Initial Analysis of New Ipsos Gas Station

UPDATE: The scheduler replied. The date you sign up for is the date you will do the shop.

Do not read so much, look about you and think of what you see there.
Richard Feynman-- letter to Ashok Arora, 4 January 1967, published in Perfectly Reasonable Deviations from the Beaten Track (2005) p. 230

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More Discussions About Ipsos Mystery Shopping (All Companies)

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Well. That is a shopper - unfriendly pain in the buttocks. I wonder if it's a client requirement? Date flexibility when completing shops that are not right up against the deadline is one way that it makes it easier for lower paying shops to become acceptable. Making it harder to plan makes it less likely that shoppers are going to grab them at low rates.

They want pictures in "brightly lit" circumstances. So it's raining, what do you do?

I plan on having further discussions with the scheduler. This is what the description says:

"Shoppers may self-assign shops and can adjust their shop date one time online."

I have 6 scheduled on the same date. I cannot do all 6 and if it is raining, I cannot do any.

I took 1/2 hour, but I took photos of all the pumps, if possible. The guidelines require two close up of one pump: overall pump plus close in of the bezel (want to see the stickers). However, most of the ones in my area are urban, so I'll have several pumps with infractions. Each infraction needs a photo.

The scheduler is going to manually change the date for me. But in the future, you can only change one time in the future.

They want to be able to see the colors. If your camera is unable to show the colors in low light, then I assume they won't accept the shop. Unfair? Yes. A pain? Yes. Just keep that in mind when establishing a fee.

Brightly lit has several different versions depending on which scheduler or editor you are talking to. If it's dark enough for the canopy lights (or the automatic headlamps on my car) to come on it's too dark. I have very good cameras on my tablet and my phone that show all of the colors in the pictures clearly even in low light. And I'm not stopping for the rain. It rains a minimum of 3 days out of every 7 here, so I'm not stopping for the rain.

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 05/15/2022 10:27PM by Morledzep.

In my area, mold, dirt and mildew are common occurances on the underdecking of the canopy. It is hard to capture it adequately due to its position (looks like shadow in overcast skies). I have a Samsung Galaxy S10 and it takes work to get it. Not being able to report it risks getting dropped from the shops.

UPDATE: Scheduler changed dates, but instead of being assigned a date, i now can chose a date before my assigned date.

It appears that the hard last date for this current project is 5/23. As stated abovez they only need to get around half of the locations done.

Has anyone read the LOA for this shop? The 1st bullet point says: This is a pilot shop. None of the collected information will report/count toward your site score, as this shop is for testing and quality control only.

@Morledzep - it is a little confusing as in the 1st paragraph it reads ". This evaluation is for mystery shop training and calibration of scores as the new vendor" and "Note** This is not a replacement for the normal mystery shop – expect the normal shop during the quarter in addition to this Pilot Shop." The question on the ladder, is by which MSC. However, pilot programs help companies learn how a larger-scale project might work for them in practice. It provides a platform to get their fee wet; test logistics and to spot potential deficiencies before implementing a full scale program. In any, case looks like the shops will again be done at the beginning of the next regularly scheduled quarter. Not a bad thing, given the price of gas.

@Morledzep wrote:

Has anyone read the LOA for this shop? The 1st bullet point says: This is a pilot shop. None of the collected information will report/count toward your site score, as this shop is for testing and quality control only.

The Sassie website for this program sucks! I miss MF and being able to load all the photos at once!

I did at first, but I've done 3 so far. Average time is 40 minutes, including inputting into the report to the point I just have to proofread and submit. I am thinking that if you have multiple infractions in one question, you might have to try to show them in just one photograph. Another gas station's requirements is that you can only mark the infractions on a pump that you can capture in one photo.

Considering that they only need to get about half of the locations done, and they're having to go up to $25, at least, to do so, is a good sign for perhaps being able to make money on these in the future. There were a lot of these locations that the previous mystery shopping company had to pay out the wazoo. This is also considering the fact that so far, I assume that the locations that have been picked up are the easier ones to fill. Not only are they at $25 just to get half of them done, but all the ones that are left are probably ones that are harder to fill. I hope this does not scare ipsos away from the contract. They do not like to pay, and they have been very unhappy with all of the gas brands that they have acquired. That they're trying to pick up another one. Maybe new bids went out, and they're asking for a lot more money from the gas company to set up the program.

I have done three, all kiosks for $25. While I don't like loading photos in Sassie, I like the report more than the other MSC. To me, the report is much easier because I don't have to mess with all the store questions. I just wonder if there will be two price points, with the store and with no store. I won't do them for less than $25.

I usually start at $15, depending on whether or not they stay on the board. I liked that in the past, there were just minimums of $3 gas and $1 purchase n store. It gave me leeway to buy lunch/dinner at ones that carry fried foods or pizza.

Initially, these were self-assigned shops. Now, this morning (5/20), I have to apply (shop is NOT assigned, but the app is placed) for the shops......anyone else have this happening to them?

Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 05/20/2022 02:08PM by salisburync.

@salisburync, yes, same here, I noticed yesterday,

@salisburync wrote:

Initially, these were self-assigned shops. Now, this morning (5/20), I have to apply (shop is NOT assigned, but the app is placed) for the shops......anyone else have this happening to them?

I am guessing that they are getting close to their quota and don't want to assign too many locations. That's just a guess. They are also right up against a hard deadline on the 23rd, so maybe they are trying to make sure only dependable shoppers are getting assigned at this point.

I just self-assigned.

It is probably something you did wrong.

Just kidding. Maybe there is a shop limit.

Yes, lots of possibilities. Even a potential system glitch as available shops in my area are now back to self assign (although not too many left).

@thunderdeacon wrote:

I am guessing that they are getting close to their quota and don't want to assign too many locations. That's just a guess. They are also right up against a hard deadline on the 23rd, so maybe they are trying to make sure only dependable shoppers are getting assigned at this point.

Ok, i did 4 of these shops today, in88 degree heat and high humidity. Therenis no real difference between this version of the shop and the old MSC's. I took pics of things i didn’t need to on the first 2 because of some of the things folks said on this thread, even though I read the guidelines and it didn’t say anything about those pics. And it's not like it's costing me money to buy and develop film... no harm no foul. A couple extra pics so that I dont need to get back out of the Jeep is not the worst thing that could happen..

Same. I applied for one, was approved. Then they went back to self-assign. End date is 5-22.

@Morlezep - The Program Manager has updated the guidelines, guessing from shopper feedback. For example, the 1st version read that a picture of the "inside of the store" and "exterior" was a requirement. But neither are needed unless an infraction and the guidelines have been updated to reflect that.

Right, no huge differences, but there are a few additional photo requirements, e.g. restroom, secondary signage if it exists (although the former MSC did ask if there was a highway sign) and cash/credit pricing. The stations I audit rarely have pricing signage other than the main ID. Many do not offer a discounted cash price. I have been uploading a photo of the primary ID for this question and it is being accepted. The cash/credit pricing in addition to the primary and secondary signage feels redundant and suspect it may change down the road. If not, it will boil down to a duplicate upload.

@Morledzep wrote:

Ok, i did 4 of these shops today, in88 degree heat and high humidity. Therenis no real difference between this version of the shop and the old MSC's. I took pics of things i didn’t need to on the first 2 because of some of the things folks said on this thread, even though I read the guidelines and it didn’t say anything about those pics. And it's not like it's costing me money to buy and develop film... no harm no foul. A couple extra pics so that I dont need to get back out of the Jeep is not the worst thing that could happen..

All these shops are pulled, and any uncompleted, but scheduled, shops are being dropped....all effective today, 5/23.

So, are they coming back? After this "Pilot Program"?

I had four scheduled for the 23rd. I guess I was fortunate that I did them in the morning before they got pulled. I would not have been happy had my scheduled shops been pulled.

Well if the MSC is just ripping them away from shoppers who have already entered into a contract to do the job then shoppers should be paid regardless. That's just wrong. And this MSC has a history of doing exactly this.

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Initial Analysis of New Ipsos Gas Station

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