Get Paid to Buy Beer: Earn $4000 (& Free Beer) as an Alcohol Compliance Auditor

Now, we’re not talking about working for the TTB (Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau) conducting compliance checks and audits. We’re talking about doing beer audits as a mystery shopper in your spare time.

Here are a few facts about alcohol compliance auditors (or beer auditors!):

• As an auditor, you work undercover and buy beer and other forms of alcohol, to see whether or not cashiers properly check your ID.

• Companies work with beer auditors to minimize the risk of non-compliance and to maintain their brand’s image.

• Alcohol auditors generally work with mystery shopping companies. These companies look for beer auditors from their pool of mystery shoppers.

Responsibilities as an Alcohol Compliance Auditor

As an auditor, it’s your job to check whether or not the establishment you’re shopping at complies with alcohol laws.

Here’s how it works:

1. You visit an establishment, like Walmart for example, select a beer to purchase, and go
   to the checkout. Essentially, you act as if you’re a normal customer looking to buy booze.

2. Next, you need to observe whether or not the cashier asks you for your ID – which you’ll find that most do.

If the cashier does ask for your ID, then they have complied. But, some companies might want you to take a few extra steps once the cashier cards you – for example:

• Tell the cashier that you’ve left your ID in the car
• Check whether the cashier took the time to enter your birth date into the computer

3. After you’ve purchased the beer, you’ll need to submit the receipt to the mystery shopping company you’re working with, and fill out a short report documenting your experience.

After the Audit

Your report goes back to the auditing/mystery shopping company you’re working with, and they advise the store or establishment to retrain their employees if ID checks were not carried out, or to praise employees if they were.

The reason you carry out these audits is not to try to catch the checkout staff out for selling to underage customers – most auditors are over 21 anyway – but to test whether employees perform ID card checks appropriately.

It is much better for a grocery store employee to get caught failing to check IDs by an auditor than by the police.

How Much Can You Make as an Alcohol Compliance Auditor?

How much you get paid really depends on the company that you’re working for, and the assignments that you take on.

Generally speaking, almost all alcohol audits are self-assigned – meaning you can take on as little or as much work as you want.

To take on assignments, often all you have to do is go online, login to your agent portal, and then select the jobs you want.

You can earn anywhere between $5 and $50 per assignment, depending on the company you’re working with and the establishments you visit.

On average, people report earning between $10 and $20 per assignment.

And, don’t worry – you’ll be reimbursed for the beer!

An audit can be carried out during a quick, routine grocery visit, and reports only take between 5 to 10 minutes to complete.

So, you could earn up to $50 in just 20 minutes!

Requirements for Becoming an Alcohol Compliance Auditor

The good news is you don’t need any special qualifications, or even experience to become an alcohol auditor.

But, there are a couple of requirements:

• You must between 21 to 30 years old.
• You need to be willing to take a small test during the application process – don’t worry these tests are usually pretty simple!

Where to Find Work as an Alcohol Auditor

The best way to find work as an alcohol auditor is through auditing and mystery shopping companies. As mentioned above, these companies offer alcohol auditing assignments.

There are tons of mystery shopping companies out there, but here are just a few that are known to, from time to time, offer alcohol auditing assignments.

• Service Intelligence
• Corporate Research
• TrendSource
• Sinclair Customer Metrics

A Few Considerations

• Take on multiple assignments at stores that are in close proximity, and you can maximize your earnings – just make sure you plan your route.
• Be aware that legitimate auditing and mystery shopping companies never ask you to pay anything to join or work with them.
• Most companies will require you to give your Social Security number, so they can send you a 1099 form.

The Bottom Line

If you plan your routes carefully, and take on the right assignments, then you could earn a pretty decent amount as a beer auditor. Some people report earning up to $4000!

So, if you’re looking to make a little extra spending money, or even a nice side income while getting your hands on some free beer, then consider becoming an alcohol compliance auditor.

Just remember to enjoy the alcohol you purchase responsibly.