I had an issue with Confero, a MSC based in Cary NC and this thread has definately touched a raw nerve with me
I had to go into emergency surgery last September after first going to a regularly scheduled Doctor's visit. My doctor made a call and got me admitted on an emergency basis for surgery the next day at St. Joseph's Hospital in Asheville NC. I had actually made my Doctor's appointment one stop on a round of Mystery Shops I was doing that day. I planned to return home and report my results that night and had packed practically nothing. I knew I had some foot issues but with neurapathy cutting off all feeling in my foot I had not realized how serious my problem had gotten.
With just a few hours to go before surgery I was calling all of my MSC at the hospital, telling them what was happening, getting shops cancelled, working with some wonderful help desk people to verbally complete shops I had done that day, etc. I think I needed to reach out to 14 different MSC to get things taken care of before surgery. My cell phone (yes, one of the old "regular cell phones" was already low on power but I kept calling. In the case of Confero, I needed to call Directory Assistance and reached their office where I was told by the receptionist that I needed to e-mail my scheduler to report my problem as they could not help me! Confero is one of those MSC that outsources all of their scheduling... in this case to Summit Scheduling.
So here I am in a hospital pre-op room, no computer, no e-mail, and only one MSC that was totally oblivious to what I was facing.
I ended up spending the next 30 days in a hospital followed by 3 months of rehabilitation. Christmas 2012 was spent in what was essentially a Nursing Home with a massive outbreak of flu that saw 17 residents die during the month of December as we were in full quarantine. That was certainly a Christmas I will never forget!
Finally "back on my feet" I was okayed by my Doctor to resume Mystery Shopping. Every single one of my Mystery Shop companies welcomed me back, I even got a get well card from one of them. Not Confero.... I sent 17 e-mails to the company and Celeste Borden over at Summit Scheduling and heard nothing back.
I continued to reach out and made contact with Rob Barry, a Confer Senior Account Manager who said he was totally powerless to do anything for me as I had missed reporting some Grocery Store shops. I had done more than 50 of those stores, often going out of my way to locations that were quite remote in the Blue Ridge & Great Smokey Mountains and received many excellent ratings.
I was told in January however that I was still elligible for other Confero work, just not the Grocery Store chain and I was okay with that. The chance to put that offer to the test finally happened in March of 2013 when they were offering a number of shops for a fast food client. I signed up and all of my requests were ignored.
By March I was fully back at work, doing Mystery Shops 5-6 days a week sometimes as many as 15 shops per day. Every company except Confero was willing to work with me but by March, even after sending photos of amputated foot it became clear to me that Confero was not going to work with me on any of their accounts (they told me in January that I could still do other shops for them). My account was active but why bother.... despite the statement I would be considered for their other projects I was not scheduled for anything I requested.
On March 16th I resorted to the only vehicle I had for getting the attention of Elaine Buxton, the C.E.O. of Confero via THIS MYSTERY SHOPPER FORUM. I shared my story, told everyone about the cold, heartless, uncaring and unresponsive people at Confero and their tag along scheduling company, Summit Scheduling. The nuclear option did get me one thing that I had so far been unable to get...the attention of their C.E.O. Elaine Buxton who did take the time to write me and to tell me that they had decided to deactivate my account (like they had not already defacto done so when all of my shop requests were being ignored).
We hear a lot about ICA's and all of the guidelines of the MSPA which is mainly designed to protect the Mystery Shop Companies. I am sure many of them hate the very existence of this forum where their worst practices are exposed and shared among thousands of Mystery Shoppers. Only with the help of this forum was I even able to get the attention of this C.E.O.
If anyone wants to see what happened to me visit: [
www.facebook.com]
As for me, I use to be a regular shopper at that Grocery Store chain, but I also got all of the medications for myself and my family which were over $14,500 in 2009. I had to tell my Pharmacist and good friend in Rotary Club why I was pulling my business from his Grocery Store. He already knew that I did Mystery Shopping and I never actually did his store even though the Pharmacy was not a part of Confero's shop guidelines. I have not gone back to that store chain since, even though there is hardly a day that goes by when I am not driving past those Grocery Stores, some in places they routinely offered bonuses to get anyone to shop there. Given that most of my territory is in small towns of 500 - 4000 people, separated by Mountains, Rivers, Gorges, etc. it is a major loss for me to not have this client anymore.
Only though www.mysteryshopforum.com, did I have any voice, and leverage against being treated like dirt by a hateful uncaring MSC. Confero stood apart from all of the other companies I am proud to work for: BARE, MarketForce, GfK, Service Sleuths, A.C.E., Corporate Research Service, Ritter, Maritz, Trendsource, Beyond Hello, Jancyn, About Face, ICCDS, and over 50 others.
Mystery Shoppers need to understand....to some MSC we are just an e-mail, Independent Contractor # 8574 expendable, people who are willing to drive sometimes 100 miles round trip covering shops that perhaps pay $5 or $10 and then spending hours more in data entry. We have no benefits, 401K's, Health Insurance, etc. Elaine and her office full of Confero employees enjoy full benefits. When I needed them most Confero was NOT there for me, they did not care if I lived or died on that operating table, and after four months of rehabilitation I was essentially told to go to hell.
Carefully consider the contempt this MSC exhibited and ask yourself if you would ever want to have anything to do with them.
Big Ed
Mystery shopping in the Great Smokey & Blue Ridge Mountain ranges of Southern Appalachia (GA, NC, SC, & TN)
BigEdBSA@gmail.com