Many ACL restaurant shops have adequate reimbusement. A few high end ones might leave you out of pocket but for a very, very good meal. For those who want to shop for quality of life enhancements, that seems like a good deal.

Whenever I have had issues in the past, they have always dealt with them appropriately and been prompt about assisting me with questions and concerns. When there was a an issue where they possibly could not have paid me, they pushed the report through to let the client decide and I was paid. The staff are always available and some of the nicest people I work with. These are good, honest people who will always be on your side and are there to help.

Hi everyone! I just joined ACL (never done any "mystery shops" so this will be a new experience for me), and if anyone has any advice for me, I would love to hear it! From what you all are saying, it seems like a decent company.

General advice for ANY company you might work for:

Read the instructions as soon as you are awarded a shop. Print out the report form as well, so you know what questions you will need to answer.

If you don't understand anything, ask the scheduler or post a question here after doing a search if you can to see if someone has already asked it.

When you get to the job, READ THE INSTRUCTIONS one more time.


After you get experience, still REVIEW the instructions just in case they changed something.


And, welcome to the forum. Be sure to check out the New Mystery Shopper board, the link is near the bottom of this page.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 02/03/2013 04:17PM by itsasecret.

walesmaven Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Many ACL restaurant shops have adequate
> reimbusement. A few high end ones might leave you
> out of pocket but for a very, very good meal. For
> those who want to shop for quality of life
> enhancements, that seems like a good deal.


Actually it is the opposite for my area. The high end ones reimburse more than enough and I don't even go anywhere near the max. reimbursement. It is the casual dining ones that do not reimburse enough and I am always out of pocket. That is why those fast casual restaurants stay on the board for a long time is my guess.

G3B Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
Actually it is the opposite for my area. The high
> end ones reimburse more than enough and I don't
> even go anywhere near the max. reimbursement. It
> is the casual dining ones that do not reimburse
> enough and I am always out of pocket. That is why
> those fast casual restaurants stay on the board
> for a long time is my guess.

I agree on the reimbursements, G3B. In my area the high end ones are the ones to get - I have way too much reimbursement to spend it all. The casual dining shops do not reimburse enough and I'm out of pocket. For a while, I took several a month because it was a novelty to dine for $10 (2 people) at a fun place. The novelty has worn off and I now take them sparingly. I think everyone else must feel the same, because even with the overload of shoppers in my area, their casual restaurants are sitting on the board for a while.

I love ACL, though!

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 02/04/2013 10:58PM by AustinMom.

As much as these guys seem like nice people, I'm over the under-reimbursed shops. The have a few that guarantee me a good meal, but I will not take the others, and I also refuse to take assignments that don't offer some sort of fee. The hotel shops they offer are insulting, IMHO.

When I see a company offering under-reimbursed meal shops and no fee, It it points to a disrespect for the shopper. The cost of the food served is pennies on the dollar for the restaurant so the MSC is either (A) Not negotiating a fair reimbursement because they don't care about the shopper being out of pocket, or ( Actually getting the full reimbursement from the client and pocketing the difference.

I find that it is difficult but possible to do the high end in my areas for the reimbursement...unless you are NOT ordering any wine at all. They generally require one or sometimes two glasses of wine and some of the establishments charge $10-12 for the least expensive. So two chicken or pasta dishes, no red meat is affordable and hope they have a cheap appetizer on the menu. I always check the menu first before accepting as in the big city there are some places where the required appetizers are more then the price of a meal somewhere else. And the least expensive dish may vary a lot from one location to the other of the same group of restaurants. If they happen to have a happy hour that can be used towards the bar visit glass that helps a lot.
As for the less expensive places...the report seems to be not quite as long but still pretty intense for some of them. Do I want to go to a "up to a $25" reimbursed sandwich shop for one person? So far I have not tried any of them. Just does not look enticing to fight big city traffic/park/eat a sandwich, even a good one, and then come home and spend over an hour on the report.
There seems to be a lot of variation in the jobs offered here in this city (Los Angeles) so do your homework, check out the menus on line to see if you will be able to "afford" it with the reimbursement. I love some of the less expensive places, others not so much.
As for hotels....leave the lower end ones for me! Trying to make money at this? Avoid them but if you want a nice little vacation (with my dog, yes!) with the overnight stay paid for in a decent place...quiet, clean etc. and the report pretty easy for a hotel report...that is my style.

Here, ACL a low-end client whose reimbursement is barely enough if you order the cheapest appetizer and the two cheapest entrees. I'll take the shop if I'm craving that food, knowing I'll be out of pocket $10 or so.

The midrange and most of the fine dining restaurants have more than adequate reimbursements. Once I came in almost $30 under reimbursement, despite having a decadent dessert and high-end alcoholic drinks!

I have done two fine dining shops with inadequate reimbursements. One, we ate chicken and pasta at a famous steak-and-seafood place and were only slightly above reimbursement. Either steak or seafood would have put us $40+ over reimbursement. I won't do that again. Another one, we decided to go ahead and go over reimbursement to be able to get steak. The steaks were underwhelming (I've had better steak at Applebee's) and we were almost $50 out of pocket.

These days I always look at the restaurant menu and pricing before accepting the shop.

Editors...A few months ago I did a hotel. The editor sent me a message telling me she had taken a whole section out of my report as the hotel would not be interested as they could not do anything about the problem I reported. Otherwise my report was accepted and I received payment. It bothered me for a long time but I thought contacting the editor would be useless. After my next hotel shop at a completely different hotel, I sent the scheduler a message about my prior experience and how I felt this was valuable info for the hotel chain I had shopped that had been deleted. There definitely was a lot they could have very easily done to remedy the problem I reported. (But of course I did not offer suggestions of how in my report...only the facts). The scheduler sent me a thank you email the following day saying she had sent my email regarding the problem that had been deleted from my report upstairs and they contacted the client with the info.
I have, except for the editor on that report, never felt that ACL was doing anything but being one of the nicest and most responsive of companies I have worked for.

Agreed that they are nice and super responsive, Sandy. I just don't think they offer a fair reimbursement on a lot of dining shops. I still do the ones that pay a fee and offer a good reimbursement. They have a place in DTLA that I love to shop.

I'm used to getting between $50-$200 for a hotel report, so doing one for free doesn't sit right with me. If you enjoy the night away it gives you, I think that's great! Different strokes....

ACL keeps sending emails for a local extended stay hotel. They are paying a bonus so the pay is $15. This just doesn't seem like much for a shop that will take me all night plus however long the reprot takes. I don't get why they send me email after email on a hotel close to me. Staying there is of no benefit since I live here.

But, I agree, their schedulers are nice and respond quickly. I just think they want too much for what they give for many shops.

Bay,
The report for those hotels is a snap. Lots of people need a night away from stress, or remodeling/painting messes, etc.

Hi Sandy,

The only issue I ever had with ACL also was with just ONE editor for a hotel shop I did on behalf of the company. I had mentioned her by name in other posts because I have nothing to hide.

Other than that exception to the rule, I hold ALL the staff at ACL with greatest dignity and respect. They are truly professional and human!

BTW. I would like to take the opportunity to inform that I am now in receipt of payment for that hotel shop, however I do note the unnecessary ordeal the editor put me thru before, and which could have easily been avoided because it ALL depended on the editor in question and not the client rejecting my report.

Not all is rosy with this editor however, she is still toying with my ACL account and restricting me from applying for my favorite shops. She wants to have the upper hand, but as much as none here can do anything about this, I am not stopping here with my complaint.

sandyf Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Editors...A few months ago I did a hotel. The
> editor sent me a message telling me she had taken
> a whole section out of my report as the hotel
> would not be interested as they could not do
> anything about the problem I reported. Otherwise
> my report was accepted and I received payment. It
> bothered me for a long time but I thought
> contacting the editor would be useless. After my
> next hotel shop at a completely different hotel, I
> sent the scheduler a message about my prior
> experience and how I felt this was valuable info
> for the hotel chain I had shopped that had been
> deleted. There definitely was a lot they could
> have very easily done to remedy the problem I
> reported. (But of course I did not offer
> suggestions of how in my report...only the facts).
> The scheduler sent me a thank you email the
> following day saying she had sent my email
> regarding the problem that had been deleted from
> my report upstairs and they contacted the client
> with the info.
> I have, except for the editor on that report,
> never felt that ACL was doing anything but being
> one of the nicest and most responsive of
> companies I have worked for.

I do not recall what the editors name was in my case but the company was so very appreciative of my reporting the part of the report that was left off I assume that they spoke to whichever editor it was. I have found editing to be very uneven in so many companies. I will do the same or similar shop several times. My own personal style of report writing remains the same but once in a while I will get an editor who writes back...you should not do this and you should not do that, actually usually things i do not think I even did, or often it is the last question where they ask me for my opinion...not just asking me to support would I go there again but they say in the instructions it is a place to voice my opinion and be subjective. I have never had a shop rejected and most of the companies I work for do not apply a rating to my reports so I cannot tell if they have been downgraded. I do continue to see the better jobs, although if I never saw one of the better jobs I will not know I am missing them. So as for editors, I generally get my ego bruised for a minute or so (I do so like to think of myself as almost perfect!) and then move on and just chalk it up to the editor being the problem. When they do write something constructive I can use I like it.

Steve...downtown LA with extra money??? Don't think I have noticed that one. I did the one with the bakery once and that reimbursed an enormous amt. I had wonderful pastries for a week at home. I felt those constituted a good bonus pay. But it was so darn loud in the place I could not hear myself talk much less the servers, especially at the bar. Hard to get quotes.
I was mainly upset about that one as I wanted to take the new Expo line but had to valet park so I could not. When I got there I looked all over for the valet and finally found out the valet starts at a later hour. And I had checked before going about the valet and been given the wrong advice. So I had to eat the cost of gas to get downtown plus the parking fee as they would not reimburse in addition to adding to the pollution in the basin.


sportofficial Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Hi Sandy,
>
> The only issue I ever had with ACL also was with
> just ONE editor for a hotel shop I did on behalf
> of the company. I had mentioned her by name in
> other posts because I have nothing to hide.
>
> Other than that exception to the rule, I hold ALL
> the staff at ACL with greatest dignity and
> respect. They are truly professional and human!
>
> BTW. I would like to take the opportunity to
> inform that I am now in receipt of payment for
> that hotel shop, however I do note the unnecessary
> ordeal the editor put me thru before, and which
> could have easily been avoided because it ALL
> depended on the editor in question and not the
> client rejecting my report.
>
> Not all is rosy with this editor however, she is
> still toying with my ACL account and restricting
> me from applying for my favorite shops. She wants
> to have the upper hand, but as much as none here
> can do anything about this, I am not stopping here
> with my complaint.
>
> sandyf Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > Editors...A few months ago I did a hotel. The
> > editor sent me a message telling me she had
> taken
> > a whole section out of my report as the hotel
> > would not be interested as they could not do
> > anything about the problem I reported.
> Otherwise
> > my report was accepted and I received payment.
> It
> > bothered me for a long time but I thought
> > contacting the editor would be useless. After
> my
> > next hotel shop at a completely different hotel,
> I
> > sent the scheduler a message about my prior
> > experience and how I felt this was valuable
> info
> > for the hotel chain I had shopped that had been
> > deleted. There definitely was a lot they could
> > have very easily done to remedy the problem I
> > reported. (But of course I did not offer
> > suggestions of how in my report...only the
> facts).
> > The scheduler sent me a thank you email the
> > following day saying she had sent my email
> > regarding the problem that had been deleted
> from
> > my report upstairs and they contacted the
> client
> > with the info.
> > I have, except for the editor on that report,
> > never felt that ACL was doing anything but
> being
> > one of the nicest and most responsive of
> > companies I have worked for.

sandyf Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------

> Steve...downtown LA with extra money??? Don't
> think I have noticed that one. I did the one with
> the bakery once and that reimbursed an enormous
> amt. I had wonderful pastries for a week at home.
> I felt those constituted a good bonus pay. But it
> was so darn loud in the place I could not hear
> myself talk much less the servers, especially at
> the bar. Hard to get quotes.
> I was mainly upset about that one as I wanted to
> take the new Expo line but had to valet park so I
> could not. When I got there I looked all over for
> the valet and finally found out the valet starts
> at a later hour. And I had checked before going
> about the valet and been given the wrong advice.
> So I had to eat the cost of gas to get downtown
> plus the parking fee as they would not reimburse
> in addition to adding to the pollution in the
> basin.

That's actually the shop I was talking about, Sandy. I usually get an additional payment for that one, but you have to read lips . Perhaps it was bonused the few times I did it.

For the DTLA location with every MSC, I always ask if I can skip the valet since I live within walking distance, and it's never been a problem. Sounds like you got bad info. You can do the same thing with the Hawaiian fusion place (different MSC) in DTLA and ask to skip the valet. They are fine with that as well.

rascalboy Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Hi everyone! I just joined ACL (never done any
> "mystery shops" so this will be a new experience
> for me), and if anyone has any advice for me, I
> would love to hear it! From what you all are
> saying, it seems like a decent company.

Read their sample report, which will help with your writing. Their editors are the best!!!

One poster said that a vengeful editor was tinkering with his account so that he could not see certain shops. There is an easy "fix" for that. Just send a mild mannered email to the scheduling department to ask if you can please continue to see certain jobs. NOW THEN, if scheduling does not want those jobs seen by the poster, he is going to have to ask what he must/could do to prove himself again ready for those jobs. Trashing the editor is highly unlikely to provoke any positive response.

I have found that ACL is a wonderful company to work for. The schedulers and editors are professional and treat shoppers with respect.

They are a GREAT company to work for. I love their fine dining shops....the reimbursements usually completely cover the cost of all required purchases. I wish they would reevaluate the reimbursements offered for many of their casual dining shops - most do not cover the ordering requirements. If their reimbursements on their casual dining shops were generous enough to cover the order requirements, I would work for them a lot more.

walesmaven Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> One poster said that a vengeful editor was
> tinkering with his account so that he could not
> see certain shops. There is an easy "fix" for
> that. Just send a mild mannered email to the
> scheduling department to ask if you can please
> continue to see certain jobs. NOW THEN, if
> scheduling does not want those jobs seen by the
> poster, he is going to have to ask what he
> must/could do to prove himself again ready for
> those jobs. Trashing the editor is highly
> unlikely to provoke any positive response.

I believe if you are rated "gold," you see 100% shops, whereas "silver" will only see 75% of shops available. I believe it's not vengeful tinkering by the editor, as much as if he had submitted a below par report and they lowered his rating.

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 10/14/2013 04:11PM by CAscotch.

One of their schedulers just cost me money. To make things worse, she has not expressed any regret over her mistake.

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 10/14/2013 04:11PM by CAscotch.

She left out important info. So, I drove all the way to the shop location and then got an email from her telling me the important info. She did not say she was sorry or express any sympathy or regret. When I asked why she did not tell me before, she did not respond.

I think sometimes people don't apologize because they think you won't notice it was their mistake if they don't point it out. Lame!

The problem here is I pointed out her mistake and asked her why and she did not respond. She responded to something else, though.

I am very understanding usually when the other person admits their mistake. Even when they don't apologize or admit they erred, I expect SOME acknowledgement that something went wrong and that it affected me negatively. It bugs the heck out of me when they act like nothing happened.

A TIP TO HELP COVER FINE DINING REIMBURSEMENT: When you call to make your reservation,tell them you are celebrating a birthday or anniversary. In almost all cases, you will get your dessert for free, saving you $8 - $12.

beatlesfan1964 Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> A TIP TO HELP COVER FINE DINING REIMBURSEMENT:
> When you call to make your reservation,tell them
> you are celebrating a birthday or anniversary. In
> almost all cases, you will get your dessert for
> free, saving you $8 - $12.

I don't think that's a good idea. This may affect how the staff performs. For example, instead of asking if you would like dessert, the server may just bring you a slice of birthday cake or something similar for free. The host/hostess and server may also change other behavior because it's your special day, such as making small talk.

I agree. I strive for being the "regular customer" during my casual and fine dining assignments. Many restaurants offer discounts to senior citizens, military personnel, or employees of major area employers as well as a free dessert (or sometimes a free alcoholic beverage) on a diner's birthday. If it were truly my or my guest's birthday, I might, or might not, depending on my whim, tell them about the birthday. I would not tell them it was my birthday if it was not just as I would not present myself as military personnel to get a discount.