We are going to be introducing a new type of Shepherd to Shepper. The Top Postcode Shepherd or Top Shepherd for short.
How do I become a Top Shepherd
To become a Top Shepherd you need to be a Shepherd with a combination of the highest completions in a postcode in the UK or ROI while also having a high basket to completion rating*. On top of that you will also need to have approval from our support team. For now we will only be selecting one Shepherd from each postcode.
What do I get from being a Top Shepherd?
We wanted to keep a good balance between rewarding our Top Shepherds but also not giving them unfair advantages over other Shepherds on the system so with that in mind we have three key exclusives for Top Shepherds
Maps - Top Shepherds will have access to maps of where particular jobs are landing before they go live. To be clear they do not get access to the jobs first and do not know what time they are landing. All they know is WHERE they are going to land. This gives them the understanding if there are going to be any jobs in their area or not.
Trial Jobs - Some jobs come through from a client because they aren’t sure if they want to give Shepper the full list of stores. They want to see if the data that comes through to them is going to be what they are looking for. Which means the job needs to be PERFECT. Trial jobs are directly correlated with getting more jobs on the platform. The Top Shepherds in the area where the trial jobs are located are given first dibs and if unavailable they will go out to the rest of the Shepherds. This does mean by being a Top Shepherd there are small opportunities to make a little extra. However by completing a trial job you MUST provide as much feedback as possible to Shepper about it so there is also some extra work involved. For transparency these trial jobs are infrequent and most go to the normal marketplace anyway.
Direct Feedback and Suggestions - You will gain a direct line to our Community Manager who can prioritise feedback and suggestions to the right channels. To note just because you have given a suggestion does not mean that it can be implemented at speed, or even at all. But by being a Top Shepherd you have a clearer line of communication about them.
All three of these key exclusives are given to you through a special area in the Shepper Community Discord Channel where, on top of all the above, you will be able to converse with your other Top Shepherds. There is no need for you to chat but we will need you to join to be classified as a Top Shepherd. Additionally you will be given a special role indicating you are a Top Shepherd so if you do decide to chat on the regular side of discord make sure you are a positive role model for other Shepherds.
How often does this get reviewed and can I lose the Top Shepherd status?
For now this will be reviewed every 3 months but this is subject to change if we see fit.
Every 3 months we will review if the Shepherd for each postcode area is still hitting high completion numbers and has a high basket to completion percentage*. If they aren’t or someone is beating them significantly then it is only fair that we make that new person the Top Shepherd for that postcode area and you may lose your status. However it is still possible for you to gain this status back through your efforts as a Shepherd. In the future we may also consider having 2 Top Shepherds in each postcode area if we see fit to do so!
You can also lose your Top Shepherd status through being banned from the system, earning strikes, or being a negative role model on community platforms. This type of removal is likely to be more permanent than the other type of removal.
*A high basket to completion rating is all about how many jobs you pick up vs. how many you completed. So let's say you picked up 100 jobs in January and only completed 50 of them. That's a 50% rating. For a Top Shepherd we expect to see 60% at the bare minimum. It found below this it may be a reason to revoke your Top Shepherd Status.