I almost died laughing seeing these in my job board. I rarely login to Alta (once every four months?).

I just saw some $8.00 self-storage shops and clicked on the "guide." Can't see the survey - just a two pager with broad description of the shop. It looks like a standard self-storage shop:

tour the place
check for unit cleanliness
see if the tour guide asks x/y/z questions
get some pics, etc..

But, it's for $8.00. .....$8.00!

That wouldn't even cover the mileage. Add in prep time (memorize/study shop scenario and guidelines), driving to and from the place and taking time to do the tour, uploading pics, and filling out the report...I cannot see how Alta values these shops at $8.00 base rate and prices them all as such on the board.

Are the report questions all multiple choice and less than 20 questions that can be done in 2 or 3 minutes?

Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 10/01/2019 12:09PM by shoptastic.

I'm thinking of offering $35 - reasonable? It'd seem weird, given they are listed at $8.00.

I am totally with you...I like Alta but some of their pay rates are so far off from other MSCs for identical assignments that I wonder if they ever do any internal research to see what the going rate is before posting certain shops. I noticed those storage shops and I have done them with a different MSC for $40ish when I had to actually rent the unit and do a reveal and payment reversal, $30ish if it was just an inquiry and tour.

The reports tend to take a while: they ask a lot of narrative questions, and they seem to prefer verbatim quotes, but it's nothing an experienced shopper couldn't do in 20 minutes or less with a decent amount of recall (or a hidden voice recorder, if that's your kind of thing); I think your $35 figure is reasonable. Please note that my assessment of the reporting is based on the other MSC with an assignment that looks to be identical, and I have never completed one for Alta360 (nor would I for $8.00!), so please take my assessment with however much salt you need to wash it down

I saw a LOT of gas station audits (with the mystery and reveal audit portion, so 30-45 minutes depending on how many pumps, traffic, etc.) for $8.00 with $3.00 total reimbursement with Alta- I ALWAYS do these at other companies for $16 MINIMUM plus reimbursement and that's if it's a small station, close by, on a route. They ended up "bonusing" up to $12 and I didn't even give a second thought to picking them up.

I am relatively , but not absolutely, certain this is the MSC formally named Ritter & Assoc. If so, 11+ years ago I was occasionally completing jobs for them in a small town I passed through for $15 to $25, $5 in gas and $1 reimbursement for the store. When I continually refused to accept other work that paid far below the aforementioned rate, the notices stopped. As I have not visited their page in at least a decade, I do not know if I have been deactivated, but if so, predicated upon their fees, so be it!

I actually saw a storage shop listed with $0.00 fee must have been a typo. They seem to be lowering the fees every few months. They had them for $20 then $15 Now im seeing $12 and $8.00. At these prices I would be donating my time and effort.

I offered to do one a couple months back if they would pay a $7 bonus to $15 because it was on a route and the scheduler stated they could only offer a $2 bonus. I passed on the shop.

@shoptastic wrote:

I'm thinking of offering $35 - reasonable? It'd seem weird, given they are listed at $8.00.

Hahaha. That's even funnier than their original offer! You can try but I am pretty sure that pay does not budge for any reason. Until the last few weeks of the quarter. Even then, very little.

Shopperbob, you are correct. They were Ritter.

I've done these shops. but will not touch them for $8. I wait until the get to $20 or $40.

Alta gives bonuses at the end of the month. So wait 3 weeks and they will be around $25+ for those shops.

I am starting to use Alta more over a gas station chain they picked up. Its a nice deal and I enjoy getting free gas plus cash (and some food) per location.

One scheduler for a particular gas project seems to be able to give better bonuses, from what I have experienced in my shopping area. And without much haggling. The others always say, "No, that location always gets shopped for much less" or, "I can only bonus $2 right now."

Alta which used to be Ritter seems to have become one of the lowest paying outfits. I don't but rarely check and/do work for them because of it. Occasionally near end of quarter they will accept an offer that makes the shop fair pay. These storage shops are quick and easy but I would not touch them for less than $25. This is what I have always done them at if not more.

Whatever possessed Alta to lower their fees to way below minimum wage? I used to do their gas audits from $30 to $60, in circuits, depending upon location. Now even their pay + bonuses don't come close to that. A $7 gas audit is laughable. Are shoppers actually accepting those pay rates? If so, they are hurting those shoppers who won't work for that. To those shoppers who accept such low pay, try working for other companies that pay more. If Alta has no takers, they'll raise their pay.

Shoptastic inquires--Alta360 $8.00 Self-Storage Shops - Am I Missing Something?

Bob's reply--Not missing, just momentarily forgetting that until there are no more shoppers needing/willing to toil for a pittance, a meager sum is what will be paid. I in no manner criticize Ritter, for their responsibility is not to reward contractors, but to increase shareholder profits. I, though, wish to enrich Bob, so I simply pass on those jobs for which fees are, in my opinion, inadequate.

They go up towards the end of the month if you wait. Although that's assuming everyone else will also...lol

I just did my first gig with alta (im new to doing this mystery shopping)- wondering if maybe someone can answer a question for me- it says 'hold pay' for me where it used to show they pay and reimbursement amount....does 'hold pay' just mean its waiting tfor them to cut s check? not that they arent paying me, right? As for my first gig with them, had the gig not been close to me the pay wouldnt have been worth it. what kills me is that they wanted me to spend MORE than 10 bucks (which theyd reimburse) but only reimburse me 10! (besides the pay for the gig itself). I absolutely made sure i didnt go over 10.25, lol.

They hold pay until the shop is confirmed.

Alta is a legitimate company. Like all Mystery Shopping Companies (MSCs), they have requirements for completing shops. Some MSCs permit shoppers to correct items or to respond to questions, some do not. There are shops that do not offer any pay but require outlays of many tens of dollars (sometimes hundreds of dollars for fine dining), and you will find a lot of discussions here as to whether or not people should "work for food." Even casual dining shops require that you front maybe $5 to $20 which will be reimbursed upon proper completion of the shop. When I do a $200 fine dining shop and have to pay $10 more than I will be reimbursed, I view it as a great discount. Not everyone here will agree. But I think that everyone will agree that someone who will experience severe financial hardship if something goes south with a shop and the shopper is not reimbursed, should not even apply for the shop.

In another message, you said, "...Ive been screwed over by one already (did all the work and they refused to pay me because they said one question wasnt answered,,mind you there were dozens of questions and they didnt even ask me to fix the one I supposedly missed)." As I stated, MSCs are not required to allow you to fix mistakes, or to answer questions. Unlike employees, we have very limited rights. I am mentioning this because you stated that you are new. As a contractor, you are free to accept, or not, any assignment. But when you accept a shop, you are required to complete it correctly in order to be paid. When I worked as an employee for a large company, I occasionally made mistakes. I got paid anyway. That is not the case here. Shoppers who develop good reputations with a given MSC sometimes get considerations not accorded to other shoppers. Some MSCs are super rigid (such as Market Force), while others really try to help shoppers. I suggest that you research each MSC here before you accept a shop the first time. And for each MSC, start slowly and cautiously.

@unruhe5517 wrote:

I just did my first gig with alta (im new to doing this mystery shopping)- wondering if maybe someone can answer a question for me- it says 'hold pay' for me where it used to show they pay and reimbursement amount....does 'hold pay' just mean its waiting tfor them to cut s check? not that they arent paying me, right? As for my first gig with them, had the gig not been close to me the pay wouldnt have been worth it. what kills me is that they wanted me to spend MORE than 10 bucks (which theyd reimburse) but only reimburse me 10! (besides the pay for the gig itself). I absolutely made sure i didnt go over 10.25, lol.

Wrong. It says "pending editing" until the shop is edited. If it says "hold pay" the shop was rejected and the shopper will not be paid.

@johnb974 wrote:

They hold pay until the shop is confirmed.

They have some good apartment shops though.

The reports are not super fast to do

I am niot getting out of bed for 8.00. I could work at Walmart for more