Mystery Shopping Industry And Good Morning America!!

In case you missed it, MSPA and mystery shopping were on U.S. national television yesterday on Good Morning America. While the piece dealt primarily with the shopper-side of the industry, it did mention MSPA and the size of the industry. And, it made note of the fact that MSPA has a certification program for mystery shoppers.

Thanks to Hart Associates and to the Member companies who stepped in at the very last minute to help Hart get the story on the air.

Here's your link:

http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/Consumer/story?id=5288516&page=1

Thanks!!

Justice Being Served !! Mystery Shopping Scammers ARRESTED !!

More good news, again from Canada, with regard to the scammers who defraud people under the guise of mystery shopping.

I contacted the Competition Bureau in Canada yesterday to inquire about their progress in finding and stopping the scammers. Andrew Hughes of the Competition Bureau called me this morning to inform me that they have arrested a few more people, whose cases are moving through the courts. In addition, he said one person who was arrested last year has been sentenced to 20 months jail time. He talked me through to the URL for the news release on the conviction, whicy you may see at:

http://www.competitionbureau.gc.ca/epic/site/cb-bc.nsf/en/02669e.html

Unfortunately, there appear to be many more of these scammers "out there," so I expect we'll continue to hear about them. But at least the Canadians and, to some extent the U.S. Federal Trade Commission and U.S. Postal Service, are taking this matter seriously.

MSPA National Survey - You Can Help!!

Would you like to have a direct impact on gaining recognition for the value of mystery shopping? All you need to do is simply participate in an MSPA national survey on customer wait times.

The brief survey will ask you to report on recent experiences waiting in lines at various establishments during your regular, day-to-day routines. No special trips are necessary! You may report on just one experience, or you may complete the survey multiple times to reflect different experiences. The important thing is to participate!

How will participating in the survey benefit you, the shopper? The MSPA will use the survey results to highlight the type of valuable information mystery shopping gathers and share it with media in the largest cities across the United States. Ultimately, increased media attention will help gain additional mystery shopping recognition among business owners, in turn, increasing the number of mystery shopping assignments available to you!

To participate, simply visit http://survey.mysteryshop.org/.

Thanks, in advance, for your support of MSPA’s efforts to increase the use of mystery shopping!

Funny Little Things We Do...

While waiting for my husband to get off the computer one day, I noticed he had this routine. Not only did he move his pencil to the right of the desk, BUT he also situated all his papers. Lastly, he sat back gave a big sigh and then got up and left. At the time, I didn’t find it so funny, but the more I thought about it, it became quite comical.

From that point on, I started watching my other family members when they were on the computer. My sister would sit down and have to fix her hair just right before cruising the web. My grandmother would spend 10 minutes or so making her coffee, putting on her slippers and situating her back support on her chair before enjoying the perks of the Internet.

All this I thought was hilarious, and it made me wonder. If they have these funny little things they do before working or playing on the computer, what does everyone else do? Have you thought about anything ritualistic you might do or need before sitting down or leaving the computer?

P.S. My need before working is I must have the right kind of pen on top of my desk. It has to be that dark, blue ink. Funny, but it is so true!

Shopper Contest Information

We will be announcing the May contest winners in the next couple days! Two lucky shoppers will each win $25 just for doing a shop in May!! Grab a shop and if you did not get it this time – NEXT time could be you!

Also - Stay Tuned to see what the next AboutFace shopper contest will be. Do YOU have any ideas on a GREAT contest that you would like to see a shopping company put out there? If so, I want to hear about it. Respond with your ideas and I will try to pick one of your ideas in the upcoming months! Thanks!!

PM Side - Questions From A Client

OK - so you have typed up your report and you think it is AWESOME and you get an email from the editor or PM asking a question or maybe for more detail. Ever wonder why they would question such an awesome report? Don't take it personal - read on :)

I asked Diana Paone, Project Manager to elaborate a bit on this and this is what she had to say:

Often when we send completed evaluations to our clients, they have questions about what exactly took place during your visit. One of the reasons questions might arise is because shops do not have enough details to paint a clear picture of what happened. Another reason might be because the associates whom you dealt have a different view of your visit than what was reported. When this happens, we are required to seek out that additional information. We might contact you by email or phone and ask you to recall your visit, provide more details or answer some additional questions. Should you get an email like this, please address it in a timely manner. Often shoppers are able to provide enough information to satisfy the clients’ request. By addressing these situations quickly, you are providing that extra tidbit of information that could save your shop from possible rejection. Should we contact you for more information and not be able to reach you, we would then have to “take the word” of the client. This could possibly cause your shop to be rejected. Always be sure to check your email for a few days after submitting your shop just in case. To prevent this situation entirely, add as many details as you can to your shop when you submit it.

To wrap this up - if asked questions - be prompt to answer them and know that at times it is just a matter of an opinion - that does not make you or your report wrong. Have you ever been asked to give more information on a report that you did - what happened?

Opinions From the Project Management Side

Scheduling has been offering advice and trying to post topics of interest but we thought we would take things from a different angle and get the opinion of a Project Manager - someone who is in close contact with the client and see a different viewpoint. I will be posting different topics that we can talk about - starting with rejected shops. Below is an article from Sonja Maccaline - Project Manager and Team Director. Her thoughts on why shops are rejected:

Each client has their own reasons for mystery shopping, but all expect to receive specific and detailed information. Each evaluation is customized to ensure the customer obtains the information they mandate. While we would like for all of our shoppers to be paid every time for their efforts, some shops must be rejected because the client’s needs and expectations were not met.

The most frequent reasons for objections are:·

The wrong scenario was presented·
All necessary observations were not made·
A required part of the shop was omitted (such as a phone call or web inquiry)·
The wrong store was visited·
The wrong associate was evaluated·
The shopper is unprepared and is identified by the associate·
The shop was done on the wrong day/date/time·
Questions from editors and/or the Project Manager remain unanswered

Thoughts?

~Kelly Pecot