Editor asks for information that is in your report.

How do you guys handle this? I feel annoyed and want to say, "It's in my report. Just read it."
But, I can't see how being snarky will benefit me in any way. So, I'm coming here to vent instead.

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 08/01/2016 10:38PM by Brarizona.

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Quite often what is needed is a specific statement. So my report may say, "Nobody greeted me." The question may have been "Did the Cashier greet you." Shopper may fume: "I ALREADY TOLD YOU THAT NOBODY GREETED ME!!!!" Simple solution, "The Cashier did not greet me." With that you move along and live to fight another day.

My most recent was whether the manager was in appropriate attire. I checked 'yes' so should not have needed to comment further. Early morning phone call from the editor, "What was the manager wearing?" I was half asleep so just mentioned what was worn and we hung up. My mind was reeling through the epithets I sort of wished I had flung, but once I finished waking up I realized that my report had indicated that the manager was not displaying the required manager behaviors and I guess they were just verifying that indeed I was observing the manager.

In this regard, I would send a friendly statement, and take it easy while realizing editors are human beings. This time the editor made a mistake, next time, it could be me. Oh yes, it could definitely be me.

To submit flawless reports to the MSC and subsequently to the contractor, is vital to our business. Double checking doesn't hurt anything.

@Brarizona wrote:

How do you guys handle this? I feel annoyed and want to say, "It's in my report. Just read it."
But, I can't see how being snarky with benefit me in any way. So, I'm coming here to vent instead.

i've got one word (i know, unusual for me)...."maddening"

and also (see i warned about "one word"

..."frustrating"

fortunately, tho, i've not experienced a lot of it from a personal perspective but this topic has been the subject of many discussions over the years and it seems that all of "us" are in agreement.

seems like there are quite a few newbie editors (big turnover?) who feel the need to "flex their muscles" and curry favor with their msc by kicking back reports and asking questions that have already been reported on.

some guidelines and reports contain language like, "comment on all no answers" or something like that which to me means that any "yes" answer doesn't need a comment but then the editor comes back wanting a comment.

i consider snark one of the 4 languages that i speak fluently and i've never had any further issue after i've called out an editor for asking irrelevant/duplicate questions of me and it hasn't harmed my relationship with the msc/scheduler, etc.

No. They said my score will reflect the report after additions were made. Thankfully.

And you are right. I am certainly not perfect, so, I just try to be kind and move on (but only after venting here.).

What's worse is when they want the answer to a question that wasn't asked in the report. And then you get dinged for not including it. *sigh*

Now scheduling travel shops for the day after Christmas through mid-January.

I was here before your "insert snarky comment here" was here and I be here long after your gone. In the meantime I will nicley reply repeating what was already said in the report.

The response is simply restating what was already in the report. The other stuff is what you want to say but don't as you need to keep working with the msp.

Shopping Western NY, Northeast and Central PA, and parts of Ohio and West Virginia. Have car will travel anywhere if the monies right.

This happens constantly with Maritz. Recently I was told by an editor some of the things that cause dings to my ratings but because I do over 1000 shops for them a year, my rating is mostly meaningless. Though some of the things were having a scheduler go through the quiz with you (which I've done countless times due only to getting jobs done before their window opens up) and the actual act of doing jobs before the commitment dates even though I was authorized to get them done early.

______________________________________________________________________
Seriously, nobody cares that you're offended.

It happens occasionally. I just copy my original answer from the text and paste it again at the bottom where it cannot be missed.

I admit I can get a little defensive when I am asked information that's already in the narrative of my shop. My first instinct is always to ask "Did the entire narrative go through alright? Please let me know if the paragraph that begins with 'Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet' went through in its entirety without formatting errors" and I usually tell them that the information can be found within. I've had more than a few editors tell me that no such paragraph exists in my report, or it was cut off for some reason; whether or not they're telling the truth or saving face because I made them look like an idiot, I cannot say.

I admit I do have a tendency to use somewhat odd or even archaic language; I've had more than a few editors ask me to define a word (My first ever mystery shop for a large MSC came back to me because the editor needed me to elaborate on what I meant with "I was not bade farewell."

@Misanthrope wrote:

I admit I do have a tendency to use somewhat odd or even archaic language; I've had more than a few editors ask me to define a word (My first ever mystery shop for a large MSC came back to me because the editor needed me to elaborate on what I meant with "I was not bade farewell."

I totally agree with what you are saying and it would probably irritate me, too, to be asked to define something I wrote in a report. But, although I agree, I'm sorry, but "I was not bade farewell." totally perplexes me. Just to satisfy my curiosity, could you define it? Sorry, I am not meaning to be snarky or irritate you.

Does it mean the person did not say goodbye? Or does it mean they did not say thank you and hurry back? Or does that mean they did not say anything? What did they do? Did they just turn their back and walk away from you? Had you already explained that he said thank you and hurry back but then he did not say goodbye?

btw, at one of the Whole Foods I shop my favorite cashier always closes our transaction with "Farewell, smooth sailing til we meet again, hopefully soon, hopefully at Whole Foods Market!" He delivers the line with a straight face and a lot of enthusiasm. Sorry, it just tickles me and your post brought it to mind.

@Misanthrope wrote:

(My first ever mystery shop for a large MSC came back to me because the editor needed me to elaborate on what I meant with "I was not bade farewell."

I'm thinking the wording wasn't the problem (any editor should know what the verbiage meant). I'm guessing, as Jay C. alludes to, that they were looking for what happened, rather than simply what was or was not said. Did the person smile and nod or wave as you left, say "come back soon," turn his or her back on you, give you the finger, etc.?

I learn something new every day, but not everyday!
I've learned to never trust spell-check or my phone's auto-fill feature.

"Upon conclusion of our enlightening tête-à-tête, the shopkeeper turned on his heel with nary a word of appreciation for my patronage. I was not bade farewell."

Equal rights for others does not mean fewer rights for you. It's not pie.
"I prefer someone who burns the flag and then wraps themselves up in the Constitution over someone who burns the Constitution and then wraps themselves up in the flag." -Molly Ivins
Never try to teach a pig to sing. It's a waste of your time and it really annoys the pig.

@LisaSTL wrote:

"Upon conclusion of our enlightening tête-à-tête, the shopkeeper turned on his heel with nary a word of appreciation for my patronage. I was not bade farewell."

I can't help myself...

Did they turn on the left or right heel? Did they spin or around or just change the direction their body was facing? Did they roll their eyes, sigh, or throw their hands up in exacerbation? Just trying to get the whole picture here.

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