Originally Posted by indydebi

"Secret Shoppers" is not a new idea, it's not illegal, it's not underhanded, it's not even sneaky. Large, successful chain companies across the country use them on a regular basis.

I consider myself a success if someone wants to Secret Shopper me. No one wants to find out what the BAD companies are doing!

You're right, Secret Shoppers are not new or illegal. However, a majority of Secret Shoppers are utilized by major corporations to check up on their own stores/restaurants, not the competition. It is their way of ensuring their employees are maintaing good custom service and a clean store. Therefore, I don't think there is anything wrong with me having issue with my competition's spy wasting my time at an hour or longer consult that could be spent on a legitimate bride providing legitimate money for my business. As I stated in my previous post, you can obtain valuable market research from the legitimate brides that come through your door. They talk amongst themselves and openly (unprovoked by the way), and discuss the competition's pricing, etc. I obtain much more valuable information by listening to the brides. I never said I make phone calls, as I don't. However, I would prefer the competition call and talk to me then send a spy. I run a successful business based on what works for me. If a spy works for others, that's great. It's just not for me.

I'm all open for debate and love to hear all different opinions. It's what makes for a good discussion. I've learned a lot from the forums and new ways of doing things. I had no issue with her take on things. However, her last remark seemed to be a jab rather than anything productive. So hence I responded.

Offering a " discount for cash" is legal. Quoting a lower price, and then raising that price because a buyer is opting to use credit is bait and switch, and that IS illegal....see above. The above mentioned baker, who is a prominent baker in the area says specifically on her website "plus an additional 3 percent for credit cards via paypal"...big fat illegal thing to do, because she uses the lower price throughout the website.

Originally Posted by jillmakescakes

I wasn't gonna post, but couldn't help myself.

While I have the utmost respect for snarky and debi, I have to respectfully disagree.

Secret Shoppers spend money in the stores they are reviewing. If snarky were to have spies order a cake, pay for it, then bring it in for review, I'd be totally on board. However, sending them out for a free tasting with no intention of ever following through, just seems to blur the ethical line.

I was thinking the same thing! Thanks for saving me the effort of typing it out myself.

Standard operating procedure by the state of Tennessee.

Originally Posted by WykdGud

Quote:

Originally Posted by jillmakescakes

I wasn't gonna post, but couldn't help myself.

While I have the utmost respect for snarky and debi, I have to respectfully disagree.

Secret Shoppers spend money in the stores they are reviewing. If snarky were to have spies order a cake, pay for it, then bring it in for review, I'd be totally on board. However, sending them out for a free tasting with no intention of ever following through, just seems to blur the ethical line.

I was thinking the same thing! Thanks for saving me the effort of typing it out myself.

Secret shoppers sometimes spend money in businesses they report on. In a bank, for example, they recruit secret shoppers who specifically have an account already at said bank.
Doing consultations is part of the cost of doing business, period. If someone charges a fee, we pay it. If it is a free service, it is a free service. If you're really trying to be a Business then you need to know whats going on in your market. You think Walmart doesn't look at what Amazon has on sale, or go into Traget ?

If my competitors had storefronts, I could just send a girl in to get brochures and ask some questions, but they didn't bother to invest in them, so they're gonna end up popping for some free cake.

So if my competition is McDonald's - should I be able to go in whenever I want and take their napkins, ketchup packets, etc. just because they set them out for free?

Those items are provided for their CUSTOMERS - just like consultations are done for customers... you know - people who actually intend to spend money at an establishment, as opposed to those who come in under false pretenses to gain an advantage over the competition.

And if you go into McDonald's, use the bathroom, grab some napkins and a pack of ketchup nobody gets bent, do they ??? Nope, because it's part of doing business and McDonalds is a business...get it?

Originally Posted by Price

Yes sometimes fast food places do get upset! I was in a Chik Filet and took 3 straws, 1 for myself and just grabbed a couple extra incase my sister and niece each needed 1. A lady (manager I would guess), came up to me and asked if I found everything I needed and gave me a dirty look!

Tha's when you think of something else you need that isn't there and ask for it "Oh yes, as a matter of fact I don't see any Grey Poupon and I could use just a smidge."

When I worked retail, we had people coming in all the time to check out our prices. In the smaller stores, we were told to tell them to leave, if we saw them taking pictures or writing prices down in notebooks. We weren't allowed to give out gas prices on the phone either, were told it was against federal law.

SOmetimes that's legit. As a caterer, I would go into Sam's with my list of items I buy and do a price update. Clipboard & pen, going up and down the aisles, writing down product codes, packaging, size, servings and price. It's how I determined my own pricing. The only people who ever said anything were other customers who asked me, "where can I find ......?"

And with today's technology, it's too easy to text/email yourself product info in a store. I see folks texting all day long in a store .... how do I know whether they are sending pricing to someone or telling their kid that yes they DO have to do the dishes first?

(pssst! Snark ... I'm not sure by your last post, but I'm agreeing with you! )

Yes, actually they do. Just because they let it slide more often than not doesn't mean they like it. Stores don't like shoplifters, but they know there are people who are alway going to steal - and therefore, they account for that "shrinkage".

In essence, you ARE stealing from a business - whether it's a packet of ketchup or some cake samples and the employees' time. If you have no problem with the ethics of it - so be it. I, on the other hand, would not feel good about deceiving ANYONE for my own benefit. Call it "business" all you want, I put my morals and conscience above my bottom line.

I guess we'll have to agree to disagree.

Wow, really? Interesting. I thought the purpose of sending out spies was for market research and determining what the market supports regarding per serving prices, not to "get" to your competition. Nice to know that some businesses have ulterior motives. So I take it you don't care if other businesses apply the same tactics toward your business? I believe cake businesses should network together rather than sabatoge one another. Spies are a nuisance and don't cause me to change my business plan or course of direction. My competition doesn't dictate what I do and certainly doesn't force me to use different ingredients...lol. Along with market research, I run my business based on what is right for me and my business, not according to the direction my competition wants to "force" me to take. That would be considered a knee jerk reaction and not a good business decision.

Originally Posted by indydebi

Quote:

Originally Posted by Texas_Rose

...if we saw them taking pictures or writing prices down in notebooks.

SOmetimes that's legit. As a caterer, I would go into Sam's with my list of items I buy and do a price update. Clipboard & pen, going up and down the aisles, writing down product codes, packaging, size, servings and price. It's how I determined my own pricing. The only people who ever said anything were other customers who asked me, "where can I find ......?"

And with today's technology, it's too easy to text/email yourself product info in a store. I see folks texting all day long in a store .... how do I know whether they are sending pricing to someone or telling their kid that yes they DO have to do the dishes first?

(pssst! Snark ... I'm not sure by your last post, but I'm agreeing with you! )

Nobody comparison shops prices in convenience stores unless they have a convenience store...any regular person that interested in prices will go to the real store. I see people writing down prices in Walmart all the time and never think anything of it (except a little personal satisfaction that I can remember all the prices of everything I buy without a notebook )

But not letting them take pictures was a security issue. Of course, this was all back when cell phones didn't do anything but call people, and not too many people had them. Now you can't tell if anyone's taking pictures anywhere or not...just look at People of Walmart

It's not cake policing it's leveraging the sale in your favor. The hidden fees are very important to price comparison--the bride may never even get that every bakery doesn't charge those. She thinks/feels she's getting a lower price because she gotten a lower quote.

If Snarks or anyone can tell the bride how the competition gets to that seemingly lower price point by them tacking on weird surcharges and scary discounts then...You're right about karma---

I noticed recently that a local gas station charges customers more per gallon for gas transactions that were paid for by credit card than the customers that paid with cash. Also, Baskin Robbins in my old neighborhood charged a fee for using your credit card for purchases under a certain amount.