Has anyone else gotten deactivated lately by Marketforce?

Did they give you a reason? If not, it is best to contact them. Sometimes they have a reason and you won't get back in, but sometimes it is a simple error and you can get reinstated.

Yes, I got deactivated. The MF rep who called me gave me 12 minutes to return her call before she deactivated me. It was a simple little issue that I could clear-up within seconds, but she cut me loose instead. After calling her and leaving two messages over 24 hours, I realized she wasn't waiting patiently by her phone for my call as she expected me to be doing. She then called and emailed me 3 different instructions to submit my information. I was re-activated because it was something minor, but my fee has increased. I have been a good shopper for them and have helped them a lot with a certain shop in my area. I enjoy working for them, but their lack of loyalty was an eye opener.

The monthly deactivate quota must have been near. They do this a lot.

What would be the benefit for MF to deactivate shoppers? Just curious.

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 10/29/2016 11:10AM by bocasman.

New perspectives by a different set of eyes may be one reason.

@bocasman wrote:

What would be the benefit for MF to deactivate shoppers? Just curious.

Market Force is a huge operation with a lot of shoppers. It is easy to register online. There's no interview and they don't check references. The shops and reports are easy enough for a totally inexperienced shopper. They get more and more shoppers every day. With an overload of shoppers, they can pick and choose. They regularly deactivate some, making more shops for their remaining shoppers.

I think the benefit of deactivating some shoppers regularly is that Market Force can get exactly what they want. They spend no time recruiting, testing, checking references, or training. Shoppers are easy to get and an individual shopper has little value to them.

Demographics seem important. I live in an area where many seniors are registered, and seniors seem more likely to be deactivated. A relative living in a college town says most shoppers are college-aged, so Market Force appears more eager to retain older shoppers. High-maintenance shoppers seem to get the boot. If a shopper contacts them too often, or if QC and Help Desk contacts a shopper too often, he is high-maintenance and may not have a long relationship with them. Having more than a couple of unsuccessful shops is also a red flag. An unsuccessful shop means they need to reschedule another shopper. Most times when a new shopper gets it wrong and doesn't get paid, he is furious and desperate to contact Help Desk and "work it out" so he can get paid. In reality, his bigger worry should be that this is a strike against him and he may be on his way to deactivation.

And, sometimes, deactivation is a computer glitch or a mistake, and Help Desk can fix it and reinstate the shopper.

I might be completely wrong, but these are just my thoughts after working for them for 6 years. I like Market Force, but I work for a lot of different MSCs. Market Force may deactivate me tomorrow, and it would not break my heart. I do not expect Market Force to be "loyal" to me. I am not particularly loyal to them. While I do the best job I can for every job I do, for Market Force as well as other companies, Market Force is just one of many many companies that I work for. And I am just one of many shoppers that work for them.

Thanks roflwofl, for the detailed and valuable explanation.

they suck

Thinking that there's a deactivation quota is kind of paranoid, and an unsubstantiated stretch.

@amberngriffinco wrote:

they suck

Since you keep posting rude one-lines, I guess that means they deactivated you. Sour grapes?

That reminds me of the Carvana commercial - they all dance around singing "That didn't suck!" And Market Force doesn't suck. They do deactivate shoppers regularly because they have an overload. Since they are such a great company to work with, some of the deactivated shoppers are furious and like to post rude one-liners frequently. Some of them never seem to get over it. amberngrifinco has been angrily posting since 2014 and she can't seem to get over it. She must have really loved Market Force to stay mad so long, huh?

@amberngriffinco wrote:

they suck

Let me guess. You were deactivated by MF?

@Mert wrote:

Thinking that there's a deactivation quota is kind of paranoid, and an unsubstantiated stretch.

Give how often it seems to happen, no I don't think it's a stretch. Best guess is that they have some metric that says "After x amount of time a shopper is good/too good at what we want and we want other people doing what they do" so they drop the axe.

I'm guessing that perhaps another reason they may deactivate seasoned shoppers is because the newbies are more willing to take the low-paying, non-bonused shops.

@Mert wrote:

Thinking that there's a deactivation quota is kind of paranoid, and an unsubstantiated stretch.

There seems to be a lot of paranoid shoppers and conspiracy theorists visiting the forum lately. I can think of much better ways to spend my time.

I was beamed up by aliens but I never got deactivated from MF...yet. I am sure one day I will try to log in and find the fate that has befallen so many others before me.

This should be a new thread; How long have you worked for Market Force; if you've gotten axed, what were the circumstances? How many boo boos have you made? How many shops to you take each month? Do you /Did you say no when they called? That would show if they axe people based on the time they've been shopping with MF; given they are an active shopper or not, or some other criteria. Yea, I'll start that thread if no one else does.

I've been with them since way back when they were Shop n Check. I've never been axed. I've made boo boos but nothing too bad I guess. I take between 2 to 30 shops per month but nothing consistently. I rarely answer when they call unless it's my favorite schedulers. On occasions when schedulers I don't know have called and I answered, I've often said no.

They have been deactivating a lot if shoppers. I am trying to be available whenever they call and still try to be fair in asking for a bonus. I enjoy working for them, and living where I do, they are the only MSC that has work in a reasonable distance.

They've taken a back seat to other companies imo since they lowered the payout of several shops. And most shops offered can tend to be a bit too much red meat for one man to handle.

I haven't been totally deactivated by them, but they have taken me off of two restaurant companies. They took me off of the client name removed one 3 years ago and in Aug. I was taken off of the client name removed. I did ask about the last one and was told they couldn't tell me why. I think it was because I had been doing them for 5 years! I still do other shops for them.

Mod note: For a member who has made over 40 posts over a four year period you should be familiar with the Forum rule which is on almost every page and which states, "Do not reveal the clients of mystery shopping companies." It is understood you didn't completely reveal the client's name but your hints were so blatant that it would be hard not to know who you meant. Naming MF's clients is probably also a breach of the MF ICA.

New Faces to do shops where you may have been recognized

@spicy1 wrote:

This should be a new thread; How long have you worked for Market Force; if you've gotten axed, what were the circumstances? How many boo boos have you made? How many shops to you take each month? Do you /Did you say no when they called? That would show if they axe people based on the time they've been shopping with MF; given they are an active shopper or not, or some other criteria. Yea, I'll start that thread if no one else does.

So you have now been axed by MF? Why start a thread? If you are axed by any company, move on and register with other companies.

Figuring out critera based on perceptions from others would tell us very little, perhaps nothing. Telling everybody about the circumstances of being booted from MF seems pointless because most don't know the circumstances. And they don't necessarily realize the significance of what did or did not happen. They don't necessarily remember how many booboos they made. Do they even know all the booboos the company thinks they made? Do they remember how many times they were contacted by QC or Help Desk or how many times they e-mailed Help Desk? Or they don't realize a "little" mistake counts. Or they think something is a little mistake but it isn't.

Or they e-mailed the Help Desk many times or they canceled a lot, only they don't realize it was a lot. I remember one poster told us MF said his cancelation rate was 18%. He was angry and didn't think 18% was bad, but he was shocked to hear that other shoppers thought it was huge. He saw absolutely no reason for his deactivation, although others here were not surprised that someone canceling 18% of the time was deactivated.

Any reports we get from posters are likely not to include anything that poster doesn't think is significant, although the company, or other shopper, might consider it significant.

A friend of mine got taken off the identifying information removed shops... identifying information removed appear to be gone from this MSC.

Mod note: See previous post re: naming clients

I'm fairly new and have been shopping with them from the beginning; they recently deactivated me because I hadn't done a minimum number (not sure if I can post the minimum amount they told me) of shops per month with them.That's OK, there are lots of other companies to work for, although they were always nice and very fair with me!

No, JAY, I've not been axed by Market Force.

You have covered every reason a shopper might have been axed, given an answer to why all the little variables that could be discussed are not relevant, why have a conversation about it. Good thing some of us know so much to help stop us from having a conversation that would otherwise be fruitless! I mean, what's the point, right.

I agree with JayC. Do we really need ANOTHER thread about MF? spicy1, why would you feel the need to start a new thread when you already posted what you wanted to say in this thread, which is in fact about MF? There is no need for redundancy.

Oh, Sybil2, thank you so much for bringing me to my senses and advising me about what thread to start and what threads are not necessary. And thank you so much for pointing out the fact that I must have already said what I wanted to say in this thread and for counseling me on not starting a new thread. And thank you for introducing me to the word 'redundancy' and for so eloquently explaining what it means and for teaching me about how I have 'been' the embodiment of the word. I will write down, on paper, your wise words of wisdom and I shall treasure them and pass them on to my children, who will pass them on to theirs.

@spicy1 wrote:

Oh, Sybil2, thank you so much for bringing me to my senses and advising me about what thread to start and what threads are not necessary. And thank you so much for pointing out the fact that I must have already said what I wanted to say in this thread and for counseling me on not starting a new thread.

You are soooooo welcome!

@spicy1 wrote:

And thank you for introducing me to the word 'redundancy' and for so eloquently explaining what it means and for teaching me about how I have 'been' the embodiment of the word. I will write down, on paper, your wise words of wisdom and I shall treasure them and pass them on to my children, who will pass them on to theirs.

Show me where I explained the meaning of the word redundancy to you. Show me where I said that you have been the embodiment of the word. I find it hilarious that those are the conclusions you came to though. I give you a C+ on the Snark Scale. There is room for improvement. And you are soooooo welcome!

Mod note: antagonistic post removed