After asking about pros and cons of mystery shopping yesterday, I noticed a common theme of frustration when a scheduler doesn't get back to you quick enough. I always try to reply to emails as soon as possible, and will continue to do so. I put a vacation reply on so that you know if I am out of the office and what time I will get back.

What other things can I do as a scheduler to enable you?

What things do schedulers do that frustrate you?
(If I can't change what I do, maybe I can explain why I do it at least)

Also, I know you would like me to add more bonuses (I mean...who wouldn't), but keep in mind that bonuses are out of my control and I ask for them as often as you. ;-)

I would appreciate if there could always be SOME human to talk to in case of an emergency. Recently I had a shop where there was an unusual circumstance. I called the MSC and learned that they closed for the weekend. I was already out on the shop and couldn't just wait for a few hours in the parking lot for a return email so I winged it, but I do not like making executive decisions about shop regulations on the fly, especially when a wrong decision will see me unpaid. I do not expect every scheduler to be on call 24-7 but having a single on-call person for emergencies is not too much to ask in my opinion, especially when shops are assigned on weekends and reports are due within 12 hours.

There are only 2 things that frustrate me about schedulers.

1. When they don't reply at all or don't reply in a timely manner.
2. When they reply but don't answer the question you asked.

I'll give an example. Yesterday I got an email from a scheduler with a question about a shop I did. I love her death, one of my absolute favorites, but I replied with the answer to the question and asked her 2 questions in return. She answered one of the questions but not the other. To me that's incredibly frustrating. Sometimes people ask questions that you can't answer, don't want to answer, or are not allowed to answer. I understand that, but at least acknowledge the question. I get that sometimes you can't answer it, but now I don't know if she just missed the question or purposely ignored it and I can't ask again because then I've become annoying and I don't want to mess up that relationship. But now I'm frustrated because I have a question that isn't answered. Just tell me, I'm a big boy, I even wore my big boy pants today. I'm not going to be offended by "I don't know" or "I can't really answer that."

As a scheduler, I would much rather have you ask a question again than to leave you feeling frustrated. Some times, I get so caught up in answering one question (that might take me 20 minutes to research) that I forget to answer the other question. I try to double check my emails before sending them out, but we are all human and some times make mistakes. I am not bothered by being asked for clarification when it is needed.

ctamariz -
Thank you for taking the time to seek understanding in the pursuit of optimal support!
I'll use "you" as the convenient pronoun in reference to schedulers, with no personal intent regarding "you," but "you" are the one who is asking.
1) Please leave a message when you call, and please include the basics of the request; what, where, when, how much.
2) Please acknowledge all of my communications. If I take the time to formulate a route or an offer and then inquire or reply to you, recognize the time that I've already invested in your project, and don't leave me wondering, even if the answer is a quick no.
3) If you would like to know when I can't help, specifically ask that in your email or your voicemail, and I'll reply to let you know that I can't help. Otherwise I don't want to bother you, and I can't afford to waste my time.
4) Please take shops off the board if they have been scheduled. It's unfair and manipulative to have a shopper request an assignment, reserving time to complete it in case their request is approved, when another shopper already has it, but the scheduler is keeping the requesting shopper on the line in case the scheduled shopper flakes. Not cool.
5) Be available, or advocate for someone at the MSC to be available, with urgent questions from a shopper out in the field. My time is precious, and I won't waste it on asking for help when I don't need help. When I do need help in the field, I need it fast. Without it, I am jeopardizing the completion of the whole project, not just my pay.
Some of this is already redundant to what has been previously posted, but these are critical to me.
Thanks again for opening yourself to whatever is going to come your way on this thread.

Communication for sure. When I email you about a question or a website problem, acknowledge my response. Even the busiest of MSCs can make an effort to let the shopper know they are looking into whatever the issue is.

Two days ago, I emailed a scheduler about two reports that were missing from the site where I would enter the data. She replied promptly and said they were aware of the issue. Today I get an email threatening to cancel my shops if they are not entered by noon. Even though the surveys are still not up to complete. That is poor communication and sets the shopper up to become very frustrated with the scheduler and company as a whole.

Sinclair was always had some AWESOME schedulers!

Scheduler: Emmet Godley is one of the best. Is he still doing the banks?

I have to give high praise to your company because I always get a personal email back or even a phone call!

My biggest pet peeve would be: No-one in the office on the weekends (not necessarily your company) but in general. I think Market Force has weekend help because they grade and accept my reports on the weekend...

I actually understand your side of the story. You have TONS of shops and LOTS of shoppers. Each shopper may have a dilemma and need a response. What do you prefer? Emailing them? Or calling them?

I have no real complaints other than needing someone on the weekend....

Our shops are 24/7. The MSC's need to have 24/7 assistance, even if just someone to leave an emergency message

@SunnyDays2 wrote:

What do you prefer? Emailing them? Or calling them?

In general, I prefer emails. If I need a significant amount of clarification, then I will call you. Each scheduler is different about this, though.


I do not personally work with Emmet, so I am unsure if he is still scheduling bank shops with Sinclair.

My biggest frustration with schedulers is the time it takes for a shop to be assigned. When I request a shop I often need to set up a route to make it worthwhile. I have had my requests sit for a week or more with no action taken. I need a yes or no answer within a day or so in order to finalize my schedule.

How can you help me? Be there for me and I'll be there for you.

My biggest pet peeve with schedulers is them not giving me enough info to make a decision when they send an email or leave a voice mail. I need the client name, location, and amount. Some schedulers may say, "We have an urgent shop in your area. If you are able to help us please call."

I am a very busy person and will not respond to these messages. I know schedulers are very busy as well. Giving more info would help us both.

@kenasch wrote:

When I request a shop I often need to set up a route to make it worthwhile.

This is a problem in general for me with many companies. I realize you may or may not be talking about local routes, but many companies are just not setup to be helpful to route shoppers. And when I say route shoppers I'm talking about people that are taking multiple day trips. Not to single out a company, but since she asked, Sinclair is one of the worst for that for a couple of reasons. 1, you have to know every zip code you are driving through (at least every 90 miles or so) in order to see what's out there. 2, their schedulers will not reserve shops for you before they are released. To me that is just stupid (not to be blunt but it's true).

Make sure you do not just take points off for something, clarify the issue so the shopper can do better next time.

Do not send a email asking for more information, expecting a response in just a few hours. If you need a quick response, text an alert to the shopper about the email.

Do not just update the report site if more info is needed, email and ext the shopper - give the shopper a call if they prefer that over a text.

When a shopper asks for information, something that is not under your control, properly respond and also forward the request to whomever is responsible.

All of those are editor problems, not scheduler problems.

I usually try and do just self-scheduling since it works better for me. I just wanted to thank the schedulers who helped me during my move this week. This was the first time that I have had so much contact with schedulers because of having to reschedule a bunch of shops. This was what I really appreciated - when I explained that I was in the middle of moving, paperwork everywhere, no internet hook-up ect...., they were so helpful and understanding. I look forward to more communication with schedulers in the future.

I prefer as much info as possible about a shop. Nothing worse than getting vague info, accepting the shop, and then finding out the shop is much more extensive than anticipated and not something I would have accepted for the posted fee.

I absolutely hate when schedulers call at ungodly hours because they don't pay attention to time zones. I have experienced this issue numerous times with Marketforce. They claim to have a policy of no phone calls before 9am, but their schedulers have called me as early as 6:20am.

I also dislike when schedulers send out long lists of available shop locations and they are not in order by state or zip code. That just happened to me this morning. I received an email with a long list of about 40 shop locations and the list was not organized in any way.

@bgriffin wrote:

@kenasch wrote:

When I request a shop I often need to set up a route to make it worthwhile.

This is a problem in general for me with many companies. I realize you may or may not be talking about local routes, but many companies are just not setup to be helpful to route shoppers. And when I say route shoppers I'm talking about people that are taking multiple day trips. Not to single out a company, but since she asked, Sinclair is one of the worst for that for a couple of reasons. 1, you have to know every zip code you are driving through (at least every 90 miles or so) in order to see what's out there. 2, their schedulers will not reserve shops for you before they are released. To me that is just stupid (not to be blunt but it's true).

Actually my issue is not with large complicated routes but rather just scheduling shops in my area. Sometimes I will request a fine dining shop and then hear nothing back for a week or more. If it's on Sassie, I know it's still not assigned. In the meantime, I need to keep the date open and cannot any other shops for the same time period. I don't unnderstand why the shop can't be assigned sooner, particularly if it's a shop I've done successful before. I have guessed the scheduler was too busy or they were waiting for other applications to have different shoppers evaluate the location.

kenasch -
Last year a scheduler explained that some MSCs and/or schedulers will continue to accept applications even after a shop is assigned, that way having back-ups ready if the scheduled shopper flakes or fails. The applicant is left in limbo until the scheduled shopper gets it done and approved, at which time the job, and application, simply disappear.

answer questions appropriately...i asked about a supermarket shop and got a reply about movies....

@elcarev68 wrote:

kenasch -
Last year a scheduler explained that some MSCs and/or schedulers will continue to accept applications even after a shop is assigned, that way having back-ups ready if the scheduled shopper flakes or fails. The applicant is left in limbo until the scheduled shopper gets it done and approved, at which time the job, and application, simply disappear.

When I run into a situation where I applied for a shop and it's sitting in pending limbo, I will try to reach out with a phone call to the MSC. If there is a name and the email address is a scheduling company, I will go to the scheduling company website and find the phone number of the scheduler. If It's down to within 24 hours of the shop and still in limbo, I will even call other schedulers in the same company if I cannot reach the scheduler that sent the email. They often can shoot a PM or also can assign the shop. If all of that fails, I then remove my application if it's a Sassie shop.

I have removed myself from a pending shop and went with another shop with another MSC that had a last minute opening. Then the scheduler reads my email from 48 hours or earlier and assigns me the shop after I pulled the application, so I could take a different shop to eat out that night. When this happens in Sassie, you then have the shop sitting in your assigned shops, but there is a link to accept it. It's not going to be a strike against you, but the scheduler is hoping you will still take the shop at the last minute. I have never been punished for dropping an application for a shop that was pending. It's the email I sent to try to get it out of pending that causes the confusion for the scheduler.

I'm beginning to think that emailing schedulers for pending shops is less effective than calling them if I can get a number.

I'm working up a list of schedulers and companies phone numbers on a second tab to my spreadsheet, so I know who I can call.

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 01/22/2015 10:02AM by scanman1.

@bgriffin wrote:

@kenasch wrote:

When I request a shop I often need to set up a route to make it worthwhile.

This is a problem in general for me with many companies. I realize you may or may not be talking about local routes, but many companies are just not setup to be helpful to route shoppers. And when I say route shoppers I'm talking about people that are taking multiple day trips. Not to single out a company, but since she asked, Sinclair is one of the worst for that for a couple of reasons. 1, you have to know every zip code you are driving through (at least every 90 miles or so) in order to see what's out there. 2, their schedulers will not reserve shops for you before they are released. To me that is just stupid (not to be blunt but it's true).

Sinclair Schedulers may not know every zip code that you are passing through either and it would take a bit of time to try and map it out for all shoppers who request routes. We provide an option to enter zip codes you know and place a radius of each zip code. This opens up every client and shop within that zip and radius. You can also use a mapping program to include zip codes to make it easier for you to map out your route and include those zip codes in your profile. You have the option to remove them if you decide to no longer shop in that zip code. Sinclair Schedulers with the exception of a few who have been here a long time and depending on the client may or may not offer pre-scheduling. We try to be fair and allow all shoppers the opportunity to shop our clients shops. Pre-scheduling would be unfair to all the others who are patiently waiting for the release of the schedule. However, ask if they can do that for you as a courtesy for a one time route trip you're planning, they may get approval from their manager to do this for you. You won't know unless you ask. I for one will help Shoppers I use for my clients plan a route but I expect them to do some of the footwork and map out their travel and in turn I will try my best to create a route of my shops for them. Not all Schedulers here at SCM can offer this, again it depends on the client and management for that particular client.

Hi Gina,

Yes, the zip code portion of my statement was more about the software interface than the schedulers. If I don't know all the zip codes I'm going thru I certainly can't expect someone else to. That is good to know about pre-scheduling. I had mentioned to you a few times before that I was interested in trying to preschedule some of the work you schedule in Florida and was told I just needed to watch the website. Glad to know that next time I get ready for a trip down there I can think about possibly adding some of those.

I definitely get upset when I sign up for bank jobs that I have worked out a route for and then only get one of them assigned to me and the others are still available. This does not make it worthwhile for me to perform the one shop. If there is a specific reason for assigning just one of the shops, then stated this in the initial e-mail. I have often received e-mails stating that you can do up to 6 per day. Suggestion is that there be a space on the application for shop, for us to be able to write a short note, such as where we could put in a message that I am trying to set up a route.

To reiterate what others have stated: not being assigned the shops quickly is a major problem. I have one excellent scheduler who has told me that every morning she gets her cup of coffee when she wakes up and then immediately checks her jobs so that she can assign them immediately in case someone needs the information/jobs before they hit the road. Only after she has done this will she get her breakfast and start the rest of her day. I appreciate this, because I don't always get a chance to check the boards or e-mails until late at night and may be going in the direction of a job the very next day.

Not being able to reach someone on a specific team over the weekend, especially when they are weekend shops only and I need help or clarification when I am on a shop.

Please when I given the information constantly that the best way to reach me is my cell phone ( a note has been added to my information by schedulers that that is the way to reach me), then do so. I hate it when I come home at 8 pm or later to messages form schedulers that say they could really use my help that day and are willing to give me a bonus. I may have been able to complete the shop if it wasn't too far out of my way.

Whenever you are planning a route it is important to be proactive. If there is not a space on the application, shoot an email to the scheduler explaining it is a route and your applications have to be an all or nothing deal in order to make it work. Even if it is only one shop there is no harm in putting your own deadline out there.

On a recent multi-day video route I received an email around 8 am listing a rather large bonus on some traditional shops. One was in a town directly between points A and B. I put in the app followed by an email to the scheduler explaining I was traveling so it would need to be assigned before I left my hotel an hour later. The shop was assigned in less than 15 minutes.

Timely responses to shop requests are paramount. I applied for 2 shops with one company in the early morning because I found I would be in the area that day. I waited all morning for a respones before leaving to do the shops I already had. I returned at the end of the day to find that the shops remained unassigned. One had been on the board for weeks and had a large bonus. i am rarely in the area of this shop and apparently no one else is either. When I got home, late in the afternoon, I cancelled my applications. The bonused shop remains on the board a week later.

If schedulers can put up "Hero Citations" and "Flake" notations on the account, they should be able to remove them after a reasonable amount of time.

My experience has been that a "Hero Citation" only remains up for about a month or less.

My experience has been that the "Flake" notations remain for 7+ YEARS.

Please clean it up.

Yes, I had a 3 month period where I have "flakes" from more than 7 years ago. My partner was blown up by an IED in Afghanistan, my 90 something grandma was suddenly dying, my son was suddenly being put on the kidney wait list, and I was trying to graduate from college with my dream degree. My world went topsy turvy in a matter of minutes. I did my best to be responsible. I emailed schedulers, I called schedulers, I completed the shops where I couldn't reach anyone, and I stopped applying for work. Three shops fell through the cracks. Three. One of them I don't even remember being assigned - had no emails saying I was assigned - and I KNOW I would have completed it as it was my favorite shop in the whole world! But never the less, the scheduler says I flaked, therefore I must have flaked.

Schedulers - what is a reasonable time to "punish" someone for flaking? I own my three flakes, but I do feel that 7+ years is way too long for you to hold a grunge and continue punishing me.

Schedulers - what is a reasonable time to "reward" someone for a hero citation? If you are willing to issue a hero citation, there should be some perks. Like a bonus (none was given despite oral confirmation), like a high paying shop, or assigning a desired/requested shop to the shopper.

Just to reiterate - I am not complaining about the 3 flake citations I received in 2007. The scheduler had every right to scream my bad to everyone else in the company. And yes, I have asked the scheduler/the company to remove the flakes. "Oh we can't do that." and "Oh, um, well, I will see what we can do?"

If the scheduler puts them on, can't they remove them? If they can't remove them, who can?

How long is long enough? Every time I log into that company, I see the flakes (yet none of my hero citations with them) and it reminds me of a very sad time in my life. I loved the company.

Thank you to anyone who responds with more information.

I have another suggestion for companies/schedulers.

I really appreciate it when I receive/have access to helpful guidelines/narratives. Please make sure the sample narratives actually match the report we have to fill out!

In the past (distant and recent), I have received sample narratives from several different companies. I read the sample narrative and think, "Wow - this narrative is easy!" The sample narratives don't match the reports and would never been accepted by an editor.

I know. I know they aren't acceptable because I have tried to follow the sample narrative example [first time doing that report for that company] , and answering all the no's, and the editor kicks it back. When I do my normal narrative, the report is accepted with high remarks/grade.

Just a suggestion. And it only applies to a few of the sample narratives.