Mystery Shoppers of Education

Imagine Jessica Ward's dismay during a routine campus tour when she discovered that the admissions counselor she was meeting with couldn't read the course catalog. "He was relying on what he knew off the top of his head, muttering something about misplacing his glasses," she says. "It was shocking."

If Ward had planned on attending that university, she would have thought twice. But she had no plans to enroll -- she was only posing as a prospective student. In reality, she's part of a growing trend of "mystery shoppers" -- people who are paid to "shop" a retail store or school and then record their thoughts on how well they were served.

Retail chains have a long history of contracting mystery shoppers to visit stores in an effort to let the owners know how well their staff is treating customers. As education becomes more customer-oriented, the practice of using mystery shoppers has become mainstream among colleges wondering about the quality of their admissions recruiting efforts.

"More and more of our member companies indicate that they do mystery shopping of educational institutions," says John Swinburn, executive director of the Mystery Shopping Providers Association (MSPA), who estimates that educational mystery shops currently account for about two percent of the $600 million industry. "It's not substantially different from mystery shopping conducted in the retail sector -- it's an effective way for management to get a clear understanding of the extent to which they're fulfilling promises."

Can You Hear That Smile?
For the past five years, Carl Phillips has been shopping online universities. His company, Customer 1st, hires mystery shoppers to call up enrollment specialists at online universities to determine how effectively they’re handling applicants' concerns.

All phone calls are recorded, so universities not only review feedback written on the mystery shopping report, but can actually listen to the conversations. "They're able to hear their employee's tone of voice," Phillips says.

Not just anyone can qualify to be a mystery shopper. Phillips generally hires working adults who are interested in a career change. Shoppers are given a list of specific questions: Was the phone answered within the first three rings? Were you asked your name? Did the representative gauge your level of interest and inquire about your timetable for enrollment? Shoppers also measure call-back time, whether their questions were answered sufficiently, and the friendliness and professionalism of the advisors. "They should be suggesting the right classes, not just any classes," says Phillips.

Mystery shopping is an effective training tool, Phillips says. Universities use the feedback to reward admission counselors who are performing well. Those who score poorly are taken aside for a one-on-one talk and further training.

After a three-month period of mystery shopping, universities begin to search for signs of greater levels of professionalism from their staff members. Shoppers are then asked to keep a count of the number of times their names are used in conversation. "Using the mystery shopper's name at least three times in conversation builds a level of rapport," Phillips says. Shoppers are asked whether the advisor recommended new course offerings.

A favorite question of his is, "'Can you hear the admissions advisor smiling?' Early on, that's typically missed," Phillips says. “The advisors are so concerned about being professional; they feel as if smiling may not be professional enough. But customers need to hear that smile."

Avoiding That Black Hole
When students rushed over to hug her on graduation day, Joan Browne's colleague was surprised. "I've never seen students hug the chair of the board," the colleague said.

"That's because I took classes with them," replied Browne, a former trustee at the University of Toledo who pursued her master’s while acting as a board member. "We say we're student-centric, but I don’t think we're doing such a great job. All trustees should be required to take a course."

Browne now runs Collegiate In-Site, a mystery shopping consulting company that focuses on assessing and offering tools to improve the student experience. In addition to commissioning mystery shops, Browne hosts focus groups with current students and records their suggestions and gripes. She'll also visit a campus several times herself, taking note of how well lit it is, the friendliness of the staff, and how difficult it was for her to find her way around campus.

Several clients have used her reports for accreditation purposes. "As the need for assessment increases, this is just another way of evaluating how well schools are serving students," Browne says.

Come Prepared: Bring a List
When it comes to college admissions, Paul Geil is every bit the expert. Geil is a retired high school guidance counselor with 34 years of advising experience. But he still got an education when -- in the name of mystery shopping -- he posed as a prospective parent and attended about a dozen college open houses accompanied by a high school senior.

"It's the little subtleties that matter." Geil says. "We looked to see whether admissions officers were courteous to the student, if they were on time. A 'Welcome to our campus' sign adds a nice, personal touch."

While the practice of mystery shopping is admittedly a little deceptive, Geil insists that it's just good business form. "In all businesses, you need cross-checking," he says. "Deception doesn't have to be a bad thing."

Norton Norris, Inc., the mystery shopping company that hired Geil, specializes in cross-comparison mystery shopping. When a technical school signs up for a mystery shop, for example, the company will benchmark the school by simultaneously shopping three similar schools in the area that are competing for the same students.

"As college admissions become more and more competitive, schools want to put their best foot forward," says Vince Norton, a managing partner at Norton Norris. Norton has posed as an adult learner returning to school. He tested the admissions process for one school by applying and going through it -- even taking (and passing) math and reading comprehension placement exams. He stopped short of completing financial aid forms.

When it comes to shopping for a school, prospective students should take a lesson or two from mystery shoppers, Geil says. "Students should leaf through the college catalogue and take the responsibility of preparing a background list of questions: What percentage of students actually graduate in four years? What's student life on campus like? What sort of work-study programs are available for students who qualify for financial aid?"

Students should also take note of how admissions advisors treat them. It's the little touches -- like suggesting a convenient spot to park in when visiting campus -- that are the most telling, says Geil.

Shopping Yields Result
When Jeffrey Moore made the switch from energy consulting to education, hiring mystery shoppers was a no-brainer. "I had experience using mystery shopping in other industries so it seemed like the right thing to do."

As chief operating officer at Ivy Tech Community College, Moore learned that mystery shopping helps improve the flow of the student intake process. "People were standing in line for an hour during registration only to find out that they were standing in the wrong line," he says. After feedback from the shop, Moore hired greeters to help direct students and answer their questions. "We think we know how things operate, but we can't see it through the eyes of the student," he says. The few thousand dollars he spends on mystery shops yields an incredible wellspring of information and suggestions for improvement.

In April 2006, when Moore took a new job as president of DeVry University Atlanta, in Georgia, he took the mystery shopping technique along with him. "This is a for-profit school, so we're entirely dependent upon the student experience," he admits. "The service level the students experience has to be good."

Over the past 12 months, student satisfaction at DeVry rose 10 percent -- a goal Moore hoped to first hit after three years. Though student satisfaction can't fully be attributed to mystery shopping, Moore is confident that the improvements made as a result of shoppers' feedback will result in higher retention rates, which will ultimately yield additional revenue and an improved student experience. That's a hope shared by the small, but growing, number of universities that are following suit and hiring mystery shoppers to retool their campus visits and admissions process.

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