Mystery Shopper's Manual

Is It Normal to Be Scared to Mystery Shop?

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scared-to-shopWe have all heard of “stage fright,” but is there such a thing as “shop fright”? Some people who are interested in mystery shopping tell me that they are too afraid to take their first assignments and get started. How can they get past the fear and launch their mystery shopping careers?

Any time you do something new, it is normal to be a little nervous. You were probably nervous the first time you got behind the wheel of a car. (If you weren’t, the person teaching you to drive was probably very nervous. :o) ) After a while, though, driving became second-nature. Mystery shopping can be that way, too.
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Staying Cool During Summer Mystery Shops

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Mystery shopping in the summer can be hot and sweaty. Just getting in the car in the summer can make you feel as though heat stroke is imminent! As you go from place to place, leaving your car parked in the hot sun, running in and out of shop locations, the heat can be very uncomfortable and, in extreme situations, even dangerous.

These tips can help you stay cool as you do your summer mystery shopping.

When you can, schedule your shops in the cooler times of the day. Can you go first thing in the morning, or after the hottest part of the afternoon? If the sun isn’t beating down on you, you will feel more comfortable.

Wear sunscreen. Even short exposures to sun have an effect. Put SPF 15 or greater on any exposed skin, especially your face.
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Being a “Top-Ten-Percenter”

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Several years ago, when I was developing the MSPA Gold Certification, I spent a lot of time talking with executives, schedulers and others at mystery shopping companies. As we talked about what they needed shoppers to know, I discovered some shocking and disturbing truths about mystery shoppers.

The biggest problem was that of shoppers who accept assignments then do not complete them. Sometimes the shopper cancels at the last minute and other times they simply do not do the shop. It happens more than you might think. In fact, many companies have told me that it is typical for 25% of mystery shopper jobs to be reassigned because the shopper “flaked.” That’s right, it happens so often that there is an industry term for it.

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Recordkeeping for Mystery Shoppers

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You may be working on your taxes right now, and hoping that you remember all of your income and expenses from last year. Keeping good records of income and expenses will make it easier to file your taxes next year and ensure that you do not miss any tax deductions to which you are entitled. Even more importantly, knowing where your money is coming from—-and where it is going—-will show you how profitable you are and which of your activities are most profitable.

Here are some ways to get your records organized.
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Secret Shopper Resolutions

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Did you make any New Year’s resolutions this year? How many of them have you kept so far? Uh-oh. Maybe it is time to make a few simple resolutions that can make you a more successful mystery shopper this year. Why not give some of these a try?

Communicate more. Mystery shopping companies want shoppers to keep them informed. Let them know if there is a problem scheduling an appointment or something goes wrong on the shop visit or a location no longer exists or… One shopper told me that she discovered a major problem with the scenario for a shop: Shoppers were supposed to tell the salesperson the amount of their budget, and there was nothing in the store for anything close to that price. Oops. Letting them know about the error immediately helped them fix the problem before other shoppers did their assignments.
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Mystery Shopper Mistakes – Top 10 Visit Mistakes

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Although anyone can make a mistake during a mystery shop visit, there are some mistakes that are completely avoidable. Here are ten mistakes that can derail your shopping career, but can be easily avoided with proper preparation and attention to detail.

Failure to read the guidelines and form before the visit. In order to know what you need to do, you need to review the client’s guidelines and the report form you will complete after the shop visit. Without this preparation you won’t know what questions to ask, observations to make, required purchases, etc.

Going to the wrong location. Believe it or not, this happens all the time. There are many clients that have multiple locations in the same area. When shoppers do not verify the address they may end up at the wrong one. Even worse, some shoppers go to a location of another business, not the client.
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What to Check Before Accepting a Mystery Shopper Job

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Whether you are a brand new mystery shopper or you have been shopping for years, there are a few things you should always check before you accept a secret shop assignment.

What is the location? Do not assume when you see the name of the client or a street name that you know where the location is. Verify the address to be certain you know where you will be going on the shop. For example, I live in the Houston area. If all you know is that the client location is on “Westheimer,” it could be anywhere in a 20-mile stretch of that road. And many companies have more than one location on Westheimer.
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Tips to Improve Your Memory

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On a mystery shopper job, there are dozens of details and vital bits of information that need to be collected in order to complete an accurate report. On some shops, it may be possible to make notes or use a digital recorder to capture the shop. However, no matter what, a good memory is an important asset to a mystery shopper.

Although tools such as digital recorders are useful, they are not infallible. Batteries die, switches get turned off, or other sounds interfere with what you want to hear on the recording. Recorders should be thought of as backup, not your primary means of getting and recalling the data needed for your reports. And because there are times when it is difficult or impossible to make notes without being observed it is critical to develop a good memory.

Here are some tips on developing memory skills that will not fail you:
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Secret Shopping – Should You Tell Your Friends?

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Question from a Mystery Shopper:

I have been mystery shopping for almost a year, and I love it! I would like to tell my friends about mystery shopping so they can do this, too. Many of them could use the extra money, and I think they would be good mystery shoppers.

Would telling my friends about my mystery shopping experiences violate the confidentiality requirements of the companies I work for?

Giving your friends general information about mystery shopping would not violate confidentiality agreements. However, there are some reasons you may not want to do it. Read on to learn more.

Let’s start with what you may and may not disclose under most confidentiality agreements.
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Good Mystery Shopper Karma

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A simple definition of karma is that what you put out comes back to you. If you do good things, you receive good things in return. And if you do bad things, you can expect negative consequences.

As a mystery shopper, you can attract good karma (high report scores, more assignments, better paying assignments, etc.) or bad karma (low scores, fewer assignments, or even being deactivated.

Maintaining good mystery shopper karma means doing your job well, and being helpful to schedulers, editors and other mystery shopping company representatives. Here are some of the ways you can keep good mystery shopper karma flowing.
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