Retail intelligence is one of the only ways that brands
can find out what their customers are experiencing when they visit retail
outlets. Most national brands have mechanisms in place to gather consumer
information. We have long advocated mystery shopping as the best way to gather
this information and a recent research bulletin from JD Power and Associates
backs up this position.
The 2012 JD Power and Associates Market Research Bulletin
“Information is Power” looked at some common methods that organizations are
using to gather and analyze consumer information and feedback.
In the JD Power and Associates
summary, one critical point that is made is that getting the “right”
information means “asking,” “listening,” and “watching,” and that gathering the
“right” information is key to achieving market differentiation and sustainable
growth in a competitive environment.
In the paper, mystery shopping
was identified as the central means to watch what customers are doing and
experiencing when having an interaction or dealing with a brand. Mystery shopping is by far the most effective way to
watch what occurs at the retail level because it gives brands a window into the
direct experiences that their customer is having and how they feel about their
experience.
Mystery shopping is by far the
most effective when administered by a third party. Brands that hire a third
party to facilitate mystery shopping are able to receive impartial data that
reflects the true happenings at the retail level based on the criteria provided
to them.
Mystery shopping can not
only be deployed to learn more about your customers but also to learn more
about how retailers are managing your brand’s presence at the retail level.
This is almost more important than gathering direct customer feedback because
in many cases the way that a retailer manages your brand’s presence directly
impacts how a customer feels about their experience when purchasing or trying
to purchase your products.
Here are some examples:
1.
You sell diapers and your diapers are on sale. A
customer attends a retailer and is looking for the best deal on diapers. The
retailer was delayed tagging your product as being on sale, resulting in the
customer choosing to purchase a different diaper brand because it appears to be
the best deal.
a.
Impact to customer – very little because
they didn’t even have an opportunity to learn that your product was on sale.
b.
Cost to you – loss of business and an
opportunity to have leveraged your sale price to shift brand loyalty to your
product
2.
You sell pasta sauce. A loyal customer attends
the grocery store to pick up some groceries. They plan to prepare a pasta
dinner, a staple in their recipe being your sauce. When they attend the
retailer it appears as though your sauce is sold out. Really, more of your
sauce is available in the back but the retailer’s employee hasn’t gotten around
to restocking the shelf. The customer is in a hurry and decides to purchase a
different brand of sauce.
a.
Impact to your customer – a frustrating
experience.
b.
Cost to you – loss of business and an
opportunity to have leveraged your sale price to shift brand loyalty to your
product
3.
You sell beans. A loyal customer attends the
grocery store to find that they have moved some products. Some beans, including
yours, have been moved to the international isle while others remain with the
other beans and corn. Your customer is unable to find your product, and ends up
searching for help. They encounter an employee at the retailer who is unaware
of where your product is and assumed it was where it always is placed. After
spending 20 minutes looking around your customer manages to find your product.
a.
Impact to your customer – a frustrating
experience.
b.
Cost to you – in this case you would have
been lucky because most customers will not search for your product and will
simply shift loyalty.
These types of issues cannot be identified unless you
have boots on the ground and the best way to become aware of these types of
very common occurrences that can be devastating to a brand is to invest in mystery shopping.
Leveraging the techniques (that includes mystery
shopping) addressed in the JD Power and Associates 2012 Market Research
Bulletin “Information is Power” will enable you to identify areas within your
business that you can strengthen to increase retention, profitability and
business growth.
For more information about mystery shopping or for more
information about our mystery shopping services please contact Storesupport at
1(877) 421-5081 or visit www.storesupport.ca.
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