I recently just did a shop for SQM and the report requirements were not too bad. Better than a lot of other ones I've done in the past. I've also done shops for Spot Check Services and A Closer Look, which were okay.

I think people have different answers for this based on different factors. I might like an MSC that pays more than another, so my answer is that MSC based on pay, but I might like another MSC better because I have a better relationship with a scheduler(s) so I get better opportunities.

I like IPSOS very much for several reasons. Sassie SELF-ASSIGN and pay is decent if you are patient. Karen is one of the more professional schedulers out there. IPSOS pays quicker than most MSC too. There are reasons to not like IPSOS (like NO responses to general mailbox), but I've learned they suck with that, so I don't bother and I just take the ones that I don't need to ask questions or get help.

I like DJC because they have a good west coast chain and their schedulers are awesome. The pay is below average, but I don't mind doing their shops. They also pay very quickly. They are a very "hands on" group that is very helpful.

I pretty much like any MSC that has self-assign and no stupid tests or certifications to prove I can still shop after 20 years.

I do NOT like MSC with lengthy reports and too much narrative. There is a $40 shop fee restaurant on the board now for Coyle. I'm debating doing it. $40 plus reimbursement is nice, but I don't know if I want the headache for the $40.

I won't work for Bestmark or any other company that cannot seem to pay their shoppers. Plus Bestmark software blows.

Daddy made an excellent point; it depends on the person. Narrative is very easy for me and in this age, pays more due to the MSC's inability to attract shoppers willing and or able to compose what is required. I have not in 15 yrs., nor will I apply for fine dining. The food does not exist that would tempt me to consider such an assignment. I have zero interest in what a server wears, candles, strolling violins, linen, four forks, crystal or a dab of food in the middle of a 12" platter. An epicurean I am not.

Now, to answer the question in a more candid manner: One will not go wrong with either Mintel or Informa. Both are, as it applies to pay, at the pinnacle of shopping. If one is patient and waits for fee escalation, Intelli-shop has attractive work.

It is simply a matter of the work:pay ratio that satisfies a shopper.

Several. ACL is good to me, Market Approach is fabulous and I am like liking Ann Michaels. I do a lot of work for at BVA.

The list of my favorites is much longer than the list of companies I won't do business with.

. Informa, now Curinos; Servimer; BB solutions; ACL. All for very different reasons

Customer Experience Experts (CEE, formerly Draude), hands down. It's a small company and now has clients mainly in the northeast,The scheduler who does most of the scheduling is wonderful, and the owner is very approachable.

Then, I'd say Market Approach and White Clay. Neither has much in my area, but White Clay gave me a bonus after the shop due to my detailed report, and Market Approach paid me a generous travel allowance to re-do a shop that failed because an associate wasn't on duty when I went the first time. I'm doing a White Clay shop this coming week, and the fee is much better than similar shops with other MSCs.

Every MSC has pros and cons but my current favorites are Servimer, Mintel, and White Clay -- for different reasons.

I really like Market Force so far. I think it also matters where you live. I am signed up for the Source, Market force, Ellis, iSecret Shop and Elite cx solutions. So far, Market Force has the most shops in my area. I will probably sign up for more to get more shops.

I like STN, Intellishop, and Ipsos-sassie. It's a combination of pay, number of shops, and editors who are not too bad. ACL and Seelevel are ok, but I find it to be highly dependent on which editor and scheduler you are working with. Some of them are very good, some of them are very bad.
MarketForce is on my @#$%& list, lol. Really poor shopper communication and rejecting shops when you don't give 10's across the board.

I forgot about White Clay, they were really nice and pay well. Unfortunately, they don't have anything around me so the only time I shopped for them was on vacation once.

@BirdyC wrote:

Then, I'd say Market Approach and White Clay. Neither has much in my area, but White Clay gave me a bonus after the shop due to my detailed report, and Market Approach paid me a generous travel allowance to re-do a shop that failed because an associate wasn't on duty when I went the first time. I'm doing a White Clay shop this coming week, and the fee is much better than similar shops with other MSCs.

@rarararara wrote:

I forgot about White Clay, they were really nice and pay well. Unfortunately, they don't have anything around me so the only time I shopped for them was on vacation once.

@BirdyC wrote:

Then, I'd say Market Approach and White Clay. Neither has much in my area, but White Clay gave me a bonus after the shop due to my detailed report, and Market Approach paid me a generous travel allowance to re-do a shop that failed because an associate wasn't on duty when I went the first time. I'm doing a White Clay shop this coming week, and the fee is much better than similar shops with other MSCs.

I also like White Clay! I don't get a ton of work from them but when I do they're easy to work for and they're reasonable!

Amusement advantage is another one.

Not that I like them, but the past year, I've only shopped for a handful. Marketforce, IPSOS. Alta360, SeeLevel. Intelli-shop.

Only because they are the only companies with shops within driving range.

@ceasesmith wrote:

Not that I like them, but the past year, I've only shopped for a handful. Marketforce, IPSOS. Alta360, SeeLevel. Intelli-shop.

Only because they are the only companies with shops within driving range.

I think most of my work this year has been for MarketForce, and actually I find them pretty easy to deal with. I'm getting very good fees from them this year. I think they may have lost shoppers in my area during the pandemic, and I suspect that because my area is fairly rural, with just two small cities around here, I don't think there is an overabundance of shoppers to begin with. Intelli-shop is hit or miss; I rarely take anything from them at base pay, but they do end up bonusing some shops nicely!

Ann Micheals is great. They get overlooked alot here

Curinos and Market Force.

I really can't think of a bad one myself. I didn't used to like Market Force but once I've learned my way around their proprietary software, it makes more sense to me. My favorite used to be Restaurant Cops....nicest people in the world. My least favorite? There is one who I can't think of off the top of my head...their logo is 3 shopping bags.

IPSOS is probably the best run MSC I've been associated with. Pays quick. Clear instructions. The little animated videos are pleasant to watch. BARE is one I'm not gaga about...they have conflicting instructions on their guidelines (which is really upsetting because they obviously went through a lot of trouble to try to make them as detailed as possible).

@dawnhu wrote:

Ann Micheals is great. They get overlooked alot here

Hi...where do they have shops at? Are they SASSIE or do they have a different platform? I've done a 999 mile search on SASSIE and no shops show up in the US.

I've heard great things about them and wanted to do some work for them if possible.

@BusyBeeBuzzBuzzBuzz wrote:

Every MSC has pros and cons but my current favorites are Servimer, Mintel, and White Clay -- for different reasons.

I miss Mintel's billboard audits... long drives, easy money.... I was doing it before podcasts were a thing. I used to listen to books on CD and would consume most of a novel going out to the boonies to take some photographs of billboards that, for some reason, always seemed to be by a railroad track and hobos.

Mintel is a terrific company. Yes, I remember the billboard audits and yes, they were quite frequently around railroads and/or along busy interstates. I made my hubby take me around to do them. Sure was a nice pay day though.

@MsJudi wrote:

Mintel is a terrific company. Yes, I remember the billboard audits and yes, they were quite frequently around railroads and/or along busy interstates. I made my hubby take me around to do them. Sure was a nice pay day though.

Its going to make me tear up some but here is my story.

I've only done enough shops in the past to get exactly one 1099 form and that was from Mintel in 2012 or 2013 or some time around there. I had lost my first wife and was looking to fill the void being alone and all (sort of like I am now--my second wife passed from Covid and I'm back to doing shopping nearly full time).

Anyway, she died in 2009 and I started doing shops left and right. I met my 2nd (now departed) wife in 2010 and I wish I would have taken her on some of those road trips to the middle of nowhere with me...the hours we could have spent together driving down the Texas back roads.... as I said...I'm getting misty eyed thinking of the lost opportunities.

I'm really surprised that nobody does these bill board audits any more (at least nobody is saying who does them anyway). I mean...is there like a little web cam on all of these bill boards now to allow the people who rent them to see if they are in good shape or not? I doubt it.

Gosh I'm so sorry for all that you've been through. That's so tough. I hope that mystery shopping has helped you stay busy. (((Hugs)))

I have noticed this with Bare too! Also, they seem to be very nitpicky! I think I'm running into an issue with a virtual appointment shop - I put the start time for my time zone, which is different from the company's time zone, and so now they are asking me to confirm the start time.

I like doing a variety of shops with a variety of companies. It is good when there is plenty of work with any one company, but after going pretty solid at it for well over a year now, I think I prefer spreading the work out between companies, and the more the better. There is always the risk of the end of a project or other of the usual ups and downs of the industry if you get too dependent on one. However, as others have said, there are more companies that I really do like working for than the number of those that I try to stay away from. Once I culled out a couple, my favorite company is pretty much perpetually the one that I am working for now.

I have visited this thread numerous times and thought about replying, but, well, I didn't want to come across as ornery or negative. But, the question is hard for me to answer because I cannot really think of any MSCs that I would call a "favorite." And the reason for that is that I feel as if calling one of the MSCs a favorite would, to me, seem to imply that I enjoy the work they offer, or that they're fun to work for. And the fact is, I don't actually enjoy nor look forward to most of the shops I do. I guess I don't consider much of it fun, really.

That doesn't mean I hate the work or don't have a sense of humor about some of the stuff I wind up doing as a shopper. Nor does it mean that I don't find some aspects of mystery shopping pleasant or educational. It's just that, these days, I judge the shops by how hard or easy they are, whether they're conveniently located, and the pay. I judge the MSCs by how long or complicated their reports are, how much work they have in my area, if they pay well, if they pay on time, and if I get answers quickly for any questions I might have. Nice schedulers who are pleasant to communicate with are an added bonus, but do I have a favorite MSC? No, I cannot say I do. Am I weird because of that?

.

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 10/14/2022 06:41AM by shopnyc.

It varies by month. Last month I did a ton of work for Ath. Some months its IPSOS. Others it's NIM, InTouch or Market Force. Some it's a one off for another company. I don't really have a favorite, but I have several that I avoid and won't work for.

@ebit123 wrote:

I have noticed this with Bare too! Also, they seem to be very nitpicky! I think I'm running into an issue with a virtual appointment shop - I put the start time for my time zone, which is different from the company's time zone, and so now they are asking me to confirm the start time.

Ugh, I used to do airport circuits for Bare years ago. I eventually deactivated myself because the reports were far too complicated and the pay not enough for that much work. Anyhoo, just thought I'd chime in here to suggest that you mention the difference in time zones in your report narrative or in a Notes field, depending on how they set up the report. I started doing that with phone and web shops. Some MSCs actually ask what time zone one is in, but most don't.

I put it up front and start my narrative with: "PLEASE NOTE: I made my call from [my state], which is in the Eastern time zone and observes Daylight Saving Time. The location I called is in [their state] which is in the Mountain time zone and [does/does not] observe Daylight Saving Time. Therefore the time difference is [#] hours."

I do that especially when I take assignments for Helion Research because they're all based outside the US and I thought some of their editors might not realize how many time zones we have in the US. And one of their editors actually thanked me for including that note.

I went in circles with a bunch on editors on the time zone thing a while back. The one company suddenly wanted screen shots of the call logs, which made everything even more interesting. The call recording service was in one time zone, I was in another one, and the calls were being made to yet another. When you called through the phone system, the time stamp was when the call connected. However, the call log on your cell was at the time you dialed. Those were some interesting shops, and even more interesting interactions with editing.

DJC, STN, Ipsos. Easy shops and reports.

Ipsos pays really quickly and are easy to deal with. Customer Impact is pretty good -- very responsive when you need assistance, and you get paid the following month. Lots of work available. I like A Closer Look, too. Long reports, but they pay the next month. 360Intel is pretty good. Bare International is good as well. The only companies I have really bad things to say about are Survey.com and BestMark. Survey for being too cheap and too demanding, and BestMark for taking many months to pay.

Second To None by far has the best shops and surveys! Tons of them have NO NARRATIVE and can be submitted in just a few minutes. Automotive Insights & Confero are good companies but many of their surveys require narrative, which is not my cup of tea. Stay away from Reality Based Group (RBG) and Ipsos, as they are simply exhausting to deal with. Seems like "too many cooks in the kitchen" with these 2 companies.