I've had a similar problem with departments not existing. And the opposite one where they questioned my responses regarding a department they were convinced did Not exist at that location, but I clearly saw and had an interaction in the department.

Evenutally the form was changed.

My best shop was with a bird brand grocery store (no longer on the MS website) that paid no fee just a $12 reimbursment. I had to do the produce department in this one store and the produce manager had gone on break. I spotted someone in the department in the store shirt with a nametag so I asked her about apples for making applesauce and apple butter (my fall cooking projects). She turned out to be the store dietician and I got a whole lot more than I bargained for with her presentation. I was required to spend 45 minutes in the store with the four departments. I spent 45 minutes in produce with the dietician answering my one question. She got an above and beyond recomendation for that shop.
For the revealed MS and Audit shops now at a different chain, I hear from the managers that they are shopped weekly and they send the same people in every month so they know when the shopper walks in the door. One was upset because the shopper moved items on the shelf to make an empty space for the photo.

I had to chuckle when you said "as if a light bulb went off." When a light bulb goes off at my house, I am in the dark. I think you meant a flashbulb goes off, but people don't use them much anymore. Of course, you may have meant a light bulb went on, and that would make sense.
Ignore me if you wish, but this is the kind of muddled thinking that makes reports read funny. I also don't like: "I could care less!" in which case I suggest you DO. Is the bathroom shower curtain "open" or "closed" when you have it spread out to close off the tub? Or do you have it open to dry out? Like an umbrella?
Use of language is very important to me, so I fall into the grumpy old man category. If you had graded as many sloppy thought essays I have (taught for 44 years) you might be grumpy, too.
Anyway, you are probably in the majority when you say "the light bulb went off" and mean a little light came on over your head (see cartoon usage), and I was once told, "When enough of us are wrong, we're right!"
Ain't it da truth!!!
GOM

Not only that, I have a rule here to cancel any shop I take where the "required" question, usually stated as having to be asked "exactly" is so obvious that you might as well carry a sign: "Mystery Shopper Here."
I mean, who asks, "What kind of sauce is on the BBQ burger?" or "Does the hamburger with lettace, tomato, and pickles come with a topping?"
I was spotted as a shopper once when I drove through a fast food joint and couldn't remember the name of the item. I started to ask for a .... [blank here] and said, "you know, the one with the special sauce." I was notified that I was identified as the shopper. Since I was in a car and they said they identified me by the shirt I was wearing, I think the cashier should be mystery shopping, being so observant, etc.
It's a mystery how we get what we get done, done! (How's that for a complicated sentence?)

Still, I think it's fun and I need the cash.

Glabow, as a resident of the state where the four basic BBQ sauces originated, I can unequivocally say that, "What kind of sauce is on the BBQ is a perfectly valid question.

For reference, the four basic BBQ sauces are: mustard, vinegar and pepper, light tomato and heavy tomato. Mustard is fairly obvious. Vinegar and pepper is a very spicy sauce; some are so intense you can use it as a substitute for gas in your car. Light tomato is a vinegar and pepper sauce with some ketchup added, while heavy tomato is what you'll generally find on grocery store shelves.

And there are at least five forum members who have stopped by and enjoyed my "killer bbq ribs" with a great mustard sauce. And said ribs would not have been nearly as good with any of the other sauces.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 10/20/2014 06:14PM by James Bond 007.5.

I am enjoying this thread for all of the posts above. Glabow, I once said "sink or swim" when speaking with a Russian woman. She laughed and asked, "Shouldn't that be 'swim or sink'?"

My brother works for a storage company. He gets the actual, filled out reports. He gets the actual assignment specifications. Yes, the same ones we have to read in order to do the shops. This means they know the questions and everything else we are to ask and look for, exactly, just like we do including the rotation requirements... ridiculous if you ask me.

So now, every time I do a shop I try to mix up the questions, scenario or both... if I am allowed to do so. If I'm not... hopefully the person that realizes that I MIGHT be a shopper will do his/her job so that my report will be easy.

I look at it this way... if they show them what to look for, exactly, then who am I to say anything? They should do their job.

Who was it here (last year I think) that had her face plastered all over a company's wall?

I think I would lose it, hahah..well. Not funny really.

As a former employee of a very well-known, very high-end department store chain I have first person knowledge of the fact that shoppers are very often "known" but not as often "outed".

As employees and sales associates we only wanted it to be reported that we had a perfect shop, and didn't want to let on to the shopper that we were fully aware that they were performing a scenario that we had read about, heard about and even practiced in order to ensure that we received a perfect score when it was our turn. We were all aware that we were shopped at minimum once a quarter, and often more than that.

The upside to this from the client standpoint is that we practiced being so customer oriented and so aware of what "might" be asked that it became second nature to use that attitude, language and completeness to any and all transactions. It didn't matter that it was a shop, it was just our business as usual.

We also had incentives tied directly to our shopper scores. These ranged from additional compensation, gift cards, dinners and movie tickets. Our department's were evaluated and incentivized by how we did as individuals and collectively. It was in all of our best interest to know who was "maybe" shopping us, what they would ask, what they might say to "trigger" our scripted follow-up and what they might do to throw us off. From a management standpoint, it was a great opportunity for continuing education and improvement as the practice shops were more rigorous than any that were actually done by the mystery shopper.

I personally don't have a problem with the idea that they "might" know who I am, and/or that they can breath easy and high-five once I'm gone having found the "shopper" and hit all of their points correctly. I haven't had a single shop denied for being "outed" and it seems unlikely from my experience the last few years doing rotation shops.
I hope that this happens as the usual, instead of the unusual when they want the shop dropped for sub standard performance and perhaps claim that they "knew it was a shopper therefore"

I worked for customer service in a grocery store. This is the same store that requires so many different interactions for a (IMO) rather silly fee. And the questions! OMG they are dumb. BUT when I worked for them I didn't know when and who was a mystery shopper. I got shopped regularly, but I only know this because I got a gift card every time I passed. Apparently I was getting shopped every week.
Hmmm. Maybe I just wasn't paying attention to the bulletin boards.

I am positive that I was spotted yesterday at a well known fast food location.

I am positive that I was spotted yesterday at a well known fast food location. At the drive thru, the response was normal, but while inside, I noticed the manager pointing me out to the person who was cleaning the drink fountain area. I was approached by two employees to ask how I was doing. That was weird,,,, I am glad they were trying to play it off, and did not ask me out right. Needless to say, the inside had a great report :-) The only way they could have known was if they were looking for a shopper at that time period. The drive thru was VERY busy, so they must have been on the lookout. It was odd, but I am so happy that they did not try to out me in an obvious manner.

I have a friend who used to manage a large home decor type store. He said after they received the shopper's report, they would pull the video and print a picture of the shopper. They would then post many photos of the shopper in the backroom areas so that all employees would be able to recognize him/her when they came around again.