I am losing money shopping

Ms.Baker · 2019-11-11T23:30:17+00:00

I've been shopping for twelve years now, and I find that every year it gets harder and harder to make any money doing shops/surveys/audits. I think it is time to hang it up. From day #1, I have learned that whatever the problem is with a shop, it is ALWAYS the shoppers fault. My last shop with one of the "big" MSC's resulted with the Reviewer telling me the shop could not be accepted. I told them that I was 100% certain they would use my shop as it was. The problem was, the MSC wanted a receipt to verify my location. I said that when you use their app, the app verified the location, and I don't need a receipt. They insisted that without a receipt, the measly $8 fee would not be paid. I replied that my pictures are inbedded with the GPS and a date/time stamp. I said I signed in via their app, and I signed in with the vender log. I had three verifiers that I was at the right location at the right time. I told them that they could go ahead and pocket the money themselves and didn't have to worry about paying the shopper for their work because there was nothing wrong with the report. They began to backpaddle when I accused them of taking survey fees and using reports without paying shoppers. My latest, placing Netspend cards. I got four notifications to return to locations, all an hour drive from my home, because they said they were not set to plan. I returned to two today, then notified the company that I wanted to see the pictures of the third location because I didn't see any problems with the plan-o-gram. The third location was removed for a return trip when I identified I knew there was no problem there without a visit, but a fourth was added. I said I wanted to see a picture of the rejected location before I drove an hour to "reset." That is when I found that the company changed the information midstream... and they were sending me back to these locations to change everything because the plan-o-gram had changed from the start of the program. I told them the same thing. Nothing wrong with the sites... but if they aren't happy with my work, they don't have to pay me. I told them to use the money to pay someone else to follow-up because my car wasn't leaving the driveway again. I did several bank shops last week, the MSC wants to know, did I record the interaction. Yes, I record every survey/shop I do. I am 100% certain my quotations/comments are right. I realize it is a different world shopping now than when I started 12 years ago... now... you record everything... take pictures of everything with imbedded GPS and Date/Time stamp, use a GPS verifier, and provide POV with receipts or business cards (including date and survey number), use their apps, submit reports within minutes of completing shops.... and still... I struggle just to get paid for doing work according to what I contracted to do. I think the MSC's are changing the plan too often on purpose... citing small, insignificant points for reasons not to use shops, and then pocketing the money... or covering their mistakes with the businesses they contract, and changing the plan midstream. Whatever, I am no longer making money. I should not have to defend my every action with the technology I am providing. I think I will hang it up at the end of the year and tell everyone who still shops... all the best.

I am losing money shopping

November 14, 2019 11:40PM

@rothers27 wrote:

I've been secret shopping for about 10 years. I'm super educated, very available, have an impeccable record, and have never ever been offered a shop that has paid more than 20 bucks, and that was like once. The bonused shops go FAST. In my experience, people don't contact you requesting you to do a shop. It's posted online, you reply, and only one person gets it. Most likely A LOT of people, all of whom have relationships with the scheduler, request it. One person gets it. IMO, there are shoppers who will go the extra mile for a scheduler, so they help each other out. But I think it's rare and IMO, not a good use of time. I'm not going to put energy into building a relationship with some unknown random person in order to be prized the bonused shop. That's me.

Also, the theme I've noticed is that the people who brag about making money, make it through bonused shops. Bonused shops are also rare, bonused at about $5, and nothing to be too proud of. Again, IMO.

Reality folks. It's biting you.

I think you may just live in a really crappy location. Near quarter end where I am at, in a decent sized city, bonuses get bigger and bigger. I've seen the normally $10-$15 shops up close to $100 since they need to get them done. My reality here is I'm making a decent supplemental income to my day job.

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