Storytime: In the summer of 2018, an online business magazine hired me to profile a fast-growing shopping app called Field Agent. I didn’t know it at the time, but that freelance job would lead my career in an entirely new direction.
Naturally, before I interviewed Field Agent co-founder and CEO Rick West, I downloaded the app and gave it a try. I was extremely impressed with both the concept and the execution of Field Agent, which “provide(s) a fast, flexible means for thousands of people to make real cash doing what they are already doing—shopping in stores and online.”
Since the day I interviewed West, I have earned almost $27,000 using the app, and I can no longer imagine going into a physical store without checking to see if Field Agent has any micro jobs available at that location. I now think of Field Agent as “new car money,” because I earn enough with this one tool to buy a new car—in cash—every five or six years.
More importantly, Field Agent was my first introduction to a wide world of shopping-related earning opportunities that I didn’t know existed. I have since taken a deep dive into learning the ins and outs of this world, which remains completely unknown to the overwhelming majority of consumers.
That’s why I decided to create All Good Points: to show people there are terrific opportunities to earn (and save) money every time you go shopping. You just need to know what tools and opportunities are available, and which of those are the best fit for you, your lifestyle, and your spending habits.
That said, I wish I had started using shopping apps years earlier, and I’m confident you’ll soon be saying the same thing, hence the following advice:
1. Don’t Wait—Start Using Shopping Apps Today
One of my favorite quotes is “80 percent of success is just showing up,” which has been attributed to Woody Allen. If you simply take the initiative to try a handful of shopping apps, you will already be way ahead of most people. You can’t reap the financial rewards of these tools—and related opportunities—if you don’t give them a try.
2. Educate Yourself About the Possibilities
You can’t take advantage of shopping-related earning opportunities if you don’t know what’s available. Retailer-specific shopping apps aside, there are dozens of valuable shopping apps and dozens more mystery/secret companies, not to mention hundreds of “get paid to” opportunities that complement all the available shopping tools.
3. Don’t Give Up Too Easily
If there is one thing I’ve learned about earning and saving money shopping, it’s that your very first usage of a shopping app (or your first time doing a particular mystery/secret shopping job), is rarely going to be worth the time and effort it took to do once. But after one or two times, you have already learned the vast majority of what you need to know, and you can use that knowledge and experience to reap the financial benefits indefinitely. Don’t let a relatively small first hurdle stop you from enjoying the fruits of your initial labor.
4. You Can Shop Your Way to a Better Financial Situation
Regardless of where you are in life, shopping apps and related opportunities can dramatically improve your finances. Think about it like this: If you can use shopping tools to earn (or save) an extra $10 a day that adds up to $3,650 a year. Save or earn $20 a day and that adds up to $7,300 a year. $30 a day is $10,950 a year. And so forth.
The key is to find the apps and opportunities that best suit you and your lifestyle. Obviously, a recent college graduate, a mother with kids, and a retiree are all in a very different place in life, with different demands on their time and energy. But there are so many opportunities available, I am convinced there’s something for everyone. You just need to figure out what works for you.
At All Good Points, we’re here to shorten your learning curve, and to show you how to “stack” opportunities to maximize your time and effort.
Signing up for our e-newsletter is a great place to start. Or if you are curious about how top users are earning $10,000+ a year using Field Agent, check out our Field Agent product page.
You’ll find it pays to follow All Good Points!
