You can spend millions on advertising, even more on the architecture of the point of sale and be great at public relations, but if the seller does not meet the expectations of the customer, most of the money invested is certainly wasted. Fortunately, the Mystery Shopping method can detect and remove bottlenecks.
Mystery shopping is one of the newer research methods in the corporate world. It is based on professionally established principles that were structured in 1997 with the formation of the Mystery Shopper Providers Association (MSPA). The European branch was created in 2001, of which our company is a proud member.
At the global level, the Mystery Shopping market amounts to 2.5 billion euros and has a growth trend greater than traditional quantitative and qualitative research methods, although they are still dominant.
In addition to the fact that this is a relatively new method, Serbian companies (especially those operating in the retail sector) are increasingly using it. The reason is that the first reports can be obtained relatively quickly, and the changes that come as a result of the conclusions of those reports can have a positive effect on the business in a short time.
Despite the fact that it is expanding, this method is less known or is known only in principle. It should also be noted that at our faculties that study management and marketing, this method is either not mentioned or only superficially discussed.
In general, there is a certain amount of mystification, so there are also those who slightly underestimate this method. Of course, there are no secrets here, and in the following lines I will talk about some interesting questions that I encountered in practice.
By the way, the biggest fans of this method are those who were initially skeptics (as is often the case in life for various phenomena).
What is the shortest definition of Mystery Shopping ?
Mystery Shopping is a measurement of the quality of service, performance and experience of a trained and prepared consumer.
Who are the consumers, i.e. Mystery Shoppers ?
A mystery shopper is a person who is familiar with the Mystery Shopping method, has agreed to the working conditions and has successfully completed training. This work is in most cases part-time, and mystery shoppers are hired on the project based on their characteristics, ratings and preferences. There are no restrictions on who can be a mystery shopper. In general, in most cases, women (65%), people between 25 and 39 years old (26%) and those who are employed with less than two years of experience in their current position.
However, the unemployed, employees, pensioners and students are widespread among secret shoppers. There are those with low incomes and entry-level positions as well as those with high incomes and good positions (but much less).
What is the difference between Mystery Shopping research and classic consumer research?
Mystery Shopping is a measurement of the performance and current (real) situation at the point of sale of a company or competitor. Consumer research measures expectations, habits, image and determines consumer behavior and characteristics.
Both methods are practically complementary and together give a clear picture of the situation, although Mystery Shopping can be successfully used and applied by other sectors in companies, such as human resources and sales, not only top management and marketing.
Therefore, Mystery Shopping is not a method that primarily relies on probability and statistics (sample), as is the case with consumer behavior research or public opinion research.
For example, the company’s procedures, rules, human resources training, point of sale architecture, etc. (performance measured by the Mystery Shopping method) affects the perception, satisfaction, image of consumers, which is measured by consumer research.
The synergy of all these elements affects revenue and profit, that is, the overall value of the company.
How can one relevantly assess the situation on the ground based on just one estimate of a secret shopper ?
Mystery Shopping is not a method that uses a sample, but measures the current state as it is. In accordance with the aim of the research, among other things, the moment of purchase is planned. Even the best salespeople have a bad day and get a negative review, but that’s also when customers come to the sales floor, right? Therefore, it is also something that should be valued.
We should keep in mind that the majority of unsatisfied customers do not complain to the seller or the store manager, but usually turn around and go to competitors, and talk about their negative experience with friends and comment on social networks more often and rather than when they have a positive experience.
Let’s imagine that we can quantify the quality of a salesperson and say that he is great 99% of the time in a month. The probability that the secret shopper will come exactly in the period when he is in a bad mood is 1%. The probability of a secret buyer coming in the next wave when the seller is in the same not so good mood to work is 0.01%. If this happens again, the perception that the seller is great 99% of the time is almost certainly wrong.
What exactly can be found out with Mystery Shopping research?
The purpose of the Mystery Shopping survey is to measure and improve the quality that the company provides to customers. The condition of the interior (cleanliness, functionality, atmosphere…), exterior (access, company, window…) and employees (neatness, dress code , sales skills, compliance with procedures…) is usually determined. At the end, you get a report that is descriptive as well as measurable, so you can find out what the average rating is and how many points a facility (or seller) has earned.
What are Mystery Shopping methods?
The most commonly used methods are:
- Mystery Shop. These are visits that end with the purchase of a product or service. They are usually used in the FMCG segment, i.e. in retail .
- Mystery Visit. These are visits that do not end with a purchase. They are usually used by banks, insurance companies or government organizations.
- Mystery Caller . These are prices that are done exclusively over the phone. They are usually used by information and telecommunication companies, but they are also used by banks, insurance companies, online stores…
- Mystery Deliveries . These are estimates based on experience with shipments. They are usually used by delivery companies or primarily use delivery services.
- Mystery email . Estimates based on sending e-mails.
- B2B Mystery shopping . Assessments carried out in the business market.
There are other methods, but it is not uncommon to use a combination of some of these methods. Which method will be used and how it will be used depends on each individual case, i.e. project.
In the next issue, I will deal with topics that specifically concern certain procedures, such as the behavior of the secret shopper in the building, what effect this can have on sales at the time of the work of the secret shopper… I will also look at the industries that use this method the most, but also on what the price of this service depends on.
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Article published in InStore magazine, issue 39, June 2015.