Using Mystery Shopping to Future-Proof your Business
Every year, many companies use mystery shoppers to analyze their performance. As we know, mystery shopping has multiple benefits for any business, from training analysis to compliance auditing. We also know that every industry is always changing. Mystery shopping needs to evolve along with the businesses it serves, and it is. So how can using mystery shopping help future-proof your business?
Future-proofing is all about making sure that things you implement – training, renovations, digital upgrades – are a step ahead of what’s coming. The idea being, of course, that you won’t have to upgrade as much. Staying ahead of the curve is a great way to make sure that you are always delivering what your customers are looking for.
How does using mystery shopping help with future-proofing?
1. Using Mystery Shopping can provide oversight
By using mystery shopping programs, businesses can get a better understanding of what’s working in their business and what isn’t. By highlighting areas in need of improvement, businesses can make sure that customers are receiving the best service, as promised. However, mystery shopping can also highlight areas that are most likely to need upgrading in the future. Using mystery shopping can give you an overview of those areas of your business that are adequately meeting requirements at the moment; these are areas you can then look into more specifically to check on how they might weather the future.
2. Using Mystery Shopping can help identify customer demands
Most industries are heavily impacted by the changes in demographics. We’ve explored some of the changes that the new Generation Z is bringing with them in our previous article about omnichannel mystery shopping. By using mystery shopping programs, businesses can build a specific program aimed at measuring the differences in expectations and demands between generations based on specific products, systems, or service tactics.
3. Using Mystery Shopping can help make sure everyone understands the latest technology
Even with Gen Z taking the world by storm, industries everywhere are still servicing generations of all ages. When you’ve implemented new systems or technologies – like a new sales platform or phone app, for example – it’s important to make sure that all generations understand how to use it. Something that may be easy to the Millenial or Gen Z population may be a complete mystery to Generation X or the Baby-Boomers – how often have those of us in the younger brackets been on the phone with an older parent trying to explain how to use an instant messenger program?
4. Using Mystery Shopping to reach more people
Similar to point 3, you can use mystery shopping to make sure that all your marketing campaigns and outreach programs are reaching your desired audience – no matter the demographic. It’s important to know that it’s not only your industry that’s being future-proofed, communities and the locations in which they live, the technology which they use, is also evolving. Incorporating those changes and using mystery shopping to understand them is a vital way to ensure the ongoing profitability of your company.
