I know it's been talked about before, but right now I'm frustrated with the scheduling process for IPSOS. I hate how you have to wait sometimes a day or two while your shop application sits in pending status. It really makes it difficult to effectively plan routes. Just needed to vent.

I 100% agree. It seems to depend on the tasks or schedulers involved.. The last round of audits where assigned super fast. The current Tech and Phone shops are super slow and you will wait days to just have them disappear from your requests.

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 09/13/2019 05:27AM by jaaron2k.

Jaaron2k. Please edit you post. ICA violation to reveal client of an MSC and against forum rules.

Exactly why I do not take their shops. I do not like to wait 3 or 4 days while the scheduler decides who gets the assignment.

i've had this with schedulers too. What I've learned to do, is to make the request, then move on with my job. If I see something else come thru, say request b, that is a conflict, I request it. If I am assigned request b before the IPSOS job comes thru, I simply refuse the IPSOS shop, leaving my reasoning if there is a place. Just as MSC's can hold jobs for us, I don't hold time for work.

I had interesting situation with them. They assigned me 6 shops. I'm heading out to do but noticed I didn't see them on my board. I'm like huh?? I emailed twice. No one ever responded ..????????‍♀️

It wasn't always like this. It changed for me at least around end of 2018

Some shoppers are aware of this and others are not. Some of their shops are done by an internal scheduler, but others are done by a scheduling company. Also Ipsos just acquired GFK (or something like that). The waiting forever for the tech and phone shops (and a few random others) are always with one scheduler. That scheduler has a full time job at a hospital (which means an 8 hour shift is never an 8 hour shift - it's always longer). That is his first priority (per a message I received from him). I was told that if it is his weekend to work, he may not even look at the job board for 2.5 days and then, there are jobs that were due 2-3 days ago that appear in red (because they are overdue), and they still just sit there. Some are due the day I go to their site and it is 9 or 10 PM - no way you can do a shop at that time of night. I have sent screen shots of page after page of "overdue shops" that were never assigned and never updated with a new due date, to Ipsos and I have also emailed them. But they do nothing and keep the same scheduler. The ladies that schedule through the scheduling company do a great job and I love doing their shops and working with them. They respond very quickly to emails and requests. I really wish Ipsos would tell the scheduling company that the guy that lets shops sit forever, can no longer be a scheduler for their shops. Not really sure why the scheduling company keeps him because if he is not scheduling shops, and shops are not completed, then they don't make money. Go figure

Yes, if I see that Greg is the scheduler, I don't even apply.

@ATLShopper wrote:

Yes, if I see that Greg is the scheduler, I don't even apply.

That's too bad, but more possibilities for me.

Of the 15 shops I have requested of Greg in the past 30 days, 14 were assigned. The missing one was not scheduled due to a rotation violation. Of the hundreds requested over the past year for iPsos in general? Same one not assigned.

Might you be requesting in an ineffective manner? I usually know within an hour of applying if I have been assigned or not.

@ATLShopper wrote:

Yes, if I see that Greg is the scheduler, I don't even apply.

Which Greg? Greg Zonker? I like that guy. He used to schedule party stores years ago.

@nslinhar wrote:

@ATLShopper wrote:

Yes, if I see that Greg is the scheduler, I don't even apply.

That's too bad, but more possibilities for me.

Of the 15 shops I have requested of Greg in the past 30 days, 14 were assigned. The missing one was not scheduled due to a rotation violation. Of the hundreds requested over the past year for iPsos in general? Same one not assigned.

Might you be requesting in an ineffective manner? I usually know within an hour of applying if I have been assigned or not.

How would you suggest requesting in an effective manner? I don't know of a better way (and I don't know if one exists) than what I have been doing. I go to the job board, find a shop that I would like to perform, and then apply. I select the date and write in the note which date I can complete the shop. Oftentimes, after I haven't heard anything in a day or two, I'll send a direct email to the scheduler, which usually doesn't receive a response. It certainly depends on which scheduler I'm dealing with. But, in general, it's my belief that IPSOS should generate a much more effective way to schedule shops.

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 09/14/2019 09:30PM by Snuffycuts99.

I was told by a few schedulers who schedule for different MSCs that use Shop Metrics that they don't read the notes. It's best to go ahead and send the direct email at the same time you apply. That works the best for me so far. Hope you aren't my competition in my area!

JASFLALMT....I wouldn't worry about my competition. I've been MS'ing in my area for nearly a decade. If you happen to be in the same area, I think any effect on your workload would have been realized by now.

I was pretty much joking and have no worries, I have more than enough shops to keep me busy, LOL. I have been MSing in my area for over 18 years now...that being said, when I email the IPSOS schedulers, I am always able to get the 8-12 shops I request in my bundle for the month. I do realize I have nothing to worry about!

You're certainly more of a veteran than myself! But, I am curious...do you never experience problems having shops assigned with IPSOS? I wouldn't say my problems are really bad...but they just annoy me from time to time. With almost every other MSC that I work with, shops are either able to be self assigned, or the scheduler assigns the shops within a few hours max. It does sound like you schedule your routes out further than I do. I typically like to schedule my routes maybe two to three days in advance. I am not a shopper that has my entire month planned out beforehand.

Yeah, I don't plan EVERYTHING out...but I know that I am going to have certain shops in certain areas with different MSCs over a certain period of time, and I request other shops around that. I am more of a "plan the week ahead" and not so much "plan 2 or more weeks ahead" type person, though if the shop pays enough I will and can plan well in advance. Oh, and merchandising jobs. I rarely go further than 20 miles from home unless someone is paying me mileage and drive time for anything. But it all works well together. Anyway, IPSOS really only has one type of shop I will do at base rate, and of course I can't name the client, but as far as their bank shops and tech shops, those have to be bonused or I won't touch 'em.

go figure. sounds like them. they need to be avoided like the plague. lol

Has anyone EVER gotten a reply from mystery.shopping@ipsos.com?
I have sent three messages with the same question over three days and no reply. It is the only contact offered for the specific shop project I have. Is it just a dummy email address that no one there monitors? Very frustrating. They may have become just too big and lost their way.

Okay, now I am getting scared. I love Ipsos and have for many many years but now they are not listing schedulers. Some of the regular shipping shops just posted in my area and there are no schedulers listed on the info, the work hours, the email notification or the guidelines. As stated above I already tried the general email which gets no response at all. What is going on?

I feel your pain: I have over a dozen applications in pending status for 2 days now. I really need to know if they will be assigned to me, as I have built a route around them. For this particular client, I have successfully completed these shops in the past. I wonder if there would be a way to allow self-assign for these once you've completed X number of them successfully? I am trying to plan about 10 days out, and I would hate to retract my applications and rework my route, but a girl does have options, IPSOS!

I should look and see who the scheduler is...now I am curious.

ETA: Not this Greg character, apparently. Does anyone know if they frown on emails asking for updates on assignment requests? I've never had to wait this long.

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 09/28/2019 01:30AM by MamaBearBlue.

Eh, I think it's only a plague to you and maybe a couple of others, but I am thinking you all are the minority or they would have no shopper base, LOL! Please do avoid them, that way there area plenty of shops for other people in your area who do like them.

@justme5 wrote:

go figure. sounds like them. they need to be avoided like the plague. lol

@Snuffycuts99 wrote:

@nslinhar wrote:

@ATLShopper wrote:

Yes, if I see that Greg is the scheduler, I don't even apply.

That's too bad, but more possibilities for me.

Of the 15 shops I have requested of Greg in the past 30 days, 14 were assigned. The missing one was not scheduled due to a rotation violation. Of the hundreds requested over the past year for iPsos in general? Same one not assigned.

Might you be requesting in an ineffective manner? I usually know within an hour of applying if I have been assigned or not.

How would you suggest requesting in an effective manner? I don't know of a better way (and I don't know if one exists) than what I have been doing. I go to the job board, find a shop that I would like to perform, and then apply. I select the date and write in the note which date I can complete the shop. Oftentimes, after I haven't heard anything in a day or two, I'll send a direct email to the scheduler, which usually doesn't receive a response. It certainly depends on which scheduler I'm dealing with. But, in general, it's my belief that IPSOS should generate a much more effective way to schedule shops.

I submit my request and *immediately* send an email to the scheduler. Are you out of rotation? Greg has caught me on this, and sent a personalized reply regarding.

I never heard back about the shops I applied for...I wonder if I should just cancel my applications. I really wanted to do them, but I imagine that if the scheduler wanted to give them to me, I would have them, and now I am in a position where I am passing up other opportunities so I can "hold" the time I will know I need to complete these. I don't want the scheduler to get annoyed with me, but I already asked via email twice so she knows I am interested. I will admit that I don't understand why a scheduler wouldn't jump at the opportunity to get 20 shops done by a shopper that you can see has successfully completed these before, especially since I am not asking for a bonus or anything like that. I also don't want to write an email that seems like I am "threatening" to withdraw my application if I don't "get my way"...

I am so frustrated right now. I really like IPSOS, too!

It's a good address. I sent an email there over the weekend and got a reply first thing this (Monday) morning. I don't know who monitors the address, but it appears to have been referred to the appropriate person.

@sestrahelena wrote:

Has anyone EVER gotten a reply from mystery.shopping@ipsos.com?
I have sent three messages with the same question over three days and no reply. It is the only contact offered for the specific shop project I have. Is it just a dummy email address that no one there monitors? Very frustrating. They may have become just too big and lost their way.

None of my 3 were ever answered.