10 Questions
What do mystery shoppers do to evaluate the service experience?
Visit the business as a regular customer
In which types of businesses are mystery shoppers commonly used?
Restaurants, fast-food chains, health clubs, and movie theaters
What can be a result of a mystery shopper's report?
Bonus payments for staff
Why do some people raise ethical concerns about mystery shopping?
Because it is deceptive and may unfairly penalize staff
What do some businesses do to address ethical concerns about mystery shopping?
Ensure staff are aware that a customer may be a mystery shopper
What is a common challenge that businesses face?
Quality control
What is a limitation of using customer surveys to evaluate service quality?
They have a low response rate
What is the purpose of mystery shoppers in a business?
To evaluate the quality of service
Why do businesses use mystery shoppers?
To identify areas for improvement in their service
What is a benefit of using mystery shoppers in a retail outlet?
It provides a more accurate picture of service quality
Study Notes
Quality Control Challenges
- Businesses face challenges in ensuring quality control, particularly service-based businesses like stores and restaurants.
Surveys as a Quality Control Method
- Customer surveys are used to evaluate quality of service, but they have limitations, such as low response rates and biased responses from customers who had a particular difficulty.
Mystery Shopping as a Quality Control Method
- Mystery shopping involves pretended customers reporting on their experiences to assess the quality of service.
- Mystery shoppers evaluate aspects like time waiting in line, interactions with staff, and overall experience.
- Some mystery shoppers wear hidden cameras to record their experiences.
Benefits of Mystery Shopping
- Provides a balanced assessment of the average service user's experience.
- Identifies positive aspects, which can lead to bonus payments for staff.
- Highlights negative aspects, helping to identify training needs and improve staff performance.
- Can be used to compare services with competitors.
Uses of Mystery Shopping
- Retail stores use mystery shoppers to assess customer experience.
- Restaurants, fast-food chains, health clubs, movie theaters, and local governments also use mystery shopping to evaluate services.
Ethical Concerns
- Mystery shopping raises ethical concerns, such as deceiving workers and potentially unfair treatment of staff.
- Concerns about the quality of reports due to low-paid and under-trained mystery shoppers.
Addressing Ethical Concerns
- Many businesses inform staff that they may be interacting with a mystery shopper.
- Specialist mystery shopper companies are employed to ensure high-quality information.
- Some areas require mystery shoppers to be licensed to address ethical concerns.
This quiz assesses your understanding of mystery shopping as a tool for evaluating service quality in businesses that provide services, such as stores and restaurants.
Make Your Own Quizzes and Flashcards
Convert your notes into interactive study material.
Get started for free
