As a business owner, have you ever wished you could see the inner workings of your company the way your customers do? Have you ever wanted to see how your employees interact with customers without the pressure of you watching? Mystery shopping could be the perfect solution to this, especially if you have a company in the retail industry.
If you’ve never used a mystery shopping company before, it could seem, well, mysterious. Especially since the actual mystery shoppers are people you don’t know—people who don’t work for you. But it’s actually the best way to see what your customers see. After all, you probably don’t know most of your customers either. Mystery shopping is a great way for you to see your company as you’ve never seen it before, giving you insights that help you make important business decisions.
Want to know more? Here are three ways mystery shopping can drive sales and bring in revenue for retail businesses.
- You can see your business’ customer service in action. Telephone and in-store shops can help you see customers’ initial reactions to your team’s customer service. Are customers greeted right when they walk in the door, or do they have to wait for your staff to notice them? Mystery shopping gives you the chance to see how your staff normally act on the average day, which could either be a good thing or a bad thing.
- You can keep tabs on compliance. One of the biggest benefits of mystery shopping is the opportunity to see how your company runs while you’re not there. If your staff know you are evaluating them in person, they’re likely to be on their best behavior. But when you use a mystery shopping service, you see how they behave when you’re not around. Are they following cleanliness protocols? Are they adhering to the dress code? Mystery shopping lets you see what your customers see on a daily basis.
- You don’t have to rely on customer feedback. When you’re trying to find out how your customers really feel, feedback and reviews are crucial. However, since they are written by the customer, they often won’t focus on specific the issues you want to know about. With mystery shopping, you write the questions yourself, and shoppers get the exact answers you need. Don’t just rely solely on customer satisfaction surveys, which are often only filled out by angry customers—create the questions yourself!
If you aren’t happy with the results of your shop, this is a great opportunity for you to make changes where you see fit, getting your business back on the right track. How does this help your company drive sales? Mystery shopping provides the opportunity to improve customer service, which is one of the biggest things that attracts customers to your company. In fact, 78 percent of customers have bailed on a transaction or not gone through with a purchase due to poor experiences with customer service.
While these tips allow you to see how your business is running when you’re not supervising it, there are some other outcomes that can really help your business. With the information you get from a mystery shopping service, you can see insights that have never been on your radar before. Armed with this knowledge, you’re poised to start making changes—and start crafting a better customer experience.
Mystery Shopping Service specializes in the retail industry. We send our intelligent, experienced, and observant shoppers out to your store to see how things really are—and let you know what should be different. Start improving your business practices today with a free shop from Mystery Shopping Service.
Sources:
https://www.helpscout.net/75-customer-service-facts-quotes-statistics/
