Welcome to the First Edition
Welcome to The Mystery Shopping Insider — your new go-to report for what’s happening in the mystery shopping world. Every two weeks, we’ll bring you the biggest industry news, scam alerts, practical tips, and event updates so you can stay sharp and earn more.
This first edition covers the full month of January 2026. Going forward, each report will cover a two-week window. Think of this one as the jumbo starter pack.
Let’s get into it.
Industry News and Headlines
Ipsos Announces Talking Shop 2026
Ipsos dropped big news on January 28. Their annual Talking Shop with iShopFor Ipsos event is heading to St. Louis, Missouri on September 25, 2026. It’ll also be available virtually.
This is the fifth year for the event. It’s grown into the largest recruitment and training workshop in the mystery shopping industry. Over the past four years, nearly 2,000 people have attended — from brand-new shoppers to seasoned pros.
The 2026 agenda includes 14 sessions. Topics range from beginner guides to tech like wearable equipment and eye-tracking software. Ipsos has won the MSPA Americas Shoppers’ Choice Award seven years running, so they know a thing or two about running a solid event.
Why This Matters to You
Talking Shop is one of the best ways to learn the craft and connect with top companies. If you’re thinking about attending, mark September 25 on your calendar now. These events tend to sell out.
WISE Releases 10-Year Mystery Shopping Report
In early January, WISE (Wine Industry Sales Education) released The Tasting Room Benchmark Report. It covers a decade of mystery shopping data from 6,000+ real guest experiences at wineries across the U.S.
The takeaway? Wineries that use mystery shopping as a coaching tool — not just a compliance checkbox — see real gains. Higher order values. More club sign-ups. Better close rates. And stronger follow-up.
This is a good reminder that mystery shopping drives real business results. That’s why demand for shoppers stays strong across industries.
Mystery Shopping Market Holds Steady
Industry data confirms the North America mystery shopping market hit $1.23 billion in 2024. Growth continues into 2026 as more businesses turn to customer experience data to stay competitive.
Key growth areas include restaurants, retail, automotive, banking, and healthcare. Video-based evaluations and AI-driven analysis are also expanding how companies use shopper feedback.
Bottom line: the industry isn’t slowing down. There’s plenty of work out there for reliable shoppers.
Upcoming Events and Dates
ShopperFest 2026 — Las Vegas
When: June 26–28, 2026
Where: Las Vegas, Nevada
MSPA Americas brings ShopperFest back for 2026. This is the only official mystery shopper conference in the industry. Expect educational sessions, breakout tracks for new and veteran shoppers, live certification courses, and direct access to company owners and schedulers.
Registration fees start at $275, with discounts for early birds and Talent Plus members. If you’ve never been, this is the year.
ShopCon 2026 — Las Vegas
When: 2026 (exact dates to be confirmed)
Where: Flamingo Las Vegas
ShopCon is another popular gathering for mystery shoppers. It features workshops, speaker sessions, and a gala night. They welcome all experience levels and focus on helping shoppers build their business.
MSPA Legacy Gold Certification — Deadline Approaching
Deadline: May 1, 2026
If you earned your original MSPA Gold certification before 2025, heads up. Legacy Gold gets retired on May 1, 2026. After that date, only the refreshed Gold course (updated in 2025) will count.
If you haven’t updated yet, now’s the time to check your account and plan accordingly. Visit the MSPA Americas certification page for details.
Scam Watch
Active Scam Alert
IntelliShop impersonation on LinkedIn. A scammer is pretending to be the COO of IntelliShop. They’re contacting people through LinkedIn with offers of $300 per assignment. The catch? They ask for your credit card information as part of “onboarding.”
IntelliShop has confirmed this is fake. They will never ask for credit card details to sign up as a shopper.
Scammers continue to target mystery shoppers through text messages, emails, and social media. The patterns stay the same:
- Fake checks. They send a check, ask you to deposit it, then buy gift cards and send the codes back. The check bounces. You lose your money.
- Unsolicited offers. Real companies don’t send random texts or emails offering $500 per shop. If you didn’t apply, it’s not real.
- Upfront fees. Legitimate companies never charge you to become a shopper. Period.
What to do: If something feels off, check the MSPA Americas scam alerts page. Report suspicious activity to the FTC at ReportFraud.ftc.gov.
Shopper Tip of the Edition
Tip: Set Your Tax Foundation Now
It’s the start of a new year. That makes it the perfect time to set up a simple tracking system for your mystery shopping income and expenses.
Create a spreadsheet (or use an app) to log every shop fee, reimbursement, and mileage deduction. Track gas, tolls, parking, and any supplies you buy for shops.
As an independent contractor, you’re responsible for your own taxes. Keeping good records from day one saves headaches — and money — when tax season rolls around.
A quick 10-minute setup now can save you hours in April.
Quick Stats and Numbers
What’s Ahead
In the next edition, we’ll dig into how AI is changing the retail customer experience — and what that means for mystery shoppers on the ground. Retailers are investing billions in AI tools for personalization, checkout, and customer service. But human feedback through mystery shopping remains something AI can’t replace.
We’ll also keep our eyes on early registration announcements for ShopperFest 2026 and any new certification course rollouts from MSPA Americas.
Stay tuned.
The Mystery Shopping Insider is a biweekly report from Mystery Shop Starter.
Questions? Tips? Drop us a line. And if you found this helpful, share it with a fellow shopper.
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