No wigs and sunglasses needed

Editor’s note: Chris Causey is the sales manager at TrendSource, a San Diego mystery shopping firm.

When consumers and corporate leaders envision mystery shopping, they often picture a wig-wearing woman in sunglasses, suspiciously circling the discount rack in an attempt to observe the front lines of a business operation. Actually, nothing could be further from the truth.

Today, mystery shopping is a leading industry in its own right, giving companies, consumer groups, and government watchdogs vital tools to ensure that an organization operates as it should. Whether a shopper weighs and measures food products, examines the cleanliness and maintenance of facilities, or notes the cheery grins and knowledge of employees, mystery shopping provides one of the most valuable - yet difficult to obtain - commodities in business: unvarnished, accurate information.

Unknown to many business leaders, however, is the expanding role of mystery shopping. Shoppers and retail experts are playing an increasingly important role in helping companies deliver better products, more accurately serve consumers, and rate the street-level appeal of their companies and their products.

Mystery shopping is not just a business tool for the rich. It’s used every day by companies of all sizes, and can help firms from the corner grocery to the billion-dollar retailer achieve their goals. Where once mystery shopping told companies what they were doing wrong, today it is telling them what they are doing right and wrong - and offering suggestions to make their operation better.

Here’s a look at some of the effective products mystery shoppers can provide.

Rewards and recognition

Simply put, so-called “reward and recognition” programs charge mystery shoppers on the front lines with testing employees to ensure they are doing things right. Also called an awards-incentive program, in this undercover role, a mystery shopper examines specific aspects of a customer service or salesperson’s role in the customer transaction. Then, the information is compiled, analyzed and presented to business leaders. Either immediately on the spot or at a later date, employees are rewarded for doing what is an often-thankless task: doing their job right. Businesses and employees can benefit by using this service to fine-tune their operations and to support employees who work hard day in and day out.

Typically, rewards distributed to effective employees run the gamut from cash handouts to various prizes, from cars to sporting event tickets - nearly any incentive that can both pique an employee’s attention and motivate their colleagues. This corporate practice is not new, but this method of implementation is. Companies up and down the Fortune 500 offer various incentives to employees. Mystery shopping now provides an objective and efficient means for determining the recipients.

Minding Ma Bell

Technology has revolutionized our lives - and at the same time given us the dreaded automated answering service. These systems help companies save money on telephone customer service staff but they can also frustrate and alienate consumers.

As companies increase centralized operations and decrease once-popular field branches, more and more calls from consumers are routed to central hubs. Rooms full of operators juggle dozens, sometimes even hundreds of calls per day. Companies must then evaluate the quality, consistency, and effectiveness of these operations knowing that every dollar counts, and every poor quality call may lead to a disappointed customer.

Providing objective quality control of calls is a key role of the mystery shopping industry and a role best often played by an outside firm. No employee wants to know that one of their own colleagues is playing Big Brother by monitoring their every move. Outsourcing this service typically decreases costs and internal resource usage, while objectively reviewing the basics of the customer-employee encounter.

Industry-wide studies

Competition within many industries is fiercer than ever, especially in areas where technology firms, new manufacturing, and professional services remain strong. Determining a company’s role among the masses is a vital step for most corporations. Unbeknownst to many, mystery shopping is not just about retail. Many firms in our industry provide economic analysis, industry services, and studies on a variety of issues. Small businesses daunted by the high-dollar consulting fees from traditional firms would be wise to examine the options available from mystery shopping firms.

Analyzing a market can produce clear results on a host of topics including pricing, performance, product variety and availability, compliance, merchandising, marketing and service. If you think your business is successful, it probably is. And it’s a near-guarantee that the competition agrees. That means they’re watching you, and may be emulating the steps you take to stay ahead of the pack. A close examination of your industry can offer a revealing glimpse of your strengths, weaknesses and potential traps.

Merchandising verification

Bar codes, magnetic tags, wireless door monitors and simple pen-and-pad inventory give sellers and suppliers an accurate view of what sells and what doesn’t. Even with this high technology, many companies still do not have vital information about their products that sell, such as to whom they are sold, and was the product sold with the “help or encouragement” of the sales staff?

Sales pros will tell you: most customers want to buy - if they didn’t, they wouldn’t be in the store. Sadly, retail professionals need to hone and practice their skills daily, just like athletes and actors. Mystery shoppers are often employed to monitor not just the type of product sold, but the circumstances - weather, display tactics, appearance of product, positioning, staff presentation - which often dictate the likelihood of a sale as much as quality and price. Mystery shoppers help retailers and manufacturers alike in determining what strategies can best help them improve sales, expand market share or alter product and display appearance. Shoppers are professional shoppers not just because they enjoy the job, but because they know what to look for as savvy marketers and smart consumers.

Marketing verification

Mystery shoppers examine not just the point-of-sale criteria used by a shopper, but also the marketing influences that shaped their decision. Were advertisements strategically placed near stores? Were appropriate marketing materials available as promised? Were services in the marketing arena delivered as contracted? All of these questions and more are the lifeblood of the modern mystery shopper. Companies positioning themselves in a new marketplace or with a new product have shareholders and principals that demand accurate line-by-line accounting of their hard-earned finances. Mystery shopping arms companies with accurate information and data to help them monitor expenses and services to help meet their goals.

Solid plan

In the past, mystery shopping was a niche industry, serving mainly retail clients at the point of sale. And while that service remains the bread-and-butter of our industry, mystery shoppers today provide vital market analysis, product testing, and consulting on a wide array of services and relationships. The savvy businessperson will not expand her firm without a solid marketing plan - and today, she would not move forward without a similar plan (and a team) provided by a reputable mystery shopping firm.