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Market Force Information, Inc. ripped me off. If you ever decide to work here, you will most likely end up regretting it. Seemed like a great idea at the time-- even fun perhaps. Getting paid for your opinion, experience at writing AND reimbursed for your meals? Hey, I love writing and I give my opinion freely-- so why not get paid for it all, right? Hmph! Was *I* in for rude awakening!
On the initial application they want to know everything there is to know about YOU. Do you own or rent a home, do you have any type of disabilities, what's your gender, your race, are you married or single, what's your household income, what's your birth date, your Social Security number, your hair color, eye color, do you wear glasses, how tall are you and how much do you weigh?! Many of those criteria sounded very suspicious or even illegal to me but I ignored my intuitions. I knew that there were some mystery shopping jobs that were a scam and you had to be careful so I checked them out with the BBB. When I saw that they had a decent rating I eagerly signed up with them. I wanted this job. Badly. It sounded like my dream job so I ignored any skepticism on my own or anyone else's part.
They wanted me to take a written test that would test my attention to detail on the last place that I shopped. Spelling and grammar counts even though when you do the actual reports for them, you have an automatic spell checker-- but yet they still have an actual spelling test on there and they want to know the exact time right down to the very second that you started taking their test and EXACTLY when you ended it!
Then, if you're accepted, you have to read and then take a 35 question test on an 11 page manual. 5 pages of the manual are dedicated entirely on how to start and stop timing the workers at the restaurant. They devoted about half of the questions to things like: What is the timing point 1, 2 and 3 for the walk in, what is it for the drive in... which timing point is #2 and which one is #3 and then what are timing points #1-3 for the drive-thru. You only get 2 chances to get a 100% of all questions correct-- and you must get them all right either the first time or the second time!
When you're doing the actual evaluation at the restaurant though you have to be very discreet about your timings. Can't actually write them down while you're there or you could blow your cover. You're supposed to be able to remember exactly down to the second: "When did you come to a complete stop in the drive thru, what time you stop and pay for your food, what time you did you receive your food and drink, how many cars were ahead of you, what time did you go to the walk-in line, how many people were ahead of you, how many cash registers were open, what time was it when you were told the total cost of that order, what time was it when your food actually arrives... It shouldn't be more than 10 seconds or something's wrong with the worker! There are so many requirements that need to be met, so many questions that they ask, so many details that you have to remember but you are not allowed to bring these list of requirements with you because you are supposed to look and act as if you are an ordinary shopper. You can't even bring anyone else along. You must be alone, pay entirely in CASH, be very hungry, go to a specific location between a specific time frame. You must be able to eat, drink and honestly scrutinize 2 consecutive full meals all by yourself.
The night before my first assignment, I worked on my computer for over an hour downloading and printing out 10 pages of their rules and instructions. The next morning I woke up, got myself ready to snoop, took the time to go to Wawa to get $20 in CASH, (which was all I could spare this week), went to McDonald's and did the absolute best mystery shop that I could do with what I had to work with.
You would think with all of the pages that you have to download and print out, they would actually USE these pages to make it very clear exactly what to order for each part of this review but they are STILL unclear because they REALLY do not want to pay you for all of your hard work! For example, on page 3 of their 10 page "Information Sheets", they said you need to order one sandwich, fries and a beverage-- but it was unclear to me if they wanted me to do that for the walk-in AND the drive thru. They said you need to order: "either a sausage biscuit or sausage biscuit with egg, a sausage mcmuffin or a sausage mcmuffin with egg, a sausage McGriddle or a sausage egg and cheese mcgriddle. Then it says for the second order, (the drive-thru portion) you have to order one of these choices.. either: "a bacon egg and cheese biscuit, an egg mcmuffin or a bacon, egg and cheese mcgriddle." It did not say to order yet ANOTHER side and a drink... and I thought it would certainly be ridiculous of them to expect anyone to eat 2 entire meals all by themselves so I just got the sandwich for the drive-thru, just like it said to do in the upper middle portion of that page.
For each evaluation, you have to answer questions about the server's friendliness, their attentiveness, their communication, their speed, the accuracy of the order, the food quality, the store's cleanliness, how the drive thru was and how the restrooms were. Ok. No problem there. That is what I expected to do but it was disappointing to me that they did not have any space for me to write in my own comments and observations, which I feel are just as important as the other things that they want scrutinized. (I thought the restaurant was fine. The only thing that could use some improvements were the fact that the tray was very wet and so was the counter top in the ladies' restroom.)
I filled out their report on the walk-in, the surrounding area, the drive thru AND the restroom then I scanned the receipts and the "CPI", which is the Contractor Payment Invoice-- the form that they have you sign that you must also print out when you print out the useless 10 other pages of their requirements...and you have to print it out right at that time, not later on.
After waking up early to go to this place, spending my time and my money, doing their report, scanning everything that they wanted, they still have to try to find something--anything that wasn't done precisely so they don't have to pay for all of this.
It took me hours to try to upload my CPI. I tried it a dozen times but every time it just made my computer freeze and then I'd keep getting an error message. I shut down the computer and started it again 3 more times before the site finally said everything was received. By then I was angry, frustrated and was really starting to feel like this wasn't worth my time or aggravation. Not too surprisingly, a few hours later I received an email from Market Research Information saying that they were not going to pay me ANYTHING for all that I did because I only ordered a sandwich, drink and hash browns in the walk-in but I only got 1 sandwich in the drive-thru!
It was a very belittling and condescending letter!
Now if this were a reputable company, they would have prorated their assignment fees-- especially for my first experience working with them-- but they don't. It's all or nothing with these crooks. What I did was surely worth something but THEY acted like all my hard work and money were worthless and they allegedly "could not use it".
Now that I know how crooked they are and all that they demand, I think back to what my husband told me when I first told him about this place. They simply do not pay the reviewers nearly enough for all of this even it was done entirely correct in their mind. I also feel that they expect too much from the McDonald's employees too with what scanty amount they get paid! For this assignment, if I did it entirely how they say they wanted it, they were only going to pay me $7.50 plus the cost of food.
I thought this would be a fun job even though it doesn't pay well but this anal company is clearly not worth the time, money, effort and aggravation.
I have seen other complaints about this company online. I wish I took them seriously. What a waste of time this crooked company has been.
Good for you! I'm happy for you, Observer 101 and Anonymous 1 that you didn't get sucked into their foolishness. :) I don't trust them as far as I can throw them. Luckily for me, I was only out $5.98 plus the cost of food, unlike some of their other victims who I read about who were ripped off over $40 for each mystery shop.
The only thing I got out of this is learning to be less trusting and to have even more empathy for people who work at fast food places. These big corporations expect way too much from them for what little they pay.
Great idea! I couldn't agree more! Excellent letter and excellent ideas!
! They should have paid you an aggravation fee on top of what they so cheapskatedly cheated you out of. Cheap sneaky ###. It's like they want to irritate their employees on top of ripping them off and wasting their time.
They are SO crooked it still boggles my mind just how low they will stoop. Well I hope you do get a lawyer and take them for everything they have. Perhaps your lawyer could even get them to pay your entire court costs too. For all the people they've ripped off this is what they have coming to them. Good luck and I wish you all the best. I hope you will write soon to tell us how many millions of dollars you took back from their greedy hands on behalf of all of us.
I think you're absolutely right. It is both and they ARE like talking to a brick wall. Numbskulls.
Thank you very much for writing and for reading and appreciating what I wrote. I wish you the best with this. Just remember to do everything exactly as they say and keep track of every detail or they'll use it as an excuse not to pay you. You'll probably be videotaped so they can be sure that you do everything their way and are accurate right down to the second. I now think they may be quasi-legit but I just found them to be too demanding for what little they pay. If your interest in doing this is more like a hobby than a way to make a living, this may even be interesting and enjoyable for you. Good luck and best wishes. Let us know how it goes... --Sylvia
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Me again, isn't it fun, here we have a room of business owners who just happen to have one of our best pal shoppers here with us working on a security project we all use, and frankly none of us have any regard for the usual shopping companies. We do all our own shopping in house, we pay our franchise fees as applicable, but most of us own our own businesses outright. We know more about what goes on at our own and our competitor's outfits than anyone short of God himself.
Dont get me wrong, there are good, legitimate, honest MS companies out there. We know who is and who isn't because we have eyes and ears as editors in, even a couple owners, of, MS companies. When any outfit makes the mistake of screwing or trying to screw any of us, there will be hell to pay, we have the knowledge and the power, and will use it if necessary to protect the innocent. The guy sitting to my left was commander of a MI Battalion in Stuttgart, Germany, one of the guys across the table commanded a Navy Intelligence section in SouthEast ASia, the lady sitting two to his left was with the Army and was an intelligence specialist, the guy second to the right is on active reserve with Air Force Intelligence currently working with Homeland Security as a consultant. Now that we have stumbled on this thread, let the guilty be advised that it might be reasonable for your guilt be mitigated by acting in good faith from this point forward. We are watching, starting now. MF, you might as well face it, there are a few over 100 individuals I personally know do not particularly love you too very much. You would do well to take the positive points you have and grow them, and weed out the baloney yourself before it has to be done for you.
That is all.
Somebody has a comment:
I'm the guy that puts together most of the video we use, and we have stuff that makes Willie Vision you see on TV on Mystery Shoppers rather tame. I'm talking real live see thru the wall FLIR and sound that is so good it would make your bones shake. I've personally recruited two shoppers I've detected to work for me privately. They know I have the ability to detect any effort on their part to play any games around here, neither of mine have ever even tried. All that they know I know, all that they see, I see. One of them has been shopping for 15 years, 12 as my agent. It is amazing what happens when a shopper who's crooked gets a Fedex package from somwhere far away and sees themselves being their awful crooked self in 1080P HD day or night, often with video of them doing the deed, talking about the deed later, then submitting the deed on their own computer. Has that happened to any of you readers? Speak up, you know we don't play games.
I have worked for Market Force for at least 5 years. I don't remember the application being very long. Once you do a few shops they become a piece of cake. I have always gotten paid. They even call me and offer ne a bonus at times. The first reviewer probably was working for an imposter calling themselves Market Force.
It isn t a scam but never make a mistake no matter how long you have worked for them perfectly you will never be able to redeem yourself.
I had the same thing happen to me. Luckily, it was just a customer service check, and not a meal shop, so I wasn't out any money, but they DQ'd my shop and didn't tell me why. I asked for more info, and they never responded. I cancelled the other shop I had scheduled with them for the following week because it was a fast food shop, and I didn't feel like spending money on food I don't like to have another shop rejected just so they don't have to pay me. I'm a shopper for various other companies too, and so far, my shops have not been rejected. I've gotten coaching on some shops where instructions were unclear, but every company I've done shops for has been excellent. Market Force is not a good mystery shop company if all they do is reject shops straight out of the gate so they don't have to pay their shoppers.
Now I just wish I could cancel my account with them because they have all my personal information. No telling what the hell they're going to do with it.
I signed up to check movie theatres and completed an overdue assignment (past their client deadline) for them immediately, in constant communication with their rep in NY. I took a 2nd overdue assignment the following week and though it was supposed to take 45 minutes to 1 1/2 hours at most, it took nearly 4 hours. It paid $15. IF it was paid. I completed these assignments and submitted the reports in a timely manner in Nov 2015. Today is 27 Jan 2016; i have submitted 2 pay requests (for which i have no record due to their site setup; once the inquiry is submitted, there is no way for the sender to find it again!), and have now submitted a contact form with a 3rd request for payment, along with a threat to begin a class action suit against them. Who's with me? :)
i posted earlier about not being paid by MFI. Turns out...I was wrong. =[ They had direct deposited my pay on 2 Dec 2015 and I hadn't noticed since its an account i infrequently use. Also, the field associate site isn't the most user friendly, so somehow i missed on the pay inquiry screen, the option to 'view all inquiries' or something to that effect, and it wasn't until after i sent a nasty email to them via their contact form (not the regular pay inquiry i'd previously done and thought unanswered), that i got an email notification that there was a reply, checked their reply and got instructions how to find all 4 of their previous replies telling me the pay had been deposited into my account. i checked my online statement and sure enough, there it was credited 3 Dec 2015. boy is my face red. wish i could figure out how to edit or delete my previous comment but so far i haven't so i'm doing the best i can by commenting again to retract my own previous comment. =/.
I have been doing shops for this company since before 2009. Had only 1 shop rejected, and it really was my error, , probably done close to 1000. I do always read the instructions and if something is unclear I email.
However, I have noticed this year the company has gotten "cheaper". The pay for the same shops has dropped. For example, one shop I have done many times used to pay $12, now it pays $10 and is the exact same report. There are also many less shops available, at least in my area. Sometimes the shops seem to take an unreasonable amount of time for the pay, for example a gas station audit they say may take up to an hour at the station, yet they offer only $9 (or less), then the report takes time with all the pictures. But, if the pay is too low, I won't sign up for the shop. If all other shoppers feel that way, the fee will eventually increase by the end of the month.
I received an email from a dan weil stating i was picked for mystery shopper. Received a package with a check for $2, 950. Told to deposit in bank, wait til money deposited, use my debit card to go to walmart and purchases (3) $800.00 money orders. I did and sent said moneys to jonesboro, ga through fedex. They said to send it overnight, but i didn't, so i was able, thank god, to intercept the package. Don't fall for maket force. I have uploaded a copy of the letter with instructions that i received. Please take a good look at it and run for the border if you get one.
They say on their site to beware of scams...that they NEVER pay for a shop in advance and that $200 for a shop...if it sounds to good to be true it probably is...Someone may owe you money but it's not them and the later advice is something you should probably keep in mind as not to be fooled next time...I have been sent those same cashier's checks and the same offers and no one in their right LEGITIMATE mind would send ANYONE over $3, 000 and HOPE AND PRAY you do what your supposed to do with it...I'm sorry but that kind of gullibility is dangerous as you found out...
SCAM! I also received a check for $2950 from Charles Castro...at Market Force. It was sent Priority Mail. How did they get my name & address? Sounds like a . SCAM to me. After you deposit check at your bank...then what happens? Identity theft? Or do they just clean out your bank account? I have been a mystery shopper for many years, I know that most mystery shopping companies do not send out large checks...they pretty much want you to work for FREE or nearly for free.
I was recently ripped off by Market Force. They were going to pay me in advance! They sent me a check for $1680. I was to deposit it in my account and then go to Wal-Mart. I was to purchase $50 worth of merchandise for myself and send a Wal-Mart "moneygram" for $1300 to a name and address they provided. There would be a fee of $30 and I could keep $300 for myself. Sounds great; right? After I received their check they kept sending me texts asking when I was going to do the assignment. I told them that I would not do it until their check cleared my bank. Well, the check did not clear my bank and was declared a fraudulent check! And then my bank charged me a fee for a returned check. Beware of this company!
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They say on their site to beware of scams...that they NEVER pay for a shop in advance and that $200 for a shop...if it sounds to good to be true it probably is...The later advice is something you should probably keep in mind as not to be fooled next time...I have been sent those same cashier's checks and the same offers and no one in their right LEGITIMATE mind would send ANYONE over $1, 500 and HOPE AND PRAY you do what your supposed to do with it...I'm sorry but that kind of gullibility is dangerous as you found out...
Sigh. You were ripped off by a scammer using the Market Force name. There are only thousands and thousands of fake check warnings out there, no reason anyone should be falling for this anymore.. unless you live under a rock.
I too have been told by someone calling themselves Market Force, that I would get a cashier's check in the mail. Funny, it seems funny how they want to pay me before I do any work. This seems too good to be real. This means it is probably not real. I am not going to fall for this scam
It is a scam and the check wouldn't be from Market Force but a 3rd party scammer using their name.
They wanted me to do a shop at the Five Guys burger joint, which I accepted and I spent $18.38 for an overpriced burger, small fries and regular coffee milkshake, in order to do an evaluation of the food and the place. After I filled my report online and placed my receipt, they emailed back saying that my shop was invalid because I didn't order a milkshake. This in my opinion, is a scam designed to make people spend their heard earned money into a burger joint. Be careful, they're not legit. And Five Guys should be ashamed of themselves.
What did the guidelines say about what you need to order? If you follow the guidelines, you won't have any issues.
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From this complaint, it looks like the person who wrote it didn't understand the job. It would seem obvious, for example, that the orders should be parallel. The shopper is timing how quickly workers inside and at the drive-thru took orders, accepted payment, prepared, and served the same or similar orders: sandwich, side, and beverage. The shopper can taste the items instead of eating them entirely. Shoppers can use a specific app that lists questions and lets them enter answers, take pictures, and provide other documentation without putting any notes--including details such as time in seconds--into hard copy.
Any professional effort requires correct grammar and accurate spelling. Correct spelling and grammar also speed machine reading of hard copy. As at any job, the employee/contract worker's first responsibility is to follow directions correctly. The shopper could have and should have asked questions about anything she found confusing before she accepted an assignment. The company makes clear that shoppers need to take the time to understand the job before they do it. Cash purchases are anonymous. Debit and credit cards show names and leave records that the company being evaluated could find. Similarly, a store or restaurant that doesn't like its evaluation might look for weaknesses in shoppers it can identify. Inability to spell or take advantage of technology would be easy targets.
This complaint appears invalid. However, the job seems like an unhealthy way to make some extra money.
If you are looking to contract with a mystery shopping company to make extra money... great idea... just DO NOT CONTRACT WITH MARKETFORCE! Over the course of 4 months I did about 300 shops with this company. My average pay per assignment for both shopper fees and reimbursement was $13.10 USD. The schedulers will continually call you about assignments before even checking your schedule with them on this same day. These repeat calls create chaos and serve no purpose when, for instance, you already have a lunch shop scheduled and they are calling you with a lunch shop. When you do have a question that is time sensitive to complete a project you never know if you will hear back timely or not. They do not list their phone number and state clearly on their site that they do not have adequate staff to answer phone calls; however, their email support of questions does not provide you with timely nor complete assistance. Additionally, they are VERY ADVERSIARIAL with their shoppers. They make token shows of appreciation- offering a birthday bonus for shops accepted in your birthday, the site is down on this day, and they do nothing to assist timely, and refuse to honor the offered premium. When you do record a negative experience during a shop (long wait times, unprofessionalism, etc.) in a report and clearly describe the interaction with "who, what, when, where, and why" they will contact you for additional information ad nauseum. It makes shoppers want to be insensitive to issues and not report them. Additionally, there is an associate there named Simonne who would be better served to work in a corrections department (yeah, that's right... a prison). Her communication skills are subpar. Her attitude oozes through the phone line. She has a no can do attitude and is a great representation of who MarketForce is through and through. You will find her name listed on many review websites as an issue within MarketForce. I requested to be deactivated from MaretForce as I have no desire to work for them in the future due to the cumulative experiences of the last four months. In theory this should be a great way to earn extra money on your own schedule but it is totally consuming and not worth the reimbursement offered. The icing on the cake for me was not being rembursed for a shop in which I followed the guidelines but their reviewers did not. I would never reccomend this company to anyone. I have found other companies to shop for and get told things like... "Thank you for being timely.", "This report is a 10/10 and we were able to submit it to our client early.", and "We are glad to have you supporting this assignment." These are things you will never hear from MarketForce. Also, my average reimbursement is now $18.00 USD per shop. Ciao Simonne! Ciao MarketForce! Good riddance!
@hammer200 They say on their site to beware of scams...that they NEVER pay for a shop in advance and that $200 for a shop...if it sounds to good to be true it probably is...Someone may owe you money but it's not them and the later advice is something you should probably keep in mind as not to be fooled next time...I have been sent those same cashier's checks and the same offers and no one in their right LEGITIMATE mind would send ANYONE over $3, 000 and HOPE AND PRAY you do what your supposed to do with it...I'm sorry but that kind of gullibility is dangerous as you found out...
I have 4 good months of working with this company and was paid nearly 300.00 last month while working my 50 hour a week full time job. I have never printed out one sheet of anything and don't own a printer. I am sorry for your experience and yes, it seems little for so much work but gets easier as you do it more often and to me seems like free money...or food... You can take someone with you but can't order together. Its not for everyone especially if you have kids or a large family but for this single person it is beneficial. Happy shopping!
I agree that this is a fantastic website and have found it very helpful. Keep up your excellent work.
MarketForce is Leaving Three Markets and Getting Ready to Launch a Social Commerce spinout. MarketForce, a Kenyan B2B e-commerce company, has closed its operations in three of its five African markets and is in the early phases of launching a social commerce spinout.
My blog contains more details. Check out the website for more information. Don't let this chance pass you by.
https://www.makeoverarena.com/marketforce-is-leaving-three-markets