Do you feel like you are being paid third world wages.

CureMS Wrote:
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> I gave the MSC an "out" rather than backing them in to a corner.

This ^ was drilled into us in every single negotiations training class I took and was a key factor in every one of my successful negotiations. People would be very surprised at how well this works if they'd only give it a try, but you have to be willing to be willing to humble yourself and not try to be "right" (even if you are).

There are two types of people in this world: Those who can extrapolate from incomplete data.

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That tactic comes from Sun Tzu's Art of War.

There are reasons that a body stays in motion
At the moment only demons come to mind

Thank you for the feedback. Yes the bridges are being built back up again

. In fact I have 8 decent paying shops (meaning $30+ reimbursements) scheduled this week & more to come next.... I've taken our members advice & followed my instincts to strengthen communication with schedulers who have been absolutely fabulous! I'm truly blessed to be working right now & making ANY type of income after being laid off.

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There's always room for improvement, it's the biggest room in the house!

Best wishes Baileyseattle!

Silver Certified ~ Shopping all of Toronto and beyond

I admit some COL raises wouldn't hurt, not all the projects I work on pay by assignment, but by the hour, and the by the hour ones haven't had the general figures go up in 5 years.

I admire you because you came back to mystery shopping. I have been shopping part time since 2009, and am now selective as to what I choose to do. When I get an 8 rating, I am okay with that rate. I do not think any proofreader will give a 10. I get a 10 rating occasionally. I always thank a scheduler no matter what rate I get. You may also wish to write and ask them directly as to what you need to do to improve your rating.
I believe they will answer you, and if not then just keep practicing. You will get better in time. Best wishes to you. You have a good attitude, as the mystery shopping industry has become much more challenging since I started in 2009.

I'm entering into my 5th month doing the shops. I would love to see higher wages; who wouldn't.

I'm thankful that I stumbled across mystery shopping.

I have a bad back and can no longer do any of the types of jobs that I have experience with. Shopping doesn't hurt my back. My tech skills are not great, and I am not bilingual. <--- That zaps another segment of work to be had.

Little by little I am learning how to put together routes, and another major POSITIVE in my book is that this type of work is portable.

IF I relocate, there will be jobs. It's a simple matter of doing an address change.

In today's shaky economy, I also actually feel safer having my income being generated by a range of companies, and the other things that I do. I might not be rich, but my income is not dependent on a single job, or company doing well.

I'm a boomer and unfortunately know quite a few people who lost their jobs, years ago, and are still unemployed.

My tech skills are not great, and I am not bilingual. <--- That zaps another segment of work to be had.

If I can ever help out with with tech skills, just PM me. If you'd like my ms phone number I will be happy to share it with you because when you need tech help, it is usually right now.

When you learn, teach, when you get, give. Maya Angelou

Thank you for your kind offer! Alas and alack, trying to walk me through tech over the phone REALLY freaks me out. I'm figuring it out at a snail's pace.

This year's project will be getting a smart phone and learning how to work it, so I can get more shops.

I bought my first computer and digital camera when I decided to do online sales. AND, after only 2 years I was finally brave enough to NOT drag my stuff over to a friend's house to take pictures there.

E-V-E-N-T-U-A-L-L-Y money will get me motivated to tackle the next tech step. I did though, have my friend pre set my camera for still life pictures and will NOT mess with any of its buttons.

Actually, I have never had any sort of mechanical aptitude at all. It's a bit of a struggle for me to figure it out.

What an awesome & supportive community, I appreciate all of you! Every scheduler I've contacted now has responded back to me. My dog was hit by a car a couple months ago which was one reason I had personal issues with one shop.

I communicated what was going on at the time to the scheduler & even cancelled the shop. Since then I haven't seen that shop listed in my shop log. So I assumed everything was resolved. However, this past week I just noticed my "overall" rating with that MSC is an 8? All of my shops w/ that co are 10's & a few 9's so I couldn't figure out how that averaged? So I asked one of the schedulers for that MSC how it could be? She said it was due to a missed shop in Nov. (I won't name client). She said I need to contact the other scheduling company who works for the MSC. Anyways... I've continued to email the missed shop scheduler and to no avail not received a response

. I even have the email communication to her canceling from Nov. I guess I'll just keep trying... Or do I just let it go?? Whatcha all think?

Your 8 will not last long if you keep doing 9 and 10 work.

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Of cource I wish this paid better. I won't deny that. But as I consider my next move(s) in life after a layoff I have been grateful to mystery shopping for keeping me getting up, getting dressed, getting me out the door and keeping me active. I am now doing other projects on the side also for income and am picking up banquet shifts once again which are much less taxing on me than f and b management or serving jobs and I am not shopping as much as I was - but I don't see myself giving it up, either. I will be using some of my mystery shopping money to buy souvenirs as I am taking a trip to Spain and Morocco later this year - long story but my family is paying for most of it - and I will be using my saved MS money to buy a rug or two in Morocco - and maybe some blankets and various other crafts/goods too.

So, yes, I wish this paid more. But I'm grateful for the shops I have done and I'm grateful for this saved money that will allow me to buy some incredible momentos of my travel later this year. I can't complain given the givens.

In all goodness of heart, stop accepting third world wage shops. Get rid of them and take only the good ones. Somone else will take them.

Your polite and respectful friend,
Don

@Strevel wrote:

In all goodness of heart, stop accepting third world wage shops. Get rid of them and take only the good ones. Somone else will take them.

Your polite and respectful friend,
Don

Or wait for them to have bonuses.

I started out doing shops with low fees. I did them for experience and doing them on time and correctly, gave me a good reputation with the MSC's. They now call me and offer much higher fees. I am happy and the shops are getting done quickly and I'm making more money.

I started out doing shops at $3.00 each. Some of them were out of town, so I was definitely working for experience. Yesterday was a typical day, $148 in shops at base rates. This does shine brighter as we acquire job skills and get organized.

Mary Davis Nowell. Based close to Fort Worth. Shopping Interstate 20 east and west, Interstate 35 north and south.

Little did I know when I took that first sandwich shop for $5 and a sub sandwich that two and a half years later I'd be wearing a hidden camera to a dentist's office for a free cleaning and checkup and $200.

But I did just that, yesterday. Cheaper than dental insurance.

Second dental shop I've done under those terms, too.

I consider those $5 shops to be paying my dues. I surely couldn't have done that video dental shop as a first shop.

Time to build a bigger bridge.

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