Don’t call them spies

'Mystery shopping' grows in China

(Ecns.cn) -- At a KFC, a woman orders a set lunch and then uses a thermometer to measure the temperature of the soda, chicken burger and fried chicken; at a 4S dealership for Dongfeng Nissan, a man challenges a staff member with several questions; at an international chain hotel, a man checks the newspapers for creases.

They are not real customers, but are in fact "mystery shoppers," and they are among thousands of contract workers hired by companies to pose as customers in order to evaluate things such as service, cleanliness and whether a store is selling products that meet company specifications.

Mystery shoppers are reimbursed for all the meals they eat in restaurants. And those who take greater risks – by pretending to be professionals in fields such as banking, for example – are paid well even if they do not uncover negative results.

In China, as in other countries, when the term "mystery shopping" comes up in conversations, heads turn and brows furrow. And although the industry may still be in its infancy here, it is developing very rapidly.

An industry catching on

Hiring mystery shoppers has already become a common practice for the world's top 500 companies as compiled by Forbes. With demand for such services growing, the Mystery Shopping Providers Association (MSPA) now has more than 150 members around the world, a number that is growing quickly.

In the US, mystery shopping revenue by industry was over $9 billion in 2006, and has been increasing by an average 11 percent every year, according to an MSPA report cited by China Newsweek.

The service was first introduced to China around 2000, but initially underwent slow development.

Meng Xiaoping, executive director of Beijing-based Datasea Marketing Research Co Ltd, said the company first set foot into the mystery shopping game in 2000, but up until 2005 it only had one customer: McDonald's.

At that time, most local companies mistook the practice for corporate espionage. Meng had to explain to them what mystery shopping really was, and what benefits it could provide.

Later, multinational corporations such as KFC and Motorola came to feel that the service deserved greater recognition. Since 2006, with more and more global giants entering China, local companies burdened by intense competition have also become interested.

In 2008, China Petroleum & Chemical Corporation (Sinopec Corp) launched its own mystery shopper system in order to perfect its customer service.

Currently, some state-owned enterprises are also turning to mystery shopping providers for objective assessments of their products and services, noted China Newsweek.

'James Bond' shoppers

Though it is not considered corporate espionage, each mystery shopping task is carried out by a number of masters of espionage, who use every possible means at a client's place of business to assess the level of service.

Companies like Datasea usually select mystery shoppers who match a client's typical customer profile, and then train them via test shopping.

Early-stage design is key to the success of a mystery shopping task, including time arrangement, schedule design, checklist design and task guidance preparation, said Ma Jianguo, director of the Quality Control Department of Jingchen Research (JCR), a leading mystery shopping provider in China.

Ma used gas stations as a target example, revealing that the task must be carried out in geographically-scattered stations over three periods of time, and that each gas purchase must vary in amount. If there are any unexpected or emergency situations, alterations can immediately be made to the original plan, added Ma.

A qualified mystery shopper must be good at observing, collecting information and should be patient and calm, since sometimes he or she must use tools such as hidden cameras and audio recorders.

Zhang Hao, a mystery shopper for six years, says he has many different types of clothing in his wardrobe so that he can change styles according to job requirements. Sometimes he borrows cars from friends to make himself appear more convincing as a potential buyer.

Zhang says the job is adventurous, and that he has gained much experience from his previous tasks; over the past six years, he has worked in the automobile, consumer goods, telecommunications and banking industries. Now, Zhang says he is ready to move onto more challenging fields.

Temptation and risks

In China, mystery shopping has created business opportunities not only for ready entrepreneurs, but also for energetic individuals.

Professional mystery shoppers are paid well, and regularly receive free products and services such as set lunches, prepaid phone cards and sportswear.

However, those who are interested in the industry should be aware that mystery shopping comes with great risks.

One shopper recalled that he had been sought after by a 4S car dealership where he had mistakenly used his real credit card. Staff from the store had discovered that he was a mystery shopper, and that he had also given a negative report.

A woman named Jiang Na once worked as a mystery shopper too, but quit the job after getting firmly kicked in the stomach when her identity was revealed at a chain restaurant.

As an emerging industry, mystery shopping has a long way to go in China. For companies such as Datasea and JCR, they must be cautious about what problems they can help resolve and be prepared to use every means to protect the identities of their employees.