MYSTERY SHOPPING | How Often Should I Schedule Mystery Shops?

One of the most asked questions by new and existing clients is, “How many times a (month, week, quarter, year, etc.) should I be shopping my business?”

There’s no one right answer for everyone. As a minimum guideline, we strongly recommend at least twice each month. Of course, it depends on your business flow. A large retail store should be shopped multiple times each week, as their employees interact with thousands of customers each day. On the other end of the spectrum, a wholesale plumbing supply store may only need to be shopped a couple of times a quarter.

Thinking of it in terms of lost opportunity / revenue / profits — how much are you willing to risk when an employee lets a customer leave without everything they need that you offer. If you consider that your employees are missing only 10% of the potential opportunity, and that’s a very optimistic number as most businesses find out it’s more like 95% — are you comfortable with that number?

Mystery shopping is really like taking a picture of an employee in action. Some photos are excellent the first time. Others need to be re-shot so that everyone has their eyes open.