To those who are new to mystery shopping or having comprehension issues, a shop has an evaluation form. That evaluation form is used to assess performance and provide payment. A scheduler required that an edit be made via email. My emails were blocked (paypal too). I sent that information, 2 images containing two photographs each, to their President and Public Relations spokesperson after doing the research to find their emails. Beforehand, I had been attacked here when mentioning this scheduler's name on this forum (her initials are CB and the scheduler that had been refusing to cancel my shops initials are B. R). C B's response, after finally contacting me, was to respond in my former email (which had a ban lifted in their systems). She responded by cutting out half of that information. Got it? Or does that need repeating.

More details written here: [ccapp136.wixsite.com]

So she, (and or her President) CB, LIED to make sure I could not get paid. And then I sent evidence of the lie back to the President and PR person who were responsible for her contacting me in the first place (as she had been ignoring my responses that went directly in their communication box for the shop- also blatantly wrong). If you do not work for this mafia style company that deceives people on a regular basis and has a low rating on Glassdoor and removes reviews from their BBB, then you would be interested in getting paid. And you would not approve of a scheduler lying blatantly to make sure that did not happen.

Now show the world who you are.
More details written here: [ccapp136.wixsite.com]

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 12/28/2023 05:31PM by Ccapp136.

I have done hundreds and hundreds of shops for ath Power since 2008. I have always been treated fairly. I sometimes get questions about shops that I report, and I respond.

@myst4au wrote:

I have done hundreds and hundreds of shops for ath Power since 2008. I have always been treated fairly. I sometimes get questions about shops that I report, and I respond.

I guess you're not one of the many people on Glassdoor with different experiences, or the shopper who had their review removed from BBB, or any of the other people reviewing them on small websites. This company is well known for payment that is sometimes arriving and sometimes not. And that is proven with a simple google search. The only resource they've succeeded in squashing honest opinion on, besides this forum, is the Better Business Bureau, due to shoppers being seen as non-customers when reviewing them. And guess what? I've been paid successfully by them too.

No one ever ignored my requests then, or refused to respond in a standard communication response then. I started work for them 6 YEARS ago with perfect scores then. And no one blatantly lied then by removing half the data that was sent in by myself, then.... In 2023, they are doing it to me too, like countless others who have ALSO mentioned that they use their email systems to block them out and deny payment. And real shoppers who have interest in making money more than lording over others will want to know that.

Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 12/28/2023 06:13PM by Ccapp136.

@myst4au wrote:

I have done hundreds and hundreds of shops for ath Power since 2008. I have always been treated fairly. I sometimes get questions about shops that I report, and I respond.

And NO ONE has done hundreds of shops for this company. These are largely banking and credit card shops that they provide, sweetheart. Those will always have requirements for time distanced between shops that would make such a thing highly unlikely, if not impossible.

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 12/28/2023 06:08PM by Ccapp136.

Many yrs. ago, I am guessing 15, I completed an assignment for ath. My submission was declined, this due to their scheduler's error in listing a CD as an acceptable account. I E-mailed an appeal, but was denied. I responded that their scheduler's mistake was not my problem and if I were not paid, I would seek the assistance of my bank, their client. I immediately received a phone call and a PayPal deposit.

The above resulted in burning a bridge, but I have never, for a second, regretted my manner of resolution.

@shopperbob wrote:

Many yrs. ago, I am guessing 15, I completed an assignment for ath. My submission was declined, this due to their scheduler's error in listing a CD as an acceptable account. I E-mailed an appeal, but was denied. I responded that their scheduler's mistake was not my problem and if I were not paid, I would seek the assistance of my bank, their client. I immediately received a phone call and a PayPal deposit.

The above resulted in burning a bridge, but I have never, for a second, regretted my manner of resolution.

This particular ATH evaluation was with a retailer. Receiving half back from their scheduler with notification that this was all I sent was a turning point. When I notified their President by sending copies of the response, where half the data was cut out, and heard nothing back, it solidified everything. Their BBB has a picture of their President as well as contact information, from what I recall, and those reviews are actively removed there. It's a top-down behavior. Leadership definitely approves, unfortunately... The only reason I heard back from CB was because their President was contacted along with their PR person. So they were not unaware of my contacts. I personally would not take money out of anyone’s pocket, and build a conversation around that with my time that involved removing data, and many others would not take these steps; but people like this will only not do what they are not allowed to do.

I don't know what your problem is. Making blanket statements that include terms like "NO ONE has done hundreds of shops for this company" is, IMHO, a sign of ignorance. I have personally completed 215 shops for ath Power in 2023 alone. My fees from ath Power for 2023 alone are well into 5 figures. I have completed THOUSANDS of shops for them since 2008. As far as I know, they only have banking and financial shops. I have no idea what you mean by "time distanced shops". None of the ones I do have a required time between shops done on the same day. I complete shops for them in NJ, PA, and DE and occasional phone shops in other states as well

Thank you for calling me a liar. I will refrain from casting similar epithets in your direction.

@Ccapp136 wrote:

@myst4au wrote:

I have done hundreds and hundreds of shops for ath Power since 2008. I have always been treated fairly. I sometimes get questions about shops that I report, and I respond.

And NO ONE has done hundreds of shops for this company. These are largely banking and credit card shops that they provide, sweetheart. Those will always have requirements for time distanced between shops that would make such a thing highly unlikely, if not impossible.

I am definitely not one of the people posting about ath Power on Glassdoor. Glassdoor is a site that tracks comments and information from employees. I am an independent contractor, not an employee.

The BBB does not deal with complaints of non-payment or other matters from shoppers. I have not left any reviews of MSCs on any of the local BBB websites. That is not their purview.

You said, "This company is well known for payment that is sometimes arriving and sometimes not." By whom is this well known? Where are such statistics kept? Certainly not on this Forum. I would genuinely like to know another site that caters to mystery shoppers' needs/problems/requests-for-advice. Where are these "small websites" that have reviews from shoppers?

@Ccapp136 wrote:

@myst4au wrote:

I have done hundreds and hundreds of shops for ath Power since 2008. I have always been treated fairly. I sometimes get questions about shops that I report, and I respond.

I guess you're not one of the many people on Glassdoor with different experiences, or the shopper who had their review removed from BBB, or any of the other people reviewing them on small websites. This company is well known for payment that is sometimes arriving and sometimes not. And that is proven with a simple google search. The only resource they've succeeded in squashing honest opinion on, besides this forum, is the Better Business Bureau, due to shoppers being seen as non-customers when reviewing them. And guess what? I've been paid successfully by them too.

No one ever ignored my requests then, or refused to respond in a standard communication response then. I started work for them 6 YEARS ago with perfect scores then. And no one blatantly lied then by removing half the data that was sent in by myself, then.... In 2023, they are doing it to me too, like countless others who have ALSO mentioned that they use their email systems to block them out and deny payment. And real shoppers who have interest in making money more than lording over others will want to know that.

@myst4au wrote:

I don't know what your problem is. Making blanket statements that include terms like "NO ONE has done hundreds of shops for this company" is, IMHO, a sign of ignorance. I have personally completed 215 shops for ath Power in 2023 alone. My fees from ath Power for 2023 alone are well into 5 figures. I have completed THOUSANDS of shops for them since 2008. As far as I know, they only have banking and financial shops. I have no idea what you mean by "time distanced shops". None of the ones I do have a required time between shops done on the same day. I complete shops for them in NJ, PA, and DE and occasional phone shops in other states as well

Thank you for calling me a liar. I will refrain from casting similar epithets in your direction.

@Ccapp136 wrote:

@myst4au wrote:

I have done hundreds and hundreds of shops for ath Power since 2008. I have always been treated fairly. I sometimes get questions about shops that I report, and I respond.

And NO ONE has done hundreds of shops for this company. These are largely banking and credit card shops that they provide, sweetheart. Those will always have requirements for time distanced between shops that would make such a thing highly unlikely, if not impossible.

As a shopper and gig worker, I become incensed when others are not paid for their work. I become concerned when I could be put into that same position. This is very difficult work that is largely underpaid. The expense of time is not compensated hourly and many companies do not appreciate the work that we do... And when a shopper can back up a story with matching details from others, that would be my primary interest. Your interest is/was defending this company and becoming angry about something else is now your interest. I also said it was highly unlikely that a person performed hundreds and hundreds of shops for this company, one because it is. And two, because your initial response was not reflective of a shopper or a gigworker, but rather like a defender at all costs of ATH (or a scheduler?). You are highly defensive at this point… And I will leave you to that while I focus on what is really important and the original topic of this conversation.

Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 12/28/2023 06:59PM by Ccapp136.

Until today, the OP made a single post on this Forum in 4 years. I have made dozens and dozens of posts and answered many questions. I will let my status as a reputable shopper speak for itself.

@myst4au wrote:

Until today, the OP made a single post on this Forum in 4 years. I have made dozens and dozens of posts and answered many questions. I will let my status as a reputable shopper speak for itself.

Perhaps, you can make an original post about your status and posting duties in general chat. The original topic of this conversation was ATH and the fact that their scheduler’s email removed half of a set of data that was formerly sent to their President and PR person. As noted above, the original data was sent back to the President in the form of a copy as well as that same fraudulent response that occurred from CB, containing only half the data that the President had been sent. You are off-topic.

I'll pick B, "having comprehension issues." Final answer.

Seriously though, I never had a problem with Ath but they rarely have anything for me anyway. Long ago I did a lot of work for them with nary an issue.

@sestrahelena wrote:

I'll pick B, "having comprehension issues." Final answer.

Seriously though, I never had a problem with Ath but they rarely have anything for me anyway. Long ago I did a lot of work for them with nary an issue.

That's typically what happens for this company; a small amount of work is done, rather than thousands and thousands of shops, as the previous poster suggested. However, as I said before, poking around online and doing those company feedback searches would show that this experience is not the only negative one. Since they are actively pursuing removing negative feedback online, it does not serve me any purpose to point those links out myself, although I am saving photos of them. And who knows what might happen with that?

Aside from noting that the previous poster went from doing hundreds and hundreds of shops to thousands and thousands of shops performed with the same company since 2008, I just have to note something for newcomers to mystery shopping. It's obvious that responses on this form are largely coming from people tied to this industry. And if you have high hopes of making money in mystery shopping, acting like a cheerleader is not going to do the job. Being a follower may secure you an income in the working world, but this is a one man show. Break it down yourself. Hours in, dollars out.

Not getting paid for your work and not measuring your hours per dollar received are only useful for those who are being taken care of in life. Whether that is another job that they can expect to be lazy minded with and continue, a retirement income, or a spouse, these people may be the majority here, but they are not actually protecting your best interests if your life depends on money and paying your bills to stay safe. This company operates in America and we have a living wage here. And you will not make that living wage when using your time inappropriately. ATH may not take responsibility for the people that it has harmed with tactics like those deployed towards me, but it did help you identify what the mystery shopping community is and how skeptical you should be of advice and bragging rights of earning thousands and doing "lots of work" with companies.

Edited 3 time(s). Last edit at 12/28/2023 10:40PM by Ccapp136.

I've never had any issues with AthPower. My first shop with them took place in 2017 and I've shopped for them ever since. They've always treated me fairly. I've never had a shop rejected, they have been understanding and forgiving when I screwed up, and I've been able to reschedule or override a rotation when I requested. The schedulers have always been nice to me. My only complaint with them is that sometimes the reports are lengthy and their payment cycle is longer than most - but they've never missed paying me.

@shopnyc wrote:

I've never had any issues with AthPower. My first shop with them took place in 2017 and I've shopped for them ever since. They've always treated me fairly. I've never had a shop rejected, they have been understanding and forgiving when I screwed up, and I've been able to reschedule or override a rotation when I requested. The schedulers have always been nice to me. My only complaint with them is that sometimes the reports are lengthy and their payment cycle is longer than most - but they've never missed paying me.

I agree, never had a problem and have been shopping for them over 10 years. The electronic check process is a little convoluted but I've always been paid on time.

I used to do ten or so ath shops each and every month, simple bank teller transactions. A person could easily rack of 100s of such shops. On those shops and on their more demanding shops, their payment has always been exactly on time save once when they paid one day early.

I am at a complete loss as to why anyone would think that either BBB or Glassdoor are appropriate places to report a customer's slow- or non-payment. D&B and the like are where one goes to report payment issues,

Glassdoor is appropriate imo. It is a site where employees, contractors and freelancers give feedback about working for a company. There seems to be a misnomer that only direct employees use Glassdoor. Most large companies are very concerned about their Glassdoor ratings and feedback, as they use it as a recruiting tool.

I believe that I signed up with ATH Power once upon a time. But I don't remember doing any work for them, unless it was those bank shops in So. Cal at the bank with the entrance air trap. I couldn't tell you the name of the bank either, it was a very strange place, and all of their branches had that awful claustrophobia trap that scared the stuff out of me.

@Morledzep I can't think of a bank or large store that doesn't have an entry like that. Even most schools I go to.

@prince wrote:

@Morledzep I can't think of a bank or large store that doesn't have an entry like that. Even most schools I go to.

I don't know about that, I walk right into Wells Fargo banks through regular double doors all of the time.. well.. when I can't avoid going inside the bank anyway.. I'm not talking about a lobby, or a foyer, I'm talking bulletproof double paned THICK acrylic or borosilicate glass in an air lock suitable as an air lock in a submarine, just barely big enough for a single person's body. You walk in, the door on the outside closes and LOCKS, then a manager inside the bank pushes a button to let you in through a LOCKED door on the other side of the box you are trapped in.

K. I've never experienced that kind of door.

I have been inside a bank like that. It was only that branch and perhaps others in similar neighborhoods, not all branches. This was years ago and I have not been back as it was not in my neighborhood but instead in a high crime area of Los Angeles. Other banks and stores have taken to move out of those types of neighborhoods leaving food and financial deserts for the area residents, most of whom are law abiding people who are most likely glad to be protected and to have a local place to do business.

I have done a ton of shops with this Company and other than a few slow pays they are one of the better MS Companies.

Sandy, The ones I went to were in Riverside and the Inland Empire. I wish I could remember the name of the bank.. There aren't really any "high crime" neighborhoods in Riverside and Moreno Valley, there are a couple residential areas that I would choose not to walk through, but the banks aren't there, all of the banks were in larger strip malls, and shopping centers. Just outside of Moreno Valley City limits there are several HUGE shopping areas, a mall and large strip malls with big name anchor stores.

The one i was at was right across the street from the backside of the old racetrack and Forum property in front of the Inglewood Costco. That across the street is now SoFi stadium and it is drawing famous people to perform.
Inglewood is coming up in the world. I do not remember which bank but it was a major bank.

@Morledzep wrote:

Sandy, The ones I went to were in Riverside and the Inland Empire. I wish I could remember the name of the bank.. There aren't really any "high crime" neighborhoods in Riverside and Moreno Valley, there are a couple residential areas that I would choose not to walk through, but the banks aren't there, all of the banks were in larger strip malls, and shopping centers. Just outside of Moreno Valley City limits there are several HUGE shopping areas, a mall and large strip malls with big name anchor stores.