Audits for BestMark

sail2sunset · 2012-07-13T20:31:52+00:00

I am a Gold shopper - working at mystery shopping for about ten years. I thought I'd try BestMark's audit shop for something different. My advice. Forget it folks. The pay does not even approach minimum wage. For the two days I was there I worked hard - no breaks - continually operating a Telxon pricing machine that sometimes worked and sometimes didn't - printing audits to a printer that sometimes worked and sometimes didn't. Each audit had ten parts to it with reports that had to be hand-written on site to get the manager's signature. For another report I had to take pictures of the pricing card for certain units - I had 100 of those. Then I had to spend 2 hours at home uploading, sizing, and naming photos for the report. Believe me, it wasn't worth it. Be careful if you take an audit from them. You'll be exhausted with very little to show for a lot of work that I don't believe can be finished in the same day. Let me know if you could! sail2sunset in Delray Beach FL sail2sunset Delray Beach FL

Audits for BestMark

July 18, 2012 06:21PM

sail2sunset Wrote:
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> Your audit survey had to have been different from
> mine. From what I understand this is a NEW audit.
> I'd be curious to see if you signed on again and
> got what I looked at. There were amillion pieces
> to the puzzle. It could not have been the same
> survey.

I was responding to the mystery shop, not the audit. They do both, but once an auditor, always an auditor.

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July 18, 2012 06:26PM

bottom line is, unless you completed any of the components/visits in full they are under no obligation to pay you. If you did bits and pieces of each component but none in full, that is your issue and not theirs.

= + = + = + = + = + = + = + = + = + = + = +
There are no stupid questions, but there are a lot of inquisitive idiots
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When you try to please everybody, you end up pleasing nobody

July 18, 2012 06:40PM

techman01 Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> bottom line is, unless you completed any of the
> components/visits in full they are under no
> obligation to pay you. If you did bits and pieces
> of each component but none in full, that is your
> issue and not theirs.

You did not read carefully. I completed one component each day. The one on Tuesday took 3.5 hours and was signed and completed in time. The one on Thursday took 6 hours of work, plus 2 hours at home, and was signed and completed online. However the button to submit would not accept the online report since the three reports for the day are subject to "master" and "slave" relationships. I did the master portion, but could not submit since the other two "slave" components were not entered.

Just reading this must give you an idea of the complexity. No mystery shop has ever had this many pieces and paid so little!

sail2sunset
Delray Beach FL

July 18, 2012 06:45PM

If store A is broken up into parts 1, 2 and 3 so technically 3 different auditors could complete it(1 each part) which is how bm explained it to me, then if you completed part 1, 2 or 3 in full, you should be paid.

That is what im referring too. I'm not referring to the different parts within a part.

If that makes sense.

July 18, 2012 06:50PM

Right. It makes sense now. But when I never got any hints about what was in store when I accepted the job. I was totally unprepared for the amount of work and that there was more to accomplish than anyone could perform in one day.

sail2sunset
Delray Beach FL

July 18, 2012 11:03PM

BTW, I sent you a private message about the audits. Since I use to have 10 stores, I might be able to provide some insight.

Equal rights for others does not mean fewer rights for you. It's not pie.
"I prefer someone who burns the flag and then wraps themselves up in the Constitution over someone who burns the Constitution and then wraps themselves up in the flag." -Molly Ivins
Never try to teach a pig to sing. It's a waste of your time and it really annoys the pig.

July 19, 2012 03:12AM

I quit doing their shops a few years ago. Some very complicated and time consuming with less than adequate pay.

July 19, 2012 03:26AM

LisaSTL Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> BTW, I sent you a private message about the
> audits. Since I use to have 10 stores, I might be
> able to provide some insight.

Sorry, don't know about private messages. I will look around the screen!

sail2sunset
Delray Beach FL

July 19, 2012 04:15AM

I was thinking about audits but no way now. Thanks

July 19, 2012 04:39AM

I did part 3 of the audit. I was there for 6.5 hours and then spent over hours at home. I went slightly over the time frame allowed for the day and was out 12 minutes later than I was supposed to be and hoping that is not enough to disqualify my report. I was trying to get the manager to sign things.

For the time and work involved, I thought it was too much, however, I do see how doing it a second time would decrease the in store time quite a bit as I learned a few things. The functionality part was a killer, I am not sure that I would want to do it again. Unfortunately, I missed the piece about once you do the audit you can never ms there again and with the audits needing to be done during daytime hours only, I wouldn't be able to do another audit again.

July 20, 2012 04:40PM

these people are scumbags they dont pay properly and rip off their shoppers. after i complained to the bbb they revoked me as a shopper. glad to get rid of them and stop getting their emails.

July 20, 2012 05:24PM

Glad I saw this. I was thinking about doing these. Now, the delete button will be hit when I see the offers.

July 20, 2012 05:37PM

You made the correct decision! Lousy pay for lousy work equals "fagettaboutit!"

sail2sunset
Delray Beach FL

July 20, 2012 07:23PM

I did the samee thing. I had applied for one of those, then I was assigned to it and saw what was involved. Told them I want to cancel the shop. They tried to talk me into changing my mind by telling me cancelling would reflect negatively on me. I wrote back and said it would reflect negatively on them too. Guess I will not be doing any Bestmark shops again.
Oh well!

mrcomputer101 Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> I did these shops for GFK when they paid $300.00
> per location. Bestmark sent me an email asking if
> I was interested in doing some audits. They did
> NOT disclose what they involved upfront. When I
> was assigned and saw what the actual job was - I
> told them to stick it!!!
>
> Refusing to do this crap is the only way to get
> them to pay what something is worth...:p

July 20, 2012 08:40PM

Glad to know about this, I will not do them.

July 20, 2012 08:57PM

I went to three shops already, I did all kinds of text for them, did all kinds of paper for them, still no paid, twice now.... my adutis got cancel without me knowing, I have kids to support.

July 20, 2012 09:11PM

Did they refuse to accept your audit or cancel them? What was the reason.

July 21, 2012 04:14AM

Independent contractor status is not an absolute and just because there's an agreement does not guarantee it will hold up. There is a test for both the IRS and Workers Compensation comprised of 21 questions any one of which answered in the affirmative will nullify the 1099 status and revert to W-2 which creates a whole stink pot of issues for the general contractor (read mystery shopping company).
Happens alot in the construction business.
Then there is the issue of constructive minimum wage once that pesky W-2 rears it's ugly specter (for the mystery buffs). All those $10, $15 and $25 fees, or commissions or whatever they term them, may not be minimum wage after all.
I mean we all know that those compensation rates are in fact insufficient to meet even the minimum standard of earnings. Do the math. The IRS will and then call your mystery shopping business a hobby.
Guess it must be a hobby for most of the masses of shoppers willing to accept the equivalent of sweat shop wages.
I hold out for a bare minimum of $25 anymore. That's if I don't have to go out of my way. And I'm worth it, by golly.

July 21, 2012 04:25AM

Thanks for letting us know. I was about to look into this to add a little spice.

July 21, 2012 12:44PM

The biggest problem is that they require Visit 2 to be completed no later than 1:00pm. That's a totally unrealistic deadline. As noted in someone else's comment, the equipment needed for this audit (the telxon) always acts up, reboots, loses information, etc. I think the 1:00pm deadline was imposed because was trying to understate the level of effort required to complete the job. My guess is that some auditors are cutting corners and fudging the scans so they can hit the 1:00pm deadline.

July 21, 2012 02:21PM

Thanks for your post. I wondered why somoe things were scheduled before 1 PM and then after 1 PM. I couldn't figure out why the deadline times were imposed. I definitely would like to know how the auditors get everything accomplished that is required.

sail2sunset
Delray Beach FL

July 22, 2012 02:27AM

I also saw this and the pay and will not to these for bestmark

Lindazane Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Also, according to what I read, if you do the
> audits you can no longer do mystery shops at that
> particular store. I hesitated to take them for
> that reason as well.

July 22, 2012 12:08PM

I saw someone doing one of the big box store audits with one of those guns. She was there when I picked up my cart, and still in the same aisle when I was checking out. Wow. No Thanks!

July 27, 2012 05:28AM

I think some of the reasons for the time may be to give them the the best opportunity for success. When I think of the one I did having merchandise stocked had to be done before 1:00. This is probably a task which is supposed to be finished before people go home each night, so they want to do it before customers empty the shelves. THe other part was looking at functionality, so by doing it after 1:00 the employees should have had time to get every piece of equipment turned on.

And I did not finish the 1:00 part by one. I did call from the site and was told to finish. I had 7 of the 9 departments done by then.

July 30, 2012 04:26AM

I did the whole Bestmark audit, and I'm getting paid $160. It was difficult, but next time I don't think I'll go out of the time estimates they give us, because I've learned quite a bit.

July 31, 2012 01:02PM

Whew....I will not be conducting any of these!

July 31, 2012 01:19PM

annelehman Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> I did the whole Bestmark audit, and I'm getting
> paid $160. It was difficult, but next time I don't
> think I'll go out of the time estimates they give
> us, because I've learned quite a bit.

Perchance, do YOU work for BestMark??

sail2sunset
Delray Beach FL

July 31, 2012 05:29PM

sail2sunset Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> annelehman Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > I did the whole Bestmark audit, and I'm getting
> > paid $160. It was difficult, but next time I
> don't
> > think I'll go out of the time estimates they
> give
> > us, because I've learned quite a bit.
>
>
> Perchance, do YOU work for BestMark??

Why is it that if anybody praises or even has a positive comment about certain companies they are automatically accused of being an employee etc? Maybe some of us aren't as jaded as others...

July 31, 2012 06:01PM

You didn't answer the question, now did you annelehman! I just wondered since this was your first post to the boards.....

sail2sunset
Delray Beach FL

July 31, 2012 06:12PM

Wow, Sail2Sunset...give the poster some time to respond, will you? You're hardly a seasoned veteran here yourself. Some people don't check the boards every day and even if they do, they may not read every thread.

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