Phoebe70 shares--I was singing and had a smile plastered on my face the entire shift.............

Bob comments--In 2006, I was sent into a Maggie Moo ice cream store to determine if the clerks were singing when they received a tip. The following week, I was to return and rate each visit. The gals passed with flying colors week one, BUT, for week 2, they failed. I wondered if this shop was to uncover if the district manager was tipping off the locations.

I love these e-mails I keep getting:

"New Mystery Shops Available Near You!"

No, they are not new they are the same ones that have been on the job board for less than I will shop them for.

So I just logged in to see the new shops. On the main page is this shop they refused my MAO of $30.

"Times to Shop:
11:15 AM - 3:45 PM"

Dates available? 4/10/24. Mind you it's now 7:34 PM on 4/10/24.

The pay $40 with MAO.

SMH

I really, really want to do a Five Guys shop where the employees are wearing nametags. Yes, the questionnaire generally steers you toward a positive review. My understanding is that what is going on is that you, the shopper is being asked to be the eyes of the corporation as they oversee franchisees. The corporation has standards that they expect the franchisees to meet, they expect the bun to be lightly toasted, fresh, and intact. They understand that the customer can choose many toppings that might make the bun soggy and their standards allow for that, they want you to judge based on the standards they give, they are not asking us to review the food, they are asking us to compare it to their standards. I would generally rate the burgers as “good”, but compared to the Five Guys corporation standards, unless the franchisee has messed it up badly, I rate it “excellent” because that tells the Five Guys corporation that the franchisees are following their standards. The same thing with the fries, they are not asking me to review them, they are asking “Do they meet Five Guys standards?” Generally, I only take a FG shop if it’s somewhere I’m going to be and/or highly bonused, I like the food enough and it’s an easy enough shop/report, but like any shop, if you don’t like the requirements, don’t accept the shop.

WHERE do you live?

Im in the midwest and a 5lb bag of russets are & 6 now!!!

@jevanw wrote:

I really, really want to do a Five Guys shop where the employees are wearing nametags.

I once did one where an individual employee put on her own personal name tag. Only time I've seen that at FG.

If you were doing a shop, you then needed to report that an employee was not in compliance with corporate standards she she was wearing a name tag. I am sure that you did.

@KokoBWare wrote:

@jevanw wrote:

I really, really want to do a Five Guys shop where the employees are wearing nametags.

I once did one where an individual employee put on her own personal name tag. Only time I've seen that at FG.

For some reason, the cashier name on the receipt very rarely is the actual cashier. One location always shows “Walter” as the cashier, but I’ve had three different female cashiers over the years.

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 04/21/2024 02:35AM by Phoebe70.

Walter is probably the manager on duty at the time you did your shops.

BTW, it's a wonderful name meaning "commander of the army", Jeff Dunham's dummy, the principal in " Breaking Bad" or the fish in "On Golden Pond".

And me.

There are some locatiosn where the name of the cashier has not changed for years. They ask for it, and I report it. I then get paid. I am not (thankfully) required to interpret the meaning of the name.

@Phoebe70 wrote:

For some reason, the cashier name on the receipt very rarely is the actual cashier. One location always shows “Walter” as the cashier, but I’ve had three different female cashiers over the years.

Sometimes I think shoppers run into trouble when they overthink the details.

Just the facts, IMHO.

Principal in Breaking Bad? He was just a chemistry teacher, not a principal. But yes, Walter White also went by Heisenberg.

I liked On Golden Pond. I remember seeing that when I was a kid. Now I made my kids watch it :-P

You forgot Walter Cronkite. What about Walt Disney?

@wrosie wrote:

Walter is probably the manager on duty at the time you did your shops.

BTW, it's a wonderful name meaning "commander of the army", Jeff Dunham's dummy, the principal in " Breaking Bad" or the fish in "On Golden Pond".

And me.

The cashier's name on the 5G receipts near me always says, "Two C" They don't wear name tags on purpose, it's company policy.

My first 5G shop was in Feb. 2009. I loved them, as the food was good and it was enough food, reimbursement ($10) and pay ($8) to mostly cover a meal for my family of four (two young girls) at the time. However, doing them every week got tiresome, especially for my family, and I had to pull back. I've still performed 175+ since then. Like others have mentioned, they are pretty easy, especially since the narrative (# of characters) is limited, and I only accept them when I get a call with a decent bonus.

Interestingly enough, the only time I've ever been questioned or called out as a mystery shopper (750+ shops) was at a 5G last year. I guess my routine got too regular, e.g. wife and I going for Sunday lunch one every few weeks but with the same employees. They questioned me and I played dumb, but I still remember them chanting, "100, 100, 100" as we departed.

@hbbigdaddy wrote:

Principal in Breaking Bad? He was just a chemistry teacher, not a principal. But yes, Walter White also went by Heisenberg.

I liked On Golden Pond. I remember seeing that when I was a kid. Now I made my kids watch it :-P

You forgot Walter Cronkite. What about Walt Disney?

@wrosie wrote:

Walter is probably the manager on duty at the time you did your shops.

BTW, it's a wonderful name meaning "commander of the army", Jeff Dunham's dummy, the principal in " Breaking Bad" or the fish in "On Golden Pond".

And me.

Principal as in main character.