Company Overview: Measure Consumer Perspective (MCP) is a privately owned company, which engages in mystery shopping, brand auditing, compliance checks, and field research. It is headquartered in Louisville, KY. Their clients range from Fortune 500 companies to small businesses and interest groups and offer category experience in healthcare, multi-family housing, senior care, financial services, insurance, telecom, CPGs, fine dining, retail outlets, ad agencies and market research firms.
For a complete review of the company, see Mystery Shopper Magazine, Issue 30.
MCP is an accredited member of the BBB and has earned an A+ rating. New shoppers can register at http://measurecp.com/
MSM talks with Kimberly Nasief, President and Founder:
MSM: Reportedly, you graduated from college with a Bachelor of Arts degree in theology. How did you make the leap from being a theologian to Mystery Shopping? What was the progression?
Kimberly: My background was also anthropology. My anthropology studies led me to mystery shopping. There are many types of cultures we can study. Initially, I studied EcoTourism, and spent two years after college running a hikers lodge.
When I moved back to Louisville, I was in advertising for two years. I saw how much businesses and brands spent on advertising, yet they had no idea what was happening between their customers and employees inside the four walls of their business. That was really the impetus to move back into the anthropology space, and to begin studying the interactions between employees and customers.
If a retailer is delivering poor customer experiences, no amount of advertising is going to bring that customer back. Therefore, the retailer has a responsibility to know what is happening inside their business, and to deliver on the value proposition that they are marketing.
MSM: In 2001, you formed a Mystery Shopping Company. What motivated you to become an entrepreneur?
Kimberly: Partly, because I saw businesses making flawed decisions about their customers’ loyalty based on advertising campaigns. I was very passionate about really forging ahead with my anthropology background, and studying the retail facets of it. I had no desire to study other cultures, or ancient cultures. And, honestly, a little bit of me missed my cat. I wanted to bring my cat to work with me. Working for someone else wouldn’t allow me that simple luxury.
MSM: In 2007, you started Measure Consumer Perspectives. How did the new company differ from the first?
Kimberly: The first company had evolved from mystery shopping into full service market research. I really wanted to get back to the roots of measuring the experience inside of the store, and interactions with the brand. So, Measure was a return to the mystery shopping and brand auditing roots.
MSM: Please tell us about “The Service Witch”.
Kimberly: The Service Witch was designed to be a blog to rant and rave about the good and bad of customer service and market research. I feel guilty. I haven’t done anything with it for quite a while, but I always am writing in it in my head. If I could transcribe what was in my brain in real time, the thing would be full!
MSM: Measure Consumer Perspectives recently purchased 420 Intel Agency and Carrie Roberts, the founder, joined your company as Director of Business Development. How did this come to be and how did it fit into Measure CP’s business plan?
Kimberly: My COO and I had been talking about entering into the cannabis space for some time. The market research industry, and in fact the mystery shopping industry, is rapidly changing. There are technologies coming in from outside of the industry that is disrupting what we do, and have always done. There are clients who are interested in trying these new technologies and abandoning what they’ve always done. We have been investigating acquiring, investing in, or partnering with some of these technologies. That drive and desire is still there.
Moving into the cannabis space stems from the same desire to pioneer and be change agents. This is truly an area that is starting from scratch. Right now, it is sort of the Wild West. Both retailers, and brands distributed within the retailers, are popping up like crazy. They need insight into operational, customer service, and sales best practices. We can translate what we’ve learned over the years in traditional retail over to that industry. It’s very exciting for us. It’s also allowed Measure to increase our geographic footprint, giving us offices in KY, GA, CO, and CA.It’s exciting for me, because I feel like between my COO, Courtney Bailey, and Carrie Roberts, I have some partners in crime to innovate with!
MSM: A quote from the Measure Consumer Perspectives website reads: “Our work hard, play hard philosophy is very evident throughout the office. From the life-size cut out of Dolly Parton, to the wall of Sock Monkeys, we believe that our creative environment leads to a passionate, engaging, results oriented work environment.”
How are you able to maintain an atmosphere of levity in such a stressful and deadline-driven business?
Kimberly: We have to! Much of our staff is remote, and so we have to make sure that we keep everyone tickled and engaged. This includes group calls and Skypes that just aren’t about business-but about the silliness of what sometimes happens in our industry, and what we experience in our daily lives outside of business.
I always wanted to work in a place that felt like a family, or maybe a dorm (depends on the day). There are days where there is laughter, there are days where there are tears, and there are times when it’s both. I think that letting everyone express all off the emotions freely allows for a deeper commitment and passion and buy in from my team.
MSM: Please finish these two sentences: “If I had it to do all over, I would (fill in the blank). It would have been so much (fill in the blank) because (fill in the blank).”
Kimberly: If I had to do it all over, I would have trusted the leaps I wanted to make. It would have allowed me to innovate earlier because I would have had the confidence in myself.
MSM: Thank you Kimberly, you are a true visionary! We are excited to see what the future holds for Measure Consumer Perspectives.