Company Overview: Exclusivity. That is probably the best one word description of Ardent Services. Their website, http://ardentservices.com, isn’t the most user-friendly in the world. You register with just the basic information and a writing sample concerning a dining experience. Then you sit back and wait…and wait…and wait. It could be a year or more before you receive a call inviting you to attend one of their two-hour training sessions.
Personal Experience: I received an invitation to attend a training session but had to decline as I had other shops scheduled that day. I’ve been told that it should not affect me but it’s been well over a year and have heard nothing else from them.
What Others Have to Say: Shoppers tend to love the company. While a pay scale was not mentioned, one shopper commented, in response to a question, that the pay scale was, “Interesting—more than just a reimbursement for food.” Most shoppers report getting 2-3 shops per month with the company. There was one shopper who reported they were getting 4 shops per month and were enjoying them. In searching all the comments, I could find nothing negative.
Reimbursement has been described as ‘interesting” and “generous”
Overall: Based on shoppers comments at www.mysteryshopforum.com, Ardent Services rates and A+. It would be nice, and I think shoppers would appreciate, if there was an automatic e-mail when you registered with Ardent, that would at least say something along the lines of, “Thank you for your interest. We will contact you when we have a training session scheduled in your area.”
Questions, comments, or thoughts about this article? Email the author: james@mysteryshoppermagazine.com