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When Mystery Shopping & Feedback Suveys Are BFF’s

msfriends

 

Two very different programs, two sets of data. For those companies using both a mystery shopping program (objective evaluation) and customer feedback (subjective evaluation), there is a wealth of information available that may not be immediately realized. This is the type of data that, while not obvious at times, can go a long way in making the most of both programs.

 

If your company uses both programs, hopefully the data is housed in the same portal. If not, it is a great idea to make this happen so you can easily see side by side data to make comparisons. If it is, there are a few things to look at to be sure you are getting the most valuable information possible.

 

Performance discrepancies

In many programs we’ve worked with, there is interestingly not a large data difference in performance scores for the feedback & shopping programs. This is fairly consistent across clients. However, there are times when we see a large discrepancy (more than 10% difference in scores on the two programs). When this happens, there are some things to consider:

Is it company wide or location specific? If this discrepancy is company wide, it may be telling you that perhaps you are not evaluating the right things in your mystery shopping program. It could also be that what you consider to be important tasks to produce a strong customer experience may not be what the customer perceives it to be.

Location specific discrepancies may boil down to a staff specific concern if the feedback data is collected during times when shops are not done. While this can possibly be determined through only one of the programs, having two programs can help bring this issue to light – after all, mystery shops are typically done once or twice per month; coupling this with feedback data can expedite finding the issue and resolving it.

Are you limiting your mystery shopping evaluation periods? If you focus your mystery shopping program on a specific time frame, maybe busier periods vs slower periods, and your performance scores on the feedback surveys are lower than your mystery shopping scores, it might signal that you need to open up the window of time shops can occur. This isn’t always the case, but it’s something to think about. When feedback surveys ask the customer for the time frame during which they visited, it is easy to pull overall scores by time frame to see if this is in fact a concern. It may signal a need for additional training for a particular staff member or shift of employees, or it may indicate that the staff is on “higher alert” during the times they know a mystery shopper can arrive, potentially skewing the results and/or causing “relaxed” service levels during other times of the day.

 

Not getting a lot of feedback surveys?

Ask one simple question – include “Did the cashier/employee mention the survey at the bottom of the receipt?” or a variation of this question. Look at the data that comes back to see if the survey is simply not being promoted the right way. This is also useful if you see that a location or group of locations does not have many customer survey responses – compare it to the response for the question on the mystery shopping report. This simple discovery could make the difference in the feedback volume you get.

 

Use data from one to enhance the other

What pains your customers? Identify the “pain points” customers share on the feedback surveys to enhance training to overcome these issues. Take it a step further and add questions to address the pain points on your mystery shopping report to further investigate. This can easily identify issues that need to be resolved quickly.

Test performance standards. Are there features of your customer experience that you think are important to customers, but you’re not sure? Add a question to your feedback survey that asks them to share their thoughts on it – you may be surprised with what you find. This can help tweak your training procedures and streamline the customer experience – a win/win situation all around.

Both mystery shopping and customer feedback programs are important to gauge customer satisfaction and continually improve the overall experience. When used efficiently and a bit “outside the box” it can really impact your bottom line.

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Will Grocery Pick Up Overshadow Peapod?

 

groceries delivered

 

It appears we are getting lazier by the minute. As the internet has afforded many advances in online shopping and ordering, we as consumers have come to expect more of our brick and mortar retailers. And they are listening…

Grocery shopping is not always the most exciting task, I’ll admit it. For those who think it would be great to order online and just pull up to the store to have the items placed in your trunk, you’re in luck!

Kroger and Walmart are testing this very service at some of their locations. It’s like Peapod amplified – customers can order online, set up a pick up time (at no additional cost), and have the groceries brought to the car. It’s that simple!

This is very similar to Peapod, but allows even more convenience for customers:

  • Because you can order on the go and pick up within an hour in most cases, it caters to the person “on the go” – a parent, for example, who is waiting at their child’s practice can easily place an order and swing by to pick up the groceries on the way home. Same for working customers – place the order in the morning and pick it up after work, saving time walking the aisles and waiting in line at the register.
  • Peapod is efficient, and it’s sometimes nicer to have groceries delivered right to the door. However, the delivery fees can be costly; pick up services are available at no cost at Walmart and Kroger.
  • While some customers may not like the “inconvenience” of going to the store to pick up their groceries, Peapod may be a better choice. However, for those who are on the go or find it difficult to schedule a delivery time when they’ll be home, this newest form of online grocery shopping might be best.

I think that, if this rolls out to the majority of Kroger and/or Walmart stores, it could be successful and potentially overshadow Peapod – we’ve seen the grocery (and big box retail industry) move from traditional shopping, to online shopping, to online/pickup in store, to this most recent online/pick up in the parking lot. It would not surprise me if this was the way of the future for some grocery shoppers. Time will tell, and it will be interesting to watch what happens.

 

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Pokemon Go – Unique Business Applications

pokemon busines ideas

 

Unless you live under a rock, you’ve likely heard of Pokemon GO and the buzz it has created in the last couple of weeks. It’s attracting people of all ages – I’ve seen adults & children alike wandering about, staring at their phones like it’s the zombie apolcalypse.

Businesses have noticed as well and have recently found ways to capitalize on this new craze; after all, it’s the first app of its kind that requires players to be out and about. Many times Pokestops are found near businesses, and this created a great opportunity.

Below are four interesting ways businesses have taken advantage of the Pokemon GO insanity:

Pokemon GO Tours: a simple concept really – find a route where Pokemon are in abundance, create a tour, and charge customers for the ride.

This is exactly what is popping up across the country. A recently launched Pokemon GO Tour in Austin combines catching Pokemon with a tour of the city. Here’s a brief description of how it works according to a recent article:

“Everyone get out your phones and get ready,” said Philip Loyd to a bus full of Pokemon passengers.

Loyd guided passengers by live tracking Pokemon creatures and alerted passengers on what they’re about to catch, when and how long they have.

“Alright, everyone, so we have a cadaver coming up. We have about 90 seconds to catch it,” Loyd told the gamers aboard the air conditioned bus.

When there’s a lull of virtual creatures, Loyd gave background information on neighborhoods they passed through.

The bus tour that started in East Austin eventually makes its way to famous Austin landmarks. One of the tour stops is Vic Mathias Shores, a hotspot for pocket monsters.

Here, passengers spread out and conquered as many Pokemon as they could.

Such a simple idea, right? Other tours are quickly popping up, such as the one at Churchill Downs and the above mentioned Austin tour – just Google “Pokemon bus tours” and see how many pop up.

Animal shelters utilize Pokemon GO players as volunteers: this is probably my favorite use of Pokemon GO:

pokemon go animal shelter

From reports on this program, it seems that it has been successful in increasing foot traffic to the shelter. It’s a win-win situation – increases awareness of animals that are available for adoption and, at the same time, gives the shelter animals a bit more attention and exercise. I’m sure the shelter volunteers appreciate the extra help!

Pokestops as a means of luring customers their way: businesses have been on the hunt to find Pokestops near their business. While they cannot create a Pokestop at their business (yet – sounds like “sponsored locations” will be launched soon), if there is one nearby, they may have some luck with purchasing Lures to encourage people to be near their place of business.

A Lure is simply a feature of the game that will do as it says – “lure” nearby Pokemon into your area for players to catch. It’s simple enough to purchase a Lure, but keep in mind it may not work if you don’t have a Pokestop nearby and/or it is too far away.

To Purchase Lures:

  • Open the Pokemon Go app
  • Catch your first Pokemon and you’ll get a red Pokeball
  • Tap the red Pokeball at the bottom of the screen and hit “Shop”
  • Scroll down and buy a pack of Pokecoins (the apps currency)
  • Once you have Pokecoins use them to buy a Lure Module

Are there Pokemon around you? Shout it to the masses! When businesses realize that Pokemon are hanging out nearby, they have turned to social media & other marketing avenues to promote this fact, hoping to increase foot traffic (and customers). Some things businesses have used:

  • Post to social media sites to alert players that there are Pokemon in the area, and follow up by offering a special discount if they come in, make a purchase, and mention Pokemon GO.
  • Encourage foot traffic to turn into sales by offering discounts and deals for those that show screenshots of Pokemon captured at their place of business.
  • Knowing there is a nearby Pokestop, businesses have created signage that is displayed in store windows encouraging Pokemon GO players to wander into the store.

Who knows how long this Pokemon GO craze will last – it’s hard to tell, but while it is the talk of the town, many businesses have seen the value in making the most of it. It’s a good time for business owners to download the app and see what creates are lurking nearby – it might be good for increased foot traffic and sales!

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