Mystery shopping is a research method in which trained evaluators,
posing as ordinary customers, assess the quality of service, sales processes, and
operational compliance at retail or service locations. Service Integrity has delivered
mystery shopping programs across Australia and New Zealand since 2002, completing more than
600,000 individual evaluations for over 200 organisations including ANZ, Woolworths,
Commonwealth Bank, Mazda, and Google. The company holds MSPA Elite accreditation — the
highest global recognition tier from the Mystery Shopping Providers Association — and
directly manages offices in Sydney, Wollongong, Auckland, Shanghai, and Tokyo. Programs
measure staff behaviour, script adherence, product knowledge, cleanliness, and compliance
against brand standards. Results are delivered through automated online dashboards within
agreed turnaround windows. Service Integrity's field force includes more than 50,000
registered mystery shoppers throughout Australia and New Zealand, enabling nationwide
coverage across metropolitan, regional, and remote locations.
What’s the purpose of shopping. No seriously.
To buy something. And the more value the better.
In my Mystery Shopping business we find that in some industries staff only close the sale 36% of the time. Even worse, they upsell as little as 12% of the time.
Why are staff so reticent?
Well they think it’s rude, un-Australian, Un-Singaporean, un [insert country].
I was just reminded by my staff that a few years ago we conducted a survey of 485 shoppers and asked the following:
How do you feel about up-selling where you are asked if you would like to buy a bigger version or complimentary product?
The answers were surprising!
- 5% said they would be insulted
- 14% are neutral
- 56% accept it as part of retailing
- 25% are glad to be given the opportunity
Don’t presume they don’t like it. They are there to buy, so let people buy. Close the sale.