Does anyone tape record their shops. If so, what is a good tape recorder to buy?
Is it legal?

Is it legal? Well... that depends on the state you live in. Check your individual state laws. It is technically illegal in my state but I still use one and hope to god no one is going to find the thing in my bra.

I just went down to Radio Shack and got a little Olympus digital recorder for like $40. It works fine. It picks up best if I stash it in my bra . Otherwise, you can always buy a little clip on mic to clip to the inside of your shirt and then carry the recorder in your pocket.

Another handy device that can be used to record is in Ipod Nano. These are pricey, but if you are into gadgets and want one of these things anyway, they work great.

One thing I prefer in a voice recorder is a clock. I like when I can hit record and play everything back, getting the exact timings right off the recorder. This works out really well for those yucky, multiple timing FF shops.

I do a decent number of recorded shops (at the request of the MSC)
and I also will occasionally record my other ones. Depending on
the kind of shop you're doing, it may or may not be legal; I like to
have the reminder for when I do a lot of shops in one day. I will
often just talk to myself to remind me that someone is wearing
glasses, or that there was a hand written sign somewhere, etc.

Lee

There is a gray area of legality and so I record my shops "to improve my presentation" and if I happen to catch someone else on tape or inadvertently record more than 8 bars of the muzak, "Oops."

I have a Sony ICD-MX20 that has now been used more than 4 years (worn out 3 sets of rechargeable batteries) because I record virtually everything. Whether I listen back to the tape or not, the information is there in case of a 'brain fart'. I can upload recording to my computer to be safed and certainly listening to them using the software that allows me to skip around through the recording is more civil than trying to back up or fast forward the little DVR. Since I started saving recordings I haven't ever had a clarification needed that would have made going back to the tape useful.

I went on a purchased the lavalier microphone to go with my recorder and the cord flips around the fabric of the bra to leave it dangling on the outside so it doesn't get wet from sweat and picks up everything. The recorder can then be in my pocket, blindly controlled to pause when nothing is happening so that the recording of a 1 hour dinner shop is only 10-15 minutes of notes.

I also leave the recorder on when I need it for timings that it wouldn't be convenient to speak to the recorder (how many seconds did it take from your initial greeting to receipt of your fasts food, etc.).

Is there a recorder I can keep inside my briefcase, rather than in my bra or shirt.

Most recorders have a non-directional microphone that tries to catch all sound. I had a cheap little Olympus first that did that and in a restaurant situation you had to listen closely for what your server said because the Muzak and conversations at other tables were all overlapping. My current one has a choice of using the non-directional microphone or the directional one. It cuts out a great deal of the distracting noise but if you don't have it aimed correctly, can eliminate the server's responses as well. This was why I purchased a lavalier microphone because it picks up well what is happening within about 6 feet.

For a while I attempted to use my DVR in a zipper pocket on the side of my purse and just plop my purse down with the pocket side facing my target. Worked sometimes, but not others. Definitely you needed to have the zipper pocket facing the conversation or you got very little. I would suspect that in a brief case you would have the same issues or worse. It may be that you can locate equipment with a wireless microphone option so that a worn microphone could transmit to equipment in your briefcase. With my lavalier I detached the clip, wear the microphone in my bra and run the cord down under my shirt to the recorder in my pocket. I tend to wear knit tops (often golf shirts) that aren't designed to be tucked in and they are not tight so there are no tell tales.

It definitely works better outside the briefcase. I have done both, depending on place and my attire.

Since it is a "mystery shop", you are not to be seen in the tape (watch out for mirrors). It's up to the MSP and client to explain this to their employees. Your job is to do the shop properly and get paid for it. That's what I do primarily and the MSP provides my equipment.

I think there is some confusion here. Are you talking about buying a DVR (Digital voice recorder) or a DVR (Digital video recorder). Huge difference. I assumed you were talking about the former.

If you were ever interested in doing video shops, you would save yourself a LOT of headache by buying your own equipment. Trust me.

I'm talking about the voice recorder but obviously the reference to watching out for mirrors has to do with video recording

I just watch out for mirrors because sometimes I start to look pretty haggard by the end of the day and I just don't even want to know..

I hope I never get so involved that I am attatching recording devices to myself just to get a free meal.

I always use a recording device. It really helps when you are completing many shops in one day and you do not want to get the shops confused. I keep it with me at all times. If I could afford a small video recording device I would use that instead. The more detail your report is, the more satisfied the company and client is. I would use whatever I need in order to make my job easier. I purchased my recorder while completing a shop so I ended up getting it for free after I received payment and reimbursement.

I also find that it frees me up to deal with the here-and-now of the shop rather than trying to make mental notes about what the exact greeting was, etc. And for restaurant shops it is perfect. Glance at the watch when someone approaches the table, hit the 'pause' button to turn it on to record what they say at the table, at a convenient moment tell the recorder the time of the table visit and what was delivered or when what order went in. I am then free to visit with my guest during the meal with only these minor interruptions. We did a reveal shop this evening that is all documented on the DVR. The employee did not do the appropriate up sell and there was no challenge to the 'oops' handed out. I didn't even need to listen to the recording to do my report.

I constantly use my iphone to record. and now, they just got a FREE dragon dictate app that will record and then send the recording as text via email Jott on steriods, as there is not time limit, as Jott used to have in the old, good, FREE days.

I had heard bad things about reveal shops - that the employee later argues. I had only done one & the employee passed. I did my second reveal last month and I was worried because sometimes on a drive-thru speaker everything said is not clear and it all happens so fast. I wanted to be sure the employee got full credit for their efforts so I recorded it. The employee TOTALLY did not pass. When I told the manager, he said he was standing closeby and he was SURE he heard her say it and said "This is pretty important to us. Let me call her. I'm sure she said it." Before I could respond, she was standing there, nodding defiantly and glaring at me and saying "Yes, yes, I DEFINITELY said it." So, as nicely as I could, I widened my eyes and said in a shocked tone, "I'm SO sorry if I misunderstood! I must have missed it! I can change the report".....they both started to smile...."Let me play back the shop record and we'll find it." The smiles froze. I played it back and we all three listened and then nobody said anything. I waited several beats and then said "Should I play it again?" The manager said in a sad voice, giving me sad-puppy eyes, "No, it looks like we were both wrong. She consistently does it right, but she sure didn't this time." So we were agreed, it was a FAIL. I don't like reveals and I don't like taping. I'm not doing any more of those.

Might be a good reason to stop doing reveals, but what does it tell you that is negative about doing recorded shops?

I love reveal shops because usually they are not lengthy. AustinMom your example is the main reason why I record my shops just in case I have someone o deny what happened. But it wouldn't bother me if they did. It's just all part of the job. I had one guy follow me out to my car when I first started two years ago while completing a reveal gas audit. The store failed almost everthing. He told me that I was distroying families by failing the store. I just got in my car and politely drove off. But I really wanted to get out and ask him about the lives he was destroying by selling outdated food and having guys hanging around selling dope out of the store. The nerve of this guys as if I was the bad person. I was pleased when I reshopped that location a year later as it had changed ownership and was much better.

Certainly the major 'garbage' I have gotten on reveals was at locations seriously out of compliance. I am comfortable doing reveals but I am also selective about where I do them. My thinking is that it takes a certain 'character type' to operate a business in some areas of town and those characters are most likely to demand their 'right' to a fictious good report. I recognize that in part being shopped is to determine and weed out the bad apples, but for a couple of bucks I don't need the grief. But the recordings are my backup that I was truthful and indeed the recording from my failed reveal last night is saved with the shop records for this month.

Audio Recording of Phone Calls:
Federal law allows phone calls (traditional, cellular and cordless) and other electronic communication to be recorded with the consent of at least one party to the conversation. If you are one of the people taking part in the conversation, it can be recorded because YOU consented to the recording. If you aren't, at least one of the people in the conversation must know about and consent to the recording. That said, each state and territory has its own statutes on this, with many of these directly based upon the federal law.

12 states that definitely require all parties to a conversation to consent before it can be recorded are: California, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Montana, New Hampshire, Pennsylvania and Washington.

Be careful if you live in Nevada. It has a one party consent statute AND there is some question as to how the law should be interpreted by the courts. In my opinion, I would err on the "all-party" side, but I am NOT a lawyer.

In California, you can only record a conversation with the consent of only one party if certain criminal activity (kidnapping, extortion, bribery or a violent felony) is involved. See: [www.citmedialaw.org]


Hidden Audio and Video Recording:
The laws in thirteen states expressly prohibit the unauthorized installation or use of cameras in "private" places. These states include: Alabama, Arkansas, California, Delaware, Georgia, Hawaii, Kansas, Maine, Michigan, Minnesota, New Hampshire, South Dakota, and Utah. In these states, the installation or use of any device for photographing, observing or eavesdropping actions or audio in a "private" place without permission of those being observed or listened to is a crime punishable by law. Some states also prohibit trespassing on private property to conduct unauthorized surveillance of people there. These states include: Alabama, Delaware, Georgia, Hawaii, Kansas, Maine, Michigan, Minnesota, South Dakota, and Utah. In most of these states, the unauthorized installation or use of Hidden Cameras (those that are seen as violating ones 4th Amendment rights to privacy) is a felony offense. Violating such laws is punishable by a $2,000.00 fine and a sentence of up to 2 years in prison.

See:
[legallad.quickanddirtytips.com]
[www.rcfp.org]
[www.citmedialaw.org] (California specific)
[www.aftab.com]

Of course, even if you live in a 2-party state, there is nothing to prohibit you from making audio NOTES of your conversation to yourself, as long as it is ONLY YOU SPEAKING afterward and not the conversation being recorded and called "a NOTE."



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 12/19/2009 06:36PM by dee shops.

Because a large majority of my shops are in CA and NV, I've never considered making recording an option for myself. I think that has helped me to develop a really acute ability to remember names and interactions after years of doing this.

Like Dee, I used to use Jott on My iPhone, but these days, I find it easiest to record shop notes on the phone notepad and email them to myself at the conclusion of the shop. In CA, it's "Normal" for people to by sending texts in the grocery store, at a bar or in a restaurant, so I rarely look suspicious.

I feel like this saves me a lot of time not dealing with listening back to recordings or looking for paperwork. It also keeps my timeline organized, and my notes are already in my computer when I get home from the shop. It may not be for everyone, but I suggest trying it for a while. It gets easier over time.

I dislike typing on my iphone (even though I like it better than typing on any other phone I have ever had...) so I like the recording, but I get what you are saying.

When needed, cell phone is my M.O. of choice for routine shops - either texting, leaving a message for myself, or taking a photo, even if not required. Sometimes, it's preferable not to be approached and the cell can help with that. Occasionally though, guidelines prohibit their use.

Quite true, Mert. I have several shops that I do monthly that prohibit me from using my phone while in the store.