Has anyone had a scheduler or editor ask you to change a report? And, how would you handle it without going to blows?

You just say you reported the truth.

The kind of thing I have run into were: I got a baked potato that was hard and dry for the outer 1/2" but the middle was ok. I marked it as 'acceptable' yet in the narrative mentioned that it was hard and dry. The editor called to clarify and I pointed out that I rarely eat the entire potato, so there was more than enough good for me but that overall it could not be scored as good or excellent. Based on the conversation the editor insisted on changing my narrative to 'the potato was good' and the check list to 'good' since I hadn't sent it back to the kitchen and then evaluated how a problem with my meal was handled.

I did do a shop where all the required observations were ok to excellent yet there were other issues that were blatant failures of customer service that I mentioned in the narrative. It was for a company where you can see your shops between the time they are edited and the time they are paid. I was disappointed to note that the customer service failures mentioned that were not required observations were completely removed from the narrative.

I did not get paid for a shop two weeks ago because the service was so bad and when I finally got the order it was short and I asked for the rest of it. OK so I was supposed to take what they gave me and not say anything after waiting for over 30 min to get 1/3 of my order. Since I goofed I was not going to get paid for it but they wanted me to back and redo it for cost of meal only. I said no thank you not when it is 100 degrees in the shade and I had sat in the car for over 45 min. What got me was the editor said the store was going to dispute what I said anyway. Now I wonder what they change and what they do not since the editor told me what she said and what my report said was not going to be the same.

Hey, they should NOT be sharing with the store what you said if you are not getting paid/reimbursed for your report!!! That is using your work without payment.

I figured they did not use the report because they like for things to be very good for their client. I had been getting call backs about things negative I had said when I did not use to get any. I call it like it is. If it is good I say so and if it bad I will say that also. Some of the reports are called in and some can be entered on line. I wonder if they can change the ones I enter on line because that is when I get the call back for more information.

I've seen cases on all the forums of people who were asked to change reports. Very unethical.

OH my. I'd be willing to bet this happens more than we know.  Someone does a report and the company gets it, the shopping company gets paid and the shopper gets a big fat ZERO. I've never been asked to change any thing on a report.  And for some reason I rarely have anything negative to say about the shops I've done.


I have to say my restaurant experiences have been Class A.

I have a feeling these things might depend on the area where you live and the availability of jobs.

Now I am thinking more than I want to. Now this is ff and I wonder what they write when I tell tell them I got a second had burger that had been delivered to another car refused and then given to me. It is evident when a second hand sandwich comes my way.

My shopping is limited to several companies so I do not see a lot of shops the rest of you see.

Well, in my case...I wrote a restaurant review at a very popular upper scale restaurant. You know the kind that always has an hour wait, doesn't take reservations, and has a very nice bar. Well, the waiter made us wait for everything. We received the wrong appetizer with no app plates, our bread was delivered after our meal was served, and it took 15 minutes to get a slice of pie with whipped cream. She wanted me to change the order and sent me at least four emails ...the last written in ALL CAPS but never once picking up the phone. I sent her one last email that I am sorry I would prefer to leave the report as written. She responded by telling me that he could lose his job. I stated I was sorry if that happens, but what happened is what happened. I told her in a nice way that she was welcome to change it any way she would like. I reminded her that the video would support my version and not hers if it was reviewed by the client. I never heard another word about it or even an apology for the YELLING.

I am wondering too.

Aren't we supposed to report the truth, that the companies know what's going on and can make changes? Isn't this what the client is paying for?

When I have a bad report, I mostly receive e-mails, asking me questions, which I entered already in the report. I never had a problem, except repeating what I already wrote in the report = my time wasted.

There was only one time the favorite Exxon company. They told me, that I have too many things to report. I should not be so critical. The other shoppers wouldn't find so much.

I also had a Casa Ole restaurant, where they put the chairs on the table and cleaned up next to me, before I even ordered dessert. They didn't have any outside light on, and I could have broken my foot, leg etc.
But they did not want to hear this. Even so it said report what affected your visit.

It is a whole lot easier all the way around if you have a good shop experience and you have little to explain, the editor has little to edit and the client gets a glow. But this is not Disney and I do have more than 3 fingers on my hand.

I am concerned sometimes when I sign up with a new MSP that they are providing the training for the client's employees and then we are to "independently" go in and check that the employees are putting their training into use. When those MSPs are too tight in their criteria of what we are to observe and report on, I find myself wondering just how valid the ICA's "independence" is. Yes, we can tell them if sequence 1, 2, 3 was observed in part or in the whole. Whether that sequence seemed odd in the context of the visit is never asked.

Now I got that Flash..LOL!! :-)

I do know some "companies" (not our shopping companies) are in the process of new training programs. I've shopped a few of these just to see how the training program is working.

And I've done a few shops to "assess" a new person in authority for companies.

These shops are "tricky" But an honest critique is what they are looking for to being with. And if I answer NO to a particular question I'm never questioned or rather I've never been questioned yet.
These shops I don't consider a negative experience I'm just assessing the Newbie. And I'm pretty sure in my mind the "newbie" isn't going to loose their job. I'm basically looking for weakness or something that maybe was missed in training.

Oh by the way, not to be changing the subject but I wanted to "tuck" this in somewhere pretty much out of the mainstream of conversation.

Anyone else getting emails from the $4-$7 shops that bonus has been added? When I got home today my mail box was full. I believe the word is getting around to the new shoppers too. And the companies are scrambling around my area.
One I was tempted to take but I did two shops for them in June and have NOT been paid yet. Plus the reimursment isn't enough to cover the cost of the shop for a specific item. Costs have gone up on items and the companies aren't covering the upswing in cost.

You all are talking about being asked to send food back when it wasn't prepared properly. I once did just that. I sent a hamburger back that was cold to the touch. The MSP refused to pay me because I was supposed to report the condition of the food, not draw attention to myself as a shopper by sending the food back. It was sad because I had worked for this MSP for many years, off and on.

You know how we are asked to "portray a shopper" or some other similar verbiage? If we are really (really) "shoppers", then shouldn't I be able to send an anonymous or fake name letter to the restaurant afterwards saying I got a cold hamburger, and decided to leave rather than waste my time ordering another? Just an idea. Sorry I didn't get it until months after the actual experience.

On call-in reports, I often hear the person I'm talking to re"writing" what I am saying to save time and space while they are listening to me. I even repeat something sometimes and don't get the same words said back to me. I guess my way of expressing what I experienced isn't as important as I thought it was!

I've only one done call in report and it drove me buggy. Virtually everything I said got repeated back to me in their "translation" as they typed it, often totally missing the point. Would have been faster and less annoying to just enter it myself on line and not be aware of what they did to it.

I've only been asked to offer further details.

I watched an order be refused at a ff shop because it was wrong. The car hop took the sack back in and sat it on a tray in line on the counter. I watched that tray just keep being moved up until my fies and drink got put on it and delivered. I reported it just as it happened. Wonder what was really written when I reported it?

I sent back my cold, fused together roast beast and got ID'd and told I can no longer do the beefs. No problem there. I acted as I would have if I was paying. I wouldn't accept that food, and have zero desire to go back, paid or not. I'm glad I got my money back so the shop was no big loss. And now I know-this is not a firm I choose to work for.

try one where a shop is done at a high end car dealer, I drive 100 miles round trip, spend two hours and the manager offers me a test drive then turns me over to a salesman who I say "I will take that test ride" Then the shop is rejected because it is claimed I should not have asked for a test ride in the guidelines. What a bunch of crap. The editors who have their head stuck in their neither regions just do not care what you spend for a shop as long as they can find someway not to pay. I will not publish the name of the company here due to ethics but if anyone wants to know, just email me and I will trash them properly using every vulgar name that I can think of.

Thanks everyone for all the input. Now I don't feel so alone. I for one will stick to my morals and ethics and report it just as it happens good or bad. They can accept it or trash it. Hopefully, I don't lose $ in the meantime.

I found this topic interesting because I just had a totally negative shop this week. It was a "christian bookstore" I was supposed to be greeted in 15 seconds. nope,never acknowledged at all until I asked for assistance. I checked out what I wanted to buy that was in the rebembursement range. I helt it in my hand. I put it back, went and finally found a person, asked if she could tell me where to find "XYZ" Her reply "Nope, Never heard of it! We don't have any of those" So no to about 4 questions. !) did the associate walk you to the item? 2.) Was the associate knowledgeable about the item you inquired about? 3) Did the associated offer you complementry product to go with the item you enquired about? 4) Did the associate carry your selected item to the register for you?

I left out of the report how as I was checking out this associate and another I had not seen in the store was having a great time flirting and playing with the UPS man.

So far I have not received any feedback from the MSC but I am ready for it.

It doesn't sound like any Christian bookstore I've ever experienced. Those two workers have a lot to learn. Maybe this one is on the MSP list because it has been having some problems. Now they know what the problems are and you have made a difference for one more store's customers, barbage.

If they do not want negative feedback why do they keep sending us? Sent in a report being ignored by a clerk flopping a plastic bag around and talking about her date for that night with another clerk. I made a comment at the end about the cashier sliding over the counter to get to the register. I got a call back asking if it was my cashier and when I said no I was told they only wanted the behavior of my cashier.

I keep shopping them because I pass several of them on the way to other shops and the money is OK. I make my other comments at the end of the report to let someone know some things in the store I saw I did not care for.

Not to change a report, but I have been asked to change the date twice regarding a shop that I was scheduled to do. The scheduler said the business would not be busy on those days. They wanted me to go on a busy day. I made note of it and kept all correspondence as this company will allow rescheduling but no more than 2 times. I did not want it said I requested the rescheduling when in fact the company requested it. I attempt to keep the reports positive as much as possible and as accurate assessment as what is requested of me in the guidelines.

Good idea to keep the correspondence to show that it was not YOUR request to reschedule. Then if their records show reschedules that they want to hold against you you have that as backup.

Shops that require you to order certain items with no substitutions are the worst. Some fast food restaurants are in areas where for one reason or another they cannot get or choose not to get the various items for their meal. Where I live there is a vast difference between two or three areas of the city. When I got a shop for two different locations of the same franchise there was an immense difference between the two. Things I was supposed to order or unavailable and I was not given any offer of substituting items in the meal.

All in all it was a very frustrating shop but I did it anyway spent at least an hour writing out a long detailed report for each one and was promptly told by the scheduler that I would not be paid because it did not follow the exact written rules of the shop.

I e-mailed them back and explained that at one shop they simply through the items into a bag push across the counter took the money and gave me no opportunity to decide what I wanted. I had barely picked up the bag before they were on to the next customer. At the second-place it was even worse. I made sure to stand my ground and ask for exactly what I was supposed to have and they had none of it. So again this shop was not exactly as demanded.

Apparently whether or not the location has what is required for the shop is irrelevant. This company does not pay and since I followed the directions as well as could be expected under the circumstances I have to assume they don't want to pay. Needless to say, I have not accepted any more shops from them.
Which by the way kind of sucks since I do happen to like that particular food. (LOL )....