@Tarantado wrote:
Any suggestions on which kind of shops to apply for as a new evaluator to Coyle?
@roxanne9153 wrote:
Could someone please help me understand with these abbreviations?
@bgriffin wrote:
Q:Why dies Coyle appear to dislike full time shoppers ?
@LisaSTL wrote:
Really Steve? So full time shoppers are poor dolts who could never in their entire life frequent an upscale establishment, freak out if payment is a few days late and can't ask about or order wine?
@LisaSTL wrote:
You painted "full time" shoppers with one broad brushstroke.
@winemaker wrote:
Steve, What is a "Full Time Shopper"...?
@SteveSoCal wrote:
...You yourself have stated that there's no value for you in a $400 prixe-fixe meal, but there is a value for someone who was going to buy that meal anyway and can instead spend a few hours writing a report about it in lieu of payment. Hence; they are a better candidate for the assignment. They are also less likely to complain if their payment is a few days behind schedule, be upset about receiving a less-than-perfect score, be afraid of asking question about wine...or even ordering wine for that matter, etc.
Basically, full-time shoppers are not the target demographic for many Coyle clients, so why would they gear towards utilizing them if 'civilians' are available to take the assignments and have a track record of submitting superior work with fewer complaints?
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Steve, thanks for the insight. It absolutely makes sense that they are searching for shoppers to best match their client's target demographic.
Now that we have an idea of what a good candidate would be for a $400 meal assignment, can you give us an idea of what they are looking for in candidates for their cruise shops?
@SteveSoCal wrote:
@bgriffin wrote:
Q:Why dies Coyle appear to dislike full time shoppers ?
A: I'm guessing you know the answer to this, but I'll take your bait. It's not a matter of liking or disliking any particular shoppers. I like full-time shoppers very much and am friends with a number of them. Do I think they are the best choice as evaluators for high-end establishments?...not always. So your question is really about why Coyle prefers not to utilize full-time shoppers.
If you are scheduling people into high-end properties, your best bet for an evaluator is someone with a very high credit limit who potentially has even stayed at the property before on their own. They should not be concerned with the pay rate, not think they know everything about how MSing works, not have an issue keeping a charge of many thousands of dollars on their credit card for a few weeks and not compare your company to every other one. That doesn't really match the description of a full-time shopper, does it?
To be honest, I think the issue really stems from the opposite of what you stated; Full-time shoppers seemingly do not like Coyle, so they do not make good evaluators. You yourself have stated that there's no value for you in a $400 prixe-fixe meal, but there is a value for someone who was going to buy that meal anyway and can instead spend a few hours writing a report about it in lieu of payment. Hence; they are a better candidate for the assignment. They are also less likely to complain if their payment is a few days behind schedule, be upset about receiving a less-than-perfect score, be afraid of asking question about wine...or even ordering wine for that matter, etc.
Basically, full-time shoppers are not the target demographic for many Coyle clients, so why would they gear towards utilizing them if 'civilians' are available to take the assignments and have a track record of submitting superior work with fewer complaints?
@tralynnme wrote:
Q: Can you give us an idea of what they are looking for in candidates for their cruise shops?
@SoCalMama wrote:
Well, from my experience, Steve is correct. Regular guests at these hotels are generally clientele with 6 figure incomes. Most full-time MS'ers generally can't hold $5,000 on a credit card for one job (in addition to everything else on their cards) for 6-8 weeks without blinking an eye. That doesn't mean that there are not a handful of full-time shoppers that can do this. It's just pretty rare. Some of us have other income in addition to MS that allows us to do these lifestyle types of jobs. And honestly, if I am doing a $5000 job, I really don't care if I am getting $150 or $500 in pay if all of my travel is paid. I put $25,000 - $30,000 on a credit card ten times for an international client. They never found another shopper who had the credit limit to do it. So, based on that experience and my experience as a scheduler in the past, I'd say that Steve is on the money.
@Tarantado wrote:
Interesting. Forgive me if this derails the thread and is considered out of topic, but has anyone (or will Coyle) find it useful to provide this experiences and capabilities upfront, maybe in the form of a resume?
Honestly, if information like this (able to hold tens of thousands of dollars of reimbursed expense for long periods of time, ability of travel, accessibility to post-security of certain airports, holds certain credit cards, etc.), I can easily furnish a "mystery shopping" resume for Coyle (or whichever MSC finds it useful), if it'll help me get my foot in for this kind of work. Like SoCalMama stated, if they're willing to cover traveling expenses like that, I can hold those kind of amounts as well lol.
@Professional Guest wrote:
I would simply provide the qualifications you think would make you best suited for the assignment in your application.
@bgriffin wrote:
Also I fail to understand why writing a report for a $300 meal is a requirement for writing a report for a $200 hotel room.
@SteveSoCal wrote:
1. Apply for shops that most others might not want (phone shops), or ones that have magically re-appeared on the board close to the due date.
2. Get set up for shopping in Nevada and take assignments there to prove yourself.
3. Visit Arizona. Tons of shops and not enough shoppers there
4. When you apply, don't say things like , "Any day." It doesn't seem realistic, even if it's true. Pick a few specific days throughout the month and block them out on your calendar so you don't have to reschedule something else if you get assigned the shop. Pick different days of the week as well. The schedulers need to rotate the shops over different days of the week to hit different staff members, and balance the shops for the editors throughout the month. Also, everyone asks for dinner on Saturday night, so avoid those nights.
@Professional Guest wrote:
@bgriffin wrote:
Also I fail to understand why writing a report for a $300 meal is a requirement for writing a report for a $200 hotel room.
Perhaps it's because that Bar/Dinner report is just a small part of the overall hotel report. For two-day hotel assignments, expect to write approximately 2-3 F & B reports, in addition to completing all of the other surveys as part of the assignment's package of reports for the client. Or, perhaps, there is a client that has multiple F & B assignments at one of their 5-star properties that will provide accommodations in return for you completing all of the F & B assignments, on time, one after the other, 5x, with multiple surveys due on the same day.
@Tarantado wrote:
Q: Will there be any leverage for traveling / lodging expenses to be covered or will this need to be out of my pocket?
@SteveSoCal wrote:
Don't a large number of shoppers pay travel and fees on their own to go to a conference in Vegas where they MIGHT get a chance to meet schedulers? If you are seizing an opportunity to prove yourself, don't expect your travel to be reimbursed.
I have told the story many times that I waited over a year until I had to be IN NYC for business before I could get enough restaurants with Coyle to qualify for a hotel. For me, that was worth it. Vegas and Arizona is where they currently need shoppers. Luckily, Vegas is an affordable destinations with other reasons to visit.
@Tarantado wrote:
Q: Would it be alright if your defined the quantity of Coyle restaurant and phone / web shops before you're able to "quality" for their hotel shops?
According to my tax professional, if the expense is a "necessary and integral component" to the shop, then it's a business expense. The primary purpose has to be shopping. So I think that flying to Vegas for a conference might be iffy. Taking a resort shop at a Texas beach with the purpose of mystery shopping it, but having a family member meet you there, would be all expensed. Ask yourself what the primary purpose of the trip is. That determines it.@Tarantado wrote:
This might be more of an accountant question, but can you consider the traveling expenses for traveling / lodging to show this supposed worthiness be considered tax-deductible, where applicable? These expenses can add up quite a bit, but would like to know upfront if this can be considered applicable business expenses to write off on my taxes?
@PasswordNotFound wrote:
According to my tax professional, if the expense is a "necessary and integral component" to the shop, then it's a business expense. The primary purpose has to be shopping. So I think that flying to Vegas for a conference might be iffy. Taking a resort shop at a Texas beach with the purpose of mystery shopping it, but having a family member meet you there, would be all expensed. Ask yourself what the primary purpose of the trip is. That determines it.
Nice to know about AZ. I'm guessing that they're going to be willing to pay more travel on that then.
Thanks for putting this together, Steve. I've shopped for Coyle for a long time, but don't do a huge amount of their assignments. Getting ready to apply for a few of the WS ones, though.