Mystery Shopping Key Performance Indicators
How do you find out if your store customer service is living up to expectations?
The answer can lie with key performance indicators – Mystery Shopping KPIs
There are a number mystery shopping KPIs you can use to measure customer service and the success of your customer service strategy.
Different measures will make more sense for different types of business. The benefit to mystery shopping KPIs is that they can be used in addition to or alongside existing customer satisfaction surveys, allowing you to ask the questions which can’t be answered using this method alone.
Unlike customer satisfaction surveys you’re guaranteed to get a response to the questions you need an answer to. Below is a list of different KPI measures your business might consider using when conducting mystery shopping.
1. Customer approach / acknowledgment
When you first walk into a store are you acknowledged? It’s amazing how this key fundamental first step into building a good rapport with the customer is so often left too late or not even done at all. Now we may not necessarily expect to be greeted on the door, however a timely nod to the fact that we exist counts for a lot. Even if your service proposition is more self service in nature, it is still good to build a rapport with customers. Remembering that ongoing improvements in staffing and store efficiency doesn’t need to mean the end for friendly service.
2. Rapport building with the customer
When you build a good rapport with customers you’re giving yourself the opportunity to both sell and upsell. By asking questions, showing empathy and successfully establishing the customer needs you will not only end up giving them the product they want, you will also give yourself the opportunity to present them with associated items to increase the transaction value.
Your best employees really know how to engage with customers. Make sure this attribute becomes common practice within your organisation, whether that’s selling the customer the product they need or handling objections effectively.
3. Product Knowledge
Customers buy from individuals who are clearly knowledgeable and enthusiastic about the service or product they offer. By testing the gaps in your staff product knowledge you’re able to organise training programmes to fill those gaps. If you work within a regulated environment like financial services the focus on compliant selling of products becomes even more important. Research also shows us that compliant selling practice can be directly linked to our level of customer satisfaction.
4. Closing the sale
After someone from your service team interacts with a customer, how likely are they to make a purchase or take some other kind of action? If you acknowledge your customer, build rapport and introduce the right products, a good result will be very easy to achieve.
Measuring the sales process
Mystery shopping can allow you to correlate sales performance directly back to the level of customer service.
5. Average response times
Part of good customer service is resolving issues speedily. If you can respond to customers and also answer queries quickly they are more likely to be satisfied with the overall service level.
6. Net Promoter Score
And customers who are very happy with your customer service are likely to even go a step further and recommend your company to others. Your company’s Net Promoter Score, or rate of people who would recommend your business to others can be a good indication of customer service standards and another way to measure customer service levels.
7. Competitor comparison
Even customers who love your brand might not choose you over your competitors for all purchases. So while measurement methods above are good metrics on which to measure potential success, it’s still important to see how your company stacks up against your peers. This is where competitor mystery shopping can allow you to not only benchmark your service performance, it will also allow you to check pricing and the product offer. Helping you to plug the gaps and to revise the offer.
8. Overall service measurement
By performing regular audits, you can gauge how your customers are being treated. The higher your score the greater the number of the key components of your overall customer journey processes are being met.
Other mystery shopping links you may find useful
There are a number of mystery shopping methods you can use for reporting KPIs . Whether you decide to use a standard written survey backed up with video mystery shopping, or you’re looking to measure the online customer journey through to fulfilment.
Our service can help you to build the right kind of customer service KPI dashboard. Providing you with an independent of how your customers are being treated. See our report examples and sector coverage to see how we can support you.
Mystery shopping KPI measurement methods you could use today.
To find out how we can support your sector give us a call.