I have been mystery shopping for the past 3 years (250+ Shops: mostly high end shops). I have never had a score below a 9 out of 10 or 4 out of 5. I completed an "easy" Rosetta Stone shop and was asked for 5 revisions. In three years I have had a hand full of revisions. I have never had more than one revision until now. Here is the kicker:
The shop pays $15. The shop was located in the airport (inside security including clearance + parking). The 1200 Character essay turned out to be over 4500 characters with "additional information needed". The survey is straight forward but the walk through essay section is redundant and asked for you to repeat all that was written in the question section (yes, even the positive answers). With travel time, report and revisions I made minimum wage (circa 1983).

I have read Rosetta Stone horror stories in "shops you will never do again". Unfortunately, I only read these after all of these unreasonable request started to be sent to me. I completed two other shops (TravelEx) with no problems and no revisions. This is my first post to this forum. I had to create a new account to avoid getting punitive action from this company (my last id was my email address).

Please think long and hard before picking up this assignment. What company you may ask. I will not tell but lets just say my second post will be about companies I will never work for.

Many, many thanks. I was almost going to take this shop !!!!

I saw the other post as well, and definitely considered it fair warning. In general, I find that company difficult, even though my scores have been good.

I know the MSC that does these, and don't know why I haven't taken one, now I know..."easy", a sure no,thanks.

I'm not sure that I understand what could be so hard about the Rosetta Stone shop. I have done about 10 of them for that company with NO problems. I think that I have been edited by every editor they have had in the last 3 years, as I have done about 340 airport location shops for them.

So, my question is, how are we to know that the OP really has been active before on this forum?

Also, There is nothing odd about the RS report and the MSC does not run the reports across the client before scoring them. So if there's a problem I don't see it being with the client.

Just wondering and would be happy to be relieved of my concern about the poster.

Perhaps sour grapes with this MSC....

walesmaven Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> I'm not sure that I understand what could be so
> hard about the Rosetta Stone shop. I have done
> about 10 of them for that company with NO
> problems. I think that I have been edited by
> every editor they have had in the last 3 years, as
> I have done about 340 airport location shops for
> them.
>
> So, my question is, how are we to know that the OP
> really has been active before on this forum?
>
> Also, There is nothing odd about the RS report and
> the MSC does not run the reports across the client
> before scoring them. So if there's a problem I
> don't see it being with the client.
>
> Just wondering and would be happy to be relieved
> of my concern about the poster

I am curious if you take the time to flame other users with your 1000+ post. I wrote my statement and collaborated my comments with information. As you are saying I have an agenda you are reinforcing your own agenda. Why would I state the Travelex shops were fine and they pay fast if I had an agenda? I assumed this forum was to assist each other, not knock them down. "Concern"? Really?

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 04/12/2011 09:01PM by d2travelaa.

For what it's worth, d2travelaa, I didn't sense anything wrong with your post. There have been other discussions about CSE, and another user had also posted about the RS shop being difficult.

That was me, (waving hand wildly)! I was the one who hated RS and will never do it again. I got a 6 after numerous revisions and calls at 7:30 in the morning (my time zone is Pacific.) I really and truly thought I had done a good job, and met all requirements and wrote redundant as required narrative. The whole experience was HORRIBLE, terrible, no good and additionally very bad. Never again for the lousy $15.

Carol

I also did not feel there was anything odd or fishy about the original post.

I have done RS shops before and did not have any real problem with them - but I can appreciate that someone else did, and the original post was backed up with specific reasons as to why - rather or not we AGREE with them - or even have the same experience with them - is not the issue here.

Heck, I dislike Customer Impact, and most people LOVE them - and that doesn't make me (or them) wrong. I also have no problem with Sentry - and many people LOATHE them... again... this is what makes the world go 'round.

If a first time poster wants to come and give a factual and balanced (which I read this to be, although not one I personally agree with) account of their experience, with their summary opinion - why is that any different if a long time poster does the same?

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 04/13/2011 05:40AM by MickeyB.

My adult child works for Rosetta Stone with translations. She "shopped" them at an airport on her own just to see how much the employees knew. They flunked hands down.

I absolutely did not "flame" the poster. I raised the same question that many other frequent posters here have raised when initial posts are negative. The fact that RS employees at their kiosks seldom score well has nothing much to do with how easy or difficult the shop is, even though most will agree that it is more difficult to craft an objective report of a negative experience.

I have not contested that many shoppers dislike the editing at CSE and won't shop for them. We all have our differences in taste. What I do not get is the idea of "retaliation" from an MSC. I have most certainly been publically, and emphatically negative about some MSCs, both here and on volition.com, and even of the written-report staff of EPMSonline, without so much as a whisper of retaliation. (I happily shop for the video side of the same company whose "other" staff make me crazy.)

Just the other day, I learned of someone who had been identified through posting on a board, and was deactivated for their comments. Personally, I don't like to give out too much information publicly.

I think it's now clear that the original poster did not come here expressly for the purposes of retaliation. That said, perhaps my antenna would have been raised if I hadn't recalled the other posts about the RS shop. Above and beyond that, there was something about the way it was written that rang true to me. But, we are all different, and it's sometimes hard to assess things accurately through the written word of strangers.

At any rate, I think we can chalk this one up to a misunderstanding.

Okay. I'm switching to decaf coffee for the rest of the day.

LOL! I know that feeling.

the one and only time I did a rosetta stone, i had a digital recorder mic in my bra and recorder in my sweatshirt pocket. so i got word for word what he said, i said, etc.
i had to write a book and its on my "don't do that shop again" list. i did not get any revisions or any questions about my report.