Complaint Review: Sights on Service - North Minneapolis Minnesota

Here is my complaint/concern towards Secret Shopper (aka Sights on Service). I had the privilege of self-scheduling with the company for awhile primarily because I had done a lot of shops for them and produced good report for all the shops that I performed for them. I am one of those good shoppers you could find to do simple shops like haircut at Fantastic Sams.

Well, two months ago, I signed up for two shops and had to cancel one of them. I notified them by email of the cancellation. I acted in good faith knowing that was what you were supposed to do. I notified them a week in advance.  That was more than a reasonable time frame for any stretch.

Two months passed by and they released another set of shops. I tried to sign up for one of them again and a message popped out saying that my account was under PROBATION. I wonder what was going on because I could not recall doing anything wrong. So, I emailed the coordinator (Phil Anderson (((Redacted)))) for an explanation. 

Here is the excerpt email response: “You are on probation because a shop at Fantastic Sams cancelled from your account as overdue.”  The sentence is not grammatically correct like they expect to get from you. But the point is … the cancelled shop became overdue. It does sound stupid but any cancelled shops do become overdue.

It is an obvious reason why you would notify them when cancelling a shop.  Any idiots you talk to would do the same thing – email your schedulers if you need to cancel a shop. Mystery shops are not an apartment lease contract where you have to find a substitute to continue paying the rent until the lease is over. It is not a contract for employment either.

In my case, I had tried in good faith to follow procedure as they listed in their contract but to no avail. But, I was punished through probation.  The coordinator refused to resolve the issue by removing the probation. IT IS THEIR FAULT FOR NOT ACKNOWLEDING THE CANCELLATION ANYWAY.

So, next time, when you get those emails “…desperately need shoppers”, don’t feel sorry for them. They deserve it. If you sign up for it, then you are on hook for it. It will put your “credit history” in jeopardy. I have done mystery shopping for years. Once in awhile you will find this kind of attitude from those companies regardless of your standing.

If you think that you can always & should  work things out with your schedulers … well think again. They don’t need to work with you. If they do, it is for their advantages and benefits – not you, the shoppers. They just say “work it out with  your schedulers” … just to sound reasonable and nice to your psychology. This industry is more lopsided - towards those companies … not the shoppers. If you think you should trust your scheduler 100% … think again. They WILL & CAN stab you on the back when you are least expected.

Just something to share and think about …. There are some bad apples out there.

NOTE: Secret Shopper® is the registered trademark for mystery shopping services provided by Sights on Service, Inc. 620 Mendelssohn Ave., North Minneapolis, Minnesota 55427