As I've been reading through the board and using the search tab to answer my questions, I see this issue come up a lot. It seems that there will inevitably come a time when I will have a problem with a shop and be faced with the decision to either submit a report that doesn't meet the guidelines in order to hit my deadline or I miss the deadline in order to submit a report that meets the guidelines. Either one leaves me vulnerable to consequences from the MSC.

Any feedback on what you think is the bigger "sin" - be late or be wrong?


****Edited**** My apologies for putting this on the wrong board. It was meant to go on the Mystery Shopping Discussion board.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 10/30/2015 05:21PM by KimRod.

I get what you are saying but your question is hard to answer because it depends on what happens and on how wonky it is. And it depends on how you handled it.

So far, in 8 years of mystery shopping (knock on wood!) I have not had to make that decision. I concentrate on reading the guideline and understanding exactly what is supposed to happen AND what the company is trying to measure. If I don't understand, I question it before the day of the shop. When wonky things happen on a shop or when an employee doesn't do the right thing (pisses me off, how dare they mess up my shop by screwing up!), I make it happen the way it should. By this, I do not mean prompt them to what they are supposed to say or do. I mean I make sure I perform the steps required of me to the letter.

For example, a shopper wrote in not long ago that she was doing a TX Roadhouse shop. You are required to sit in the dining room. If you sit in the bar area, you will not be paid. The hostess led her to the bar area to seat her. She allowed herself to be seated in the bar area and after the shop frantically e-mailed the scheduler to say her shop should be accepted because the hostess seated her in the bar area. Twice hostesses have led me to the bar area. I just smiled and said very calmly "Oh, dear, this is too close to the bar for me. Could you please seat me in the dining area? Thanks!" and then I turned and started to walk back to the Hostess Desk. Both times I was immediately seated in the dining area and the hostess was very gracious.

Someone else wrote recently he was unable to ask the required question, I think an objection, because the store was crowded and he couldn't get the attention of the associate. He was required to make a purchase and he did make that purchase. I would have held up the line and asked my question.

You pose a very good question. But the answer is very subjective and depends on the details of a particular shop. You'll probably just have to use your best judgement at the time.

@AustinMom wrote:

"I When wonky things happen on a shop or when an employee doesn't do the right thing (pisses me off, how dare they mess up my shop by screwing up!), I make it happen the way it should. By this, I do not mean prompt them to what they are supposed to say or do. I mean I make sure I perform the steps required of me to the letter."

Ha! It ticks me off, too, when the employee won't cooperate with my script.

I get what you're saying and I was more looking for experiences than a hard and fast "rule" on this. In fact, your answer confirmed what I had been thinking on this topic. You have to be very prepared, completely understand what you're supposed to do and have the chutzpah to see it through - even if it means holding up the line, or being re-seated. I find that I'm frequently put into "mildly uncomfortable" situations on shops because I'm trying to hit all the points in my guidelines.

I used to see a life coach pretty regularly.... back when they were called bartenders.

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 10/30/2015 06:54PM by KimRod.

There are going to be unforeseen circumstances. We have to think on our feet, and fast.

If faced with the choice - my choice would be to report it, and explain. Not submitting a report on time may result in a system-generated repost of the shop to the board. "Late" is late. "Wrong" is subjective, or can be remedied. I want to save my shop.

And in the too many cases that no provision is made on the report to provide a narrative of "unusual events or anything that happened during this assignment that needs explanation", after I submit the report, I e-mail the scheduler, the help-desk, or anybody at the company that I worked with on the shop with the subject line "additional info on shop ID XXXXX".

Many times I get a response "thanks for the additional information...it has been forwarded to the client and we are sure he will appreciate the additional information" "thank you for your additional insights as to what happened"....etc., etc., etc. Of course, just as often, I get no response. That's cool, too -- if it ever comes back to bite me in the you-know-what, I'll just send a copy of my earlier e-mail!

Never, ever, EVER contemplate sending in a report that is not honest...."wrong" may be subjective, but a falsehood is not. I have cancelled a shop after completing it when I felt I could not tell the truth I just told
the scheduler I felt I could not file an honest report.. Another time, the very same scheduler literally walked me through the report (different shop) so that the report had the truth in it, but with explanations that gave a
positive spin to the report. Well, not "spin", because that implies something negative. What happened was a large dog was between me and the business; the sales associate's first words were "hold on a second while
I call off the dog", not the "welcome to XXXX, what can I help you find today?" the client was looking for. However, once he did have the dog under control, he did say exactly what was required. It was just that it wasn't the FIRST thing he said. The explanation served its purpose.

However, in that instance, the scheduler was so responsive, I was still within the time parameters to file.

Fortunately, most of the shops I've done that had something "wonky" happen have a place in the report for comments to the editor or a box for "unusual" happenings. If ever faced with the choice of submitting a report late or sending on a report that sounds bizarre, I'd send it in on time, then immediately e-mail the scheduler with an explanation. They can always have you edit the report afterward, or they can attach your extra note to ride with your report. I don't think I'd risk having the report rejected because it was late.

I was sent the wrong shop type paperwork and the minute I read the paperwork, I knew it did not match the shop type. I had to use my common sense and shop it as an A shop because it did not have the B shop inside it. My instincts were correct and I was paid with an apology for sending me the wrong paper work

Sometimes there is no-one to call. You ask if you should submit the report or wait for your scheduler, knowing it will be late. I would submit it followed by an explanation inside the report, an email to my scheduler and a phone call if possible.

You can't wipe a "late report" off your record. But you "can" submit your report and contact your scheduler, hoping for the best. At worst, she will have you re-shop the location if the report can't be accepted.

"Wonky" to me was when I was rear-ended in the drive thru at a FF restaurant during a shop. Fortunately the line was so slow, I checked out the damage and told the driver to forget about it and got back in my car before the line moved! I have the scuff mark on my bumper as a reminder of that day. LOL My car is 17 years old with 195,000 miles so a scuff mark is the least of it's problems.