First, we received a follow-up to James’ review of Strategic Reflections: James, I read the magazine article you wrote about Strategic Reflections. I was the shopper who was hung up on. I wanted to make sure you (and shoppers) knew that one of the owners contacted me about this after she was informed of my…
Company Overview: Based in Denver, Colorado, National Shopping Service Network has been in business since 1986. A partial list of industries served [from their website] includes: Advertising agency, Apartments, Auto dealer, Auto maker, Auto parts, Car wash, Banking, Bar, Baseball club, Bookstore, Business forms, Coffee shop, Concessions, Convenience stores, Fast food, Football club, Gift shops,…
Company Overview: Headquartered in Plano, Texas, Consumer Impressions has been in business since 1991. This MSC specializes in fast food with several regional chains in nine states. Registration is on their website, http://www.consumerimpressions.com/. There is no record of this MSC with the Plano, Texas, BBB. Personal Experience: I have no personal experience with this MSC…
Mystery Shopping. Simply by looking at the name, it conveys something that should be secretive, that is, we don’t go running around screaming that we’re shoppers. That’s why I’m writing this letter. Some mystery shopping companies seem bent on giving away our “secret” identities. I got a call from James Bond this week asking if…
Company Overview: A Sassie-based company, Shoppers Inc is located in Broken Arrow, Oklahoma. Their website, http://www.shopperjobs.com, has a couple of my pet peeves. There’s nothing saying how long they have been in business, and there’s no indication of what industries they shop. Personal Experience: I have been signed up with this company for over a…
Company Overview: Strategic Reflections is based in Cincinati, Ohio. The senior partners in Strategic Reflections have been coordinating customer research and mystery shopping projects since 1988 for small, regional and national clients. Strategic Reflections, Inc. has utilized a plan of action based upon experience for accurate and efficient design, development, and implementation of each and…
Sentry Marketing Group recently on March 17th that they have acquired Feedback Plus. The terms of the deal were not disclosed, however the combined company will stay in Plano, Texas, where Sentry is located. “This combined group will double our size and enable us to offer superior service and mystery shopping, customer survey, audit and…
UPDATE: WARNING: WRAPMATCH.COM APPEARS TO BE A SCAM. WE DO NOT RECOMMEND THEIR SERVICES. Ok, it’s time for a couple of updates re: Adz In Motion and Wrap Match. First, I’ve had no type of follow-up information from Adz In Motion. Perhaps they are indeed out of business as one post suggested. I just find…
Overview: Why would a bank want a phone shop? Often, customers who are searching for a new bank, because they have either moved to the area, or are looking for a bank with lower fees, will use the phone to help narrow down the number of banks they will ultimately visit. These shops generally cover…
Company Overview: Located in Lookout Mountain, Customer Service Perceptions is one of a very small number of MSC’s that require applicants to mail a processing fee for their application. $2 in this case. From their website: Customer Service Perceptions charges an administrative processing fee of $2 to each shopper applicant. This fee in nonrefundable and…
Company Overview: Based in Richmond, Utah, Compliance Solutions Worldwide has been in business for over eight years. They offer carpet cleaning assignments. Their website is http://www.compliancesolutionsworldwide.com/index.html and registration is relatively straightforward on the Sassie platform. Personal Experience: I have no personal experience with this company. I did a search using a 900-mile radius and only…
Company Overview: Advantage Sales and Marketing was founded in 1987 in Southern California and now has over 70 offices all across the United States. Their website is professional looking at: http://www.asmnet.com/. The company appears to be targeting mostly demonstrating and merchandising jobs in WalMarts around the nation. Personal Experience: I have had no experience working…
Company Overview: Founded in 1996 in Glenmoore, Pennsylvania [a suburb of Philiadelphia], Market Viewpoint has clients in the automobile, retail, child care, real estate, and financial service industries. Their website is: http://www.marketviewpoint.com/. Market Viewpoint currently has two different systems in place for shoppers. One is a Sassie platform while the other is the MSS platform….
To err is human…and I hope the readers of Mystery Shopper Magazine will forgive me. As I’ve mentioned, I’m a shopper like most of you who read this magazine. I write these articles as a labor of love, knowing that the time I spend writing is time taken away from shopping. When I research a…
Virtually all of my shops are routes of some type. Whether it’s five shops around town, 50 banks on a two or three day trip around the state, or it might be a 10-day smorgasbord with some video shops thrown in to spice things up. Regardless of the type of shops, a cheat sheet takes…
We have a couple of more questions from the mailbag this week: Hello Jacob: I’ve been a mystery shopper for about 12 years and I am always glad to learn new things–and there are always little tidbits! I read with interest about the ASCAP program. I looked at the ASCAP site you referenced but saw…
Company Overview: Instant Replays is one of the “Big 7” video mystery shopping companies. They have been in business for over 10 years and are based in Raleigh, NC. Their clients cover such diverse fields as property management companies, home builders, senior living communities, automobile dealerships, Tire and Automotive Service, hotels and restaurants, retail stores,…
Company Overview: Founded in Georgia in 1997, Corporate Risk Solutions was located next door to Asset Protection Associates, which was founded in 1991. The owners of each business soon found themselves referring clients to each other, and realized the synergistic benefits of merging, which they did in 1999. Their website is www.corporaterisksolutions.com. Personal Experience: Only…