Chix Wrote:
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> I may just be paranoid, but oftentimes (even when
> I'm not shopping) I feel as if the personnel think
> that I AM a shopper.
>

if you appear paranoid in a store, you will then likely appear to be a shopper, whether you are actually shopping the store or not. you will be spotted as a shopper even in stores that you are not shopping.

There are several threads on this and the consensus tends to be we need to use our best judgement and blend in. The companies that reference us representing them obviously forget that if we do our jobs well not a soul will ever know we were representing anyone but ourselves

shopperinmn Wrote:
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> I don't think that there is a shopper profile,
> however, I DO think that I often look like a
> mystery shopper. I live in a very rural/vacation
> area where 90+% of shoppers dress in jeans or
> other very casual clothes. When I dress in the
> required "business casual" to perform shops, I
> automatically stand out like a sore thumb amidst
> almost all other shoppers at the location. It's
> unfortunate that MSC's don't recognize that
> visually "representing our company" and "mystery
> shopping" are sometimes mutually exclusive. You
> either want me to represent your company by
> dressing like I work in your front office, or you
> want me to blend in to my shopping demographic.
> There are geographic areas - like the one in which
> I live and shop - where you can't have it both
> ways.

Its all about confidence in yourself and your ability to role play. Yes, sometimes the questions we are required to ask make us sound "stupid" or like a "shopper". But its all in how well you play the part.

Remember to act confident until you can be confident!!!! It comes with experience.

LisaSTL Wrote:
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> There are several threads on this and the
> consensus tends to be we need to use our best
> judgement and blend in.

I would agree if it weren't for the "threat" of video-surveilled stores that some MSC's use to try to keep shoppers honest. If the MSC's or clients really do check store videotapes to verify the honesty of shopper evaluations, I don't want my shops invalidated and unpaid because I wore casual clothes in an attempt to blend in. If they want "business casual" that immediately tags me as a mystery shopper, that's what they'll get. Let the MSC's explain to their clients why their own requirements are unveiling their shoppers.

shopperinmn Wrote:
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If they want
> "business casual" that immediately tags me as a
> mystery shopper, that's what they'll get. Let the
> MSC's explain to their clients why their own
> requirements are unveiling their shoppers.


I still maintain that how you dress does not tag you as a mystery shopper. It might make a clerk think along those lines but not everyone who uses an establishment dresses the same.

You might be in business casual because you have another appointment to do afterwards that requires that kind of dress. You could wear scruffy jeans to the opera but just because you do, doesn't mean you are there for nefarious purposes. It just means you chose to wear scruffy jeans. The reverse is also true. I agree you will stand out, but it definitely doesn't make you a mystery shopper.

Ilike to ask for businesss cards and look at name tags, etc. when I'm not shopping. I just figure that if we do that all the time, it won't tip anyone off when we ask when we're shopping.

That is so weird...never had that happen! I don't know...I always do my shops in between client calls so I am dressed uber-professional...I don't think any one ever figures me out. I think all of us are professional in our own ways...even if I do a shop on the weekend with my hubby or little one I am still professional and low-key...maybe a newbie gets made but not the old-timers (Oh, jeez, did I just call myself old?????) LOL!

Irene_L.A. Wrote:
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> I was in Coffee Bean working and next to me was a
> man around 40ish. He turns and says (to me), I
> need to get timings on a video and this reception
> isn't
> working...I ask, oh are you a Mystery shopper, and
> he says yes.
> This was in my town, so now I know who's getting
> my jobs not really, I doubt we are doing the same
> jobs. He was so obvious, first hint, never admit
> it....self confidence goes a long way, as does
> acting.

Bena, dressing differently may not get us tagged as shoppers, but it may make us memorable, and that may make us suspects.

I have done over 600 shops since last April, 2011 and never once did I act paranoid.

The key to this *IS* acting. Act like you are shopping at the grocery store/bank/furniture store. Act like yourself.

If you ACT like a normal person acts, no-one is going to think you are standing out.... by acting nervous, paranoid, too mechanical.

If you are required to say a script, I can see how that gives any shopper the jitters because you have to say a standard script and you worry that the appliance guy heard that 20 times this week...

If you get paranoid, the associate will sniff that out.

Practice in the mirror, with your partner but just remember: act natural as if you WERE just buying groceries, shopping for clothes, looking at recliners...

Sandra Sue Wrote:
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> Bena, dressing differently may not get us tagged
> as shoppers, but it may make us memorable, and
> that may make us suspects.


I'm sure it could make one a suspect but most stores have regular or frequent customers. I'm sure being remembered, unless you are asking the identical questions each time you go in, is not a deal-breaker.

To the best of my knowledge this has only been an issue for me once and that wasn't because of my quirky attire.

I think most people would think of me as a confident person. So in that regard, I probably pass the test.

Some companies have specific questions but then they'll make a rule that we shouldn't talk much in order to give the associate time to say what he/she is required to say. I think I give them enough time, but I also think I seem like just another person shopping and not a shopper because I do chatter a little. I think total silence in the American culture, especially in areas away from the Northeast, would seem odd.

You need to do whatever makes you comfortable. If you turn in a report that is accurate and objective I seriously doubt they are going to try and pick you out of that video line up. Even if they do I wouldn't sweat it if I was dressed like the majority of shoppers in the store at the time. The only company I've seen with that requirement is Bestmark anyway. If they wanted to check the tape to find out I passed on the business casual in favor of down jacket, jeans and Uggs for a new car shop when it was in the 20's and the snow was flying then they can be my guest.

shopperinmn Wrote:

> I would agree if it weren't for the "threat" of
> video-surveilled stores that some MSC's use to try
> to keep shoppers honest. If the MSC's or clients
> really do check store videotapes to verify the
> honesty of shopper evaluations, I don't want my
> shops invalidated and unpaid because I wore casual
> clothes in an attempt to blend in. If they want
> "business casual" that immediately tags me as a
> mystery shopper, that's what they'll get. Let the
> MSC's explain to their clients why their own
> requirements are unveiling their shoppers.

I was just thinking about this last week...this was unintentional, but I startle kind of easily, and more than once when I've had a manager swoop down and ask me pointedly how my meal was, I've been caught off-guard and had a puzzled look on my face...a facial expression that (I hope) conveys, "ummm, my burger was...fine? why are you asking me this?" I always hope that will lead them to assume that I am NOT the shopper.

I think that the "acting" piece of this is what keeps me coming back to shopping even when other factors make me want to pull my hair out...

Weather plays a part in dressing, for instance, in L.A. it's warm to hot, with construction being the second season. I love boots, scarfs and city wear, but not able to pull that off (without meltin), so nice causal is the norm, good jeans, (must fit well), cute blouses and smart jewelry works most places, from restaurants to retail, be cofident in whatever you wear...dress in your style and you won't stand out, don't be who your not, it just doesn't work. We were customers before we were shoppers, that's how we are supposed to act, staring at a name tag is a no no, also be suttle, fit into the scenery.....

I know I am recognized at the big blue/yellow store. I go in there a lot, what can I say, I'm a geek! I have never been made as a shopper there, or anywhere else. Recently I did a cell phone shop inside Costco. The associate recognized me from a previous shop (for a different carrier). What helps in a situation like that is to think really quick on your feet and go off scenario just enough to be believable. I plan to shop there again, but I will wait until my cell phone plan is up and I'll actually buy a phone.

I am definitely recognizable. I am a little old lady who walks with a limp. I have extremely short white hair and speak with a slight accent in a smoker's voice. Can't get any more memorable than that. But it doesn't matter at all, I love role playing and I'm good at it. It is not all that difficult to come up with a plausible scenario for being wherever once again. As for looking at name tags, I just ask for their name and then comment on the name. If the situation is not conducive to asking and the name tag is too hard to see, I'll ask another associate what the name is. Things like "looks my daughter's friend, what is her name".

@ Vince, I've been doing this too long to be paranoid during a shop. lol

I am not paranoid, nor lacking in confidence. I'm just saying that sometimes (as in a previous post) I feel as if they are guessing me. Like they are trying to figure out who the shopper is. Which really leads in to the other threads about having to do things that scream "I am a shopper!"

I am an actor who has had to use my skills during mystery shopping on more than a few occasion!

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 06/07/2012 12:30AM by Chix.

Oh do spill! You cannot make a statement like that and leave us hanging! I'm sure you've got some great stories!!!




Chix Wrote:
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>
> I am an actor who has had to use my skills during
> mystery shopping on more than a few occasion!

I had an experience today that I had to control my laughter having read these posts prior to my store visit. Let me say first that I was actually shopping strictly for fun, nothing mysterious about it! I asked an associate if they had a particular shirt in a different color, then a different size. We had built a slight rapport so by my 3rd or 4th request for a slightly different item, he said, "You are not one of THOSE shoppers are you?" I said, "yes, I am really here and I am really shopping. What are you talking about?" He blew a hot air balloon's worth of air out, and said, "never mind - I thought you were one of those secret shoppers who was trying to check our inventory and test my patience!"
How I managed to keep myself together and not start rolling in the floor laughing, I will never know. I wanted to say to him that yes, I am a mystery shopper, just not today, but tomorrow...you better be on your "A" game!! . He was so kind, funny, and helpful, I would have never spilled the beans, it it took everything in me not to!

I am pretty new to shopping, but after reading some of the questions I have to ask on various shops I am wondering if people thought I was a shopper long before I ever started. I have never been afraid to ask questions about products I'm interested in even when I think they're dumb, and I would have never thought twice about buying something small. Of course, now I am all self conscious about the questions I ask thinking they're going to guess I'm the shopper...when before i would have never felt weird about asking dumb questions.

Also, one of my first shops was a pool supply store where I had to ask about one of their scenarios. Immediately when I walk in I notice that the employee isn't wearing a name tag, but when he comes to help me and shows me the product that answers the problem I asked about, the phone rings. He leaves to answer then comes back wearing his name tag. Then I look around the store for a while, find something cheap enough for my $1 reimbursement, and buy it. As the employee is ringing it up, another customer is like, that's so cheap you should just give it to her! I just laughed and said, oh no, I'll pay for it. And the employee smiles really big at me and says, I knew that's what you'd say! I wasn't acting weird but I'm sure he knew I was shopping.

No, that was me that Zline nailed at the office supply !

I once shopped a car salesman who claimed to earn more from reviews than commissions!

That should be incentive to wear a name tag, if not for the immediate cash reward, raises are also a good thing as well! After all why should a colleague also Male, 5'10, 30's, short dark brown hair get credit for that wonderful computer paper sale ?

I got a little freaked out on a reveal shop that the manager knew I was the shopper. I asked her how she knew, and she said I was at the drive thru, now in line inside the store, and I had papers in my hand. Whew! I personally don't think I fit the "profile" of a mystery shopper.

SaraV Wrote:
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> I am pretty new to shopping, but after reading
> some of the questions I have to ask on various
> shops I am wondering if people thought I was a
> shopper long before I ever started. I have never
> been afraid to ask questions about products I'm
> interested in even when I think they're dumb, and
> I would have never thought twice about buying
> something small. Of course, now I am all self
> conscious about the questions I ask thinking
> they're going to guess I'm the shopper...when
> before i would have never felt weird about asking
> dumb questions.
>
> Also, one of my first shops was a pool supply
> store where I had to ask about one of their
> scenarios. Immediately when I walk in I notice
> that the employee isn't wearing a name tag, but
> when he comes to help me and shows me the product
> that answers the problem I asked about, the phone
> rings. He leaves to answer then comes back wearing
> his name tag. Then I look around the store for a
> while, find something cheap enough for my $1
> reimbursement, and buy it. As the employee is
> ringing it up, another customer is like, that's so
> cheap you should just give it to her! I just
> laughed and said, oh no, I'll pay for it. And the
> employee smiles really big at me and says, I knew
> that's what you'd say! I wasn't acting weird but
> I'm sure he knew I was shopping.


That is the stupidest, most obvious shop in the entire universe. Is there anybody who's done that shop who HASN'T been identified? Yeesh.

I did it and am pretty sure I was not spotted only because I ended up spending over $100! I needed pool chemicals anyways, so I considered the fee I was going to get as a discount on my purchase. You are right, who goes to a pool supply store to get only $1 worth of stuff?? You couldn't get a pair of broken goggles for $1!!

I spent $6 on these towel clips...I should've returned them when the shop got rejected ;-o

I thought about doing one this time of year, because I could buy some fun floatie stuff for the pool--that I would buy anyway, only their prices are not the cheapest, I'm sure.

everytime I visit a couple of cracker barrel's they think im shopping them when im not at that time. It's funny watching them run around making sure everything is perfect manager comes over couple times asking how the meal is etc


If it gets you better service while your there, I won't complain!

hmmmmmmm. I am curious who shops them. I'll have to look into that.

This is the first time I heard Cracker Barrel was shopped.

EyesOnYou Wrote:
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> I got a little freaked out on a reveal shop that
> the manager knew I was the shopper. I asked her
> how she knew, and she said I was at the drive
> thru, now in line inside the store, and I had
> papers in my hand. Whew! I personally don't
> think I fit the "profile" of a mystery shopper.

You could be right about the fit, most silver shoppers don't carry papers in their hand!
What you never got an emergency phone call begging for a Big Mac & had to go back on foot to get it?

I've thought this is rather like an acting job, too. In fact, I've embraced it - if the client wants me to ask stupid questions (like the one about the mayo), then I'm just gonna act stupid throughout the whole thing! It could even help - they may think I'm so stupid, I could never be an MS!

On the fast food dine-in/drive-thru shops, why do you do the drive-thru first? I did one where I went in, ate, then went to my car and filled out the first part of the survey. Then I went through the drive-thru. No one questioned me, but I had a story if they did: My husband got off work early, called me to see where I was, and asked me to pick up something for him on my way home.

Going to a pool supply store and having to spend just $1 is really stupid! I haven't seen that one in my area. Why can't they just accept a business card like everyone else???

What stupid question about mayo? I must know now. Also, what do you guys consider stupid questions? As someone who's worked in retail for a while, I've come to the conclusion that no question, no matter how stupid, will seem out of the ordinary. There are some incredibly people out there asking stupid questions because their little minds compel them to, not because an MSC is paying them to ask it.