Tom Mills recounts his time in Las Vegas, upcoming mystery shopping projects and foresees further international expansion in 2012.

HS Brands International looks forward to many more years of delivering great customer service to our valued clients, including Cousins Subs. We would like to congratulate Cousins Subs on celebrating their 40th anniversary!

Casino Editor

Casino Editors are a highly trained group of people who have a strong grasp of the English language and grammar. Our editors need to understand multi-form reports, the casino and hospitality industries and have a strong attention to detail. This is a great part time position for an English or Journalism major. This is a telecommuting position.

HS Brands International will provide training on our software system, industry knowledge and help and support on an as needed basis.

Please forward a writing sample and resume to: scheduling@hsbrands.com

Nevada-based mystery shoppers

Because of strict Nevada state laws mystery shoppers in Nevada have to be employed by a licensed Private Investigator (CEO, Tom Mills). You can read about mystery shopping in Nevada here.

Here are the steps you can take to becoming a Nevada mystery shopper: Contact Jillian Elvenia at Jillian.Elvenia@hsbrands.com for a step by step process and walk through.

Private Investigator’s Licensing Board (PILB)

1. Get an application from the PILB available on their website. ( https://nevadapilb.glsuite.us/ )
2. Get fingerprinted, either electronically or physically (Locations available on PILB website).
3. Submit passport photos and fingerprints to the Private Investigator’s Licensing Board.
4. Pass a background check.

HS Brands International

1. Send a writing sample, consisting of two paragraphs, of a recent shopping experience to Jillian.Elvenia@hsbrands.com
2. Fill out the Service Sleuth application and necessary forms.

Once all above steps are completed, you can obtain a work card to legally mystery shop in Nevada.

These positions in Nevada are highly coveted, but we wanted to extend them out to our network first before recruiting from outside sources. If you know anyone who may be a good fit for these positions, please have them email us at the above addresses.

We think boiling our service down to a simple fact that we provide people has opened our eyes to what we can actually provide our clients.

We have a database of over 500,000 shoppers worldwide who are willing to give opinions, complete tasks, partake in projects, report on findings and even hold campaign signs if you’re running for Mayor (credit to CEO Tom Mills for this joke when explaining this service).

We really can provide a company with enough people to go in and check to see if every store in your chain is open at 12PM and selling pickles on aisle 9 on April 24^th, 2012. This is an outlandish example of course, but whatever you need checked out for your business, we can provide the people that will do that for you.

Other (more realistic) examples:

- Store open/close checks for franchises to ensure that a franchisee isn’t operating under your name without paying royalties.

- Item removal. Don’t want to sell a specific item anymore and want to ensure it is removed off of the shelves? We can send someone in to do that.

- Merchandising checks: Ensuring that end caps of aisles are filled with the proper products and merchandised accordingly.

Here are three things that The Mershimer Group recommends to deter crimes of opportunity in your business:

1. Build awareness – Building awareness is not only the biggest deterrent against crimes of opportunity, it’s the biggest deterrent of theft in general (internally and externally).  Educate your employees on what to look for, how to regain control of the situation and how to deter theft as it’s happening. Also educate them on what “opportunities” thieves love such as an unmanned area in a retail store or a distracted employee.
2. Controls in Place – You need to have controls in place to deter and prevent theft. This means having an action plan or policy and enforcing it. Implement different policies and procedures to deter internal and external theft separately. Ex. Manager can only void sales. Server level employees can’t void sales (separation of duties). Pay attention to access controls, register controls and authorization controls. Internal controls will reduce the opportunity for theft and fraud.
3. Consequences – This goes back to our first point, but it’s a huge factor in deterring crimes of opportunity. Make sure every employee knows what can happen to them if they are caught stealing or committing a fraudulent crime “in the moment.” Loss of job, financial impact, reputation impact, etc.

Smokey Bones Bar and Fire Grill selects The Mershimer Group as their loss prevention solution provider.

Mike Mershimer, COO of HS Brands International, says, “The Mershimer Group is committed to helping restaurants & retail chains deter theft and protect their brand. We are thrilled that Smokey Bones chose our proven loss prevention program. I look forward to partnering with one of ‘America’s Favorite Brands’ in executing a program that will produce a bottom line impact, utilizing our experience in the restaurant and loss prevention industries.”

David Terry, EVP Operations at Smokey Bones, comments “We have selected The Mershimer Group to run our loss prevention program for Smokey Bones and look forward to the success and security the program will bring our company.”

Brand evangelist = A customer who has such a strict allegiance towards a brand that they are emotionally invested in it.  This person is your company cheerleader, recommends your products to family and friends and acts as a brand ambassador on social media sites.

Every company wants one of these guys, right? The difference between them and someone who is happy with their iPod Touch is the presence of an emotional connection.

As described in FOX Business’s article entitled “Engage Your Customers, Don’t Just Satisfy Them,” the author states, “Customer satisfaction without emotional engagement is worthless.”

If you can create this relationship with your customers, you will soon have a following of brand evangelists. Go above and beyond for your customers. Recently, there have been many stories of hotel employees going above and beyond for their guests. Bringing soup when they are sick, giving a complimentary massage, etc. These things encourage repeat customers and this is where brand evangelists are born. Customers feel grateful (the emotion) that someone took the time to think of them.

Do you have brand evangelists? How are you developing strategies to develop them? Comment in the section below and let us know!

Please consider this a warning to all current and potential mystery shoppers!

The MSPA says member companies will never charge you to become a mystery shopper or to see a list of legitimate mystery shopping providers. A list of legitimate mystery shopping providers can always be found on the MSPA website. HS Brands International is an MSPA member and abides by all MSPA policies and its code of ethics.

If anyone has any more information on this company, please comment on the blog or our Facebook page so other shoppers are aware of this company.

Tom Mills, CEO of HS Brands International, says, “This is a tremendous nod to our organization from the BBJ. We are proud to have such growth in years past and will continue growing both, domestically and internationally. Now we have to set our sights even higher and I accept that challenge.”

“Fast-growing private companies are at the core of Boston’s economic strength,” said Chris McIntosh, publisher of the Boston Business Journal. “Our Pacesetters list is a celebration of local innovation and business leadership.” See the full list of Pacesetters here.

HS Brands is a global mystery shopping, loss prevention and data collection company. In addition to mystery shopping and loss prevention, other services include audits, investigations, business standard evaluations, integrity shopping and franchise royalty assurance solutions. HS Brands is comprised of Service Sleuth and The Mershimer Group. HS Brands International has offices in Boston, Las Vegas-USA, Switzerland, India, Turkey and Argentina.

Michael Mershimer, Partner and Chief Operating Officer of HS Brands International says, “We are extremely excited to combine our loss prevention and guest feedback expertise with the digital video expertise of iTech Digital, who are the leaders in CCTV technology within the food service and hospitality industries. It is equally exciting to offer video auditing services to our restaurant and retail clients in the United States, as well as our international clients. We have yet another method for ‘Protecting & Monitoring the World’s Favorite Brands!’ ”

iTech Digital had been looking to expand and enhance the company’s loss prevention offerings beyond video surveillance, security, and asset protection. “We are always on the lookout to increase our client’s ability to focus on their business without having to worry about employee theft and loss of productivity. With our partnership with The Mershimer Group, we can enhance our client’s business growth with an end-to-end audit and security solution,” said Steve Spiech, President of iTech Digital.

About iTech Digital

With over 12 years of experience in integration and software solutions, Indianapolis-based, iTech Digital provides cost-effective security, surveillance, process improvement, and asset protection solutions for businesses in the restaurant and retail industries. Their vision is to help their clients realize profit enhancing video surveillance solutions not available anywhere else by designing and consistently improving their i2i Systems and software based on customer feedback. For more information about iTech Digital, please visit www.itechdigital.com or call Brian Knoderer at (317) 704-0448.

About The Mershimer Group

The Mershimer Group is a wholly owned subsidiary of HS Brands International, a Massachusetts-based, global leader in mystery shopping, loss prevention and royalty assurance. Offices are located in Massachusetts, Nevada, India, Argentina, Turkey, and Switzerland.  For more information about The Mershimer Group, please visit www.hsbrands.com or call Michael Mershimer at (800) 723-1150.

Mystery shoppers are often requested to upload their receipt into our Sherlock system so the client can link the transaction back to the shop. This is why Service Sleuth has specific requirements when uploading receipts.

Most mystery shoppers take a picture of the receipt with their cell phone or scan it into their computer. This immediately digitizes the receipt into a JPG photo file. Service Sleuth does not accept JPG file formats or faxed receipts anymore. We find that the receipt is a little clearer in PDF format, which reduces the number of times we have to contact shoppers after their shop for clearer receipts. To help we have created step-by-step instructions on how to change your files to PDF documents to ensure they are acceptable when uploading them to your shop.

Mystery shoppers – what problems are you running into with receipts, if any? Post in the comments section below for discussion.

Ex. Joy sees her manager, Bill, put a few pieces of jewelry in his pockets before leaving the store for the night. She knows he didn’t pay for them and is concerned that he might be stealing. Because he is Joy’s superior, Joy feels that she cannot confront him. Instead, Joy calls the loss prevention hotline number posted in the break room and leaves a message with details of what she saw. The Mershimer Group can launch an investigation into the incident.

For more information on our loss prevention programs, please click here.

The Mystery Shopping Providers Association (MSPA) is a non-profit organization dedicated to the mystery shopping industry. If the MSPA does not list a member company on their website, you run the risk of them not being a legitimate mystery shopping company. This is your best resource to find credible mystery shopping companies and to find more information on avoiding mystery shopping scams.

Have any other tips? Leave them in the comments section! We’d love to hear them!

In the event of a new product or service launch, data can help a company gauge how it will be received, how successful (or unsuccessful) it will be and what challenges await them on the other side of the product launch. Test or market data is helpful to your company’s “leap” because it softens the blow when you hit the ground, and it gives you the agility to react to obstacles.

We believe in looking before you leap. Let us help you with the data collection, so you can focus on what’s ahead.

For more information on data collection, please email Info@hsbrands.com.

Interview link.

Yes/No mystery shopping questions are primarily used for scoring. If the mystery shopper answers “Yes” for a question where that answer is considered positive, points are awarded for that answer.

For example, “Did an associate greet you when entering the store?” A “yes” answer would be worth the 5 points because the associate did what was expected of them. If the shopper was not greeted, those 5 points would be lost.

These types of questions are always great for “incentivized” mystery shopping programs. If employees know that they will get a bonus for having stellar mystery shopping results every quarter, they will be more likely to pay attention to detail and provide excellent customer service to everyone who walks into the store, including the mystery shoppers.

Narratives are great for clients who want to know exactly what it’s like to shop at their stores in “storybook” format. They value the opinion of the mystery shopper, what they see, what things stick out to them during their customer experience and how each part of the mystery shop transpired.

For example, “I walked into the store and was greeted by Amanda, a tall, brunette girl. She told me about the promotions running that weekend.”

Both mystery shopping questions give you the same information, but there is a rhyme and reason for utilizing both types of questions. Definitive answer questions like Yes/No are used for scoring. Narratives are used for recounting the experience and providing details on top of the regular Yes/No answers.

What types of questions do you prefer? Are you a scoring person or a descriptive person when it comes to receiving mystery shop results? Let us know in the comments section.

Happier employees are going to grow the business. There’s no doubt about that. They are ambassadors for the brand, whether they are on the clock or not. This is why companies must measure employee satisfaction on a consistent basis.

Employee satisfaction surveys can be used to identify issues that can improve company culture.

Companies can:
- Find out how happy their employees are in their general setting.
- Decide which tasks could be outsourced, if needed.
- Give employees the power to communicate about an operational issue, policy or procedure and improve it if they see fit.
- Explore what benefits options would be most important to the employees if added.
- Find out why employees might want to leave your company to work for a competitor.

Check out the ways in which we can collect Employee Satisfaction Surveys here.

In every franchise system, there is a franchisor (The company who owns the brand and sells franchises of that brand), and a group of franchisees (The business operators who pay to operate the brand the franchisor owns). A franchisor makes money in two ways; selling new franchises and collecting a percentage of their franchisees’ sales, also known as “franchise royalties.” The franchise royalty payments are made so that the franchisee can continue to use the company name, product recipes, any trademarks owned and the brands operational systems. Sometimes franchisees decide to under report their sales in order to dodge the royalty and marketing fund payments to the franchisor. This makes it harder for the franchisor to expand the brand, due to reduction in money available for advertising and operational tools. The short story here is that it makes the franchise system less profitable.

The Mershimer Group helps franchisors target where trouble may be coming from within their franchisee system. The royalty assurance program includes various components meant to promote integrity in franchisee reporting, and will likely involve some or all of the following components:

• Completion of a yield or other analysis to identify scope of underreporting, and identify problem locations.
• Franchisee education and awareness communications.
• Unannounced store/restaurant awareness visits.
• Integrity shopping to ensure all transactions are recorded on POS system.
• Underreporting investigations meant to document underreporting methods.
• Royalty audits to document “back of the house” underreporting.

The goal of this program is to reveal which franchisees are potentially underreporting their sales, how they are doing this, and about how much they are withholding.

Royalty assurance will help individual franchisees by increasing the amount of franchise royalties and advertising funds paid into the system to grow the brand. Any work or money a franchisor puts toward operational excellence or branding, a franchisee will benefit from. And if the franchisees are making money, so is the franchisor and it creates a successful cycle of higher returns on investment.