Latest Podcast



Featured Articles

Ofcom helps protect customers against unexpected roaming charges

Ofcom helps protect customers against unexpected roaming charges

UK service providers must notify customers when they connect to a different network

New rules from UK telecoms regulator Ofcom will protect customers when they use their mobile phone on a foreign network. In addition, customers will be alerted if they are inadvertently roaming, perhaps because they're near an international border.
Author: The Fonecast
0 Comments
Article rating: No rating

Global smartphone market is set for recovery, says new forecast

A new forecast from research specialists Canalys shows the smartphone market is set to recover next year. Worldwide shipments declined by 12% last year but that decline is expected to slow to 5% this year.
Author: The Fonecast
0 Comments
Article rating: No rating
Vodafone and Three plan to merge their UK businesses

Vodafone and Three plan to merge their UK businesses

New Hutchison/Vodafone network would be biggest UK operator

Vodafone Group plc and CK Hutchison Group Telecom Holdings Limited have agreed to combine their UK telecommunication businesses, respectively Vodafone UK and Three UK. The merger will create a large new network operator to compete with Virgin Media O2 and EE.
Author: The Fonecast
0 Comments
Article rating: No rating

UK mobile payment service Paym to close in March 2023

UK mobile payment service Paym will close on 7th March 2023. The service, which allowed users to make and receive payments using their mobile phone numbers, was launched in 2014.
Author: The Fonecast
0 Comments
Article rating: No rating
Qualcomm legal action moves forward in the UK

Qualcomm legal action moves forward in the UK

Which? seeks payout for Samsung and Apple smartphone owners

Consumer protection organisation Which? has been given permission by the UK's Competition Appeal Tribunal to represent Apple and Samsung smartphone buyers in a legal case against chip manufacturer Qualcomm.
Author: The Fonecast
0 Comments
Article rating: No rating
RSS

Opinion Articles

Wednesday, September 21, 2011

Not all mystery shopping is a complete mystery

Mark Bridge writes:

If you’ve worked in retail, you’re probably aware of the ‘mystery shopper’. This is someone who appears to be a regular consumer but is actually reviewing your performance. Perhaps they’re working for your employer, maybe they’re conducting an independent survey, they may even be reporting for a magazine or newspaper. But they’re about as welcome as a knock on the front door when you’re at home in the shower.

Mystery shopping as we know it now is around 70 years old. It’s usually aimed either to find out if things are working properly or to compare performance. So, if you work in a shop, you may find you’re being checked by your employer - and your performance may also be reported by a trade publication or research organisation.

The result, much to the delight of many employers, is that staff work hard to provide good customer service… just in case they’re being ‘mystery shopped’.

Why am I mentioning all this?  Well, imagine a situation where you know there’s a mystery shopper on the way. And imagine you know that your competitors aren’t aware of the mystery customer. What an opportunity, eh?  A few weeks of hard work and your company could top the charts for customer service.

Let me transport you now to Watford, home of mobile phone recycling company Mazuma Mobile. They recently asked Service Science to impartially evaluate nine UK mobile phone recyclers. The best performance overall came from Mazuma, which also claimed first place for best service quality and the fastest service. These results were announced in a celebratory press release earlier this week.

Now, I’m not doubting the integrity of Service Science. But it’s hard not to get the impression that Mazuma could have been at something of an advantage throughout the process. To be honest, I’d say it never looks particularly good if you’ve paid for a survey that shows you to be outperforming your competitors.

Then again, maybe I’m just a cynic.

Print
Author: The Fonecast
0 Comments
Rate this article:
No rating

Categories: Retailing, OpinionNumber of views: 16010

Tags: uk research opinion customer service recycling

Leave a comment

This form collects your name, email, IP address and content so that we can keep track of the comments placed on the website. For more info check our Privacy Policy and Terms Of Use where you will get more info on where, how and why we store your data.
Add comment

Recent Podcasts

Podcast - 27th October 2010

This week's podcast includes big news from Nokia along with the rest of the week's industry headlines. There's also an interview with Jamie Driver from MedHand about putting medical information on mobile phones.

Author: The Fonecast
0 Comments
Article rating: No rating

Podcast - 20th October 2010

In this week's podcast we talk to Clive Bayley, managing director of Fonehouse, about the current state of the UK market for mobile phone dealers. There's also a look at the week's major mobile headlines, from O2's location-based marketing to Apple's quarterly results.
Author: The Fonecast
0 Comments
Article rating: No rating

Podcast - 13th October 2010

This week's podcast sees the long-awaited launch of Windows Phone 7, the creation of the GSMA's mWomen project and a wide variety of other mobile industry news, from legal action to SMS marketing.

Author: The Fonecast
0 Comments
Article rating: No rating

Podcast - 6th October 2010

Iain, James and Mark take their usual entertaining look at the UK's mobile phone industry, from irresponsible texting to patent wars. There's also an interview with Steve Jarrett of MePlease who explains how his company could transform the way people think about mobile marketing.

Author: The Fonecast
0 Comments
Article rating: No rating

Podcast - 29th September 2010

This week's edition of The Fonecast covers the new BlackBerry PlayBook tablet, Windows Phone 7, the EC, mobile advertising and accessory sales. There's also an interview with Dave Tharp from Roulette Cricket about his company's success in the Vodafone Mobile Clicks 2010 competition.

Author: The Fonecast
0 Comments
Article rating: No rating
RSS
First6061626365676869Last

Follow thefonecast.com

Twitter @TheFonecast RSS podcast feed
Find us on Facebook Subscribe free via iTunes

Archive Calendar

«November 2024»
MonTueWedThuFriSatSun
28293031123
45678910
11121314151617
18192021222324
2526272829301
2345678

Archive

Terms Of Use | Privacy Statement