Have you ever been outed as a Mystery Shopper?

Curiosity question. Have you ever been called out by an employee when on a job? I haven't had it happen to me, but has it happened to any of you? And if so, how did you react?

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No, not in the more than a decade of doing shops. I know, however, that if I am called out as being a shopper I will earnestly ask if that gives me an employee discount? If so, can I sign up?

I shopped an employee at an expensive designer fashion store. She looked so different 6 months later that I did not recognize her when she was my bartender at a local nightclub. She served my drink with a smile and thanked me for my wonderful report on her when I shopped her at the designer store where she had been working. So I was most likely outed because the manager let her read too much of my report. The irony in this story is that I'm sure she was not aware that I was shopping her as a bartender at the nightclub.

I have been spotted but not directly challenged during the visit. Two times it was beasue I made a dumb mistake. The third time, we (MSC and I) suspect that the regional manager alerted the leasing agent to look for a shopper that day. The LA triumphantly told her local manager and I was not paid. Since the reason that she gave for spotting me was not true, we think she was tipped off, but cannot prove it. And, I cannot shop apatments managed by that client again, Almost everyone who is a really active shopper will be spotted, sooner or later.

Based in MD, near DC
Shopping from the Carolinas to New York
Have video cam; will travel

Poor customer service? Don't get mad; get video.

I was doing a gas shop and got seen taking pictures of the gas island. When asked why I was taking pictures I smiled at the gas attendant and totally ignored the question.

There is a difference between being identified and being confronted about it. I have been identified as the shopper at a bank and at a fast casual restaurant. In both cases the MSC let me know I had been identified and I was dropped from further shops for the client. I was surprised by both because in both cases the locations systematically did what they were supposed to do and had excellent reports almost every visit. The visits where I was identified were no different than usual.

I wasn't told on the spot, but I was outed at one particular chain pizza location. The MSC notified me about 2 weeks after the visit. I can't shop that particular location anymore.

I do a bank shop at a particular location every so often. I know that the banker is aware that I am a shopper since I have visited the location frequently. On my very first visit, I happened to write a positive comment about the banker. I'm sure the banker was informed of the shop because of the positive feedback from my report at the time and probably put two and two together. The comment that I wrote was something like this- the banker was friendly and hospitable while remaining professional. She made me feel valued and welcomed for my time. I guess the shopping pool was limited in my area and was asked frequently to pick up the shops whenever it became available.I agreed to do the shops. I informed the MSC that the rotation should be 90 days instead of 60 days because the bankers remembered me. I was at that branch recently and got the same banker. She asked me what she can help me with today and commented that on my last visit, it was information about their liquid/prepaid cards.

I was outed at a postal store by a very nice lady. There was construction going on and she offered to comp me an item that I was purchasing because of the construction. I could not take the item for free because I needed that receipt so I declined and purchased the little item. Then I had to do the follow up phone call and the same associate answered. When I asked the required questions she came back with "secret shopper?" I asked her what that was and we both laughed - but we both knew.

I did a phone shop where the client was obviously waiting for the call. The person who answered whispered my name to the owner. He got on the phone and was defensive, offensive, belligerent and withheld information regarding their services and asked me many questions in an attempt to trip me up. It took all of me to remain polite and real. I notified the MSC and reported his behaviour in my report and advised that he most likely 'knew' I was MS. i was paid for the job but the MSC agreed that I was most likely outed. What is puzzling is the MSC said the client was expecting a MS call. Go figure? The next day, the client called me (Caller ID is wonderful) but I did not answer. IDIOT!

I just did a hotel shop this week and after I was given my room. The front desk agent was looking at his computer and asked me to wait, he ended up giving me a a better room instead and his hands were a little shaky when he was doing it. It felt like I was outed but I'm not sure. The reset of my stay was great so who knows.

I did a Five Guys shop today. It was pretty busy, but every time I looked over at the kitchen area one of the crew members was looking right at me. Think I'll take that one off my list for a while

Happiness is not a goal; it is a by-product. Eleanor Roosevelt

I was "called out" by another customer. It was a grocery store shop where you had to list every item out of stock. In the meat department there were at least 10-15 missing items. I was trying to write down all the different cuts missing while tucked to the side of the area. I then got closer to check the few items left for an expiration date and an older woman asked if I was a mystery shopper. I did the usual "What? Are those real?" response and she laughed. My bet she was a shopper also.

@siamese5555 wrote:

I was "called out" by another customer. It was a grocery store shop where you had to list every item out of stock. In the meat department there were at least 10-15 missing items. I was trying to write down all the different cuts missing while tucked to the side of the area. I then got closer to check the few items left for an expiration date and an older woman asked if I was a mystery shopper. I did the usual "What? Are those real?" response and she laughed. My bet she was a shopper also.

Too funny! When I used to do shops like that I would use a voice recorder to record the information that I needed.

****************

Motivation increases when we assume large responsibilities with a short deadline.

@AZwolfman wrote:

The irony in this story is that I'm sure she was not aware that I was shopping her as a bartender at the nightclub.

That's Hilarious!

Ive only had an associate ask me point blank once, and it was before I was a shopper! She just didn't want to get in trouble for selling me a "floor model." Like asking me would get me to admit it if I were!

Doing what I can to enhance the life of my family! I LOVE what I do

I was outed for a pizza shop. Went to one location and ran into an employee entering that store who worked at a second location. When I got to the second location he was going to work. He ran around to all the employees there whispering in their ears so I knew he was "ratting" on me. Few weeks later when I was getting my pizza assignments I asked about the shop where he worked and was told I had been outed. Oh, well!

The very first mystery shop/audit gas station I ever did I was outed. I did the mystery shop part and when I went in to do the audit one of the employees yelled I knew you were the mystery shopper. I asked what I did wrong and he stated that only mystery shoppers ask questions. So asking the question is what outed me.

At another gas station when I went in to do the audit the employee had the key waiting on the counter for me and said that they shouldn't send the same person every time.

Needless to say I don't do either of those shops anymore.

Similar thing happened to me. Shop was rejected because after they went through video they id'd me. MSC has not replied to my emails, just want the MSC to admit it's a crap situation.

Years ago when I was working Vegas a lot, MF ousted me as their rules were you can't work both in Vegas and CA......never bothered reinstating.

Live consciously....

I bet most of these "possible sightings" are just MSer's natural feeling of being observed. I've gone in to 5 Guys both as a MSer and a regular customer. I'm not the only one that the crew is watching because I'm watching them. Many other customers also stand there and watch. How could they POSSIBLY know which one of us it is? Same with the hotel shops - how would they know I am the one who is the MSer?

That being said, I used to do some very exclusive, private club dining shops. Really amazing, and service was always supreme. I used to revel in the fact that I was chosen to do these, and that they could never know that I was a mystery shopper......

That is, until one time I asked for a parking validation. They asked for my name at the front desk. They could not find me at first, and I saw her finger going down the written list of names in her book trying to locate me. Finally she did, and as she drew her finger across the line on the page I was listed in bold as "Mystery Shopper". Oh, I was horrified!

WHY WOULD THEY LET THEM KNOW THAT? Idk, but I felt VERY VERY obvious after that! LOL!

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 10/31/2016 01:33PM by Chix.

As a hotel manager for the day job, it is very obvious who is a possible mystery shopper. They might not end up as the mystery shopper, but with the way the property management system is for our brand, there are four obvious characteristics within reservation details (nothing to do with gender or location) that a mystery shopper will have. Because so much of our business is corporate or regular guests, there is, at most, three reservations per day that will meet all four of these characteristics. So right from the start, those reservations are being assigned the best rooms in the hotel per room type reserved, and flagged as "VIP". So, while we never know who is actually the mystery shopper, we're ahead of the game when they show up. There is no worse case scenario, as when we are wrong, a non-regular guest just saw us at our best. That's not a bad thing.

It could be very easy for corporate to disguise the reservations better to truly make them secretive, but perhaps as a shopper myself, I have a better eye for it.

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