How do you keep track of varying jobs for 200 companies? How often do you look at their job boards?

I don't do jobs for 200 companies. I will sometimes have jobs from 10 assigned at one time but that might be spread over 3 months. 99% of my work comes from email and phone communications with schedulers. I might log in to look for fillers but usually they're shops that I know I'm looking for and I know where to find them. For instance if I know there is a Five Guys next door to the hotel I'm staying at Friday night I might look on that particular MSC's job board to see if the shop is available. It's VERY are that I will go out searching for whatever is there. 3-4 times a year, normally when I know shops are being posted so job boards will be full, I log on to every single MSC in my list and look at every client they have in the country.

That is a really "loaded" question. You favorite may be my "10 foot pole" MSC. Some folks love ff shops; I hate them. I love bank shops; many hate them. My favorite MSCs do either video or cash integrity shops; many shoppers would never touch video and hate integrity shops. Some favorite MSCs have my least favorite shops as the only available at their "entry level." Bottom line: try a little of everything for a ton of MSCs and then decide what is and isn't a favorite for you.

@dafizisblue wrote:

How do you keep track of varying jobs for 200 companies? How often do you look at their job boards?

I keep a spreadsheet of all of the MSC's with their contact info, login, payment terms & method, and notes. But I don't work with all of them at the same time. I stick to my favorite 10 and just pick up some interesting jobs that I like from others. I work off of the emails that I receive, plus I get lots of phone calls asking me to pick up jobs. My list has 260 MSC's I haven't yet signed up for them all. And that is just what I have found from various lists and out of the forum. I do go through the list every few months and sign in to the actual website, check & update any personal information or improvements I've made. Check their job board.

I like IPSOS, North Fork Research, Intellishop, Alta360, Reality based group. They all have a proven track record with me, paying on a timely basis and the ability to get decent pay for jobs. I am strange because I like doing storage unit facilities. I do shops & audits. It is great money for the time & work involved. I pick those up from different MSC's. I do grocery store shops & like gas station audits. Plus, I will go with A Closer Look if I want to go to a nice restaurant! They pay well and state exactly the date you will get paid up front.

Every month, I keep a monthly manilla folder where I list the MSC, the client and the pay/reimbursement amount. Then the following month(s) when I get paid I just cross it off the list. I forward unpaid items so that I can follow up with that MSC. I did have a massive spreadsheet that I used each month but grew tired of entering all the info and went back to writing on a folder.

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 09/11/2017 12:39PM by LeslieKay111.

I've only been doing this for a couple of months and am already signed up with 15 companies. I actually shop for 3. A few of the companies don't have anything available in my area so I'll just check their job boards every once in a while to see if they've acquired any local clients. Several MSCs don't have shops for people in my demographic or clients who I would find appealing. I keep a handwritten list of my MSCs, each time I'm accepted with a new company I add it to my list so I can check all the job boards from time to time, when I can't get enough work with my 3 faves. So far I prefer to shop for A Closer Look, Bare International, and Amusement Advantage.

I have 63 in my receivables and payments spreadsheets, and I'm guessing I'm registered with around 80. Active regularly with maybe a dozen of them.

I use an Excel spreadsheet. Am signed up with fifty or so, but really only do consistent work for four. For those four, I pretty much get whatever I want due to long-standing positive relationships. I have a separate email for MSing and get most of my other work that way. On the spreadsheet I have a column for clients so if I forget who shops Ruth's Chris because it's not one of my four regulars, I can simply search for it.

The only possiy unique thing to add is that I keep all emails and do not sort them according to scheduler, company, or teaser. I like all MSCs that I have worked with, and I am comfortable with the small number of assignments I am doing now.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 09/13/2017 05:04PM by Shop-et-al.

I'm signed up for 13 companies. I have an Excel book with 3 sheets: 1) the full roster of shops I've done for the year, an edited version of the master spreadsheet that I got from this forum that lists the client, MSC, payment stuff, address, miles, dates. I can filter by MSC if I need to. 2) pending assignments on deck with just basic info, 3) pending payments from months prior.

To keep track of receipts and stuff, my computer has a folder for mystery shopping, grouped by MSC, then client name. I try to keep pics of receipts, photos, notes, copies of reports (if I remember) and guidelines in there. Then I have a physical folder that I throw the receipts, pamphlets, and business cards that the jobs required. This folder is a mess but I almost never have to dig into it.

I pretty much write on a folder too. At a farm supply store I picked up a free calendar. One side has columns for farm expenses. The other side is a pocket for receipts. Works perfectly for the amount of shops I do each month.

@LeslieKay111 wrote:

@dafizisblue wrote:

How do you keep track of varying jobs for 200 companies? How often do you look at their job boards?

I keep a spreadsheet of all of the MSC's with their contact info, login, payment terms & method, and notes. But I don't work with all of them at the same time. I stick to my favorite 10 and just pick up some interesting jobs that I like from others. I work off of the emails that I receive, plus I get lots of phone calls asking me to pick up jobs. My list has 260 MSC's I haven't yet signed up for them all. And that is just what I have found from various lists and out of the forum. I do go through the list every few months and sign in to the actual website, check & update any personal information or improvements I've made. Check their job board.

I like IPSOS, North Fork Research, Intellishop, Alta360, Reality based group. They all have a proven track record with me, paying on a timely basis and the ability to get decent pay for jobs. I am strange because I like doing storage unit facilities. I do shops & audits. It is great money for the time & work involved. I pick those up from different MSC's. I do grocery store shops & like gas station audits. Plus, I will go with A Closer Look if I want to go to a nice restaurant! They pay well and state exactly the date you will get paid up front.

Every month, I keep a monthly manilla folder where I list the MSC, the client and the pay/reimbursement amount. Then the following month(s) when I get paid I just cross it off the list. I forward unpaid items so that I can follow up with that MSC. I did have a massive spreadsheet that I used each month but grew tired of entering all the info and went back to writing on a folder.

Right now it is performalogics and service evaluations because they have work where I live. A few months ago, it was Consumer Connection because they had work where I live. It keeps changing.

@Cierammekhi wrote:

What are your favorite MSC to do work for?