Mystery Shopper (noun): A person who visits a store as a customer, rating the store’s service and selection in order to provide the retailer with feedback on improving customer experiences.
I am your Mystery Shopper.
This summer, Hot Off The Press decided to conduct a series of visits to scrapbook stores. We wanted to discover what the average scrapbooker’s shopping experience was like. What made one store a fabulous shopping experience, while another store was only so-so? What were scrapbook retailers doing right, and what could be improved? What were some simple ways scrapbook stores could boost profits? What was it like to shop a typical scrapbook store?
We knew in order to get a wide breadth of customer experiences, our Mystery Shopper would have to visit a lot of stores, some of them more than once. Hmm, shopping…for scrapbook supplies? Shopping—as work? Sign me up! I volunteered immediately and headed out to the scrapbook stores.
The Big Question
We decided ask the same question at each store: “I’m working on a heritage album. What do you have for heritage?” I asked this question at 7 different scrapbook stores. The answers might surprise you.
Unfailingly, employees at each of the stores I visited directed me only to bulk papers and stickers on rolls—essentially directing me toward less than $10.00 worth of merchandise! No one showed me the punches, die-cuts or idea books that would be great for heritage albums, let alone showing me sheet protectors, pens, Hermafix, or the most important thing—an album!
No one attempted to sell me anything in kit, book or pack form to make coordinating themes and colors easier for me (and increase the store’s sales). Not one employee asked me about my project, let alone what size paper I needed. In every case, employees displayed a limited amount of product knowledge and customer service training.
Perhaps most frustrating was that not one employee invited me to shop the store again: no one told me about upcoming classes or crops, alerted me to sales or special prices or promotions or gave me a class schedule or a handout.
Not one store turned me from a Mystery Shopper into a Regular Customer.
“My store is different!” you might say. Really? Would you know? In every situation, the employees offering poor service were not managers or owners. And in every case, the manager or owner was not in the store at the time.
Want to know how your customers are treated when you’re not around? This Mystery Shopper might reveal a few surprises.
Store #1: You Sell What You Show—So Don’t Show Only $5.00 Worth of Product!
“I’m working on a heritage album. What do you have for heritage?” I am at my first store, excited to get started on my project and ready to shop.
The employee directs me to Me & My BIG Ideas heritage stickers, then shows me some decade-themed stickers. She points to the stickers, saying, “I don’t know what year your pictures are, but here are some stickers…” She adds that I might not really want to use these stickers because they were a little bright. That ends her heritage presentation, and she starts to leave.
I ask about paper. “Oh, we have some cardstock over here,” she says, indicating the Memories paper rounders nearby. She gestures to the 12” bulk papers. Most of the paper trays are empty.
Is that all the store can offer for heritage? A limited selection of bulk cardstock and stickers, some of which (according to the employee) I really shouldn’t use?
Yet, a few feet away sat a 48-pocket rack containing Paper Pizazz™ Heritage 12”x12” Papers, Vellum Papers, Floral Vellum Papers, Spattered, Crackled, Sponged and Mixing Jewel Patterned Papers—perfect for heritage themes! Nearby are beautiful lace-look designs punches from Emaginations. Hanging on the wall are Deja Views heritage themed kits for $16.99. Over by the door is a rack containing idea books—including Memory Makers’ heritage idea book.
A customer who bought one of these books of paper and/or kits plus some bulk papers, a few stickers, a pretty punch and an idea book would have left the store with a terrific selection of supplies to get started right away and earned the store more money.
In the end, I bought exactly what the saleswoman advised: nine sheets of 12”x12” cardstock and one module of MAMBI heritage stickers. Total heritage purchase: $5.44. Retail price of one 12”x12” Paper Pizazz™ book? $8.95.
Mystery Shopper Rating: How many $5.00 sales do you have to make each day in order to keep your store in business? Rather than showing a customer a few dollars worth of product, why not show her all the exciting products—papers, stickers, punches, laser die-cuts, vellum, eyelets and ideas? Why not ask her what size paper she uses, rather than simply showing 12”x12” papers? Instead of saying, “I don’t know what year your pictures are…”, ask what year they are!
Do you think I can scrapbook my family history with nine sheets of paper and a few stickers? No! I need lots of paper, coordinating embellishments, stickers, punches, idea books and most of all—an album! Offer me the whole experience, from papers to sheet protectors!
Mystery Shopper Tip: Try brainstorming with your employees at your next store meeting. What product they would recommend if a customer asked for heritage supplies? After all, there’s not much that wouldn’t work for heritage—baby, wedding, travel, school, military and holiday-themed supplies are all appropriate for heritage books. What about baby themes? Wedding? A sports album? Encourage your employees to think more generally about product—and to ask the customer questions. “What kind of photos do you have?” can go a long way to help the customer find the perfect supplies.
Store #2: Lack of Interest Becomes Benign Neglect
I call Store #2 to find out their hours. The woman on the phone is friendly, fun and energetic. She’s clearly not the same person I meet when I get there.
When I walk in, the employee at the counter is ringing up a customer. When the customer leaves, the salesperson walks over to a table set up by the register. As she starts to sit she says absently, “Let me know if I can help you.”
I say, “Yes, you can. I’m working on a heritage album.” She sighs, stands up, and leads me over to about six different 12”x12” patterned papers, then to some stickers from Me & My BIG Ideas. She seems satisfied that she’s put me in the right spot in the store; she shrugs and says, “Well, that’s about it,” and heads back to her chair.
Mystery Shopper Rating: What struck me about this shopping experience was the employee’s total lack of energy, excitement or interest in what the customer was working on.
Scrapbooking is fun! Your customers are in your store because they are working on a
Mystery Shopper Tip: Studies show that one of the top four reasons customers stop buying from a company is due to benign neglect.
Benign neglect is when you take your customer for granted, assuming the customer will shop your store again regardless of the quality of service.
Yet, there are over 30 scrapbook stores in my area. I want to shop with someone who’s as excited about my project as I am, and who appreciates my business! I have 29 other choices of stores, so why come back?
Store #3: Poor Customer Service
It’s taking me awhile to locate an employee at Store #3. I walk the entire store, pausing at the die-cut machine to ask the woman there if she’s an employee.
In fact, I received no acknowledgement in the 30 minutes I walked around the store. Yes, 30 minutes.
Finally I went to the counter with a die-cut, figuring an employee would reveal herself when she saw a customer ready to pay. The employee on duty did indeed jump up after I had been at the register for about 20 seconds; she had been scrapbooking about ten feet away from me, at one of the tables set out for customers to work at. Our entire conversation consisted of her saying: "That's 25 cents. Out of a dollar? Here's 75 back. Have a good day," and promptly returning to her seat. It’s the only time I have ever been in a store without talking—to anyone!
Mystery Shopper Rating: What, no “hello”? No “how are you?” I would have even welcomed a “Let me know if I can help you” at this point. But to let a customer walk the store for half an hour—letting her walk past you several times—without saying anything? Inexcusable!
Mystery Shopper Tip: Give your employees a target for greeting customers. Retail experts recommend employees give an open-ended greeting within a minute of the customer being in the store. An open-ended greeting is not just “Hello”—it’s “Hi, how are you? What are you looking for today? We have some super new stickers in! Want to take a look?” This isn’t high-pressure sales; it’s making the customer feel welcome in the store, and helping her find what she’s looking for (and maybe a little more!)
Banish the phrase, “Let me know if I can help you,” from your store! It’s the pre-sale equivalent of “Have a nice day.”
What’s it Like at YOUR Store?
These three stores, unfortunately, offer pretty typical shopping experiences. I haven’t omitted my “good” Mystery Shopping encounters. I didn’t have any. The rest of my shopping trips only yielded more of the same: reluctant, unenthusiastic employees directing shoppers to the cheapest product in the store.
There’s one way to find out if your store offers the same lackluster service: A Mystery Shopper of your own. While there are companies that offer this service, you might prefer to swap services with another store in your area to save money. Give your Mystery Shopper a list of areas you want her to cover: just customer service, or selection, store layout and classes?
Be sure to keep her identity a secret. Don’t forewarn employees, and don’t hire someone your employees recognize. Get the truest possible picture of what it’s like to shop your store. Then make changes!
Can You Afford To Offer Outstanding Customer Experiences?
Actually, can you afford not to? Yes, it costs more to train employees and maintain standards with regular meetings. You might have to offer a more competitive compensation package in order to attract customer service-oriented salespeople. Yet in this competitive environment, can you afford not to?
Remember Store #3, the store with employee who failed to say anything in the 30 minutes I was in the store? Six months later, Store #3 is no longer in business.
Again, can you afford not to offer your customers an exceptional shopping experience? Can you afford not to place an emphasis on sales, suggestion selling and customer service?
