I used to LOVE the grocery shops at Trendsource and was truly disappointed when the grocery chain dropped them a few years ago. They only paid $14 total, but I shopped the stores and didn't find the shops too difficult at all.

Out of fondness, I picked them up when they came out again recently. I knew the shops had changed, but didn't remember that they were as difficult as they are. 3 separate department shops (complete with ridiculous questions) and 3 ADDITIONAL interactions on the sales floor asking with help to find something. Still for $14.

ICCDS gives me $12 for EACH department for a competing supermarket. Their reports are MUCH easier.

I've been tired of Trendsource for a while. The only reason I haven't dropped Trendsource altogether is I don't want to burn a bridge in case something better eventually comes along. Sometimes I slip and take a shop and usually regret it.

Somebody smack me next time...

I like Trendsource, mostly because I really enjoy doing their business verifications.

A month ago I did a grocery store audit for them, signing up before reading what the shop entailed. It was a store I usually shop and figured it would be about a 20 minute job.

Wrong. The shop required me to count the holes on the shelves of an entire large grocery store, every department, plus take photos of four specialty departments. Took me an hour and 45 minutes and I earned a whopping $10. Never again.

Ouch. That's just wrong. I'll make a point to be careful if they offer me any grocery shops. I've done a couple in tiny stores in small towns for them and the hardest thing I had to do there was check a few refrigerated items for code dates.

I can't afford to do many groceries shops for Trendsource due to the distance and low pay however I do like working with their schedule Jason. He values his shoppers!

Just finished one for them.

They claim that "30 minutes spent in store" and "15 minutes to report".

Not even close on either. 45 minutes in the store and about 30/40 minutes to complete the narratives.

Lots of interaction w/employees and very detailed narratives.

Maybe, just maybe I am a little too naive?

Just sayin'.

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 07/22/2014 11:36AM by parkcitybrian.

Why did you spend 45 minutes in the store? If the departments aren't staffed during the 30 minutes I am in the store or the grocery associates are not in the aisles then they just don't get evaluated this time. I typically am in and out in about 32-36 minutes (and the later is because I misjudged what line to get in). My reports don't take anywhere near 30 minutes either.

Liz

I am going to think twice about doing them again, unless it is my usual grocery store. I find them not at all worth the money. 3 departments, 3 other grocery clerks, plus cashier and bagger. In addition to counting ALL employees and reporting if they were with customers or spoke to you if you were within 7 feet. That's 8 interactions and names to get and all of the rest to report on. Plus they have goofy questions like, "did your cashier educate you?", and silly questions to ask ver batim to the clerks. "You know, I have always wondered what the difference is between red and brown potatoes."

One of the shopping apps was offering this 3 department same scenario for a whopping $6.00.
The same app is now offering competitor shops for the same generous $6.00. 20 items in 6 different departments or you don't get paid. The main problem is that some of the competitors listed do not even have some of the same departments, such as apparel, so you automatically fail. There are lots of pictures required, barcodes and price labels.

I just completed my first grocery shops for TS and was pleasantly surprised to find out I was paid three days later because of their payment structure. That said, I did one yesterday that frustrated me to no end. There was no associate in one of the required focus departments and I waited for more than 20 minutes in another one of the required focus departments to ask the silly question. Add in wait time in line and the fact that I couldn't find an associate on the floor anywhere and I geniunely needed help finding an item on my real grocery line, well, I was not happy when I left the store an hour later.

And does anyone else get an unbelievable number of calls from this MSC asking you take shops they are desperate to fill?

MsSandie Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> I just completed my first grocery shops for TS and
> was pleasantly surprised to find out I was paid
> three days later because of their payment
> structure. That said, I did one yesterday that
> frustrated me to no end. There was no associate
> in one of the required focus departments and I
> waited for more than 20 minutes in another one of
> the required focus departments to ask the silly
> question. Add in wait time in line and the fact
> that I couldn't find an associate on the floor
> anywhere and I geniunely needed help finding an
> item on my real grocery line, well, I was not
> happy when I left the store an hour later.
>
> And does anyone else get an unbelievable number of
> calls from this MSC asking you take shops they are
> desperate to fill?

yep and they pay...$5.00 + $9.00 (reimbursement) all for a lot of frustration and lots of involved narratives.

I have not taken one of these but if you are allowed to shop up till 9 pm, then I suggest you go on a Sunday around 8. The bakery, meat and pharmacy depts. are usually closed. That eliminates a few of them.

plmccut Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> I have not taken one of these but if you are
> allowed to shop up till 9 pm, then I suggest you
> go on a Sunday around 8. The bakery, meat and
> pharmacy depts. are usually closed. That
> eliminates a few of them.


Nope - 4-8 pm on weekdays and 12 - 6 pm on weekends.

parkcitybrian Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> MsSandie Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > I just completed my first grocery shops for TS
> and
> > was pleasantly surprised to find out I was paid
> > three days later because of their payment
> > structure. That said, I did one yesterday that
> > frustrated me to no end. There was no
> associate
> > in one of the required focus departments and I
> > waited for more than 20 minutes in another one
> of
> > the required focus departments to ask the silly
> > question. Add in wait time in line and the
> fact
> > that I couldn't find an associate on the floor
> > anywhere and I geniunely needed help finding an
> > item on my real grocery line, well, I was not
> > happy when I left the store an hour later.
> >
> > And does anyone else get an unbelievable number
> of
> > calls from this MSC asking you take shops they
> are
> > desperate to fill?
>
> yep and they pay...$5.00 + $9.00 (reimbursement)
> all for a lot of frustration and lots of involved
> narratives.

I don't understand waiting for twenty minutes for someone in a focus department. I often find no one in the produce department and report it as such. I act like a normal customer...would a normal customer wait 20 minutes at a meat counter...NOOOOO and especially not to ask if rare meat is bad for you. Typically I don't have trouble finding anyone at the meat department but couldn't for the life of me. Stood at the counter a few minutes three times and looked at it each time I passed by ... no one = no one to evaluate. I have been doing these since they came back on the boards and have reported no one in focus departments regularly and had no problems at all. My "policy" is to browse through the department three times in that half hour and look as I pass by on other zips back and forth through the store and if no one is there...then no one is there.

Liz

Yep, I won't do those TS grocery stores anymore. Way too much work, for too little pay. The old reports weren't too bad, but these new ones....no way.

TS is a very cheap MSC.

Adding in reinbursements in as pay is ridiculous.

They way they offer distance pay in emails is laughable......

$4 for a 50 mile round trip........

I have done a number of jobs for them in the past but they always seem to turn me down
lately when I actually (shocking) want to get paid for work done at a rate more than min wage....

New questions are ridiculous. What's the best way to cook a rare steak? Who would ask such a question?

kenasch Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> New questions are ridiculous. What's the best way
> to cook a rare steak? Who would ask such a
> question?


I do agree the new questions are not great. I do some involved interaction grocery shops for another MSC and they let me ask my own question which I think makes sense. I know the shops we are doing now for MSI are done fairly regularly so you know they are getting hit with the same questions too often.

Liz

They called me on Saturday to do some of those parking lot assignments they can never fill it seems. The scheduler was nice and I said that I wasn't interested in doing them at all. She demanded to know why (the niceness ended) and got irate with me. I told her that they were nowhere near me to begin with even with the bonus and I was not interested in doing them. She hung up on me in a huff. Oh well.

It sounds like many of us are having similar results with these shops. I'm glad I'm not alone.

My year just ended with them, so it was time to renew my credentials to be a "field agent".
I found I did exactly one field agent shop for them and just barely broke even on the expense, let alone the ridiculous amount of questions for $17! Honestly, why does anyone work for this company? Am I missing something?

One shopper's trash is another shopper's treasure.

They have other jobs that I really enjoy.

The grocery ones definitely sound like a loss. I don't even have to do one to see that, just the description is enough.

Breaking News....

I think this forum is having an impact because I am now getting email-after-email from Trendsource practically begging for grocery shops to be completed and even offering a bonus....a whole $5.00 (not a typo, folks...$5.00) which increases the pay to a whopping $10.00 and this $10.00 is remuneration for a frustrating narrative-heavy report and for a shop that needs to be done at peak hours in a grocery store. I think not, Trendsource.

I noticed that the competitor locations are almost gone in my area and only the assumed client stores remain. Obviously it didn't take shoppers long to realize the competitor stores are far easier, particularly when they are small stores with fewer service counters.

kenasch Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> New questions are ridiculous. What's the best way
> to cook a rare steak? Who would ask such a
> question?


Well, I might, if I wanted to please a guest who liked meat rare. My preferred way to cook meat is to get every trace of pinkness out.

A butcher will tell you if you want your beef cooked well done, don't buy a steak

Yeah, I think chefs feel the same way. Like Ishmael, in my opinion, well done is perfectly done and, well, sometimes chefs like to make a point.

(heart)



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 07/26/2014 06:55PM by stilllearning.

You know, now that I think of it, it's interesting that no one said, "Wonderful! We've got new questions!" No one said, "Hey, they dropped the BOB requirement! Great!" I forget who in this thread complained about the narrative requirement, which seem to me to be minimal.

Ishmael Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> You know, now that I think of it, it's interesting
> that no one said, "Wonderful! We've got new
> questions!" No one said, "Hey, they dropped the
> BOB requirement! Great!" I forget who in this
> thread complained about the narrative requirement,
> which seem to me to be minimal.


I love Trendsource, imo they have the nicest schedulers in the business so far. In regard to the questions I just work the question into the conversation I don't just go to the butcher and say "what is the best way to ......"

I hope this forum is having an impact. I've been getting a ton of emails with bonuses too. But, they're all the ORIGIANAL store and not the competitor shops. Those are the ones that I'd avoid.

Even though TS has been an okay company, they're not my favorite. If they tripled the fee & reimbursement, I'd consider these grocery shops again. The small competitive stores are MUCH easier.