I got a call from a project manager asking what I knew about the best ways to do price checks for, say, 40-50 specific products, where in order to get all of the prices the shopper may have to go to two or even more different types of stores. Shopper gets to select the stores. So, let's pretend that I get a list of 50 very specific items (size, flavor, brand, etc.) I end up figuring that for most I would start at my local Target, then move on the a nearby 7/11 to find the tobacco products and perhaps fill in some specific snack products, and then might go the a nearby CVS to find the last of the toiletries.

This is NOT a competitor shop; it's more like how the Census Bureau collects information for the cost of living index. However, the shopper needs to be unremarkable while gathering the info. Therefore using the smart phones seems the obvious way to go.

The last time I did such a shop type was back in the paper and pencil era, so I am interested to know if there are apps for iPhone and Android other than the plain old "memo" apps that would be the best to organize the survey list for the shopper. Obviously, arranging the products by type (toiletries, tobacco, snacks, etc.) is key and there needs to be room for product name, size, etc and then blanks for price and the observation site.

Can you suggest apps that would permit the shop manger to easily set up apps to download to shoppers who may have either iPhone or Android systems to do this. Since it is a "one and done" project, no one wants to complexify the whole effort by getting some big IT stuff involved. (Yes, I mean "complexify;" it is a very useful term.)

I am not being paid to research this. It simply made me realize how little I know about shopper assist apps and triggered a desire to know more.

I see folks in the store scanning the bar code of an item with their phone to I think get other local prices. I don't know that this goes down to the Campbell's Chicken Noodle Soup level, but it is certainly what I would check first.

ETA I also don't know if it is updated to reflect sales. And when I google, I get [www.livingrichwithcoupons.com] which also apparently will provide coupons for the items.

Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 10/22/2015 04:51PM by Flash.

If I had a company looking to work this scenario I would just talk with the "big players" in that field already. The apps are already built and have a ton of people using them. Look at GigWalk, Field Agent, and Easy Shift. You give them the data sets you want they will set up the missions and push them out to registered users. In my opinion GigWalk is the one you want to look at the hardest, you can manage your campaign through Gigwalk's website and have people contact a project manager within the app.

I would set up each store with its own census with a shop fee between $10.00 and $20.00 depending on the depth of the census. Doing so, you can cover more ground quickly with multiple app users jumping in instead of one person covering three to five stores where confusion may start to set in later in the census.

Editied for clarity.

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 10/22/2015 09:08PM by SouthernCharm.