Overcoming Stage Fright

For those who’ve never mystery shopped, whether in-person or over-the-phone, you might feel apprehension before showtime. You might worry that you’ll miss an important detail, get tongue-tied when speaking with an employee, or even get found-out for being a shopper. These concerns are natural: most of us don’t have eidetic…
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Caveat Emptor – Let the Buyer Beware

As the proverb instructs us, buyers should always be vigilant when making purchases, even going so far as to say that it’s a buyer’s responsibility to evaluate a product before agreeing to part with his money. You’d be right to think this principle is a bit unfair; after all, sellers…
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Role-Play as a Training Tool

It’s no secret that most of us learn best by doing as opposed to merely watching, which is why so many trainers recommend using role-play to teach customer-service and sales techniques. As an article at Ready Training Online explains, “Think back to how you learned to drive a car and…
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A New Year

It surely goes without saying that 2020 was a difficult year for all of us. Pandemic. Social unrest. Lockdowns. Curfews. Questions about how to keep our businesses open or make ends meet haunted many of us. It’s no wonder that we’re so excited move into a new year. But we…
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Mystery Shopper Requirements

One of the first questions prospective mystery shoppers ask is what kind of training is required to succeed in this industry. There are many certification programs, for example, covering everything from shopper ethics to the nuances of different client industries (including dining, automotive sales, and so on). But which of…
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‘Tis the Season for Your Budget

Even though Thanksgiving is still a couple of weeks away, the holiday season can’t come early enough for many who seek some distraction from the world’s concerns. However, budgets are spread thinner than ever, as the pandemic has resulted in work interruptions and unpredictable finances for all of us. Thankfully,…
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Are You Losing Customers to Bad Customer Service?

The customer experience is the most crucial aspect of your business, beating out even your products and service offerings in the hierarchy of whether customers choose to shop with you or with a competitor. This was confirmed again by Shep Hyken, who recently put out a “special report on customer…
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What’s the Difference Between a Mystery Shop and a Feedback Survey?

When we’re first approached by prospective new clients, we often hear that they’ve already tried conducting feedback surveys in the hopes of understanding their customers’ viewpoint. This is actually great since it demonstrates the natural interest we should show for the quality of the customer experience, especially as we hope…
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Don’t Be the Last to Know

The American Bankers Association recently posted a blog about the importance of mystery shopping called, “Who’s Afraid of the Big, Bad Mystery Shopper?”. In it, author Kate Young discusses the value of mystery shopping in the financial world, making sure to address employee anxiety and what to do about it.…
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