I just had the weirdest thing happen to me yesterday. Been mystery shopping for 14+ years, and this has never happened. I got a call from a scheduler/editor from a company I've been shopping w/for years. I do a lot of grocery shops for them, and a manager from one location apparently told the parent company that I walked up to him and said, "I'm the mystery shopper." I was shocked and dismayed. I mean, who does that? Luckily, my past history and incredulity worked in my favor, but why would someone tell a bald-face lie like that? What kind of recourse do we have as independent contractors? I guess we just have to keep doing our work with integrity. Has something like this ever happened to you?

Wow! If you are in a one party consent state, keep a recorder going and don't erase the recording for 90 days. If you are in a 2 party consent state like PA, you are SOL!

@fluxmaster wrote:

I just had the weirdest thing happen to me yesterday. Been mystery shopping for 14+ years, and this has never happened. I got a call from a scheduler/editor from a company I've been shopping w/for years. I do a lot of grocery shops for them, and a manager from one location apparently told the parent company that I walked up to him and said, "I'm the mystery shopper." I was shocked and dismayed. I mean, who does that? Luckily, my past history and incredulity worked in my favor, but why would someone tell a bald-face lie like that? What kind of recourse do we have as independent contractors? I guess we just have to keep doing our work with integrity. Has something like this ever happened to you?

Just curious: Was your report a good one, bad one or average one?

They had missed some prompts and such, but this location usually does. The report wasn't that bad. I don't think they'd get a better report with a different shopper, if they don't do the things they're supposed to do.

If it's the same grocery shop I do, there is one required question that might as well be my statement that "I am the mystery shopper!"

Maybe somebody else did do that thinking that they would get great service (someone that does not have clue about how it really works) or it was teenagers playing around. The manager believed that person and so told the MSC. Did the MSC say that the manager really described you?

@lbw1000 wrote:

Maybe somebody else did do that thinking that they would get great service (someone that does not have clue about how it really works) or it was teenagers playing around. The manager believed that person and so told the MSC. Did the MSC say that the manager really described you?

I didn't ask if the manager described me b/c the MSC believed me. I don't think it was a teenager. I know who the manager is at this location, unless there is a new manager I haven't seen yet.

@Threemom wrote:

If it's the same grocery shop I do, there is one required question that might as well be my statement that "I am the mystery shopper!"

Ha! Yes, some of the questions we have to ask do seem really unnatural, don't they?



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 04/21/2016 03:39AM by fluxmaster.

If I buy one more stale doughnut or one more quart of bad milk and have to return it without a receipt, I'll stop shopping there. Then calling the deli ahead of time to have them slice a 1/3 lb of cheese, because I'll be in a rush when I get there. Then I move over to the fresh fish counter and just have to have them cook something for me. Oh, now I better go back over to bakery and have them sell me one bun out of the 8 pack to eat those four pieces of shrimp on.

I have no clue why they think they know who the shopper is.

@scanman1 wrote:

If I buy one more stale doughnut or one more quart of bad milk and have to return it without a receipt, I'll stop shopping there. Then calling the deli ahead of time to have them slice a 1/3 lb of cheese, because I'll be in a rush when I get there. Then I move over to the fresh fish counter and just have to have them cook something for me. Oh, now I better go back over to bakery and have them sell me one bun out of the 8 pack to eat those four pieces of shrimp on.

I have no clue why they think they know who the shopper is.

I really, really, REALLY dislike the complaint shops. You don't have a receipt and you tell them your story. One time the "stale bakery item" caused quite an uproar.... I thought they were going to contact the FBI along with the District Manager. They seemed so "offended" that one of their products was stale, that the entire bakery formed around the stale item and they talked and talked about it, then looking at me, (glaring at me) deciding I was lying ...(no verbal.... just the cold stare)...about that it could not possibly being stale!

I really don't like the complaint shops!

this happens all the time with certain banks and the 'account opening" inquiry shops. If the bank employee (who always gets to read the shop) doesn't like the report, she/he objects, the report is thrown out, and you are banned for life from that MSC!

Only time I got called out, was a check cashing place. I gave her a super report. Someone there must have also gotten a "bad report" because the scheduler called me and said "she said you were timing her on your cell phone the whole time, and you got argumentative." Lol, it was so funny because the lady I shopped was so sweet, and we were talking about her baby's picture and stuff. Scheduler and I got a good laugh, got paid, never heard back. I wonder if they ever solve these wrong shopper scenarios???

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 04/21/2016 04:54PM by sbobgal.

This past summer, I drove 2 hours to do 2 video shops. To make it worth my while, I picked up an apartment shop as well. The apartment wasn't recorded or video but the fee would cover gas. On the recorded line, the leasing agent said that they didn't have anything to show me so I went on with hopes of gaining the floor plan and the business card. As I got out of the car, I hit record on my phone and said, to myself, "By the time I get home, I'll probably forget what happened." Everything went well, went through the shop, I verified by asking again...."So yal don't have a model apartment?" The manager, who was doing other things, stepped out of her office to intervene and said, "No we don't have anything."

Got home, did the report and about 2 weeks later, I got an email from the editor asking me if I could check my notes because the manager WAS NOT there that day and I was shown apartment SO AND SO. I told the scheduler, I can do you one better, how about the audio file??? Well from that point, I record all of my shops and hold on to them for a couple of months. I just deleted that file last week.

I did a restaurant recently, where I did not identify the manager. No one acted like a mgr, dressed differently etc. It ends up that the person who seated us was actually the manager; he also interacted with us at the bar, saying that they have a team approach and everyone multi-tasks. He never referred to "my staff" or anything that would lead someone (especially a mystery shopper with 16 years experience) to think he was the manager. He complained that he didn't understand why I said I did not interact with a manager (because you didn't act like a manager, buddy!). Same person also was angry that I didn't return the chicken breast that was rubbery like it was microwaved; this is a glorified diner---why would I returne something that was cooked through and hot, just not the consistency I like??? (There were no directions to force a complaint or anything like that). Some management people get totally paranoid about the reports! I dislike having to defend myself, however!

@SunnyDays2 wrote:

I really, really, REALLY dislike the complaint shops. You don't have a receipt and you tell them your story. One time the "stale bakery item" caused quite an uproar.... I thought they were going to contact the FBI along with the District Manager. They seemed so "offended" that one of their products was stale, that the entire bakery formed around the stale item and they talked and talked about it, then looking at me, (glaring at me) deciding I was lying ...(no verbal.... just the cold stare)...about that it could not possibly being stale!

I really don't like the complaint shops!

With the complaint scenarios I've had to do during the grocery shops, I'm not supposed to even have anything to show them....NO stale donut/bagel with me, NO sour milk with me, and NO receipt......just tell them that my milk was sour or the bagel was stale.......I HATE THOSE SO MUCH that I have decided to do ONLY their competitor shops with the same MSC since the complaint scenarios for the competitor stores have disappeared!!! Anyhow, last complaint I did about 2 weeks ago with the main grocery store was about a stale bagel....I was told just to go and replace it and let the cashier know the manager OK'd it. When I got to the cashier and told her what was going on, she exclaimed loudly, "WHAT! One of OUR bagels was stale? That's SO unusual!" Ugghhh....right there I decided that's it....no more complaint scenarios.

Well, used to be with this main grocery store, BEFORE you accepted the shop, you could SEE if the complaint scenario was part of the shop, so you could decided on taking the shop or not. But a few months ago, this MSC QUIT showing whether or not the complaint scenario is part of that particular shop......I wonder if it's because it's not a popular scenario...anyhow, I've noticed that in taking ONLY the competitor stores, that I'm only allowed a certain number of them before the remainder of the competitor stores all disappear for the time frame I select......but that's OK, because within a week or two, several of the competitor locations will be back up with a bonus!!! So I end up getting those too! But I'm NOT taking anymore of the stores that have the complaint scenario, because even though it's not ALWAYS part of the shop, it is enough that I hate it, and THERE'S NO WAY to tell if the store I select HAS a complaint scenario until AFTER I select it, and I'm just not going to do those anymore! OK.....done ranting!!

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 04/21/2016 11:23PM by guysmom.

maybe someone else had actually done that...i got so annoyed at a cell phone store once (when I was shopping for a new phone/not mystery shopping) i told him i was a mystery shopper and he almost crapped in his pants..needless to say...I have never mystery shopped that location since.

Luckily, I'm not shopping that location any more now, and I still get to keep working for the same MSC at other locations. But now I feel like going there and acting really suspicious.

@guysmom wrote:

@SunnyDays2 wrote:

I really, really, REALLY dislike the complaint shops. You don't have a receipt and you tell them your story. One time the "stale bakery item" caused quite an uproar.... I thought they were going to contact the FBI along with the District Manager. They seemed so "offended" that one of their products was stale, that the entire bakery formed around the stale item and they talked and talked about it, then looking at me, (glaring at me) deciding I was lying ...(no verbal.... just the cold stare)...about that it could not possibly being stale!

I really don't like the complaint shops!

With the complaint scenarios I've had to do during the grocery shops, I'm not supposed to even have anything to show them....NO stale donut/bagel with me, NO sour milk with me, and NO receipt......just tell them that my milk was sour or the bagel was stale.......I HATE THOSE SO MUCH that I have decided to do ONLY their competitor shops with the same MSC since the complaint scenarios for the competitor stores have disappeared!!! Anyhow, last complaint I did about 2 weeks ago with the main grocery store was about a stale bagel....I was told just to go and replace it and let the cashier know the manager OK'd it. When I got to the cashier and told her what was going on, she exclaimed loudly, "WHAT! One of OUR bagels was stale? That's SO unusual!" Ugghhh....right there I decided that's it....no more complaint scenarios.

Well, used to be with this main grocery store, BEFORE you accepted the shop, you could SEE if the complaint scenario was part of the shop, so you could decided on taking the shop or not. But a few months ago, this MSC QUIT showing whether or not the complaint scenario is part of that particular shop......I wonder if it's because it's not a popular scenario...anyhow, I've noticed that in taking ONLY the competitor stores, that I'm only allowed a certain number of them before the remainder of the competitor stores all disappear for the time frame I select......but that's OK, because within a week or two, several of the competitor locations will be back up with a bonus!!! So I end up getting those too! But I'm NOT taking anymore of the stores that have the complaint scenario, because even though it's not ALWAYS part of the shop, it is enough that I hate it, and THERE'S NO WAY to tell if the store I select HAS a complaint scenario until AFTER I select it, and I'm just not going to do those anymore! OK.....done ranting!!

The same here: No receipt. I always feel like they don't believe you without a receipt.

The grocery store near me has had so many people claiming that some food product was bad with out the product or receipt, the new store policy is you must bring the product back with at least the packaging, no matter how nasty, or take flying leap. Gallons of milk and packages of meat are the items usually being claimed spoiled. Never an inexpensive item. One of the Target stores I go to has started the same policy. Too many scammers out there were on to the very liberal complain and get a free replacement policy at the stores.

It's sad that theft is so rampant nowadays. I think many of these miscreants are so used to getting things at no cost to them and vilifying the "big bad corporation" that they justify it to themselves somehow. Apparently they were sleeping during basic economics.