What a CX bestseller got wrong about Mystery Shopper Research.
This article is part of our Mystery Shopper Research Series — practical guidance on designing, running, and learning from Mystery Shopper programs.
A Cautionary Mystery Shopper Story
One of the most widely read books on Customer Experience opens with a story about a Mystery Shopper program at a national retail chain.
This Mystery Shopper program delivered high scores – even as the company’s sales were in decline.
The book concludes that the behaviors being measured – such as “Were the floors clean?” and “Were the shelves fully stocked?” – weren’t reflective of what truly mattered to the firm’s Customers.
The story makes for great reading
The story makes for great reading.
And it serves as a very effective lead in to the promise and practices of CX which are beautifully addressed in the book.
But was Mystery Shopper really the problem? Or was it something more fundamental?
That’s the question I answer in this post.
A Case of Misaligned Objectives
I think it was a case of misaligned objectives. There is some essential context missing from the story.
The authors did not share:
What was the objective of the Mystery Shopper program?
Because if the objective of the program was to ensure clean floors and stocked shelves, then the program did exactly what it was designed to do.
But if the objective of the program was to evaluate aspects that influences Customer perception and sales – then this particular program missed the mark.
A clean floor is probably quite low on the list of what drives sales.
Which means that It wasn’t the the use of Mystery Shopper that was flawed — it was the design of how Mystery Shopper was used that was the flaw.
The Mystery Shopper program described in the book was poorly designed. But that doesn’t make Mystery Shopper Research inherently bad.
Just as a poorly designed survey doesn’t discredit all surveys – or a poorly run focus group doesn’t invalidate the method – the same holds true for Mystery Shopper research.
A House Has Many Windows
When we teach Customer Research, we like to say “A house has many windows”.
Surveys, Operational data, Ethnographic research, Journey mapping, Mystery Shopper, Unsolicited feedback (and more) are all windows into the Customer experience.
The more windows you open, the more light you let in – and the more clearly you see and understand the Customer experience.
Of course, it’s important to determine which windows to use and how to use them. Including what’s involved with connecting or ‘triangulating’ what you see through them.
Here’s another question I have about the story in the book:
Was the Retailer relying solely on this Mystery Shopper program to understand the totality of their Customer experience?
I don’t know – the story doesn’t say.
But if the Retailer was relying on the Mystery Shopper program to illuminate the totality of their Customer Experience – then that’s the problem here.
Not Mystery Shopper itself, but how it is being used.
I can’t imagine any leading Organization using only one window to shine a light on their Customer Experience.
Could this Retailer Have Used Mystery Shopper Better?
Of course.
In the story in the book, there is conclusion that the ‘people’ who shop at this Retailer are in a hurry to get in and get out – so that they can get back to work.
Having learned this from other research methods – whether a survey or qualitative research – means that a Mystery Shopper program could be designed to study those aspects and behaviors that matter most to these kinds of Customers.
Aspects and behaviors which have been proven to link to better sales outcomes.
For example, whether that’s more efficient signage and product staging, or how accessible the Retailer’s Employees are to these Customers.
What is Mystery Shopper Research?
Mystery Shopper is a research method that helps to identify and understand:
What Customers actually go through.
In some cases, such as checking for adherence to basic standards like cleanliness, the Mystery Shopper program is a stand-alone.
While more robust programs are connected to other research methods and findings.
I’ve written extensively on Mystery Shopper.
Here’s the link to begin with if you’d like to explore further – Introducing Our Mystery Shopper Research Series
Thank You for Reading
I regularly share stories, strategies, and insights from our work across Contact Centers, Customer Service, and Customer Experience. If this resonates, I’d love to stay connected.
You can drop me a line anytime, or subscribe via our website.
Daniel Ord
[email protected]
www.omnitouchinternational.com
