How Mystery Shopping Companies Spot Fraudulent Shops
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It is hard to believe, but true: There are some secret shoppers who fake reports. Fortunately, there are not many of these dishonest shoppers, but the few who are out there harm the industry and all of us with their fraud.
It seems as though it would be more difficult to make up a report and all the necessary details and documentation than to just do it. However, there will always be people who want to feel that they got away with something by faking the secret shopper report instead of doing it right.
Mystery shopping companies and clients can spot the fakers, though, so even if they get away with it for a while, fraudulent secret shoppers will get caught. Here are some of the ways that mystery shopping providers and their clients spot these con artists and their fraudulent shop reports.
Of course, if information is wrong that is a big tip off. Clients will spot that employee names do not match actual employees, or that there are factual errors. When clients become suspicious about a report, they may pull video tape from the surveillance cameras and match it against the report.
One company owner told me about a bank shopper who got caught this way. When the bank reviewed the video tape for the time of the alleged mystery shop, they saw a woman enter the bank, walk to the counter, pick up a business card and walk back out the door.
When clients spot a fake shop report, it is damaging to the mystery shopping company’s credibility, and to the industry as a whole. The information provided in our reports is important, and if the client can not trust one report, how do they know they can trust any of them?
Maintaining a high level of trust with clients is one reason that mystery shopping companies take steps to identify fake shop reports before they go to the client. They do this in several ways, some of which they keep secret for obvious reasons. Here are a few things that companies have been willing to go on the record with, though. This information comes from stories shared by company representatives at MSPA Gold Workshops, or when I interviewed them for The Mystery Shopper’s Manual.
One way that companies check is by inserting integrity questions in the report form. These are questions that are not part of the report that goes to the client, but are used to verify that the shopper actually went to the location. For example, there might be a question about whether the patio was clean when there is no patio. A shopper who visited the location and properly performed the shop would know that and would answer “N/A” to any questions about the patio.
Companies may require original receipts, not copies or scans. When they do accept copies or scans, they are carefully scrutinized to verify accuracy.
Some shops may require photographs or other proof that the shopper was at the location.
And are the mystery shoppers ever mystery shopped? I believe that at times we may be. I know of one mystery shopping company owner that would sometimes send an observer to a client location at a time when a shopper was scheduled to be there so that she could check the report submitted by the shopper against what the observer said. Her interest was not primarily in detecting fraud, but as a quality control to see if the shopper was properly reporting certain conditions. The same process could be used to identify fraud, although I doubt that it is commonly used.
One of the best protections against fraudulent reports is using secret shoppers that the companies know and trust. A shopper who has performed dozens (or hundreds) of shops reliably and accurately is not likely to suddenly start faking reports. Shoppers who are MSPA Certified may also have an edge, as they are usually professionals who do not want to jeopardize their standing in the industry.
If a report submitted by a shopper is found to be fraudulent, that shopper will not work for that mystery shopping company again, and they may find it difficult to get assignments from other companies, too. Shoppers who commit fraud can bet that word will get around.
In fact, shoppers have even been sued for submitting fraudulent reports. One company owner told of getting a $13,000 judgment against a shopper, to reimburse his company for the moneys paid to the shopper, costs of re-shopping the client, and other expenses incurred as a result of the fraud committed by the shopper.
Mystery shopping providers and clients are on the lookout for fraudulent reports. Do not even think about faking a shop report. Always do your shop and report as required by the client guidelines, complete the report accurately, and submit all necessary documentation (such as receipts and business cards) so that mystery shopping companies know that you are a shopper on whom they can rely.
4 Responses to 'How Mystery Shopping Companies Spot Fraudulent Shops'
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on March 20th, 2008 at 4:27 am
Another great write up Cathy. I think I’ll need to file this in my “sad but true” folder.
on March 20th, 2008 at 4:41 am
I never thought any one would even think of doing something like that. I hope that we don’t have any more of those situations because it is not very fair to the rest of us Shoppers, Clients or Schedulers. I suppose they are fair about not letting you shop for their company again. For the most part, I suppose most of us will be honest about our shopping. Let’s hope that this kind of behaviours does not continue besides it is a fun thing to do I haven’t worked to much shopping, but what I have done was rewarding. It makes you feel good doing it and taking back the datum that the client’s and scheduler’s need.
on March 20th, 2008 at 5:36 am
@crawdaddydoo92: “Sad but true” sums it up well.
@jj: There will always be people who want to take what they see as the easy way. It is true everywhere, not just in secret shopping. Fortunately, there are not many of those people. Most mystery shoppers (just like most people in general) are honest.
on March 20th, 2008 at 9:02 am
Great post Cathy. As a mystery shopping company owner for the last 4 1/2 years, we have only had a handful of shoppers falsify a report. The most brazen was a shopper who called the location and asked for employee names. They continued by saying they were doing an audit for us and, if they provided her the information they needed, she would ensure they got a 100%.
When I confronted her, she simply acted dumb saying “why would I do that?” and “How would I even know how to ensure they got 100%?” The funny thing is, she has never complained since we de-activated her account and never paid her for that assignment.
By the way, we found out because our client reported it to us. I think most companies strive to have good relationships with their clients and the clients, most definitely, will tell the mystery shopping company if they think something is fraudulent. You are also right that they will check their video record of that time frame. They may also check receipt records and, in many cases, their employees will spot the discrepancy.