CaliGirl925

It's our policy to deactivate a shopper's account if an assignment is not completed either because the initial report was not submitted or because a request for revision was not submitted. We contact the shopper to determine the reason the assignment was not completed and a determination is made to coach the shopper or deactivate the account. I don't believe that this practice is much different than any other company in the industry.

In addition to wanting to inquire about the report revisions, I wanted to ask the OP if she felt pressured by our staff to accept the assignment without being prepared. Contrary to what has been portrayed by some in this forum, I have no problem being accountable when we screw up.

I don't have a problem with the OP posting comments about her dislike for the assignment and/or level of pay. I didn't care for our editors comments and the assignment guidelines being misquoted so I posted the exact comments. I have not posted on disparaging comment about the OP, the quality of her work, or anything similar. I never stated that "she was wrong".

When I have deactivated accounts based on comments in this forum, the reason is typically related to the level of hostility directed at the company.

Thanks

Dave

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 08/27/2015 12:20PM by Sentry Marketing.

Thanks for the response, Dave.

@Flash wrote:

What did have me comment on this thread, if you will go back through my comments, was NOT Sentry but rather Steve ripping into a fairly new member who was venting. Their vent could have as easily been about ACL or Bestmark or Trendsource or anyone else...

So this goes back to the old argument that you somehow think I am on the payroll from Sentry? I can assure you that the only thing I've ever received from them was a panini and a few bucks for that report.

It seems that the parting between April and Sentry was indeed mutual. Had I been able to continue the discussion, I certainly would have encouraged her to finish the narrative at a minimum, and lobbied for Dave to accept it.

The alternate thread would not have been about Bestmark or Trendsource because I have certainly spoken my mind about not liking those MSCs in the past. I have not exactly been nice to ACL lately, either. If a shopper was venting about a similar situation with Customer Impact or Coyle, you can bet that I would have reacted the same. I think my record of posting and "Educating" shoppers speaks for itself...and you know that better than just about anyone, Flash.

I get why you don't like Dave, but if your issue is with me, then why not just post that you thought the reply was heavy-handed...or send me a PM about that? Flash, you are a very wise person and you must know that the response you posted would certainly create ill-will toward me from others, just as I know that confronting you will do the same. It certainly was assured that the thread would derail. You have the admiration of the majority of posters here. I'm at a loss for when our relationship went from being friendly to being contentious, so I would ask you the same question. What can I do to make things copacetic?

@roflwofl wrote:

Because you do not do that type of shop and you do not work for Sentry, those posts contain no usable information that you know first hand, it has all been parroted from other posts or from the owner. Since I am a fan, I have read Everything written by SteveSoCal, and I noticed long ago that you seem to post on every Sentry thread.

With all due respect, roflwofl, you may have missed a few posts of mine because I have worked for Sentry and discussed it in the Sentry threads. I also have passed the test to qualify for the burger shop in question, fully understand the requirements and have elected not to do the shop for a multitude of reasons that I have stated in this very thread. Despite any offense created by it, I made a valid attempt to explain those requirements to April from my first-hand knowledge.

Your supposition that I am parroting anyone's words is offensive. I am my own person and choose to comment in the Sentry threads because I think that despite his missteps early on, his sometimes gruff attitude and potential oversensitivity to negative posts about his company, Dave is a MSC owner that is trying to do the right thing. He shows up and addresses every comment about the company. I do think there is a bias toward him and I tend to stand up for the underdog when I think they have been wronged.

Apparently the rift cannot be mended. In a perfect world, Flash would be reactivated by Sentry and have a change of heart about Dave. Shoppers would only post the truth and all of the estranged forum members would return to the discussion and get along, but that's not likely to happen...

As the World Turns.... Not that I ever watched it when it was still on or anything.

aprilredbird, I use a Brother MFC series printer that works in all black and takes a laser cartridge. I buy knockoff high volume cartridges for it on Amazon for less than $15 each and they last for months even though I print everything on all my jobs. I have two of the printers, one is a printer / fax / scanner combo and one is a plain printer. I've had both of them for years and years and printed a kazillion copies. I am also writing a novel and I print out everything I work on because it reads better for me on paper. If you plan to continue with shopping you can save yourself some money by giving up the color cartridges and working with a laser printer. I don't know that this is the best solution available, but it's a solution that has worked well for me. I had a Dell color printer when I started and it took me about ten days to ditch it. If I run across a shop that requires color printing, well, then, that's not a shop for me.

@MDavisnowell wrote:

aprilredbird, I use a Brother MFC series printer that works in all black and takes a laser cartridge. I buy knockoff high volume cartridges for it on Amazon for less than $15 each and they last for months even though I print everything on all my jobs. I have two of the printers, one is a printer / fax / scanner combo and one is a plain printer. I've had both of them for years and years and printed a kazillion copies. I am also writing a novel and I print out everything I work on because it reads better for me on paper. If you plan to continue with shopping you can save yourself some money by giving up the color cartridges and working with a laser printer. I don't know that this is the best solution available, but it's a solution that has worked well for me. I had a Dell color printer when I started and it took me about ten days to ditch it. If I run across a shop that requires color printing, well, then, that's not a shop for me.

Not promoting for Brother or anything, but I'll agree with MDavisnowell with Brother printers. I'd say their laser printers are the best bang for your buck. Depending on what you're looking for, they have automatic duplex printing, wireless and some have a built-in scanner and auto-feed for copies / scans. As she also stated, generic toners are affordable.

If any of y'all would like to know more, I don't mind detailing the different printer options they have and the 'decent' prices to wait for for them.

I agree with both Tarantado and MDavisnowell. We have a Brother printer in the office and it is very reliable and problem free. A wireless black and white laser from Brother will cost you between $100 - $200.

@Tarantado wrote:

@MDavisnowell wrote:

aprilredbird, I use a Brother MFC series printer that works in all black and takes a laser cartridge. I buy knockoff high volume cartridges for it on Amazon for less than $15 each and they last for months even though I print everything on all my jobs. I have two of the printers, one is a printer / fax / scanner combo and one is a plain printer. I've had both of them for years and years and printed a kazillion copies. I am also writing a novel and I print out everything I work on because it reads better for me on paper. If you plan to continue with shopping you can save yourself some money by giving up the color cartridges and working with a laser printer. I don't know that this is the best solution available, but it's a solution that has worked well for me. I had a Dell color printer when I started and it took me about ten days to ditch it. If I run across a shop that requires color printing, well, then, that's not a shop for me.

Not promoting for Brother or anything, but I'll agree with MDavisnowell with Brother printers. I'd say their laser printers are the best bang for your buck. Depending on what you're looking for, they have automatic duplex printing, wireless and some have a built-in scanner and auto-feed for copies / scans. As she also stated, generic toners are affordable.

If any of y'all would like to know more, I don't mind detailing the different printer options they have and the 'decent' prices to wait for for them.

re: Printing

I'd also agree that getting a printer with wireless & built in scanning makes work flow very easy. I personally use a color ink printer (Cannon MX432) because sometimes I want to print in color, but the ink costs will outweigh the printer cost in a short time if you print regularly.

You untimately have to find the system that works best for you and base your printer decision on that. I understand Mary likes to have hardcopies, but I literally have not printed a single page of paper in the name of mystery shopping in over 5 years. I use the printer mainly as a scanner & fax machine. I save PDFs of all examples and instructions, store them in folders by the job and send them to my phone or iPad if I need to access them when I'm away from home. All of the signatures required of me are added digitally in Acrobat. You can absolutely negate all printing costs for mystery shopping if desired.

@Tarantado wrote:

As the World Turns.... Not that I ever watched it when it was still on or anything.

Its more like --->The BOLD and the BEAUTIFUL versus the YOUNG and the RESTLESS

Since we are on printing. I have heard very good things about laser printers, as others above have mentioned and the prices have really come down. My sister swears by her laser printer. However, I like to print in color, so a few years ago I purchased an HP Officejet Pro 8600. I learned two things here on this forum, that have made a world of difference, and I don't have to purchase much ink.

NEVER turn it off, every time you turn it on, it goes through a cycle that uses ink.

Get your inks from simplyink.com.

I am not sure who recommended these things, but I have a really low cost per page for printing now. And I get to print in color when I want to. We get a lot of good tips from people on this forum.

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 08/19/2015 11:39PM by spaztck.

@spaztck wrote:

Since we are on printing. I have heard very good things about laser printers, as others above have mentioned and the prices have really come down. My sister swears by her laser printer. However, I like to print in color, so a few years ago I purchased an HP Officejet Pro 8600. I learned two things here on this forum, that have made a world of difference, and I don't have to purchase much ink.

NEVER turn it off, every time you turn it on, it goes through a cycle that uses ink.

Get your inks from simplyink.com.

I am not sure who recommended these things, but I have a really low cost per page for printing now. And I get to print in color when I want to. We get a lot of good tips from people on this forum.

True for an inkjet printer and laser color printers (if they automatically recalibrate when turning it on). But NOT true for black & white (B&W) laser printers.

Inkjet printers are terrible for this business and will always have a higher cost per page for printing, regardless if B&W or color. The downside is that its laser counterpart is just as pricey (if not more), when talking about color prints. B&W lasers have the lowest print cost per page, from my experiences.

In regards to where you buy your ink / toner, there isn't just one site that has the "best" prices. You have to do your own research as this may vary depending on the deals floating around and the kind of ink / toner you need. Sometimes Amazon has a good deal. Sometimes Newegg has a good deal. Sometimes there are coupons, rebates and / or cash back promos that make a deal worth it as well.

One of my sisters has finally seen the light and gotten a laser printer after going through a series of 'highly recommended' ink jet printers. The other has been a laser fan all along and recently picked up a wifi capable HP color laser for under $100 that had been a display model at Staples. It is now her second printer to her regular HP laser. The display model has those 'beginner' toner cartridges that are mostly full but when we were putting in an order with my toner cartridge place we were able to get her a full set of 4 for $80 to have as backup.

She is following our cue where there is a B/W HP wifi laser in the house (with flat bed scanner and fax capabilities), a color wifi HP laser and an HP laser that is older than wifi that is connected to a computer and works well for heavy loads (direct link is faster than wifi) as well as having probably the best sheet feeder scanner I have ever used.

Newegg has some good deals sometimes and sometimes has coupons but I usually go to SuppliesOutlet.com After your first order they will monthly send discount emails. Their prices are good up front and once or twice a year I see 25% discounts. We put together a family order to get to $100 and the shipping is free (and not in my state so no sales tax). I do a lot of b/w printing because I coupon.

You claim that you did not comment on Sentry, however, you wrote:

"Can I like this thrice? The word "Sentry" appears and suddenly so do Steve and Mary. And as with Dave, "The shopper is always wrong."

That would seem to be a direct comment about Sentry and myself. Similarly, you refer to aprilredbird as being "dumped" when the OP herself states that the decision was mutual and that our conversation was respectful.

You also wrote that "Their vent could have as easily been about ACL or Bestmark or Trendsource or anyone else but it seemed that BECAUSE it was about Sentry they deserved to be sliced and diced—oops, ‘educated’." Really? On August 14, 2015 a new forum member posted a complaint about "gouging" by a specific MSC and was "educated" by a forum member without the thread going nuclear. This is the type of double standard I've pointed out time and time again.

@Flash wrote:

Indeed emotions run high about Sentry with long term forum members and certainly Dave and Sentry have earned every bit of the distrust I have of him. I normally do NOT comment at all on threads regarding Sentry because of my personal very low opinion of the owner. What did have me comment on this thread, if you will go back through my comments, was NOT Sentry but rather Steve ripping into a fairly new member who was venting. Their vent could have as easily been about ACL or Bestmark or Trendsource or anyone else but it seemed that BECAUSE it was about Sentry they deserved to be sliced and diced—oops, ‘educated’. But not to worry, Steve, the shopper won’t need further Sentry schooling because they have been dumped.

As for Dave, he was told several years ago not to contact me because his PMs are even more offensive than his on forum behavior. I have never worked for Sentry and they may just be a wonderful company. Dave terminated me because we disagreed in open forum before I ever accepted a first job with them. So if Dave feels I am commenting on his company in this thread, is he telling me that Steve is now an employee? If he is, that probably should be disclosed in Steve's siggy line as we ask schedulers and company employees to do.

I kind of feel like doing the burger shop again now, if only just to see how I have to describe my Sprite.

Or I will do a fine dining with Steve and Dave, and Steve will be writing the narrative. Sheesh man. Lay off the caffeine today.

Good times here.

Remember to taste everything with your words as well as with your mouth!

Actually, I'm in many threads on the forum responding to many shoppers who post about their issues. I see that as preferable to interacting with shoppers who know it all. I find it unnecessary to interact with the know it alls because I already know it all. That's what makes me such a fabulous read.

@Flash wrote:

Can I like this thrice? The word "Sentry" appears and suddenly so do Steve and Mary. And as with Dave, "The shopper is always wrong."

@SoCalMama wrote:

Steve will be writing the narrative.

Wait. Why do I have to write the narrative?...and is Dave going to pay me for it?

While I thought the conversation was better off ending on a discussion of printers, I have to say that I felt inclined to look up the post Dave referred to. While it's certainly not the exact same station, there are some disturbing similarities:

[www.mysteryshopforum.com]

squaggy was also a relatively new poster with interestingly the same amount of posts as April when he started that thread, but when he was "educated" with no support from the community until today, he departed and has not been heard from since.

@SteveSoCal wrote:

@SoCalMama wrote:

Steve will be writing the narrative.

Wait. Why do I have to write the narrative?...and is Dave going to pay me for it?

You type faster than anyone I know.
Dave will pay, and he can submit your report as a promo shop to land the client. Let's pick somewhere really nice, a place that we won't mind spending five sentences on describing the beverages. Hand crafted cocktails for me please. Yes, I'll have another.
I'll be there to make sure you two stay on track. I'll shoot the food photos, and keep track of timing. I'll make the mandatory complaint to see how the manager reacts and responds.

As for printers, I LOVE the Fine Print download. I use the free version. It's super easy to use. I can print 2, 4, 8 to a page (8 is pretty small). It also lets me print in "grayscale" black and white with one click. It saves me a boatload of paper and ink.

In that Thread the OP violated two different ICAs and Forum rules by naming a client and two MSCs who contracted with that client. He compared the two MSCs primarily in terms of the payment for each, without details about the amount of work required (mentioning only photos or no photos). Once the client had been removed by the moderator, the post became useless to anyone who hadn't seen the violation or who didn't already know who the client was from their own experience (and anyone who already knew the client from their own experience wouldn't have learned anything from the thread).

The OP on this thread discussed her own personal experience without (as far as I'm aware) violating any ICA or forum rules. She discussed a job offered by a particular MSC and expressed her frustration with the requirements to payment ratio offered for that particular assignment.

I think the comparison is not ideal, but I would prefer not to keep arguing about this. I think I'm going to start a thread on Printers and let this thread die the death it is crying out for.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 08/20/2015 05:42PM by CaliGirl925.

@CaliGirl925 wrote:

In that Thread the OP violated two different ICAs and Forum rules by naming a client and two MSCs who contracted with that client. He compared the two MSCs primarily in terms of the payment for each, without details about the amount of work required (mentioning only photos or no photos). Once the client had been removed by the moderator, the post became useless to anyone who hadn't seen the violation or who didn't already know who the client was from their own experience (and anyone who already knew the client from their own experience wouldn't have learned anything from the thread).

The OP on this thread discussed her own personal experience without (as far as I'm aware) violating any ICA or forum rules. She discussed a job offered by a particular MSC and expressed her frustration with the requirements to payment ratio offered for that particular assignment.

I think the comparison is not ideal, but I would prefer not to keep arguing about this. I think I'm going to start a thread on Printers and let this thread die the death it is crying out for.

And here I thought that you were going to offer to be the 4th at our dinner. Whatever.

@CaliGirl925 wrote:

I think the comparison is not ideal

Agreed that it's not apples-to-apples, and that this thread probably needs to come to an end.

You are still invited to diner....but someone else besides me has to write about the beverages.

@saacman5033 wrote:

@risinghorizon wrote:

, you went overboard to even get a reaction from Flash.

To be fair, it seems clear from this thread that the topic of this MSC is an sore spot for Flash.

To be fair, for someone claiming to be uninvolved, you are! This is not about Flash.

Would someone please pass the dinner rolls? I have just made a note in my phone that the server never brought butter to the table.

Wales, don't forget that your bread plate is on the left.

We are in drought here. Would welcome some rain. My chives and cilantro are withering.

Bored yet? Wonderful.

Eric, my love,
Everything important in my life is on the left!

Seriously I wish a moderator would just freaking close this thread. It's gotten annoying.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 08/21/2015 01:52AM by bgriffin.

Close the thread or delete it?

Excellent point.

This thread is trash.