Of the many and varied Most Frequently Asked Questions directed my way about mystery shopping programs , most will generally deal with the issue of frequency of shops. I will hear things along the lines of are we to choice daily, monthly or weekly, or quarterly? I answer I provide to them will often be the same the answer revolves around your own budget and goals. Keep the following in mind all retailers need to meet or exceed goals but they just might not have the budget required for programs of this nature even on a weekly basis. I put forth a standard answer rooted in a very simple program I call the principle of Maximization vs. Optimization.
Maximization vs. Optimization is based on a very sound mystery shopping formula
Those that have to navigate a limited budget will discover it may be a lot wiser to shop at fewer stores more frequently than to hit a lot of stores less frequently. You may decide to shop at your main 30 performing stores. You might even hope to use more than one frequency or to rotate through various stores and districts. There is a wide range of different ways you can come up with the right strategy but in the final analysis, there are enough variations available to allow you to meet all your program's goals. Then, the time will come to pick the right durations and this step will require thinking about different factors.
Quarterly
Great for compiling a snapshot of data but, with so much time elapsed in between shops, it is very difficult to use data to effectively make consistent changes or drive behaviors. Acceptable for monitoring and data collection.
The Monthly Method
Monthly programs are the most popular and budget-friendly choice. A monthly program means a more consistent view of store/team performance, more dependable behavior reinforcement, and more effective identification of strengths and opportunities over the long term.
The Weekly or Biweekly Method
All those hoping to implement a variable program through store types, a program that is biweekly or just weekly can be reliable enough to note behavior changes through effective reinforcement.
Daily
Unless your main goal is loss prevention, a daily program is most likely overkill. In fact, if your main goal really is loss prevention, you are probably more in need of hidden cameras than mystery shopping. Daily programs produce a lot of data that will prove to be useless, since the Manager will not have the time or opportunity to understand and use the data that is produced on a daily basis.
The second most popular question I am asked (especially by naysayers of mystery shopping or those who get low scores) is something along the lines of...Hey this is only one shop a month. How can this really demonstrate what is happening in my store?
Unfortunately, this cannot be shown statistically. There is where the mystery shopping conundrum exists. Those stores with much smaller budgets will do a lot less shopping. Lesser shopping will lead to procuring data that just lacks credibility. Data without credibility will lead to a loss less opportunity to change behavior which means changing overall goals is tougher. It could even undermine the need to train the entire store. Consider these among the factors why we are always looking to promote the Maximization vs. Optimization formula that was mentioned earlier. On the simplest levels, you could get a lot of benefit without compromising.
The truth is, anything can happen anytime. But if it happened once, it will happen again. When it does happen again, that is when it is time to become concerned. Can you imagine a sports game being played where no one announces the score? Sounds ridiculous? Well just imagine for a moment, what that would be like......those basketball teams are running up and down the court, throwing baskets on both sides, but since no one is keeping score, no one is leading! Soon, the players begin tiring out. They start walking off the court and sitting down. After all, who cares about working hard if no one is winning? Then, one by one, the fans begin to get up and go home. If the team does not care, why should they?
Do you see the point? Just like in basketball, where the players play harder when they know the score, your frontline staff and store managers will be far more effective when they can see the results of their hard work. Regular, consistent data delivered as expected, in an easily digested format that can be used to direct and change staff behavior, is what wins the game.
Maximization vs. Optimization is based on a very sound mystery shopping formula
Those that have to navigate a limited budget will discover it may be a lot wiser to shop at fewer stores more frequently than to hit a lot of stores less frequently. You may decide to shop at your main 30 performing stores. You might even hope to use more than one frequency or to rotate through various stores and districts. There is a wide range of different ways you can come up with the right strategy but in the final analysis, there are enough variations available to allow you to meet all your program's goals. Then, the time will come to pick the right durations and this step will require thinking about different factors.
Quarterly
Great for compiling a snapshot of data but, with so much time elapsed in between shops, it is very difficult to use data to effectively make consistent changes or drive behaviors. Acceptable for monitoring and data collection.
The Monthly Method
Monthly programs are the most popular and budget-friendly choice. A monthly program means a more consistent view of store/team performance, more dependable behavior reinforcement, and more effective identification of strengths and opportunities over the long term.
The Weekly or Biweekly Method
All those hoping to implement a variable program through store types, a program that is biweekly or just weekly can be reliable enough to note behavior changes through effective reinforcement.
Daily
Unless your main goal is loss prevention, a daily program is most likely overkill. In fact, if your main goal really is loss prevention, you are probably more in need of hidden cameras than mystery shopping. Daily programs produce a lot of data that will prove to be useless, since the Manager will not have the time or opportunity to understand and use the data that is produced on a daily basis.
The second most popular question I am asked (especially by naysayers of mystery shopping or those who get low scores) is something along the lines of...Hey this is only one shop a month. How can this really demonstrate what is happening in my store?
Unfortunately, this cannot be shown statistically. There is where the mystery shopping conundrum exists. Those stores with much smaller budgets will do a lot less shopping. Lesser shopping will lead to procuring data that just lacks credibility. Data without credibility will lead to a loss less opportunity to change behavior which means changing overall goals is tougher. It could even undermine the need to train the entire store. Consider these among the factors why we are always looking to promote the Maximization vs. Optimization formula that was mentioned earlier. On the simplest levels, you could get a lot of benefit without compromising.
The truth is, anything can happen anytime. But if it happened once, it will happen again. When it does happen again, that is when it is time to become concerned. Can you imagine a sports game being played where no one announces the score? Sounds ridiculous? Well just imagine for a moment, what that would be like......those basketball teams are running up and down the court, throwing baskets on both sides, but since no one is keeping score, no one is leading! Soon, the players begin tiring out. They start walking off the court and sitting down. After all, who cares about working hard if no one is winning? Then, one by one, the fans begin to get up and go home. If the team does not care, why should they?
Do you see the point? Just like in basketball, where the players play harder when they know the score, your frontline staff and store managers will be far more effective when they can see the results of their hard work. Regular, consistent data delivered as expected, in an easily digested format that can be used to direct and change staff behavior, is what wins the game.
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