New Low: $2 phone shops

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I would shoplift food before I would do a $2 phone shop with a report that had any narrative.

Actually, I would ask a grocery store for a piece of cardboard and to borrow a sharpie and stand on the exit ramp of the highway and just ask for money.

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 05/30/2015 07:34AM by scanman1.

I've never liked phone shops to begin with. Lying to a stranger on the phone is for some reason more stressful to me than doing it in person. i don't think I could get through a funeral home shop at all.

$2 is just plain insulting. It costs $2 in electricity to write the damn report (not really, of course).

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 05/31/2015 01:34AM by BellaFenice.

I saw these shops come up last month and asked the scheduler if I could see the guidelines...I figured, if they were fast and simple, why not? I was laughing on the floor when I received an eight page document! I would have to read 8 pages just to do a $2 shop?!?! Needless to say, I never applied...

The phone shops I do are usually $8. I would not do one for $2 either!

The lowest I can go for a phone shop is the $5 USD (I'm in Canada) that one company does. Not worth my time at all for $2. The other one that makes me shake my head is the Pilot coffee shops that are $3 + reimbursement. Please, not worth even leaving the house. Plus its not like I haven't done any other shops for the company.

I ran the inflation calculator at [www.westegg.com] and got this result: "What cost $2 in 2014 would cost $0.92 in 1985."

I remember 1985. I was working in a low-paying job while I was attending college. I remember that $5/hour was considered an ok wage.

I am positive that nobody in 1985 would have worked any job for $0.92, because there were better jobs than that everywhere you looked.

I will say that I have done some $2 shops for Shoppers View. The instructions are unnecessarily long. It's 5 minutes max on the call, then ticking a few boxes in the report. Zero narrative; the only thing you have to write in is the employee's name. It doesn't come out to spectacular hourly pay, but for the limited time I have available for the business, it pads out my day a little. I'm not getting rich here, just trying to make a little extra to make the ends meet.

Unfortunately this fee is not new.

Just say no.

Happily shopping Rhode Island and nearby Massachusetts and Connecticut

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 06/01/2015 04:48PM by vlade5394.

Years ago when I first started MS'ing the phone shops were considered really new and you got paid a whopping 50 cents per shop. These idiots still have the same mentality.

Her Serene Majesty, Cettie - Goat Queen of Zoltar, Sublime Empress of Her Caprine Domain

My current phone shop rate is $40.

@af517 wrote:

My current phone shop rate is $40.

How on earth do you do that? What type of shop is it?

That was my way of saying I don't do phone shops.

lol $2? I guess I won't complain about $7 being too low any more. Wow

Silver Certified ~ Shopping all of Toronto and beyond

Actually, I do those $2 phone shops all the time. They're super easy, takes about 5 minutes. There's no narrative. Just record on VocaZilla, note the employee's name, and submit.

$2 for 5 minutes worth of work is $24/hour.

(Of course, I might only get a few of them at a time).

@meghan9262 wrote:

Actually, I do those $2 phone shops all the time. They're super easy, takes about 5 minutes. There's no narrative. Just record on VocaZilla, note the employee's name, and submit.

$2 for 5 minutes worth of work is $24/hour. (Of course, I might only get a few of them at a time).

You need to chart the entire time per shop and decide. I doubt your making minimum wage.

Once you do the first one, you've learned how to conduct the call and it really only takes a few minutes. Maybe add one minute to dial in the access codes.

Yeah these are super easy. 5 min call. No narrative. Just can't get enough of them to earn much. You spend more time on the job board applying and checking email to see if I got any than the call actually takes. If enough were assigned it could add up to $20/hour, but that is never the case. Shoppers' Critique has cheaper ones with narrative. Those are outrageous. Shoppers' View ones are more reasonable. The reason there's 8 pages is because of all the dos and don'ts but once memorized they go very quickly.

Where are we going... and why are we in a hand basket?

I would not do a phone shop for $2.00. I was offered something like $7.00 for a phone shop and it seemed easy enough but after I accepted it I saw that it was recorded AND you had to fill out a 20-question report. Nope!

On paper they look like shooting fish in a barrel at times. But then factor in how often you are stuck on hold, getting a busy signal or sometimes not even getting the correct number from the MSC/customer. I tend to find the phone shops deceptive and agree that you should really chart out how much time you actually spend making the calls vs. your compensation.

I understand the logic of taking a bunch of $2.00 shops. But I really hope that everyone considers the overall consequence of accepting them. The MSC's will pay as low as they can. This forum is a great opportunity for shoppers to try to level the playing field and hold out for fair compensation. Of course everyone has their own idea of fair. I am just trying to encourage folks to consider the potential benefit of "group think" and if a majority of the board is saying a shop is too low maybe holding out to make certain that you are being respected for the amount of skill, integrity and professionalism you bring to the table.

Just a thought.

I couldn't agree more. In fact, it is the easiest way for Intellishop to rip you off.
Be very careful. Intellishop is notorious for using your reports and then finding a "violation" of the guidelines. I recently had a SIX dealership phone shop turned back after receiving an avg 9 rating. the claim was that the calls were not spaced far enough apart. In fact, the dealerships never called me back, yet the claim was that "after reviewing the dealership phone records you missed their call." Impossible and untrue. Then they refused to provide the "dealer phone records" to me. Be wary and do not simply accept a claim that the client wouldn't accept your report. Don't let them pocket YOUR $$$.

What is it that people don't like about recorded shops? Doesn't that make it easier to write an accurate report since you don't have to memorize what was said. especially if narrative is required?

MPorter3112, I am guessing that some people don't like recorded shops because if they screw up, there is proof against them, their reports gets denied and they don't get paid. Then they sign up with the forum, create a screen name and within minutes of joining, they have posted the same exact negative post against Intellishop. And of course, they don't provide any proof; just bashing.

@meghan9262 wrote:

Actually, I do those $2 phone shops all the time. They're super easy, takes about 5 minutes. There's no narrative. Just record on VocaZilla, note the employee's name, and submit.

$2 for 5 minutes worth of work is $24/hour. (Of course, I might only get a few of them at a time).

Lets see,

Log on the website, apply for the job/self assign, get the acceptance email, read it, download, print, and read the guidelines and questionnaire, make a note of the shop in your shop log, make the phone call, take notes about the shop (even if is only the time/date and employee's name), and enter the report.

What am I missing? Will someone please show me how this level of professionalism takes only 5 minutes?

Happily shopping Rhode Island and nearby Massachusetts and Connecticut

Maybe the first time, but I only ever open the guidelines to see if the "updated" date has changed. Most often, it has not, so I know the guidelines and instructions are the same as they were yesterday and the day before and the day before that.

I agree that the payout is low, but I'm arguing that they aren't as much work as claimed.

By the way, before you resort to calling me "unprofessional," I feel it's important to note that I've done 822 phone shops for Shoppers' View and my Average Rating is at 10. It doesn't take much time because I understand what is required of me and have gotten quite efficient at it.

Many people hate the phone shops, I can see, but I personally love them. They afford me the opportunity to make money (not enough to live on, but $200-$300/month) while staying home.

I know of a new "lower" a phone shop that pays $1.75

I wish I was kidding!

@SunnyDays2 wrote:

I know of a new "lower" a phone shop that pays $1.75

I wish I was kidding!

This means there are too many people snatching up the $2 shops!
They will go down to $1.50 if these are taken at base pay.

Look, the Shoppers View phone shops are a piece of cake, and Meghan you shouldn't have to defend your choice to do them. I would never do the Shopper's Critique phone shops-too much work.

I won't touch a phone shop for less than $10 bucks

I did over 100 phone shops last month at $3.00 per call. Only a few were recorded and I was able to submit the report in about one minute. Looking forward to that over $300.00 paycheck I'm about to get on the 15th. I would snatch these up again in a heartbeat. To each his own!

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New Low: $2 phone shops

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