our currency has not been this high since July 2008 and some analysts are projecting it will continue to rise well into next year. That remains to be seen, and in my opinion we’re not out of the woods yet with respect to the sub-prime mortgage fiasco.

Alas, why all be doom and gloom when we still have a lot going for us with respect to commodities pricing. With the oil sands buttressing our economy through it all, we’re in a lot better shape to ride out the next bump of Americans defaulting on their mortgages. Also, if  we manage to successfully claim Northern Sovereignty over some of the richest plot of gas and oil (currently with USA & Russia are also trying to get a piece of the pie) also staking a claim, we may even prove to be more than buttressed, but fortified.

All remains to be seen in the future. But I know that the wife and I are already planning a day trip to the states this weekend to take advantage of the strong Canadian dollar.

Although there seems to be much talk on the strength of Canada’s economy and its emergence as a player on the world financial stage, I’ve noticed a real shortfall when it comes to quality blogs about that very topic. It seems odd to me that all opinions have been in the domain of either newspaper editorials or the occasional Canadian centric political blog. Unfortunately the latter seem to centred on humour (justifiably so considering the state of Canadian politics) or simply towing the party line when it comes to the former.

With that in mind I decided that Canadians could really benefit from a serious financial blog. I intend to document all things related to finance in Canada as well as other international developments and issues that will effect us during this critical time. Make no mistake, despite an economic recovery, we are still subject to the actions of our rather fiscally irresponsible neighbours to the south. We’re not in the clear yet. So, I hope this blog can help you make sense of your financial situation as a Canadian while making it a little more stable by providing you with some helpful advice and information along the way.