@ wrote:
Hi Scanman1, this is Pam. I am the President of the IMSC. Please make sure to sign up for our newsletter so you are in the loop when I hold the next calls. You can do that here: [www.imscinfo.com]
Please see my replies to your questions below and thank you for taking the time to send them to me.
On 2016-03-03 3:41, Scanman1 wrote:
> IMSC,
>
> I was only made aware of the conference call and test after the call was
> over and it was posted on Mystery Shop Forum. Without listening to the
> call, I have no way to know what MSC in general your basing the
> questions for. Each MSC has a different management style and there are
> several questions that could be answered differently depending on the
> MSC. Most companies want you to be 100% objective in all narrative. Then
> I have done shops for ACL that the client wants very subjective answers.
>
> I would be most interested in joining the next call that you offer.
> Until then, let me provide some questions that could be answered true or
> false depending on the MSC in question. As I have not listened to the
> calls, I am viewing the questions based on personal shopping experience
> with many MSC's and not the perspective of the person giving the call.
>
> Sincerely,
> Scanman1
>
> ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
> Some legitimate Mystery Shopping Companies might charge you to become a
> Mystery Shopper. *
> True
> False (x)
>
That is a correct answer.
>
> I answered false as this is the general rule. Then there are companies
> such as Satisfaction Services that do want you to pay to be a "Rated
> Shopper". I have shopped for them and never paid.
> ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
> All Mystery Shopping Companies you register with will automatically send
> you job postings available in your area. *
> True
> False (x)
>
That is a correct answer.
>
> This is another question that can be true or false depending on the MSC.
> There are several companies that I work for that do not send out emails
> for shops and expect you to check the job board. All assignments in my
> area are snapped up within hours of them being posted for the whole
> month. If you don't know when the scheduler adds the jobs and keep
> checking the job board, you may never even see them. Then there are
> companies like Five Diamonds that will send personal email requests to a
> targeted shopper instead of the automated email blasts from a Sassie or
> Shopmetrics platform.
> ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
> Once you apply for a shop on the job board, that shop will not appear
> for other shoppers to apply. *
> True
> False (x)
>
That is a correct answer.
>
> You do not state if this is a self assign shop and what platform is
> being used. With some companies, the scheduler will leave the shop on
> the board for two days and then look at the shopper rating, rotation
> period, and possibly the demographics of the shopper and decide who to
> award the shop to. Other shops are self assign and will disappear as
> soon as they are self assigned. Some bad acting schedulers are even
> known to leave the job in applied status and assign it to a shopper and
> leave your application pending as a backup shopper and may drop it on
> you on the last day of the shopping window. I won't name MSC's here but
> there are at least three that come to mind that I cancel applications
> after they sit for several days.
> ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
> For each apartment shop you will need a unique alias. *
> True
> False (x)
>
That is a correct answer.
>
> This is a question that can change depending on the state you live in.
> Where I live, it is required that they copy your state issued ID before
> showing a property. I cannot use an alias and then hand them my real ID
> to view a unit. Then there are many apartments that are all owned by the
> same property management company and they have a centralized database
> and will know if you have visited any other property in the network and
> when.
>
> In other states, you may not need to give an ID or a female shopper can
> state that they recently changed last names and then can make up an
> alias and a disposable Google phone number and email address for the shop.
> This is addressed during the conference call.
> ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
> Unless otherwise noted, a shopper should always ask to tour the amenities. *
> True (x)
> False
>
That is not true. It is an agent's job to show you the amenities to add value to the apartment. Your job is to report whether they did or did not.
>
> Unless otherwise noted, at the end of a visit, if a tour is not offered
> by the agent, a shopper should ask for a tour of an apartment. *
> True (x)
> False
>
That is a correct answer. This allows you to answer the question which is in most reports as to whether or not the apartment was clean and well maintained.
>
> I have seen MSC's that want you to tour the amenities and others that
> only want you to tour the unit. There are also competitive shops where
> all the client wants are the current prices for each floor plan and do
> not need you to tour anything.
>
> Are you basing this on EPMS?
>
Each company is a little different so reading your guidelines will answer this question. The test is based on most mystery shopping companies, not all. No, we did not base the test on EPMS.
>
> ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------