Mystery shopping offers various benefits in market research. Using a digital checklist tool like Nimbly allows the process to be more efficient.
From various market research methods available, mystery shopping is perhaps the most hands-on. This strategy allows business owners to gauge market interests, analyze competitors, and check services' quality by mimicking actual shopping experiences. Digital management tools make the process easier, especially when facing serious competitions.
Want to know how mystery shopping can improve your business? This short guide will describe it.
Mystery shoppers improve business by giving feedback to companies through actual shopping experiences. They go to various establishments like supermarkets, stores, restaurants, hotels, spas, and even event venues. According to the Mystery Shopping Providers Association, business owners who use this service earn a 10 percent increase in revenue.
There are several tasks mystery shoppers do once they arrive at the establishments. They are:
Mystery shoppers pay extra attention to staff behaviors and the quality of services given. They observe traits like helpfulness, attitude, integrity, and communication. The reports usually go to the Human Resource department for consideration, evaluation, and improvement.
During the stroll, mystery shoppers observe the establishments' physical aspects and how they present themselves to the customers. They may include lighting, availability of space, product placements, and cleanliness. Specifically-trained shoppers can also detect the presence (or lack of) accessibilities.
Mystery shoppers may check the way an establishment conducts standard procedures. For example, they may check the way a store handles complaints, returned goods, and reports. Shoppers can also check if there are deficiencies, faults, and negative experiences that should be points of concerns.
Customers' perceptions of brands can be detected from the way they react toward certain products. Mystery shoppers can also conduct conversations with several customers to gauge their reactions. For online stores, it can mean checking customers' experiences when they go through shopping steps.
Mystery shoppers can observe elements at the competitors' stores to analyze their plus and minus points. You can use the information to target a specific niche or develop business strategies to outstrip your competitors.
Analyzing competitors also help you to create the right pricing strategy. If you detect serious competitions from a new business, you can immediately develop strategies to keep them from becoming your big competition since the start.
Mystery shopping for marketing offers several benefits. You can improve your business by targeting specific elements that need improvements, based on the shoppers' actual reports. You can also analyze competitors using the point of views of shoppers, which can provide valuable insights.
Mystery shopping also serves as one-stop market research, involving several types of observations in one activity. It provides a more comprehensive report, allowing you to create an in-depth analysis of your business performance.
In the end, every advantage you gain from mystery shopping and its reports can lead to better marketing strategy, evaluation, and improvement. However, you need an efficient digital tool to make sure that the observation quality is reliable. Nimbly offers a digital solution to conduct a proper mystery shopping.
Nimbly is a digital checklist and reporting tool that makes mystery shopping more effective. It allows shoppers to follow all tasks and report efficiently. The helpful features include:
Digital, Automated Checklist
Nimbly offers a digital checklist that can be filled out through a mobile app. You can customize the templates to match the task goals, making sure nothing is left.
Issue Tracker and Resolution Systems
Nimbly checklists record all problems detected during the inspection in one Issue Tracker page. The problems will be automatically assigned to responsible departments and a deadline will be set. All corrective actions taken by the responsible departments can be updated under the issue.
Real-time Reports
The reports are automatically generated so mystery shoppers can immediately submit it, creating insightful data based on real-time reports. They allow you to plan a more purposeful marketing strategy.
Companies who set out mystery shoppers for analyzing competitors can use this specific feature. Combining digital form with lists, you can see and target the competitive points when creating a marketing strategy.
Investing in mystery shopping allows business owners to create an in-depth marketing strategy and face strict competition. Make sure to use the right digital tool, such as Nimbly, to get the best result from this market research method.
Nimbly transforms manual operational audit processes into app-based checklists for front-line workers to generate reports instantly, centralize insights in real-time, and ensure thorough issue resolution.
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