LIJake: I agree with you. I have done hundreds of shops for them since my first one in 2008, and I have never encountered any employee who was not polite and appreciative. They are also one of if not the most understanding and shopper-friendly companies. I have never experienced a delay in getting paid. They are the only non-NV MSC that I know of that will send a real paycheck 2 weeks after their payroll cutoff date - just like a regular company you can get 2 paychecks a month if you do enough work for them in a month.

Sighs.....when I was a novice shopper I worked for Maritz, after traveling 200 miles to complete a shop, no one had a clue about the bonus I was promised, even the scheduler. Another scheduler asked if I would travel another 160 miles to complete a shop, in the midst of the mix up. I finally said, forget it. The scheduler I spoke with basically said they had more shoppers and did not need me...I guess that was why they were asking me to drive 100's of miles, because their pool of shoppers was so vast. Lol. I would have probably been willing to do the next shop, had they been patient to help clear up the first fumble on their part. One of the schedulers I spoke with, claimed I used profane language when I said damn, and said they would report it and put it n my file. Sure appears, it is okay when they mess up, they take offense, and we are not suppose to defend our businesses. I have heard rave reviews in this forum and ones like this. I had actually been considering shopping again for them...but maybe I will sit back and wait a little longer.......

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 01/09/2016 01:56AM by dmp777.

I recently had a long conversation with an employee of this company and, was told that due to a high volume, they have had to hire outside editors, and this has caused some problems with overall consistency in
editing. There was also a discussion on the effects of LED lights on digital cameras at night. They are aware of the problem and are discussing possible alternatives. Thank you. BXB21​

I have shopped for this MSC for years and without problems even when my internet connection problems kept me from completing a shop or shops they graciously allowed me extra time to finish what I had already started. but in saying that I must add something must have changed about five months ago I had a horrible time and got so angry over the way I was treated by some of the reps there that I had never had the displeasure to deal with before. I did everything they asked and it still wasn't enough got shops cancelled because I was accused of claiming there were bonuses that were never given. problem was I had all the emails and confirmations to back it up but never mattered didn't change a thing. cost me about 400.00 in jobs not a happy camper especially since I was on the road doing a shop when it happened. So five weeks go by and a familiar agent that i had dealt with before called and asked me to do a project with bonus and I turned her down citing the past events. she apologized I told her I was not over it yet lol six weeks ago got called again by another familiar voice and accepted and am back on tract just deposited two large checks this week.. lesson learned Talk to someone you know even if you have to say no to the original call and call them back. keep records and emals and expect it to get better. It did
Back in the saddle again

1000.00 from Maritz? Thats a lot of talk about overdraft protection!

Communication is key in resolving a discrepancy.

Well said bgriffin! LOL!!!
I first swore Maritz off for their lowball offers and phone communication, but now I just always ask for a bonus. Half the time I get it, and then they call me with more offers. You just have to find the truly easy shops that no one else is taking.

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 01/09/2016 03:24AM by Mom knows.

I have shopped intermittently for Maritz over the past several years. My experience is that they used to reat their shoppers better than they do now. I have spoken to a few people on the front lines of the "teams" that are rude, but the editors and supervisors I have spoken to over the years are quite pleasant. I had one payment issue with them about four years ago. It took three months to resolve because of their process, but they ultimately made good on what they owed me.

My biggest beef with Maritz is that they they are cheap. I get called by the same scheduler several times a month to do a specific shop that is a 100 mile round trip into the boondocks. I won't do the shop for the paltry sum they are offering. At his request, I have told this specific scheduler what it would take for me to accept the shop. He then tells me my fee is too high. I tell him that my time and gasoline have value. He thanks me for my time and hangs up. Then like clockwork he calls me again four or five days later with the same shop request at the same low pay.

I quit working for Maritz before they added that CX thing.. don't know what that is. I did a bunch.. like 3 months worth of the home improvement shops and never got paid for a single one. I jumped through all of their hoops, resent all of the receipts just like they asked, and still no check. After talking to three different people, and being told there is nothing they can do until I resend all of the information again I told them I'm done playing, I will not work for them ever again. And two weeks later a check magically appeared in my mail box. And two months after that I no longer had access to their website.. lol

@dmp777 wrote:

Sighs.....when I was a novice shopper I worked for Maritz, after traveling 200 miles to complete a shop, no one had a clue about the bonus I was promised, even the scheduler.

In your case, I wouldn't have walked out the door unless that bonus showed up on the shop order when I went in to review my paperwork ahead of time. Always get bonuses in writing. Of course, Maritz doesn't let their schedulers email , so that would have been out of the question. At least with Kern doing their scheduling, there is a paper trail .

They may not be showing when you look because they may have removed you from the project. I experience the same issue where I started seeing them on Kern and when I contacted Maritz I was told that I had told someone I don't want to complete this project so they removed me from it. I believe I did not want to complete a particular location one time but could not remember the specifics as it took me so long to realize I was removed. I assumed they went elsewhere. If you give them a call they will be able to reinstate if removed based on reason.

I can tell a definite difference since they added the CX. I have always had my share of super nice and grumpy people and can handle that, but what does bother me is the fact that the checks are much later. Before CX I could count on the end of the month check being here no later than the 3rd and the 15th was always here by about the 18th. The last months 15th did not get here until just days before Christmas and it is the 9th and I have not received the EOM check yet.

Remember this folks, anything you say to a MSC in email or on the phone goes in to your File, and everyone from that day forward will and has read it. If you have problems getting paid email them first for most of them will reply from bookkeeping my email. Sometimes they will call but they will get to you at there good time not yours. I too have been cut out of a shop at Martiz for telling them the where cheap. I question it over a year later and got into a email conversation with the team leader that became confrontation and when someone called about a different shop from a different team is when I found out they record everything you say.

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 01/09/2016 03:03PM by bmttinman.

Over the last 2-3 years, three of the checks I've gotten from Maritz came with the envelope completely unsealed.

I started doing shops with Maritz last year, and I was getting fairly good bonuses with the 4-5 shops I would spend a day driving to etc. But then they started calling me EVERY DAY with small pay for jobs that I would have to drive 200+ miles for. Sometimes 2 or 3 people would call me about the same job in the same day, after I had said no. I just completed a few jobs for them last month. A few of them came back needing revision (small 2- 3 sentences sort of deal), and I had resubmitted them both (I thought) as soon as I got those emails. Just got paid for 2 of the 3 jobs, the revisions for one of the jobs apparently didn't go through. I got upset with the lady on the phone and asked why someone couldn't have followed up with a message or email or SOMETHING before just removing a 60 dollar shop that I had put in. She lectured me on personal responsibility. I told her they just lost a shopper..I think they have communication issues in that company.

@bmttinman wrote:

Remember this folks, anything you say to a MSC in email or on the phone goes in to your File...Someone called about a different shop from a different team is when I found out they record everything you say.

I record on my side, too. I guess we're even.

After years of doing cheap pay shops for CORI and then their new name, I have found the Maritz shops to be acceptable. Anyone remember the big box hardware store that paid $4 or the gas station jobs that paid $1 or $2? How about dealing with some of their editors. Wow! They could be really crazy unreasonable!
There was always an amount of anticipation of doing those jobs as soon as they were bonused. The problem was you just could not get a good route put together that might save you a bit of time and money. The job board was always so disjointed.
So, I guess I have to say that Maritz does beat them there. As for the numerous phone calls from them; I just don't answer them. I listen to the voice message and then decide if I want to call them back.
Most of all, I am always respectful and expect as such in return.

It works for me.

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 03/23/2016 08:48PM by French Farmer.

@French Farmer wrote:

After years of doing cheap pay shops for CORI and then their new name, I have found the Maritz shops to be acceptable. Anyone remember the big box hardware store that paid $4 or the gas station jobs that paid $1 or $2? How about dealing with some of their editors. Wow! They could be really crazy unreasonable!

It works for me.

I remember doing those shops for CORI, too. I just remember it differently than you do. I never did any of the shops for $1, $2 or $4. I did them later in the month when they paid $20+. I never had a question from an editor, a photo questioned, or a shop report declined. My reports were edited quickly, given "5s" and I was paid quickly. No crazy unreasonable from CORI, although I've seen just a little crazy unreasonable from Maritz, even though I find them nice folks and like working for them. And with CORI, I never had to put up with the constant begging phone calls that I get from Maritz on a daily basis. Granted, the Maritz employees are pleasant, even when begging and demanding, and even when explaining that they can't come up with any bonus money and most of their ICs just do it for them to help them.

VIVA CORI. I miss you.

You have to give CORI credit for never demanding, almost always having a bonus number ready when they called and never, ever suggesting an IC should "just help them out." It was also easy because there weren't a dozen people who had to be consulted before the scheduler could say yes or no to the bonus.

"...............even when begging and demanding, and even when explaining that they can't come up with any bonus money and most of their ICs just do it for them to help them."

Imagine if we called schedulers and asked for more money "just to help" us.

I miss the days when CORI had the hardware stores. It was typical for them to be bonused to $25+ in my area. You didn't have to deal with the hassle of getting the security code (Maritz tells you to print it out, but I never do). I also hate that I have to take a quiz for the hardware store and am quizzed on 5 different scenarios (millwork, lighting, tile, tools, etc) when in fact I'm only doing one scenario. Lastly, Maritz really needs to consider moving forward technology-wise. Last time I checked we were living in the 21st century.

@TeriW wrote:

Imagine if we called schedulers and asked for more money "just to help" us.

You don't? LOL Sometimes you may find yourself pleasantly surprised. Emails are better, though.

I ask for more money because that is what the job is worth or because of distance. I never say that I want them to help me out.

I suppose everyone has their own take on CORI and their editors. One of my most memorable experiences was going back and forth with editor "T". She would always claim that my overall photo of the site did not include the MID. I would diligently take those photos and always include it. Subsequent correspondence went back and forth until, finally, she had to admit that yes, she now saw the MID in the right hand side of the photo. After Maritz came along, there was never that complaint or of other photo problems. I do have to say that recently, the yellow gas station shops have their editor issues. I shudder to think how CORI editors would have responded.
Then there were the hardware stores that paid so low they were not worth it. I remember how many on this forum complained about "newbies" accepting the shops before they became bonused.
My question has always been why do they need to be bonused? Why couldn't they pay an acceptable amount in the first place? But, that is my opinion of "acceptable".
Don't get me wrong, I have my issues with Maritz (mailed paychecks vs direct deposit, phone calls, invoicing, etc) as I do with other MSCs. I just really appreciate the ability to count on a logical route every month.

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 03/24/2016 11:33AM by French Farmer.

I wonder if Maritz hires from a retirement community or is staffed by Nursing Home patients. I have yet to talk with one of their people who seems to know how to send an e-mail and their people seem so compartmentalized and are almost in a straight jacket as far as their permissions and ability to be flexible. If they could just get into the 21st century I would be much happier.

@BigEdBSA wrote:

I wonder if Maritz hires from a retirement community or is staffed by Nursing Home patients. I have yet to talk with one of their people who seems to know how to send an e-mail and their people seem so compartmentalized and are almost in a straight jacket as far as their permissions and ability to be flexible. If they could just get into the 21st century I would be much happier.

Oh my. You are about to get roasted BigEd. There's a whole bunch of old people here and somebody with a grandma (whom I have on ignore). Good luck.

@BigEdBSA wrote:

I wonder if Maritz hires from a retirement community or is staffed by Nursing Home patients. I have yet to talk with one of their people who seems to know how to send an e-mail and their people seem so compartmentalized and are almost in a straight jacket as far as their permissions and ability to be flexible. If they could just get into the 21st century I would be much happier.

I'm not certain of what you are saying, Big Ed.

Surely you have worked for an employer who has rules, guidelines and facilities that their employees must follow and use. Apparently, how they go about performing their jobs is how their employer wishes them to do so. I have yet to find an employer who allows their employees to conduct the company's business in their (the employee's) idea of how it should be performed. That, is a quick way to be shown the door.
Therefore, it makes no sense to blame or ridicule the employees of this company for apparently using and following their employer's instructions.

It makes more sense to rightly complain about the company's ways of conducting their business.

@French Farmer wrote:

@BigEdBSA wrote:

I wonder if Maritz hires from a retirement community or is staffed by Nursing Home patients. I have yet to talk with one of their people who seems to know how to send an e-mail and their people seem so compartmentalized and are almost in a straight jacket as far as their permissions and ability to be flexible. If they could just get into the 21st century I would be much happier.

I'm not certain of what you are saying, Big Ed.

It makes more sense to rightly complain about the company's ways of conducting their business.

I think I know what Big Ed is saying. I think he's saying it very, very badly, because it really has nothing to do with the individual employees or retirement communities, but he's not wrong about the ridiculous inability of the company to use e-mail.

I think he IS criticizing the company's ways of conducting their business. The ages of their employees and/or where the employees live is irrelevant, but Big Ed is not wrong about the old-fashioned way of doing businesses. The company hires employees with no computer skills (or hires employees with computer skills and doesn't allow them to use their computers) because the company has apparently made a decision that they prefer to do business over the telephone rather than using e-mail. That has nothing to do with the employees per se, it's a corporate decision. And the employees are so compartmentalized that they are kept in a business straight jacket. Yes, Big Ed, it's still annoying as hell but let's be sure we put the blame on Maritz the company rather than the individuals working there.

I've worked with Maritz for several years, and I like the company and I do continue to work for them. BUT I don't like it that the company can't communicate with me through e-mail. Their constant phone calls are an annoyance and a waste of my time. So far, the only area of the company to communicate via e-mail seems to be Accounting. I've e-mailed with several Martiz Accounting employees, and the e-mail communication is very clear and works well.

So, Big Ed, knock off the talk of retirement communities and nursing homes. That just confuses the issue, and then you have folks who really aren't certain of what you are saying. Go sit in the corner. Put the criticism where it belongs. Maritz as a company has made a decision to remain in the 20th century. There have long been complaints here about Maritz's ways of conducting their business. I keep hoping they'll read some of the complaints and someone in Martiz management will have a lightbulb moment.

I agree with " If they could just get into the 21st century I would be much happier," but I am talking about Maritz and not about the individual employees. I also think Maritz could make more money and have an easier time scheduling their shops, but that's just my opinion.

I hope I've clarified what I think Big Ed actually meant to say.

I love MaritzCX's little "make an offer" emails. I make an offer and they always counter offer me (low-ball of course). Sometimes they call and ask how much money I would need to complete an assignment and then give me a ridiculously low counter offer; I laugh and tell them I'm in this business to make money... rinse and repeat the next day.

Eventually, they do pay me the $90+ to do home improvement assignments, I just stick to my guns.

$90+ on home improvements? wow, good stuff. i wouldn't say a line like 'I'm in this business to make money." out of concern that they'd label me as someone who doesn't care about the job, and only sees each location as a payday. i mean they probably wouldn't, but ya never know. i always say something like "I'd really like to do this job for you, but this is how I pay my bills so I need X amount or i'll have to pass."