Those stupid "super easy 5 minute" bank shops averaged 18 minutes on site each. They also required scanning 8 documents which all had to be resized to 640 x 480. Those took a long time too. The bankers wouldn't shut up and let me leave. After about 10of these shops, my scenario included, "I have a doctor's appt and can't be late or they'll charge me a late fee that I'd rather invest....", etc. It still did't help. I started refusing to sit down and using my cane...lolol The waits are interminable sometimes too. The longest required a 50 minute wait. I could have left, but was required to go back and it was all the way across town for another $4 of gas. So I waited.

29 of those shops later, I'm not going back for more abuse.

I hope they were at least bonused since you decided to do so many at 1 time.

These really sounded like a disaster. I too hope you received a decent amount of money. I always notice, when a company says "easy", it never is.

In addition if it says, "fun and easy shop." It is neither fun or easy.

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 05/22/2011 06:25PM by kittybratt.

So true about not being easy. You can bet if it says easy it will be a lot of work. So I just kind of over look those.I have had too many bad experiences with them like you.

I am curious as to which MSC these were for. I do a lot for Informa and Ath and on many of them I am in and out in 5 min. It depends on if I am first in line. I do a lot of teller shops that sometimes take less than 3 minutes. All of my bank reports take about 15 minutes max.

wjones, they aren't for Informa or Ath.

I am probably on this MSC's "poop list" after their last call to me about doing these $8.50 and $9.50 jobs (no bonuses offered). I politely told them that the pay was about right if I walked next door, photographed my neighbor's house, upload the pics and filed a brief report. I would expect considerably more to drive to/from the bank and put up with a sale pitch. I don't think I will be getting any future calls.

I was desparate, I guess. Not having my own car required me to take lots of shops closer to home where I could be home quickly. I did teach my daughter scan and make folders so it made it a little easier. I paid her to do it and she used it for groceries I would have bought anyway. lol So it really didn't cost me anything. It was the long winded bankers that made most of them take so long. Once I started telling them I had a doctors appointment and wouldn't sit down, they went faster. But it took me a while to get that one down. Then one banker kept talking anyway and I would have been late for my non-existant doctor's appointment!

I said yes when the report asked me if I'd do them again next month, but I've written a note to them to ask them to let me off the hook. I have my car back now and I can make more money in the boonies.

I can understand being desperate if you signed up for a few but 29. I feel your pain. I hope you didn't forget to label each document.

I once complained and they told me to say tat I had someone waiting for me in the car and that I had to go. As I was getting into my car, the personal banker ran out, telling me that he didn't remember if he'd given me his business card or not.

AnonymousGirl Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> I once complained and they told me to say tat I
> had someone waiting for me in the car and that I
> had to go. As I was getting into my car, the
> personal banker ran out, telling me that he didn't
> remember if he'd given me his business card or
> not.

lol, I bet that was awkward. I would of loved to see the expression on your face.

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 05/23/2011 12:03PM by GregP.

Yeah, I parted ways with a certain MSC due to the "five minute easy bank shops."



Carol

GregP Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> AnonymousGirl Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > I once complained and they told me to say tat I
> > had someone waiting for me in the car and that
> I
> > had to go. As I was getting into my car, the
> > personal banker ran out, telling me that he
> didn't
> > remember if he'd given me his business card or
> > not.
>
> lol, I bet that was awkward. I would of loved to
> see the expression on your face.


I just noticed my bad grammar

I meant to say that I complained to the MSC and they told me to use that scenario. I don't think I acted any differently when he came out because I was opening my trunk and not actually in my car.

on a sidenote, a friend who knows that I shop the blue branch told me that she was at a branch in sketchy part of town. She was with her boss and they were both sitting down discussing a business account with the personal banker. She works in accounting for a company that has business around the lower income areas of town. She said that an Asian walked into the branch and the banker told them "there goes the mystery shopper." She asked him how he knew and the banker told her that it was very obvious to everyone at the branch because the branch was in a low-income part of town and the guy was the only asian who ever came in for anything else besides a business account.

Yes, I labeled everything I received. Had no problem with any of my photos. I did figure out finally that I could resize a folder to 640 x 480 with Pixresizer and that saves a lot of wear and tear on the old fingers since there are usually 8 documents per shop to shrink. I guess the blessing is that the MSP will provide me enough seed money to handle rather extensive routes in June because of my work on the banks. They also got a taste of my work and have given me about 40 gas stations with one brand. The reason I went after that MSP in the first place was to get some gas shops. Tonight they called and asked me to do 10 of yet another gas brand. That will get me to the self assign stage so I'm happy as a clam. If I have to do the 10 bank "5 mintue" ones I signed up for for next month, it's a small price for getting the gas shops I need to travel the way I do.

Oh, and those ten are for the end of this month rather than in June when I'm so busy. So it puts them when I've got a few days of light activity. I might still even get to clean my room and do my laundry. lolol



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 05/24/2011 02:42AM by iblessyah.

ibless,
I think that you get some sort of award for logistics and persistance! Glad your car had come home.

What are the requirements for the gas shops? I seen them but I didn't sign up for any because I didn't know what to expect.

I feel your pain!

I got burned out doing those blue bank shops, too. For the amount of paperwork and time, these should start out at $15 minimum. The ones requiring you to call and get them to mail stuff AND then go in, too, pay a buck LESS than the shops with half the paperwork. It's ridiculous.

While I got a system going for the collateral so it wasn't so bad, ooooh those "quick 10-minute" visits! What got to me was going in month after month. Small towns mean you see the same faces at the desks. It was mentally taxing having to lie to the same people so much. I finally said I wanted to do the existing customer shops.

Too bad they don't have some simple teller transaction shop. I have yet to see a MSC offer basic teller shops for the blue bank. Those I would gladly do.

Aaargh, still frustrated with that MSC, even after a break! LOL

I got the email yesterday from the MSC. I just do not have time to do them. Unless it is a teller or drive up teller shop I have rarely gotten out of a bank in less than 10 minutes. Where they get the five minutes must be based on some form of quantum physics time element.

TechSavvy Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> The ones requiring you
> to call and get them to mail stuff AND then go in,
> too, pay a buck LESS than the shops with half the
> paperwork. It's ridiculous.

I agree, IMO, it makes no sense to pay a buck less for those. I think the logic though is that is "SHOULD" take less time in the branch to get the info. Again, I think the logic is that you only need to ask about a checking or savings account. The others you need to ask about credit cards. The info on the credit cards in the booklet with checking and savings accounts so the employee is going to also tell you about those first since they try to push having the account with the card. Therefore, it will take longer.

That's how long it takes to write the report after you've spent 25 minutes in the bank and 1/2 hour working with all the documents. lolol

I don't have time to talk about gas station requirements. The brand I'm doing in the next few days has lots to read and I'm waiting on a FEDEX package with even more stuff before I can start.

The new project starts June 1 and I have a ton of them right here at home. Then I'm heading to Ashland KY to pick up that one orphan shop on my 72 station route. The new MSC gave me 23 of their new project to do along the way. So whether that orphan was intended to make me fail or not...I have a profitable route. I'm going to look for a motel shop or two in Huntington and Charleston WV and stay in Appalachia a couple of days to get it all done.

My old stomping grounds, iblessyah. Huntington and Charleston are only 50 or so miles apart. You'd have to spend your own dime, but if you want a great hotdog or an amazing slice of coconut cream pie from a Charleston landmark, go to Chris's on Washington St.

Good for you for turning that lemon into lemonade

lol My phrase is "what Satan meant for evil, God meant for good." lol I'm heading south in a few hours to try and wrap up as many of the 42 remaining shops as I can in two to three days (hopefully two). So far, I only have a bonused cell phone shop and a food shop. I'm cash poor right now and praying for more money to show up to seed my shopping for next month.

I have done many of the ten minute shops... I have my routine down where I can get in, get the info and documents, and get out in about three minutes. I picked up ten to do one day next week... $95 for a half-day tour around town won't be too bad. I never took one of the five minute shops because, after having read the description of the shop, it was obvious it was more work. Well, I got a call Friday asking me to do one of the five minute shops in a remote location that I will be visiting doing some other shops for the same MSC in a couple of weeks. I asked the scheduler to tell me just what had to be done, and I responded that it is way more work to do than for the ten minute shops that pay a buck more. She kind of giggled and said, "yeah, I guess so" and then said she would put a fairly nice bonus on it. So, I took the job, made my silly call to get the first set of documents by mail, and will make the visit when I'm over there in a couple of weeks. But, I won't take any more of the five minute shops after this one, unless they are heavily bonused. And if they do call and ask me to take some, I am going to explain to them just how much more work the five minute shops are again and see if they might consider raising the fee for this shop. Otherwise, no more five minute shops for me!

This is Ron: Got 40 of the gas shops done and JoAnne did two $25 DQ drive thru shops, three clothing stores, a big box hardware and a bonused cell phone shop but it took us 2 nights in a motel and nearly 800 miles! I'm one "tard puppy". Never saw so many swithbaks and closed roads in my life.

Thanks for the info about the 10 minute shops. What do you have to do that you get out in 10 minutes? JoAnne could do some of those while running around doing gas shops over the next couple of weeks. She was just not crazy about the bankers making her wait and then taking 20 minutes of her time after she said she needed to go quickly. lol I don't wanna see her come in that mad again any time soon. She's usually so pleasant and content. lololol

I just go in and say, "Could I get your current CD and Money Market rates?" 90% of the time they pull out the blue folder and show me the two rates sheet that are folded nicely inside. They might take a minute to explain them to me and ask if I'm a customer. I tell them I'm not (even though they are my bank!) and they will tell me I can get a better rate if I open a checking account. I then tell them "I'll keep that in mind," and then, if they haven't yet given me their card, say, "Can I get you card so I can call you if I have any questions?" And, POOF, I'm in and out in two minutes.

Most of the time they don't even ask me to have a seat. If they do and ask more questions, I just tell them I am shopping around as I have a CD coming due in a few days. Rarely has it taken more than five minutes. If you give them the impression you're in a hurry, they respond likewise! And because you're in and out so quickly, they are not likely to remember you if you return in a month or two.

shoppersteven Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> I just go in and say, "Could I get your current CD
> and Money Market rates?" 90% of the time they pull
> out the blue folder and show me the two rates
> sheet that are folded nicely inside.

Wow, you're lucky they do that. All of the branches I've been to within a 60 mile radius insist that the tellers can not give out those booklets, only the bankers can.

AND the bankers are usually busy and even if they are not, they will not fork over the book until they go through the pages no matter how many times you say you're busy.

Oh, I don't talk with a teller... I talk with a banker. If they act as if they want to go into long detail, I don't even sit down at the desk... they usually get the hint when I say, "I'd just like to get your current CD and Money Market rates".

Every once in a while I have to wait a few minutes to talk with a banker, and one time I did have to wait about 30 minutes, but usually can get in and out quickly.

I had waited 30 minutes for a banker and the financial advisor asked if she could help me. I told her I just needed rates for CD's and money markets and she said only the banker could give them to me. I had to wait another 20 minutes because the FINANCIAL ADVISOR couldn't give me the rates. grrrrrrrr.

I don't want to do these shops anymore.

I do an easy Banker shop and usually ask about refinancing my car, and interest rates..in and out within 10 minutes. Problem being for these jobs, you can only do one a day and there are tons of Chase around my area, at least 6 in my town. They are slow in scheduling, wish they were self-schedule. The are scheduling today for a shop I signed for last week to be done Thursday.

Shoppersteven's idea about not sitting down is good. I'm going to try that next time I'm doing a round of banks. Here's what I've been doing. I sit down. To save time, I say as little as possible in the first part of the conversation to let the banker run his presentation. After receiving the verbal information I specifically requested, I make some comment about the information as I push my chair back and stand up. At this point, EVERY banker has presented the materials while doing a quick but complete wrap up. I never say I'm in a hurry or I have to go, because the banker won't care. I simply act like the interview is over, and I'm done. If it appears I will have to wait long to see a banker, I leave, do another shop on my route, and return. I have found that Fridays and Saturdays are the busiest days for the bankers, and that the time around lunch is always a problem. I try to avoid those days and times as much as possible. I hope these ideas will help someone.