Per the company request, they are asking for a whole lew of new requirements for teh new year. DBA, Scan of DL, and a blood sample (just kidding on that part). Just wandering who will be going out there a getting a DBA for the purpose of shopping with this one company.

Not me. Talking with an employee, he said they don't like it wither, but they believe everyone will do it eventually. They are just starting early.
Yeah, well, I will wait and see.

Yeah it seems like a hassel and then there's the business checking that you must open. I have perks with my bank and mine would be free but everyone is probably not so lucky.

Nope.

Nope.

I can't see how this even applies to me since I'm Canadian so definitely not.

Not me.

prettygul1 Wrote:
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> Per the company request, they are asking for a
> whole lew of new requirements for teh new year.
> DBA, Scan of DL, and a blood sample (just kidding
> on that part). Just wandering who will be going
> out there a getting a DBA for the purpose of
> shopping with this one company.


Hmm. I had not heard about this. What company is this that is asking for that now...Is it Maritz adding on to their FEIN thing, or another company? If the latter, not boding well for me. I am not going there...too many legal complications in my area.

Yes, it's Maritz. I wander how many shoppers they will lose now becasue of this.

prettygul1 Wrote:
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> Yes, it's Maritz. I wander how many shoppers they
> will lose now becasue of this.


I think they will end up will lots of shoppers saying no way. They will keep many of their route shoppers who make $500 or more a month as it will be more worthwhile for those shoppers to play along...and then they will fill their coffers with newbs who don't know any better. I think that their lawyer is being too cautious with his/her advice to them, but I only did a shop here and there for them anyway, so if it is them, I am not too sad. If this spreads to other companies that I LIKE working with and who have jobs where I live, then I will rethink either doing shopping at all, or going along with the flow.

It is an unreasonable expectation sprung from paranoia and perhaps a fair amount of guilt from exploiting shoppers for many years. If and as it results in significantly higher pay and less bullsh*t, I might be willing to play, but thus far no shopper compromises I have seen have led to that desired effect.

Can someone explain to me what a DBA is?

In Texas it is a piece of paper that means Doing Business As.....and you state the name of your business.

I guess it is a license to have your business. You get a tax ID number. When someone actually has a business they can use that tax ID nmumber as opposed to giving out your social security number. I think it is more for income tax purposes. But this company wants you to get this tax ID number along with a business account and auto insurance.

To me they are asking a lot for $2.00.

When I spoke to someone at the company, I told them that I would not be getting a FEIN and she told me that she is hearing it from lots of shoppers. I also told her that I was sorry and hoped they would change their mind.

Yes, "dba" means "doing business as". For example, if I had a doll shop, I might be "Sandra Sue dba The Doll Shop". This is a sole proprietorship. It makes it easier for someone to find the owner of a business.

I had a dba for years for my home-based business. A few years ago, I got another one in case I ever needed it for advertising since the name of the first one didn't quite fit. It is still good. They have to be renewed in ten years. I don't remember how much it cost me, but it is negligible. The paperwork is available at the county clerk's office, where it is filed. I needed the dba to get a business account at a bank. My current bank informs me that I cannot cash these Maritz checks to a business with my personal account. It used to be that I could just right the business name, then mine, and hand it to them. I'd hate to get a second account just for the sporadic checks from Maritz. I have enough to keep up with now: all my companies, my routing number for direct deposits, when PayPal money arrives into my account, my ADP login (required by only one company and it is their card and theirs alone) and how to cash it without having to pay anything, my credit cards for the demo company I work for, checking websites for when direct deposits arrive for those companies that don't notify me by email, and all of the receipts for everything I buy through mystery shopping or for business supplies. I don't have an accountant. Occasionally, I get a one-time debit card to use for a mystery shop so I can easily get a receipt.

The EIN, a substitute for the SSN when working, is easy to get.

With my merchandising companies, I have been asked variously to have auto insurance at a certain level, get a background check (an FBI check for one), and get a one-time drug test. I have my ID's on a memory card for uploading to the new companies I sign up with, and blank I-9's (citizenship papers) in a document file folder ready to use when asked. These are a cost of doing business. I'd hate to backtrack and do that for every single one of my many mystery shopping companies as well.

A big "NOPE" here.

Does that mean we could have a family business DBA and all of us report our income to it and pay taxes on the business? As opposed to filing individual taxes for each shopper in the family?

I had the same question. My younger brother shops for them as well. I don't think I want to have a business account with him but I know he can't afford to do all the DBS, business checking, insurance info.

Most company ICAs indicate that you cannot subcontract. I don't know what Maritz's specific ICA says. I would suspect that you would have an issue in any event with rotation and the number of shops you could receive. I would lay odds that only one shopper would get to register with a particular EIN.

I own a business, registered as an LLC. No EIN, just my SSN for tax purposes.
I work with ICs. I do not require them to have EINs, fancy names, give me a copy of their ID, have car insurance, or have a separate biusiness acount. All this based on the advise of my very trusted accountant.
I think either Maritz is overreacting or their lawyers are trying to justify high fees.
One of the rules of ICs is that the contracting party cannot impose on the IC how to manage their business.
Good luck to them.

No for me...

Although it is easy to get a dba, there is more involved with getting a dba than just applying for it. It is after all a tax ID and the government expects you to pay taxes on money you receive. You actually have to fill out and report income etc. on monthly or quarterly basis. You have three years to make a profit or your business is considered a hobby and not a business. You have to keep records of all receipts, reporting etc. for seven years. Alot of unneccesary work for the amount of money paid for these ms shops.

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 01/18/2011 12:16AM by ceoshopper.

not gonna do it either.

Is that a state law or something, My husband has had a DBA for the past 10 years and it has just sat on paper. No tax problems yet.

ceoshopper Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Although it is easy to get a dba, there is more
> involved with getting a dba than just applying for
> it. It is after all a tax ID and the government
> expects you to pay taxes on money you receive. You
> actually have to fill out and report income etc.
> on monthyly or quarterly basis. You have three
> years to make a profit or your business is
> considered a hobby and not a business. You have to
> keep records of all receipts, reporting etc. for
> seven years. Alot of unneccesary work for the
> amount of money paid for these ms shops.

Correct, Pretty. There is no automatic filing requirment for any FEIN or entity unless it has reportable income or activity.

I have a business license, did it the right way and don't need another...NO!

The tax advisor to another group of shoppers did a lot of research, inclding many hours consulting with tax attorneys and IRS "registered" (or something) folks and provided a detailed rport stating that NOTHING in current or proposed law or regulations aims at video shopping industry and concluding that the MSCs and their lobbying group have basically manufactured a fear campaign. I am not at liberty to reporoduce his report, but it is available at the web site of "they who must not be named".

But gosh, that is what we have been saying here all along--tax advisors, IRS "registered" folks or not. Yet it seems to be the main misguided focus of their professional organization as well as one major purveyor of reporting software. If you don't create a boogey man, how do you get all the sheep to run into the corral?

Flash,
I'm with you! Just wanted to add emphasis for those who seem worried about this nonsense.

I find myself daydreaming and wondering whether Market Research--whether it is shops or surveys or focus groups or etc.--is really worth a hill of beans.

It would appear that clients don't value it just lots when we do shop after shop at locations where the same 'failures' persist.

Is it perhaps that clients are 'sold' on the basis of it costing them very little, with MSPs competing to be the lowest bidder and clients knowing they can always knock a few dollars more off per shop? Psychology says you pay more attention to that which comes more dearly.

I personally find it ethically repugnant to do jobs that are potential entrapment--whether they are 'integrity' shops or recorded shops--so I choose not to perform them. But at the same time I recognize that this kind of shop seems to be the ones from which a client can most immediately and noticeably benefit. In real life it does not matter one whit to me whether an employee-automaton 'greets' me when I am within 10' of them or thanks me for shopping at XYZ when there is no sincerity in it and so often you recognize it is just a job requirement.

Formulaic behavior does nothing for customer satisfaction. Politeness and content employees does. And guess what, this holds true for Independent Contractors as well!

But I'm rambling again--guess my senility is kicking in again . . .

Certainly I am not planning on continuing to work further for companies with hoops to jump through. I had already disassociated myself from Maritz long before their DBA requirement. I politely told Trendsource yesterday 'no' to a phone request to do a BV because even though I could continue doing these until Feb 5, I won't play with hoopsters. Get more jobs by signing up with IC PRO? No thank you. Get more jobs by buying certifications? No thank you. I ground my teeth the other day as I did a test that to the best of my understanding has little to do with my ability to perform the work--but maybe some Market Research 'proved' that there was a correlation between 'good shoppers' and people who passed it. I intend to be a content and competent Independent Contractor and meaningless hoops do not add to my contentment.