Archived Secret shoppers

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Modernization

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Has anyone experienced secret shoppers at Target before? I’ve never interacted with any in the past but this month I’ve came across two. Is this to check if we are following the new selling guidelines?

Side note, this is not district managers in plain clothing. They are regular every day looking people.
 
Have I interacted with one? I couldn't say. Have they come around? Definitely, since the results are shared with leadership. I don't think they are new, I think they've been used for a while. From what I've been told it's total guest experience - greeting, product knowledge, selling techniques, upsell, alternate ways to get what's not on the floor, whatever we're supposed to do to start a conversation and then talk them into buying something.
 
Our new DTL was secret shopping in our store a few weeks ago and a couple of market TMs got in deep doodoo for ignoring the throngs of guests around them. I wasn't around for the discussion they had but from what I heard, somebody had their facial hair singed off
 
Target used to use Secret Shoppers to test guest service on the sales floor, but they ended the program about ten years ago. They also had Secret Shoppers go through check lanes and reward the cashiers with a $50 gift card instantly if they offered a Red Card, unprompted.
Currently, Secret Shoppers go through the lines and apply for Red Cards. It's the only current program performed by Secret Shoppers. Any in-house spying is unofficial.
 
Idk if they were leadership or a secret shopper, but I was given feedback once not long ago about being more "interactive" with SCO guests bc someone went through my SCO and I apparently wasn't super cheerful all in your face with everyone in SCO. 🤷‍♂️

They must exist in some form.
 
They are still around but not as much as they used to be. Target tracks and researches website transactions/searches and store wifi usage.

Secret Shoppers are guests who are part of contracted focus groups and guest service quality checks.

Paid to shop at certain TGT stores and give feedback on their experience and it is sent to Corp.
Or to check on store performance and guest service. Did team members welcome a guest? Did team members solicit the Red Card? Was the return handled with no problems?

At times Secret Shoppers will identify themselves. Or they can identified as guests pay all or most of the transaction in giftcards.
 
I'm a secret shopper for a third party marketing company. Most of my shop assignments have been to go to a specific store, buy a particular item, take pictures of the outside of the store and of the product shelf placement, and submit pictures and a receipt. I get to keep the product, get paid back what I spent for it, plus get a shop fee. There are other shop assignments that include things like applying for bank or store cards, shipping or receiving FedEx and UPS packages at a service center, collecting menus at restaurants, etc., but I don't bother with those.
 
GoodyNN said:
I'm a secret shopper for a third party marketing company. Most of my shop assignments have been to go to a specific store, buy a particular item, take pictures of the outside of the store and of the product shelf placement, and submit pictures and a receipt. I get to keep the product, get paid back what I spent for it, plus get a shop fee. There are other shop assignments that include things like applying for bank or store cards, shipping or receiving FedEx and UPS packages at a service center, collecting menus at restaurants, etc., but I don't bother with those.
Click to expand...
You ever been assigned to Target?
 
Years ago, before I started working at Spot.
 
Is the choice of item part of a theme, like they are testing toy sales or pharmacy sales? Targeted brand, like Procter & Gamble? Or what they send you to get is completely random? Is there a dollar amount window, or could you be sent to get a $150 item one week and 99¢ item the next week? Can you refuse a particular assignment, or do you get stuck with Depends, even if you don't need it?
 
Tarjayyy said:
Our DTL came in with his family (wife and children) "shopping" one day. After he was done "shopping" he did a status with the LOD. Seriously his wife said, "how many more of your stores are we going to today?"
Click to expand...
That is terribly messed up. Work life balance before you lose your family...
 
I don't remember how I got started with this company, I've been intermittently gigging with them for about 10 years now. And honestly, I hadn't logged into their site for about a year until this discussion. Shoppers select from available assignments, they are never just handed to you. Maybe assignment isn't the right word to use.

I have done shops where the target product was relatively expensive, and in one particular case, I negotiated an up-front to help pay for the product in the quantities that were being requested. I've done shops where I'm reporting information about the type and quantity of mail I get on a daily basis, so no financial outlay, just time. I've done product taste testing shops where they've sent me a weekly shipment of unmarked boxes of cereal to eat for a week and report back on my opinions of each.

An actual in-store audit assignment I had: "Go to the location listed on the survey. Buy all of the 'damaged' (product name). Any product that appears to be packaged properly can be left on the shelf. Fee plus reimbursement for product. Hold on to product for 1 week in case we have additional questions, then it's yours to keep as well."

The issue with the damages was that the packaging was held closed with essentially a clear sticker, and those stickers did not adhere very well. By that time, I was also working at my current day job, where I do package testing. It was insanely tempting to bring them in to work and have my boss reach out to that company to offer our services

I then had to submit a form detailing what flavors were available, how many of each flavor were damaged and purchased, and how many undamaged were left. I also had to provide pictures of how the product was shelved - and in that particular assignment, the product was on the top shelf of the gondola with a pillar blocking access to one of the available flavors - and a copy of my receipt for reimbursement.

With that one, I ended up with about a dozen boxes of seasoning-and-side-dish in a variety of flavors. I remember that the kiddo only liked one of them, though.
 
Having been a secret shopper (not for Target but many other places), if you know that's what they are doing they are not very good and won't last long.
 
Well we just got a stern lecture with threaths of write ups from secret shoppers apparently telling our ge sales floor etl that we arent doing out job. . .how we can do that on the lanes idk but yeah fun times. Fml
 
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