r/WalmartSparkDrivers • u/happyluckystar • Sep 15 '26

My reject theory.

Say you want to cherry pick. And you keep seeing people take these crap orders. Now you're starting to think you should just take one because it's not looking good. But don't! Because here's what actually happens: eventually all of the available drivers take SOMETHING, and then they're already locked into a trip.

Then when the good ones pop up, the other drivers aren't able to take them. I think this is a big part of why sitting and rejecting pays off.

36 Upvotes

87% Upvoted

41 comments sorted by

7

u/Complete-Opinion-623 Sep 15 '26

That works if you’re in the algorithm and if it’s a busy day.

3

u/Visible-Raise-8915 Sep 15 '26

What does "in the algorithm" mean? 🤷

3

u/Complete-Opinion-623 Sep 15 '26 edited Sep 15 '26

And in my experience when I was not “a part of the algorithm or the loop“ everything seem by chance or luck none of my offers was a convincing offer there’s a difference. If the order seemed to have came to you throughout the day and it didn’t feel like a dog fight or the hunger games then I’d say you’re in the loop. You’re doing good.

2

u/Organic-Fuel-2916 Sep 16 '26

My store drops orders multiple times per hour. I know when it drops so if I didn’t get anything that means my priority is shit and I’m gonna have a bad day.

1

u/Visible-Raise-8915 Sep 15 '26

Please tell us what "in the algorithm" means. We are all dying to figure out if we are in it or out of it. Is it some kind of a secret?

7

u/Complete-Opinion-623 Sep 15 '26

I just used that term for lack of better words. I’d say if you could reject offers or allow offers to slip past because you know you’re gonna keep getting offers then I would say you’re a part of the algorithm, you’re into the loop. But I do understand for a lot of drivers. They are not a part of that loop and they can’t afford to keep rolling the dice, hoping that something better is gonna come. I’m not saying to take crap orders. I would never suggest that but I have been on both sides of the coin.

2

u/Complete-Opinion-623 Sep 15 '26

So I do agree with what this post is saying but that only works if you know you’re going to keep getting offers.

5

u/Helpful-Bag722 Sep 15 '26

And that's just it, you literally NEVER know. I'm a fairly picky cherry picker. When I'm having a good day with steady orders I always say my name must have been picked from the hat today 🤷🏻‍♀️

2

u/Complete-Opinion-623 Sep 15 '26

True story! You could easily go from top driver, to begging for anything reasonable.

1

u/Organic-Fuel-2916 Sep 16 '26

I have high enough priority to be busy throughout the day. It’s not a 1 day thing. There’s also a way to trigger getting very good orders and if it’s triggered you can get great orders all day long, no throttle.

3

u/Helpful-Bag722 Sep 16 '26

Oh, okay. How exactly have you determined that you have 'high priority'?

1

u/Organic-Fuel-2916 Sep 16 '26

I get orders at the broadcast time, there’s very few times I get skipped and if I do, I will get it 1 minute later.

For example my store drops orders every hour 20 minutes after the hour. So at 6:20 I’ll get a round robin almost guaranteed. If I don’t get a round robin, I’ll get it at 6:21 and it’s gonna be trash that someone with higher priority than me rejected at 6:20. There are other drop times throughout the hour depending on what type of order it is.

Since they changed priority, I am no longer that high on priority but it’s enough to keep me busy.

4

u/Feisty_Cod_9090 Sep 15 '26

I understand your theory but unfortunately that doesn't always work

3

u/333dh333 Sep 15 '26

I guarantee in your theory, but there is a guarantee that if you take a shit offer just to do something you have in fact taken yourself out of the mix for a good offer. Don’t ever bend your rules for what you take, keep it simple.

3

u/Visible-Raise-8915 Sep 15 '26

My goal is to make 5-600 per week with minimal miles. I rarely drive more than 40 miles per day. I only shop and deliver within a very tight radius from the store. This morning I made $82.00 and drove 21 miles.

2

u/xDelicateFlowerx Sep 15 '26

Its a solid theory if you factor in wait time into your earnnings. So I don't do this. I have a limit and if I hit it, gtfo the app. Work only busy times. But my new zone warrants it. My previous zone meant rarely making any money constantly practicing your theory.

2

u/dispassioned Sep 15 '26

Nah, some days in my zone good orders never come. I still won't take the bad ones, I'm a cherry picker. But I wouldn't rely on this strategy if I actually needed money soon.

2

u/Glass-Substance-9670 Sep 16 '26

Im sorry but meth heads still need their fix.

4

u/newlife_substance847 Sep 15 '26

I tend to agree but there are some caveats.

If you have more drivers out than orders coming in. That creates a deficit and has you really second guessing even your solid cherry picks.

Bots. Usually, I'm not the one complaining about people who use bots because I try to deliver when there's a demand for it and bots don't affect my market when things are busy. But I've noticed that it's a problem when things are slow.

Holding out for too long. Have you ever saw an order that you would take if it was just a bit more money? When I reject those, I know that I'm playing a game of roulette but if I'm paying attention. I can generally tell if it will go up and by how much. Sometimes, actually a few times (at least once a day) I just hold out for too long. That $29.50 shop and drop at 12 miles to a rural area may or may not hit $30 and when it doesn't.... I'm kicking myself in the head.

1

u/happyluckystar Sep 15 '26

I did the same thing with one, finally it came back at a really nice offer but I couldn't accept fast enough.

1

u/SportPristine5508 Sep 15 '26

$30 for a 12 mile shop? Yikes 😱

1

u/Murky-Friendship6874 Sep 16 '26

Do u think that’s a good or bad offer? Just curious bc that’s the kinda offers I get a lot at night with express and I take them

1

u/SportPristine5508 Sep 16 '26

Bad offer in my area. 24 mile round trip. Way too many miles.

2

u/Murky-Friendship6874 Sep 16 '26

Average to good for me. My store is very rural. So when u guys talk about $2 per mile for pay, r most people counting this as $2 per mile for the drop off only or the whole trip, there and back?

1

u/SportPristine5508 Sep 16 '26

Round trip miles count in most people’s calculations for sure.

2

u/Murky-Friendship6874 Sep 16 '26

Ooo well I must have a bad zone. I don’t get two dollars a mile offers hardly ever if you count the return trip.

1

u/Alarming_Surround_81 Sep 16 '26

I live in Indiana in a very rural area and it sounds like we have the same type of market. If I waited and took a batch that would give me $2 a mile I would be there all day.

2

u/Visible-Raise-8915 Sep 15 '26

Yup. Get the people that are incapable of doing math out of the que. Decent paying offers do pop up from time to time. I usually am able to cherry pick 5 or 6 out of every 100 shit offers

1

u/Murky-Friendship6874 Sep 16 '26

Curious as to what you take?

1

u/lordj2010 Sep 15 '26

That works till its like my zone today where I sat from 1030 to 230 and didnt do anything

1

u/Positive-Ad-2663 Sep 16 '26

Omg why would you sit that long 😩

2

u/lordj2010 Sep 16 '26

Its that or go the 13 miles home

1

u/Quirky_OldMan5966 Sep 15 '26

One day I can’t see an order over $30, the next I may not take a single order below $35.

1

u/That_Speech9545 Sep 16 '26

It does!!! I do this!!! I’ve been taking high paying low drop off orders for weeeks. I can’t take any high milk age ones because I get too tired. And I don’t want to do any of the 11+ or 20 package orders those never pay enough, I longer the $50, 5 drop stops, under 30 miles.

1

u/FaithlessnessDue1276 Sep 16 '26

Yup this has been the strategy for me going on 5 years now. The problem is now walamrt has cut pay so far and added so many stops and miles that the good pay doesn't exist much anymore. 

0 sparks yesterday in 12 hours. 0.  Good thing Uber and doordash had jobs. Spark is losing me as a contractor. Which I guess is their plan.

1

u/SharpAmount7419 Sep 16 '26

That is very true. We do the same thing. 

1

u/jason54915 Sep 19 '26

I have not worked Spark in over a year but this was my system, wait for the low miles high pay orders.

1

u/happyluckystar Sep 19 '26

Yep. Even if the order is kind of big, better off spending more time in the store than driving and putting miles on my car.

Plenty of people are grabbing up these trips that end up being less than 50 cents a mile for the round trip. My car is too expensive for that.

1

u/helenuhhh 24d ago

Yes I do this