@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.