Holiday shopping price wars are in full swing. But despite high sales for Black Friday, business forecasters predict a slow retail season. Perhaps more retailers should consider ‘reverse marketing.’

It’s simple: Give consumers what they really want– a feeling of being more important than the almighty dollar.

If you’ve ever carted a pocket full of coupons to the grocery store and thought: “Why doesn’t the store just lower its prices and forget about coupons?” you know what we mean. Imagine the popularity of the store that decided to cut all coupons and simply lower prices instead. When customers feel important, loyalty builds. And it begins with a gesture that says profits are not the only important thing.

Mystery shopping is an invaluable tool in determining what customers really want. When a qualified mystery shopper enters your store, he or she accurately assesses store aspects that may be turning off—or turning on—your average customer. Their keen observations can tell you more than the bare basics. Look at the top retailers: Best Buy, Starbucks, Trader Joe’s…what do they have that many stores do not? They all use mystery shopping. They work hard to find out what their customers want and, along with the products and pricing their buying audience expects, they offer an uncommon level of service to match. The customer is happy and reasons, “Why shop anywhere else?” This is the secret to their success.

A solid customer base built on loyalty is vital. Businesses can even charge more, if they are willing to give more. Listening to the customer, providing a hassle free return policy, speedy service, and a simple thing called courtesy wins the battle. And mystery shopping points the way to the policies and procedures that create top retailers.

There are many factors that work together to make a mystery shopping program successful. However, no matter how much support your program receives from management, it will not be sustainable, consistent and successful without the full participation of your frontline staff.

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So how do the greatest service organizations reprioritize their corporate culture by making just one simple change? They shift their focus from being reactive to being proactive. Rather than waiting for problems to happen, and then fixing them, they look for potential problems that can be prevented before they happen.

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Outdated policies and unhappy frontline staff do not create a good customer experience. Customers who purchase items from your store expect to be able to return those same items. And they want to be treated with respect. Many stores still force antiquated policies upon their customers. A simple thing like a “No Return” Policy may mean those customers will never return as well. Is it worth it?

How can you know if your policies are turning customers away? One way top retailers find out is through mystery shopping and customer surveys. Professional mystery shoppers pose as ordinary customers, testing out policies, staff, the store environment and your merchandise. They objectively report their observations, which retailers use to amend employee behaviors, environmental or product issues, and policies. Customer surveys are also very useful, offering a subjective look at what your customers really think.

David Rich, President of ICC Decision Services, offers his perspective. “We provide clients with one source for all their measurement tools. We design and coordinate each piece to complement the overall program goals. There is no ‘finger pointing’ – the program responsibility rests with us. And our team of market research professionals and industry experts work closely to optimize the effectiveness of your unique Customer Experience Management (CEM) program. Specifically, our mystery shopping programs drive frontline staff performance improvement, and increased revenue. We recruit, test, certify and closely monitor our shoppers. Fully customized and integrated with in-person, Web site, call center and telephone-based components, our mystery shopping programs include dynamic and static 24/7 graphic reporting powered by our proprietary state-of-the-art Web-based technology. Our programs leave no doubt as to what your customers really think of your store and your products.”

One of the reasons mystery shopping has gotten a bad rap is because of mystery shopping providers who simply don’t provide programs that speak to the total customer experience.

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One of the Most Frequently Asked Questions that I hear about setting up a mystery shopping program deals with, “What should the frequency be? Should we choose once a day, once a week, once a month, or once a quarter?” My answer is always the same: it depends on your program goals and your budget. Let’s face it- all retailers want to meet or even exceed their goals, but not all have the budget to support daily or even weekly programs. So while my standard answer to the Most Frequently Asked Question may sound overly broad, it’s actually based on what I like to call the principle of “Maximization vs. Optimization.”

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If you’re using surveys to measure employee behaviors, are you asking the right kinds of questions? Are your questions objective or subjective? When it comes to mystery shopping surveys, how you ask is almost more important than what you ask. Mystery shoppers provide objective observation, as opposed to subjective opinion (customer satisfaction surveys). Asking objective questions will deliver more consistent, measurable results. This approach also provides clear, actionable training indications, helping associates to understand which behaviors need to be modified to improve scores, and ultimately, business results.

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Is cost keeping you from collecting information that leads to higher conversions? Information programs can cost much less than you’d expect– in some cases, as little as $35 per store.

Consider the following two cases:

Case 1. A national retailer recently increased its budget for an audit of its customer experience, moving from quarterly to monthly measurements because it was able to see definitive ROI from the insights it gained. Spending just $35 per store per month on its mystery shopping program turned out to be “peanuts” when information gathered allowed associate performance and sales to be improved.

$420 a year per store to increase sales turned out to be a bargain. Compare the costs of new fixtures or carpeting. What payback do they offer in comparison? Consider the cost of the 82% of your customers who walk out without making a purchase.>
Unfortunately, too many CFOs look at expenditures from a direct-cost basis without considering the net cost. They fail to see that dollars spent to improve the customer experience drive their top and bottom lines. Expenditures on improving the customer experience are investment dollars, not expense dollars.

Case 2. Another national retailer is stepping up to the plate, even in these uncertain times, by implementing customer and employee feedback systems. The retailer’s objective is to improve their shoppers’ experiences by listening to reactions from actual customers and sales associates. The retailer has commissioned an IVR-driven customer satisfaction program and a web-based employee feedback program. The cost for both of these feedback systems is less than $800 per location annually.

Combining all programs from these two retailers (mystery shopping, customer satisfaction, and employee feedback) totals about $1,200 a year per store, and gives the retailer a 360° business view, providing dramatic payback potential in the toughest retail economic climate in 15 years.

The message couldn’t be clearer. Reductions in programs and information systems leave today’s retailers vulnerable to competition and prevent an understanding of the more demanding mindset of customers. What’s needed is an aggressive commitment to continued information programs, along with complementary data services to fortify retailers for the long haul. Cutting auditing and feedback programs to shore up the bottom line will ultimately have the opposite effect. Partnering with an organization that assists you in communicating the information and in building action plans to foster system-wide improvements, as well as asking the right questions, will deliver the best experience for your customers.

Even in today’s marketplace, customers still have money, but they will become more selective – and will spend that money with retailers who offer them the better experience, no matter what.

Ever have a boss you loved to hate? You’d bite your lip when he or she spoke, afraid you might say what you were really thinking. If so, you already understand how employee satisfaction equals the customer experience.

Not long ago, as I shopped at a local discount store, I overheard several employees bashing their boss. Obviously, the ladies did not like their jobs, but they needed the work.

When I asked for help, I received half-hearted service–just enough to get by, nothing more. My customer experience was sorely compromised. Perhaps the boss was difficult to work for. I’ll never know because I won’t be shopping in that store again.

Conversely, I’ve shopped in stores obviously eager to improve the customer experience. The supervisor had a great working relationship with his employees, and it was a pleasure all around. I felt welcomed and valued and received service with a smile.

A good mystery shopping program uncovers necessary information in both these instances. The boss of the unhappy employees doesn’t realize what’s going on behind the scenes. Mystery shopping would reveal it…and explain why his profits are dwindling. Mystery shopping rewards and motivates employees. If they’re unhappy, it can be fixed. If they’re already treating customers well, mystery shopping ensures the retailer’s future.

Employee satisfaction equals a satisfying customer experience. To cater to customers’ needs, it’s not enough to guess. And they’re probably not going to tell you, even if you ask. Like the unhappy employee in the beginning of this story, they’re biting their lips and hoping you don’t notice.

The only way to give customers what they want is to know what that is. And the only way to really know your customers’ unbiased opinions is through mystery shopping.

Have you ever had the experience of going online to order something, only to discover the web site wants to play Twenty Questions before you can complete your transaction? Frustrating, isn’t it?

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