The short answer is that there is probably not a more cost-effective way to survey your current customers than to offer a web-based receipt survey program.┬á Mystery shopping is an outstanding in-depth way to measure employee compliance and consumer observations.┬á It is an objective, secret shopper evaluation.┬á It measures pre-given criteria, and records a snapshot of the past through the mystery shopper’s eyes.┬á The mystery shopper may or may not be a current customer, but the shopper will provide an objective evaluation of the criteria presented to them to evaluate in great detail.

Mystery shops are not expensive to conduct, and a good program will measure each location at least on a weekly basis.  But that still only gives the business 4 looks a month into operations.  This is where a web-based receipt survey program is a great supplement to the secret shop.

For literally pennies per customer, Shoppers’ Critique International can deliver a mass point of view from a large universe of current customers.┬á Web-based receipt survey programs should have a very limited scope of questions (although you can vary the questions on your survey from month to month).┬á These market research devices measure “global” opinions, which can be further incorporated with mystery shopping data to further generate a more complete picture of retail operations.

In general, here are a few thoughts to keep in mind when launching a web-based receipt survey program:

1. Keep it short and sweet!  What are the top 3 things you want to know?  After 3 questions, your respondent is ready to bail.
2. Provide a worthwhile incentive to participate.  We can provide a code to write on the receipt for a redemption, which also draws return traffic to the store.  We can share that a grocery client uses a loaf of fresh bread as their incentive; a casual steak house uses $3 off the next check; a bar-b-q restaurant uses a buy one get one free lunch special, and so on.
3. Temper your return expectations…in other words, consider the participation rate here about the same as a coupon redemption rate.┬á 1% is pretty normal; 2 % is a good day; 3% is a great day, and you must be living a right good life to bring in 4% or higher!!
4. Make sure you have POP (point-of-purchase) materials or some other way to promote participation in the program…once folks sign the check, they don’t always read the other stuff on the thermal paper.┬á Have your server or sales clerk point it out!

A web-based receipt survey program can be instituted for as low as less than $10/location!!┬á What a bargain to gain that kind of insight from your customers at literally pennies per customer!┬á That is one reason you see so many of them in existence. As a result of the ease-of-use, minimal cash investment and valuable insight, web-based receipt survey programs are an extremely cost effective customer intelligence tool that should be a part of EVERY retail or hospitality company’s marketing tool kit!┬á Let Shoppers’ Critique hook you up with yours today!!

Recent automotive sales and other key economic data suggest we’re finally on a road to recovery.

Granted, the auto industry will not experience an overnight recovery, but a sustained positive growth is a situation we can all live and work with.

Consumer confidence is at its highest level in six months and, even though the national unemployment rate remains relatively high, jobs are being added, especially in the all-important private sector.

Now is the time for us organizationally to step it up a notch.

I’m often asked two questions by dealers.

1. Which numbers would you recommend I monitor on a monthly basis?
2. What is the benchmark/guide for that number?

I will list the areas I feel are critical and then offer suggestions on others areas or numbers you might want to track, both internally and externally.

Let’s begin with the second question. There isn’t a single number for any account, etc. that is carved in stone. There are references available from your manufacturers or 20 Group providers that help us compare our operational performance with other dealers. But remember these numbers are moving targets.

I suggest you and your senior management team identify a few key performance numbers (KPIs) you will want to monitor monthly to compare your actual performance to your target or goal and also to help you quickly identify any areas of concern.

I conducted an in-dealership management meeting for an excellent dealer who explained his theory on KPIs.

He said managers should focus on no more than five areas. If, individually, they could perform well in those areas, the dealership would be very profitable.

In his operation, managers have taken ownership of this process and assumed full responsibility for their department KPIs, which continues to result in a very high performance dealership.

Meet with your department managers individually and walk them through the process of choosing five areas they can influence. Explain that their monthly performance will be measured versus their KPIs and the results discussed during the monthly operation meetings.

From a departmental manager’s perspective, the KPIs should focus on areas they can impact and also which will allow their performance to be optimized.

For example, variable managers would want to focus on their gross per vehicle retailed; the finance and insurance income per vehicle retailed; inventory days’ supply; turn and aging; sales personnel unit/gross productivity; the number of guarantees, if any, paid and the departmental employee staffing level; and turnover.

In the fixed operation, management KPIs would include fixed coverage; measurements for technician productivity; any technician guarantees paid; service advisor and estimator productivity; parts counter sales personnel productivity; effective labor rates compared with retail; gross profit percentages; unsold hours and departmental employee turnover.

A dealer operator has a totally separate list of KPIs to monitor. Those include: dealership net profit as a percentage of gross; total expense as a percentage of gross; other income and deductions; employee productivity per employee in total and by department; employee turnover; asset management status versus preset standards; a cash flow statement; market share versus target and CSI.

During the monthly recap meetings, have each department manager present and discuss their individual results versus their KPIs. Following their reports, the dealer principal will cover the big picture KPIs he or she monitors.

By implementing this process, you will find it rewarding to witness not only an increase in your management’s total dealership operation education level, but the level of their professionalism this process will add.

The real benefit of this process will be the increase in your bottom line.

Good selling!

Washington, January 25, 2011 ΓÇô Football fans have had the date circled for months now, and with Super Bowl Sunday fast approaching, more people than ever will celebrate the big game. According to a new survey by the Retail Advertising and Marketing Association, conducted by BIGresearch, the average consumer is expected to spend $59.33 on game-related merchandise, apparel and snacks, up from $52.63 last year. Total Super Bowl spending is expected to reach $10.1 billion.*

Of the 171 million people who will watch the game, the most in the surveyΓÇÖs history, nearly 34.9 million (15.0%) are planning to throw their own party, up from last yearΓÇÖs 31.6 million, and another 61.2 million (26.3%) plan to attend a party, also up from the 58.8 million who said they would go to a party in 2010.

ΓÇ£Getting friends and family together for a party is a great way to watch the Super Bowl, and with all of the planning and preparation that goes into throwing a good party, retailers have cause for celebration too,ΓÇ¥ said Mike Gatti, Executive Director, RAMA. ΓÇ£Consumers hoping to wow their friends and family with a new HDTV should act fast as this is one of the most popular times of the year to buy new televisions.ΓÇ¥

Further good news for retailers is that of those who plan on watching the game, at least 4.5 million (4.5%) will take advantage of retailersΓÇÖ promotions and buy a new television, compared to the 3.6 million who said they would last year, and the 2.7 million who said they would in 2009.

Grocery, apparel, electronic, sporting goods and home furnishing stores can expect to see their share of Super Bowl related spending as sports fans head out to buy food and beverages (69.5%), team apparel or accessories (7.3%), decorations (6.0%), and furniture or a new entertainment center (2.0%).   Of the millions of people planning to tune in on February 6, nearly half (47.0%) say the game itself is the most important part. Over one-quarter (25.8%) watch for the commercials, 19.5 percent enjoy getting together with friends, and 7.7 percent say the half time performances are most important.

ΓÇ£With millions of people getting together to watch the game every year, advertisers plan and prepare meticulously for this annual opportunity to reach and engage viewers with bolder and more effective ways,ΓÇ¥ said Phil Rist, Executive Vice President, Strategic Initiatives, BIGresearch. ΓÇ£With over a quarter of viewers saying the commercials are the most important part, itΓÇÖs clear the Super Bowl isnΓÇÖt just about football.ΓÇ¥

As for the entire game-watching experience, nearly three-quarters (74.9%) of viewers say they see the commercials as entertainment. Some viewers arenΓÇÖt as keen though, with 17.0 percent saying advertisers should save their money and pass along savings to shoppers and 9.5 percent saying it makes the game last too long.

The survey found 17.4 percent admit the commercials make them aware of the advertisersΓÇÖ brand. Another 7.7 percent say the commercials influence them to buy products from advertisers.

The survey also found that young adults are more likely to be influenced by commercials, with 15.4 percent of 18-24 year-old viewers agreeing that the commercials influence them to buy products from the advertisers. Among other age groups, the numbers drop, with 11.0 percent of 25-34 year-olds, 7.3 percent of 35-44 year-olds, 5.7 percent of 45-54 year-olds and a 5.5 percent of 55-64 year-olds saying they are influenced by the ads.

About the Survey

The Retail Advertising and Marketing Association’s 2011 Super Bowl Consumer Intentions and Actions Survey was designed to gauge consumer behavior and shopping trends related to the Super Bowl. The survey was conducted for RAMA by BIGresearch. The poll of 8,913 consumers was conducted from January 4-11 and has a margin of error of plus or minus 1.0 percent.

BIGresearch® consumer intelligence provides analysis of behavior in areas of products and services, retail, financial services, automotive and media. The BIGresearch Consumer Intentions and Actions® Survey (CIA™) of 8,000+ respondents is conducted monthly and the Simultaneous Media Usage® Survey (SIMM®) of 15,000+ respondents is conducted semi-annually.

The Retail Advertising & Marketing Association, a division of the National Retail Federation, is a trade association of over 1500 retail marketing and advertising executives, plus their supporting partners from the advertising agency, media and service-provider areas. RAMA co-sponsors the largest single gathering of retail marketing and advertising professionals in the industry today. RAMA also produces the Racie Awards Competition, the most prestigious creative contest in retail. www.rama-nrf.org.

At a time when people are resolving to eat less, exercise more, and spend more time with friends and family, I think quick serves might want to turn over a new leaf as well. Many fast feeders have themselves become bloated, complacent, and distracted, so letΓÇÖs take advantage of the clean slate the New Year brings and resolve to make 2011 the year to get things right.

Some quick servesΓÇÖ 2011 resolution lists may include items like reducing waste or finally putting up a Facebook page. But based on my own dealings with fast feeders, IΓÇÖd like to suggest a couple of other areas almost all companies should take a fresh approach to this year.

The first is consumer research. In the past couple of months alone, IΓÇÖve spoken with a handful of quick serves that have conducted virtually no consumer research. Sure, owners talk to customers frequently and ask them to fill out customer-satisfaction surveys every once in a while, but they have no data-based insights about who their customers are, whatΓÇÖs important to them, and how they perceive the brand. TheyΓÇÖre running their businesses by the seat of their pants.

If you donΓÇÖt know who your most valuable customers are, nor who your fiercest competition isΓÇöand if you canΓÇÖt say with confidence how customers and noncustomers think you stack up compared to their other choicesΓÇöyou need to make consumer research a priority this year.

Consumer research can help you target the best customers, deliver the things that really matter to them, and establish a stronger competitive advantage. Good research also produces insights that are reliable because a representative sample was surveyed. ItΓÇÖs not just simply those who choose to give you input or those you choose to ask. And the information was obtained through an objective, expert third party, not an owner or manager whose involvement in collecting the data inherently biases the results.

Many quick serves were established and have grown thanks to leaders who make decisions about the business based on gut or instinct, and thereΓÇÖs nothing wrong with that. In fact, a healthy dose of judgment and common sense are extremely valuable, even when you have solid data from consumer research. But with consumer-informed market knowledge and insights, even the most savvy leaders can reduce their risks and can evaluate options more objectively.

I understand even the most modest research projects might seem costly, especially if you’ve never spent money on research before. But thinking you don’t need consumer insights is just as costly—and perhaps a bit naïve or arrogant. Consumer research is an investment. If you spend a little money now, you’ll make more money later.

Another New YearΓÇÖs resolution I would suggest is sprucing up your restaurant image and environment.

The economic downturn made it difficult to spend money on capital improvements, but tired-looking exteriors and out-fashioned interiors are hindering many operationsΓÇÖ recoveries. Just because customers may be cutting back and spending less doesnΓÇÖt mean they donΓÇÖt notice their surroundings.

In fact, environment matters even more these days. People want to feel good about the places where they choose to spend their precious dollars and are looking for experiences that seem special. Old and tired restaurants add to the malaise many people feel; fresh and updated ones help them escape it.
“Thinking you don’t need consumer insights is costly—and perhaps a bit naïve or arrogant.”

Your restaurant exterior is perhaps your most successful advertising, as thousands of people pass by every day. Investing in your image sends important messagesΓÇöit tells consumers your business is thriving and youΓÇÖre working hard to serve your guests. A new look encourages new customers to check out your establishment and may even prompt lapsed customers to visit again. It also makes an impression on your employees, since they want to feel proud of where they work, and on potential franchisees and other important stakeholders.

This is a great time to improve the way your restaurants look. While other businesses may be neglecting their images and starting to show their age, you can really stand out.

I hope youΓÇÖll agree that conducting consumer research and sprucing up your restaurant image are worthwhile goals for the year. But we all know the problem with New YearΓÇÖs resolutions is that theyΓÇÖre easy to make but hard to keep.

How many exercise machines are purchased in January only to end up serving as clothes racks by March? In fact, according to a Marist poll taken last year, 35 percent of people who made a resolution didnΓÇÖt even try to keep it.

In addition to suggesting these resolutions, I want to offer some encouragement. ItΓÇÖs based on a quote by Holocaust survivor Viktor Frankl. In explaining how he survived more than three years in concentration camps, Frankl says, ΓÇ£Between stimulus and response there is a space. In that space is our power to choose our response. In our response lies our growth and our freedom.ΓÇ¥

Just as Frankl chose to respond to his circumstances in a positive and productive way, I hope you will choose to respond to the fresh start the New Year offers. ItΓÇÖs certainly been a long, hard couple of years, but with the resolutions you make today, you have the opportunity to respondΓÇöand in your response lies your growth and freedom.

HereΓÇÖs to a fantastic 2011!

1. Web-Based Receipt Survey Programs are Cost-Effective. If you were do any consumer measurement, there is not likely to be a more cost-effective measurement tool than a web-based receipt survey program. Pricing is usually based on number of locations and is quite reasonable compared to other investments that you could make into consumer research.

2. Not Everyone Will Fill Out the Web-Based Receipt Survey. Recognize that, like coupon redemption, you will only a realize a small participation sample on your web-based receipt survey program. But if you are drawing from a decent size universe, you still will benefit from a relevant sample size. Just set your expectations to a reasonable level and don’t plan on a 50% participation rate. 3% would be outstanding.

3. You Must Offer a Decent Incentive. Time is money, and no one wants to do anything for free. $3 off the next bill is a popular incentive. Most of the time, this type of incentive is tied to a short-term expiration date which has the effect of either bringing the customer back for more business quickly or the incentive breaks on expiration and never gets paid out.

4. Keep Your Web-Based Receipt Survey Questions Brief. Again, people don’t want to be tied up, and the more involved your survey is, the lower the participation. Take your top 3 issues and place them on either a Yes/No or small Likert-scale scoring.

5. Web-Based Receipt Survey Programs Only Tell Part of the Story. A real professional on-going evaluation of your operations would include multiple methods of measurement. Web-based receipt survey programs give a global snapshot, but lack in the detail that an on-going mystery shopping program, exit interviewing or even on-line focus groups will highlight. A combination of secret shopping and a web-based receipt program gives an excellent foundational insight into your operations, and the addition of every supplemental layer of measurement gives an even more complete picture.

Data from ΓÇ£Facebook X-FactorsΓÇ¥ indicates that the highest percentage of consumers (40%) are motivated to like a brand on Facebook by discounts and promotions. Almost the same percentage (39%) is motivated by showing support for the brand.

Getting free samples or coupons (36%) and receiving updates on upcoming sales (30%) also tally high on the discount/promotion motivation. Some of the other reasons that people may “like” a brand’s Facebook page include staying informed about the activities of a company (34%), getting updates on future products (33%), and simply for fun or entertainment (29%). Education and interaction (13%) are the least-popular reasons to “like” a brand, by a significant margin.

Results from “Facebook X-Factors” demonstrate that for most consumers, Facebook is still much more about personal, rather than professional, interaction. 63% of Facebook users are there to reconnect with old friends and friends who live far away, while 59% say they use Facebook to maintain personal contacts.

37% of users have a Facebook account to stay on top of their social life. Only 15% of Facebook users say they are there to maintain professional and work contacts.

Other notes of interest include:

* 64% of all U.S. online consumers (and three quarters of Millennials) have created a profile on Facebook.
* 70% of consumers who ΓÇ£likedΓÇ¥ a brand on Facebook didnΓÇÖt feel theyΓÇÖd given this company permission to market to them.
* Only 17% of consumers say theyΓÇÖre more likely to buy after becoming a “liking” a brand on Facebook.

The study went on to calculate that the average value a Facebook fan provides a brand is $136.38, but it can swing to $270.77 in the best case or go down to $0 in the worst, according to research from Syncapse. This value is based on Syncapse analysis of five factors per fan: product spending, brand loyalty, propensity to recommend, brand affinity and earned media value.

On average, a Facebook fan participates with a brand 10 times a year and will make one recommendation. Value can differ significantly by individual brand. For example, in the case of Coca-Cola, the best case for fan value reaches $316.78 but is $137.84 for an average fan. In the worst case scenario, a fan is worth $0.

Shoppers’ Critique International has products and services for developing and growing a Facebook following, for maximizing the value of a Facebook entry and for monitoring relevant and important comments about consumer brands across all platforms of social media.

New England Region: The Great Escape Six Flags Entertainment Corporation

Mid-Atlantic Region: Kings Dominion Cedar Fair Entertainment Company

Southeast Region: DisneyΓÇÖs Animal Kingdom Walt Disney Parks and Resorts

Midwest Region: Holiday World Koch Family

Southwest Region: DisneyΓÇÖs California Adventure Walt Disney Parks and Resorts

Northwest Region: CaliforniaΓÇÖs Great America Cedar Fair Entertainment Company

The Super Six recognition was created as an output of ShoppersΓÇÖ Critique InternationalΓÇÖs annual self-commissioned study of the top 65 theme and amusement park attractions (by turnstile volume) in the United States, Mexico and Canada. The study takes place between May and September and involves multiple on-site observations, including evaluations of the parking lots, front end ticket purchase and gates, attractions, shows, food and beverage, and other facilities. Using a set of objective criteria, the evaluations include measurements of cleanliness, friendliness, efficiency and accuracy, among other variables. The total evaluations are scored and compared within each of the six geographical territories.

The study also incorporates SCIΓÇÖs Neuro-Economic Evaluations which measure subjective reactions to the evaluatorΓÇÖs experiences. These measurements capture present impressions as an indicator of the likelihood of a guest spinning a positive halo of their experience in the park to their sphere of influence and through social media, as well as the factors which impact the depth of their loyalty to the brand and scaled likelihood of generating future revenue for the company directly and indirectly through that particular guestΓÇÖs recent experience at the park.

ΓÇ£Cast members went out of their way to make me feel special and welcome; they were pleasant, helpful, well-groomed and caring. I couldn’t have had a better dayΓÇ¥, reported an evaluator following a visit to DisneyΓÇÖs Animal Kingdom, winner of the Southeast Region, during a July 1 evaluation.

Another evaluator reported from Holiday World, winner of the Midwest Region, on July 16, “Everyone was incredibly nice, the park was very clean…food was priced right and delicious, (the) parking (lot) sun tan lotion and drinks were free and I could not have expected any more from my visit. This park definitely has customer service at a premium.”

In several positive industry signs, 91.5% of all evaluators reported that they agreed or strongly agreed with the statement This is a park that cares about its guests and guest experience. More than half of the evaluators also strongly agreed with the statement Even in tough economic times, it is important to save money to come to places like this, validating that North AmericaΓÇÖs top parkΓÇÖs still provide a vital and valued escape for consumers, even in a difficult financial era.

ΓÇ£We congratulate the top winning management staffs and employees of the 2010 Super Six parks,ΓÇ¥ said ShoppersΓÇÖ Critique International COO, Rich Bradley. ΓÇ£These leaders represent an industry that clearly as a whole spends considerable resources to ensuring the highest levels of customer satisfaction among all its guests.ΓÇ¥

The complete study of the 2010 evaluations, including the neuro-economic industry data, will be released in mid-January.

1. After you sign up, your application is reviewed. Once you are accepted as a shopper, you will have access to our inventory of open shops which can be accepted (and committed by you to be completed on deadline). Everything you need to know about completing those shops is there for you, and we have a team of schedulers on call at the office to answer any other questions you may have. Not all shops can be self-scheduled; some will require advanced training over the phone and you will have to contact us for that training and subsequent assignment if you are interested in completing one of those shops.

2. You complete the shop as directed. Most shop forms are yes/no checkoffs, with some other details that need to be filled in (times, names and descriptions of people you interacted with, brief explanations of certain details).

3. You submit the shop details online, on time! It goes into the system and is reviewed by editors and several layers of management for consistency and detail. By the way, your report is also rated and scored internally, and added to your profile here. Protect your rating with us by always completing reports with all required information and submitting them on time!

4. Your shop is made available to one of our worldwide clients who commissioned the study. They then use the information you gathered and submitted, along with others that have also been reported, to gain a snapshot of their business. From that point forward, companies use their consumer intelligence in many different ways, from changing systems at the business to recognizing and rewarding top performing employees and locations.

5. You will be paid your shopper fee (and any reimbursements due) during our next accounts payable run, usually within the month or less. PAYPAL is the preferred method of payment, although we will send a hard check if you do not have an account.

Pretty simple? If you are ready to give it a shot, the next step is to sign up at the link below. Don’t be discouraged if you don’t see a shop right away…we have many shoppers already in our database, as we have been in this business almost 2 decades. But thousands of shops are dispatched by us each month, and they are released at various times of the month. You will receive an automatic email, once you’ve signed up and been approved as a shopper, of all available shops in your area once they are released for scheduling. Shortly in 2010, we will also be releasing notice of shops dispatched here on Facebook and on Twitter to those who opt in for our Shops Alert Twitter account!

Finally, remember these rules when dealing with any purported mystery shopping company:

NEVER pay any monies up front to the company for anything!

NEVER cash an unsolicited check, no matter how real it looks!

https://www.shopperscritique.com/shoppers/questionnaire.aspx

Hope to see you shopping for us soon!!

Fair questions…and a lot of times, you might be feeling that you have been slighted, but that’s not the case (if there has been an issue, you would know, as we would have called you to work through any past deficiencies).

So what is going on?

Well, there can be several reasons for shops drying up in a certain area…here are some of the most common:

1. The Client Has Cut Back on Shops.
Even though we appear to be sluggishly pulling out of the Great Recession, we are doing so…sluggishly! These poor economic times have caused some clients at all marketing firms to cut back on their marketing and PR dollars, including their mystery shopping programs. It could be the location you shopped was scheduled to be shopped 3 or 4 times a month in the past during better times; that has since been cut down to 1 time a month….now if there were 4 shoppers a month each taking an assignment, and now we are down to 1 hypothetically, then 3 shoppers are going to lose that assignment until better times when the client re-ups their shop volume again.

2. The Client Suspends or Ends Their Program.
Even worse than #1 above, tough times can cause one of our clients to suspend or end their program until better times, or for good. We have had clients who have filed bankruptcy or gone out of business, and so there goes their shopping program. Often, clients have personnel changes…and sometimes the decision maker who has brought their business to Shoppers’ Critique moves on, and a new person comes in and puts their stamp on the company by bringing in a new marketing firm.

3. The Client Requires Shopper Rotation.
Yes, it really is true, some clients demand unique impressions. It is not a frequent demand, but it does happen. So they may not want a shopper to shop the same location more than once a quarter or once a year! We are currently negotiating with a potential new client who will require no more than one visit per year from the same shopper…they want rotation and varied observations.

4. The Client Requires Location Rotation.
A client may have 600 hundred locations, but they are only going to shop 200 a month. So hypothetically, assume we shop Macy’s, you live in Oviedo, FL and there is a Macy’s department store there, and you can’t find Macy’s in Oviedo on the assignment list. It could be because it is not included in the current dispatch of shops for the current month, as it would appear only once every 3 months in this type of rotation. It likely appeared the month before and was completed, or it would show up in the following month (but then not again for 3 months).

5. They Have a Demographic Profile That We Must Use.
Similar to #3 above, it doesn’t happen with the majority of clients, but we always have a handful of clients who only want observations from a certain demographic, i.e. only from a certain age pool, with (or without) young children, etc. Why? Usually because the bulk of their customers fit that demographic, and they want the shopper to blend in with the majority of their other customers. We don’t have the discretion to break this rule with clients, except in rare instances of emergency shops.

6. The Client Has No Shops or Few Shops in Your Area.
Some of our clients are regional in nature, and may only be in the northeast. Some are national (or international) BUT MAY CHOOSE to only shop locations in the northeast (or a particular area they perceive as a trouble area). Some national and international companies are de-centralized to the point where each regional division selects its own marketing firm and mystery shopping program…so you can have a global or national company using 5 different mystery shopping providers at the same time, each with a different region. Finally, sometimes the client is the national/international corporation and they only are committing to shop “company-owned” locations and not franchisees; sometimes it’s the other way around, and the client is a franchisee with many locations, and so we are only doing their stores.

7. Quick Triggers!
Getting mystery shopping assignments for certain areas can be very competitive. We have hundreds of thousands of shoppers in our database who have access to our assignments. There are some areas where we have such a high concentration of secret shoppers that assignments fly off the shelf. We have some other areas of the country or around the world where we wish that were the case! But if you are in a shopper-heavy area, you may need to stay on top of our dispatch notices of new shops to get a jump on the competition. We now notify our shoppers who are on Facebook and Twitter when a load of shops will be posted in advance so they can be reminded to check the website. So keep checking here, and if you tweet, then sign up at ShopsAlert on Twitter!

So you can see, these are challenges presented today in consumer intelligence. There could be a number of reasons why a certain shop doesn’t pop up in your area, and none of them are really personal to you at all…just the way the business flows during these crazy times. If you are having trouble booking assignments in your area, please be patient and keep trying. Business is generally picking up again; companies are adding back shops and growing their programs, and new business is coming on board all the time…but, like with everything else in the economy, it is all happening at a pace slower than we would all like.

Bottom line is that we appreciate all the efforts of our mystery shoppers, and we are pleased to have you as a valuable part of our Shoppers’ Critique International family!

The practice of secret shopping is so widespread that some companies are having new employees sign letters of acknowledgment stating that they may be subject to evaluation that comes as a result of secret shopper reports. Other companies choose not to inform their employees when they hire a secret shopping company, choosing instead to rely on the fact that they donΓÇÖt know anyone is watching and therefore act naturally.

In spite of the choice by some business owners to not inform their employees when secret shoppers will be coming in most folks who work in the retail industry expect to be under surveillance at some point. ItΓÇÖs the same in the restaurant industry. If youΓÇÖre a host, hostess, waiter or waitress you would be foolish to think that your boss wonΓÇÖt send an anonymous patron in to evaluate your performance from time to time.

Secret shopping is not a secret anymore. There are ads on the internet seeking consumers with an interest in becoming secret shoppers and everyone sees them, including those who work in the industries where they are being utilized. This general knowledge of the existence of the industry makes secret shoppers a secret only to the retail or restaurant employees that they are evaluating.

The term itself may quickly be obsolete as the position has been expanded to other industries that are not oriented towards customer face to face contact. Internet businesses are using them to test the usability and effectiveness of their websites. Call centers are using them to test telemarketers and customer service representatives. These are ΓÇ£secretΓÇ¥ to the employees but not quite the same as a non-descript couple doing some shopping for the family.