In some of my shop notifications, I see that they use the term “PAD”, for Pricing Audit shops, for example.

In one of my notifications, it said “Pricing Audits Available with PAD” What does "PAD" mean?

Wilson

I have seen that primarily with Trendsource where it is your opportunity to state how much extra you would want to perform a particular shop. So, for example, there is a location that I would need to pay $6 in tolls to get to and the trip would be an orphan shop of about 35 miles. I put in a PAD for $26, which would be on top of the amount offered, and if the company can do that fine, if not, it is also fine with me. Obviously if the company had someone willing to do the shop with no PAD they would award it to them. Or if someone came through with a PAD of only $15 they would be more likely to get it.

Thank you, Flash. I figure that "PAD" is the acronym for something, yet I was also curious to know what does "PAD" stand for.

Based on what you have shared, payment for tolls & mileage driven (to get to an orphan shop), makes sense. In my case, all of the shop notifications that I get, are always in a 10 - 15 miles radius of my zip code. Yet it is rare that I apply for a shop over 13 miles, because the pay is just not worth it "to me", based on the shops that I get notifications of.

Wilson

I thought it meant: "Paid Authorized Distance" with TrendSource.

Pre-authorized distance pay with TrendSource.

Mert Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Pre-authorized distance pay with TrendSource.


Yep. "Pre Authorized Distance" pay.

Thanks Everybody! I appreciate the clarification:-)

Wilson

This a great set of info, but now I'm curious about wat an "orphan shop" means. I have a crude idea, but I would like to learn some more relevant jargon. Thanks in advance.

Eltonj, my take on the term “orphan shop”, is a shop that is remote and or out of the way, and there are not any shoppers near the shop . . . so it makes that shop harder to be shopped, due to a lack of shoppers nearby or a lack of shoppers applying for the shop.

I had a shop like that a few weeks ago. Since I get shop notifications based on the 10 - 15 mile radios I am willing to drive, however I ended up taking the shop at face value, since it was in Los Angeles. Since I was doing other shops for the same company in Los Angeles, I planed to do the shops in a circular route, starting with the one farthest from my house and then working my way back towards my house. Yet when I sat down to write up my route, I found out that the msc had given me a shop that was all by itself, in a corner of Los Angeles that had no relationship to the other Los Angeles shops they had assigned to me (an orphan shop). So I basically had to drive about 30 miles (round trip) to get to that shop, before I could start my route of the other shops that were all within 1 to 3 miles of each other. Since that mistake, I always check a location on Google Maps first, before I apply for it, because there are sections in Los Angeles, you just do not want to go to, because of the traffic and parking problems. In this case, who wants to drive 30 miles (round trip) to do a $15 shop.

When I found out my mistake, I wanted to return the shop, but I did not want to get a bad mark with the company, so I bit the bullet. Yet it was a valuable and priceless learning opportunity for me. LOL!!!

Wilson

Thank you, WESTCOASTWILSON, for your helpful observations about the "orphan Shop". It was about what I thought it was, but I wanted to be certain before I used the term incorrectly. Thanks again.

Eltonj, you are very welcome . . . however that is "my own" interpretation of an orphan shop. It would be good to get some feedback from some of the more seasoned shoppers, since I have only been doing Mystery Shopping and Merchandising for a little over one year now.

Wilson

WestCoastWilson

I hear what you are saying but it seems accurate to me. It just makes sense what you are saying, but you are wise to defer to others with more experience. Good luck to both of us(LOL)

Those orphan shops are what buttered my bread when I was route shopping rural Ky. I picked up up $35 post offices on my way to $40 gas stations and $30 Dairy Queens.

iblessyah Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> what buttered my bread

Haha, I think I've found a new favorite phrase.

"Paid Authorized Distance", in most cases.