How many can you do in a day?

How many shops are people able to do in a day? I find that over 3, I get stupid and make mistakes. 4, and there is sure to be a big mess up. Just curious about other people. I hope this isn't a loaded question and it starts a fight or something.

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When I was shopping full time, I would do an apartment shop (heavy narrative) routed with light narrative bank and cell phone shops. It would total to about 5 shops in a day.

"I told myself to quit you; but I don't listen to drunks." -Chris Stapleton

Back in 07 or 08 maybe I did a route of 11 cell phone shops in a day, then another 10 the next weekend. I will admit it got confusing, so you had to make sure you wrote all your notes in full, then moved on to the next shop.

Orlando - lightly shopping NC

It just depends on what you are doing. I can do some convenience store shops interspersed with retail shops and get 10-16 done in about 4-5 hours including drive time and report time via an app. Those don't pay a lot, mind you, but it averages out nicely.

Six or so is my limit; but to do six or so, my drive time is usually 7 or 8 hours.

On routes, I'll do about a dozen, half one day and half the next day, on my way back home.

I dislike intensely adding unfamiliar shops into routes, so I tend to do those I'm utterly comfortable with - a USPS shop, a fast food, a hardware store, a few gas stations all on one day. Close to 400 miles, 8 hours drive time, $375 for the day.

I think the most I've done in one day is four. Once three were bank shops, which I'm very familiar with, and once three were postal shops. So I had only one new or unfamiliar shop among the four. I could probably squeeze one more in if I were doing, say, postal shops plus one or two short shops. With bank account-inquiry shops, there's no way I could do any more than three of those plus one more very simple shop. Those are long and filled with detailed information. My brain would explode.

I don't do gas station or convenience-store shops; there just aren't that many around my area. But I know people can knock off several of those in a day. I've done one convenience-store shop, and it was pretty easy, so I think I could do more of those than bank or cell-phone shops in one day. But not as many as some of the folks here do. I'd get too frazzled.

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

My comfort zone is about 5 to 7 but I have done more. Gets exhausting for me and when I am tired I tend to make mistakes.

It really depends on the length and complexity of the shops. I would much rather do two really long, but high fee, new home or assisted living shops than 10 quick shops in a day. And, I might come out well ahead in terms of net income for the day. Choose your favorite poison, is the real key to testing stamina, both mental and physical.

Based in MD, near DC
Shopping from the Carolinas to New York
Have video cam; will travel

Poor customer service? Don't get mad; get video.

I prefer 5-7 per day, but have done many more. I consider a slow day at less than 4.

*****************************************************************************
The more I learn about people...the more I like my dog..

Mark Twain

My highest number was 25 in one day. 24 were bank shops, the other a hardware store. I hit the first bank just as they opened. I was in a panic towards the end of my route. I had two banks left, needed to pee really bad, and was stuck in rush hour traffic. I was hours from home so there wasn't a choice to return the next day. Somehow I made it before wetting my pants!

Shopping up and down the Colorado Rocky Mountain front range.

Happily, I do one or two per infrequent shop day. If I did more than that, I would tear my hair out, or run, screaming, from the planet, or something

I have done more than that. I did not like it. So, happy and few it is. But that is just me.

Nature does not hurry, yet everything is accomplished. - Lao-Tzu

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 06/14/2018 04:51PM by Shop-et-al.

I did 7 today, but thanks to my poor planning I zig-zagged all across the little area of town they were in all day long. Damn you, BMW, for calling me back to make an appointment. I'm still entering reports and I have the worst headache.

( I could perform 50 a day if it wasn't for the reports (exaggeration AF for me!).

I did 13 on Wednesday for $25 each. Long day.....

I did 17 last Saturday. Many were very quick gas stations that were paying $20 each. Wish it was that easy all the time.

Most I've done in a day is 8, most of which were simple cell phone shops.
It's really about knowing the complexity of each shop. Like 6 of the ones I did were simple survey wireless shops, the surveys took about 10-15 minutes to do, so I could leave the area of one shop, go to a parking lot and fill out the report and head to the next shop
My comfort zone is 3 a day, no more than 5. But most days I'm really only doing 1.

I can do 4-6 comfortably in a day, depending on my familiarity with the shops, the narratives and the details that I need to remember. I find that I am more successful when I can complete the report right after the shop (easy mobile or online report). In a tough situation, I will print out the form and complete it before the next shop. It may take more time, but then I can "brain dump" and focus on the tasks on the next shop.

Last Monday I drove to the middle of the state for five apartments and one retail video. It was only an eight hour day, but reports did take about three and a half hours the next day. On Saturday morning I had a route of seven convenience stores. I left home at from 3:14 am and got home at 4:30 am. The reports took eight minutes. That is eight minutes for all of them, not eight minutes a piece

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.

Really, just depends on what you are up to. When traveling from Kentucky to WV, I could fit in 14-20 on a route but I could also stop by a McDs or other restaurant after each shop or two. Stop in a Big Lots, then an Arbys, report. Grab a pizza, then a second pizza, report. Stop by a gas station, then go into a grocery and report. Submit a couple of online inquiries, see if they called back, submit those 2 when I got to grandmas. Stop in a bank, then a second bank and report. Pop into a third bank, then go to a Wally world and do 2-3 app shops, and report. Grab up a completely different grocery store, then do a tobacco compliance and an alcohol compliance. Get to grandmas a little late in evening, report, hang out, share cold but easily heated up pizza. Relax for a week.

MegglesKat

Back in the day, I had some insane $700+ day routes compiled of 35 individual locations. I did those a couple of times before the scheduler's supervisor put a stop to it :'( , but I was literally out for nearly 12 hours non-stop getting through the locations for those mini-routes driving throughout a single city, then an additional 3 hours of office work getting the reports submitted.

More recently, I had some $300-500 days depending on the project stacked with 15-25 locations. Again, those were rarities. A couple of espressos helped me get through those times.

The closest thing I have as insane these days are 16-20 shops in a day I do every once in a while for a decent profit as well ($300-400) depending on timing, the kind of projects that are available, etc.

Shopping the Greater Denver Area, Colorado Springs and in-between in Colorado. 33 year old male and willing to travel!

I can do 5 with some planning. Anything more than that would just confuse me and put me in rush mode for no reason. I have done 10 in one day also, it is doable; it depends if you want to dedicate the whole day, possibly two, to shopping and writing reports.

The question is moot. There's such a wide range of shop length and difficulty that they can't really be measured against each other. I just finished a route of shops that took about 2 hours each. Doing 3 a day was rough. I have done routes where I did 25 shops per day. The profit on the rotes were about the same per day but the 25 shops per day ones were easier work and less hours.

There are reasons that a body stays in motion
At the moment only demons come to mind

I was kind of trying to make that point

One day it took 8 hours for 6 shops, a few days later less than 90 minutes for 7 shops.

Time is everything. In my world, I never can begin a shop day until the morning job is completed. If there is a delay during the wee hours, the rest of the day's plans are affected like falling dominoes. For me, it is sensible to schedule few assignments, hope and pray for time for personal/fun/fave stuff while I am far from home (there are few assignments and fave things for me near home), and just enjoy what I do.

If I had large blocks of completely free time, I might not mind filling a few days with larger routes or other types of assignments.

Nature does not hurry, yet everything is accomplished. - Lao-Tzu

As others have stated, the numbers will vary based on types of shops, geography and other factors. I like to do about five or fewer, with three of the shops being dead easy like gas stations or fast food, and two that are more involved, like entertainment or a nicer restaurant. I have done up to ten in one day, I believe. I try not to do that because reporting takes longer than usual for me if there is any significant narrative. My typing speed is slower than average. I tend to stay up too late filling out reports rather than asking for a short extension. This discussion is fun because we get to get a picture of a typical day of other shoppers.

I've completed over 40 in a day, super easy project.
I'd LOVE more of that project.
I think for many of us there is no such thing as a 'typical' day.
Today I took my kids to an amusement / water park. I did a shop there last year and combined the fee/reimbursement with a promo for season passes for the rest of last year and this year. I scheduled two gas stations in the same town as water park and another with a nice $40 bonus an hour away. I then picked up 2 cell phone shops for $30 each in that town.....
So for what started out to be a day off turned into $155.

Five in a day in the beginning with 2 being at the same retail store, and 2 in the other retail store down the block, then lunch, taking 2 hours including drive time.....those shops are no longer available as NSS closed, so nowadays one shop and a lunch is all I want to do and not missing it. I do admire those that do over 5, #retired and loving it....

Live consciously....

It depends on the shops. Ive done as many as 30 in a day and as few as one or two.

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