I just found them through a search for mystery shopping. I don't know much about them, except what I see on their web page. I registered for their site, and received a survey. I responded to them, and they sent me a $5 gas card. I'm trying to see if anybody knows anything else about them, which is why I signed up for your forums. Your forums look like a friendly place where people share info on various mystery shopping companies. Being new to this, I thought someone out there might know more than I do about this company, as this appears to be a new company.

The domain name on this outfit is fascinating:

domain: premiershoppers.com
created: 01-Dec-2007
last-changed: 26-Mar-2008
registration-expiration: 01-Dec-2008

nserver: ns1.maximumasp.com 216.128.31.5
nserver: ns2.maximumasp.com 216.128.31.6

status: CLIENT-TRANSFER-PROHIBITED

registrant-firstname: Marvin
registrant-lastname: Cohn
registrant-street1: 1019 Grand Isle Ter
registrant-pcode: 33418
registrant-state: FL
registrant-city: Palm Beach Gardens
registrant-ccode: US
registrant-phone: +1.5616309905
registrant-email: garycohn1@gmail.com


Here is what I find fascinating. First this domain name
was originally rented in December 2007 yet still shows that it is not ready to go ("Pre-register NOW so that we can keep you up-to-date on the release and launch of PremierShoppers’ website. Receive the following benefits:" Although there was a change to the site in March, it is still not ready to go.

Second, the email is not to Marvin Cohn, but to Gary Cohn. Gary Cohn is the name of the CEO of Datatron, an MSP out of Palm Beach Gardens that just closed recently. The message on the Datatron answering machine on 7/11/08 is that they have closed permanently. I am still waiting for about $140 from these guys for jobs done in May.

There is a history in this business of MSPs being partnerships where the partners disagree and the MSP dies leaving shoppers with unpaid work and reimbursements. The former partner(s) then open their own shop as if they had no responsibility to the shoppers they left in the lurch and lure the clients to their new MSP with even LOWER fees to shoppers. I certainly hope that this is not the case this time but I would approach with great caution.

Thx for getting back to me. After reading your reply, I decided to call PremierShoppers to see what they had to say. I actually spoke with Gary Cohn! I brought up your comments and the fact that you had not been paid for shops done in May. He said that when he was with Datatron since 1988, they worked with tens of thousands of shoppers, and they were all paid promptly. He also said that he resigned from that company back in January, doesn’t have any idea why he is listed as CEO or anything else and has had no contact with them since he left. Gary said he’d be happy to speak with you directly.

He said that PremierShoppers.com is still under development but is looking forward to a late summer launch. Some of the features he talked about sounded pretty cool like something to help with resumes and job searching. It was also kind of neat to actually have a phone number to call and he actually answered!

I viewed other message boards such as Volition, and it seems that Datatron was on the up and up, and well liked, for years, until July.

Anyway, thanks for the feedback.

If you Google Gary Cohn either with "Palm Beach Gardens" or with "Datatron" you will find a whole lot of references to his Datatron affiliation. Granted these are not 2008 references, but he has not chosen to change his affiliation on his Linked In bio or other business references I found for him.

Datatron was an excellent company to work for and you will find me singing their praises here even earlier this year if you run a search. I always was paid by them promptly, which was why I didn't worry too terribly much when my 6/30/08 email about payment went unanswered. I did get concerned, however, when on 7/11/08 I called and found they were closed.

I will be calling Gary in the next day or so because I feel sure I am not the only shopper left in the lurch and if legal action is required it would be useful to have current names as otherwise he would be named as the CEO that could be determined on line. And on 7/11/08 when you went to the bios of Datatron people on their website he WAS still listed as CEO.

marys631 Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Thx for getting back to me. After reading your
> reply, I decided to call PremierShoppers to see
> what they had to say. I actually spoke with Gary
> Cohn! I brought up your comments and the fact
> that you had not been paid for shops done in May.
> He said that when he was with Datatron since 1988,
> they worked with tens of thousands of shoppers,
> and they were all paid promptly. He also said
> that he resigned from that company back in
> January, doesn’t have any idea why he is listed as
> CEO or anything else and has had no contact with
> them since he left. Gary said he’d be happy to
> speak with you directly.
>
> He said that PremierShoppers.com is still under
> development but is looking forward to a late
> summer launch. Some of the features he talked
> about sounded pretty cool like something to help
> with resumes and job searching. It was also kind
> of neat to actually have a phone number to call
> and he actually answered!
>
> I viewed other message boards such as Volition,
> and it seems that Datatron was on the up and up,
> and well liked, for years, until July.
>
> Anyway, thanks for the feedback.


this brings up red flags waving at high mast. I wouldn't go there. Why would someone with an MSC who screwed over shoppers tell they did it? It's not in their ethics nor their own self interest. He didn't say any of the right things in MHO. I'd steer so far away you are at another side of the country! But that's me. YMMV. I do hope it works out.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 07/24/2008 10:57AM by dee shops.

It is also a little surprising that on Datatron's website they still show him as President and COO [www.usd-datatron.com]

Can you imagine what Flash's database of MSP info looks like? She's a walking Wikipedia for shoppers. Give up MSing, Flash, and publish your database on a CD, updated quarterly.

Do you have the current stock prices for publicly traded ones also?

Which one were you thinking about Sneakers? Current stock prices are easy, it is the prognosis for future earnings that gets tricky

How's STN doing? Are they publicly traded?

[biz.yahoo.com]

Private company, Jeff Hall is President, 90 employees, $8 million in sales in 2007. Fiscal year ends in December.

Foo. But I caught a grammatical error in their blurb. Get back to me when the 2008 figures are out.

Does anybody have any information on Checkmark services out of Columbus Ohio. Are they kaput or what. And stay far away from Customer Service experts. They owed me a small fortune and it took a threat to sue and to sue their entire customer list to get paid. Of course, that lit a fire under them and they paid via Fed Ex on all the shops that they refused to pay me for for nonsensical reasons. Watch out for these sharpies.

Don't know what is happening with Checkmark or whether they still exist. I have checked their site occasionally but haven't seen anything in a long time. The bank they used to have went with the departed partner and I get solicitations to do those on the cheap and then get "URGENT" emails that the shops I refused at cheap fees are now urgent still at the same low fee . . . duh. The discount clothing counts they used to do have gone elsewhere and I think their cheap retail miscellaneous store is in financial difficulty. After their fiasco of a year or so ago when they ripped off shoppers I have not seriously considered doing a job for them, though I have checked in from time to time to see if they are still alive and have landed any interesting clients that might persuade me to rethink my position.

I have gotten paid in 2 weeks time from CSE. And my mail package did not reach them, but I emailed the scanned receipts and the scheduler processed same day. They don't have many shops here, but I am happy with them.