In the course of day to day events as a mystery shopper, you will have no reason to contact your scheduler for the majority of the time. With a typical day on the job as a mystery shopper, you will simply interact with a scheduler in the non-interactive method of requesting assignments and receiving the yay or nay for your request. Yet for every mystery shopper there are instances that occur that necessitate the need to contact your scheduler. Calling too often, though, can irritate your scheduler and cause you to lose out on future jobs. If you are a bit fuzzy about when you should contact your scheduler, here’s what you need to know.
Scheduling Conflict. Every mystery shopper has done it at some point or another. Or if you haven’t done it yet, you are bound to do so in the future. You have over-committed yourself and find that you need to cancel an assignment. Perhaps you have over-committed with other mystery shopping assignments. Or maybe a personal conflict has come up, such as sick kids or an unexpected business trip for your regular job. As soon as you become aware of the scheduling conflict, notify your scheduler. Your scheduler will need to find someone to replace you as soon as possible to get that assignment completed on time.
Dropping out of assignments can leave a ding on your shopper rating as well as your reputation with the scheduler. This can result in fewer assignments for you in the future. So if you know there is a possibility you won’t be able to complete an assignment, such as hearing the talk of a pending business trip, it is best to leave that assignment open for another mystery shopper to complete.
At The Job Site. There are many things that can happen while you are on-site completing the assignment that your scheduler will need to know about. If you think your identity as a mystery shopper has been compromised, if the store is closed or not in the location stated on the assignment requirements, or other such issues, notify your scheduler immediately. In many cases, you may want to discuss the matter with your scheduler before you head back home to get an idea on if you should complete the assignment or not. Be sure to take along the scheduler’s phone number and your cell phone to all of your assignments so you can notify him or her if something important comes up.
Gray Areas. You certainly don’t want to be the Chicken Little who calls the scheduler every time the wind blows. But then again, you don’t want to waste time and efforts completing an assignment that is busted or driving around for hours looking for an address that simply does not exist.
If you have the luxury of time in researching and addressing your issue, drop a post at the mystery shop forums online and ask your fellow mystery shoppers for advice. Mystery shoppers are usually very quick to respond to posts and are always more than happy to offer helpful advice. In the event you just aren’t sure about something and you need an answer right away, go ahead and make that call to your scheduler. It’s always better to be safe than sorry when it comes to assignments and getting a paycheck.