We just got a press release from SurfMerchants, publishers of the Sassie and Presto mystery shopping software platforms. They’ve just announced their plans for new software that could change the industry dramatically. Businesses will be able to order “spot check” mystery shops with the press of a few buttons. Here’s what they sent us: John…
Jancyn Evaluation Shops recently announced the acquisition of Shoptalk Service Evaluations. According to Vicki Dempsey, VP of Sales & Marketing for Jancyn, this will mean “more industry assignments to choose from, in addition to apartment shops.” ShopTalk was located in the Pacific Northwest, so the greatest impact will be more shops in that part of…
Add Primo Solutions to the list of MSPs recently purchased. In October 2014, Bild & Company, a Tampa based consulting firm for senior living facilities, announced the acquisition of Primo Solutions. Bild was founded in 1999 to offer “Integrated sales and marketing services to help healthcare organizations build occupancy and maximize revenue.” Additionally, it offers…
In last week’s issue of Mystery Shopper Magazine, we reported on shoppers who had either not been paid, or have only received partial payment from Gapbuster. After we published that article, a shopper posted the following email on Mystery Shop Forum. They say it came from “Nathaneal” at GapBuster. Thank you for your email I…
Mystery shoppers have recently been reporting missing, delayed, or incorrect payments from GapBuster. On Mystery Shop Forum, there has been a thread with multiple complaints from a variety of mystery shoppers. According to the reports, one shopper is owed 702 Euros, over $900 at the current exchange rate. Another complains of being paid the basic…
Reports surfaced recently of Market Force International terminating a mystery shopper because of “known associates.” The shopper had reportedly done extensive work with the company, and garnered a high rating by them. No other reason was cited for the termination of the agreement. According to the report, Market Force refused to provide any information about…
Sentry Marketing Group recently on March 17th that they have acquired Feedback Plus. The terms of the deal were not disclosed, however the combined company will stay in Plano, Texas, where Sentry is located. “This combined group will double our size and enable us to offer superior service and mystery shopping, customer survey, audit and…
200,000 customers of HSBC, the multi-national bank, have mystery shoppers be thankful for this holiday season. Mystery shoppers employed by the United Kingdom’s Financial Conduct Authority have caught the company giving customers wrongful advice, in violation of financial regulations. The potential consequences are high. The bank estimates it will pay at out least $32 million…
According to a news report by the Calgary Herald, three Canadians were recently arrested and charged with mail fraud. They had scammed 10 Americans out of over $20,000 dollars. The trio posed as a mystery shopping company, sending fake checks to the victims, who deposited the money into their banks, and wired most of it…