How to Feel Less Nervous
During a Mystery Shop

Almost everyone feels a little nervous on their first mystery shop. You walk into a business knowing that you're supposed to act like an ordinary customer while remembering things that an ordinary customer probably wouldn't pay much attention to.

What was the employee's name? How long did it take to get greeted? Did the employee ask the required question? Was the restroom clean? Did I get a receipt?

Meanwhile, you're trying not to look like you're memorizing everything.

That can make a simple visit seem much more complicated than it really is. The good news is that the nervousness usually decreases after you've completed a few assignments.

The biggest thing that helped me was preparation.

Want more help getting started? My book, Take That Job And Mystery Shop It!, walks you through finding assignments, completing shops, writing reports, and avoiding many of the mistakes new shoppers make.

How to Feel Less Nervous During a Mystery Shop Before You Even Leave Home

Mystery shopper 2

I remember feeling nervous for my first assignment.  It was a quick 5-minute visit at a check-cashing location.  I was concerned about remembering 10 specific items to look for.  Sounded easy enough.  After my third assignment, I thought that this was not difficult to do, and I wondered why I was nervous in the first place.   

The key is that before leaving home, read the instructions more than once. I want to know exactly what I'm supposed to do before I walk through the door.

Pay particular attention to anything that could invalidate the assignment. If you're required to arrive between certain hours, know the time window. If you have to ask a particular question, remember it. If you need an employee's name, start looking for the name tag during the conversation instead of suddenly realizing you need it as you're walking out the door.

I also like to look at the report before doing the assignment whenever that's possible. It tells me what I'm going to be asked later.

You don't necessarily have to memorize every question. You need to know which details you won't be able to reconstruct after you leave.

Timing is a good example. If you have to report how long you waited for service, you can't accurately figure that out three hours later. Employee names, descriptions, prices, and specific statements are other details worth watching closely.

Don't Try Too Hard to Look Like a Mystery Shopper

One of the biggest fears for a beginner is getting caught.

Most employees aren't studying every customer who walks through the door and wondering whether that person is a mystery shopper. They're working. They're helping customers, answering telephones, stocking merchandise, selling products, or thinking about what they're going to have for lunch.

Act like a customer because that's exactly what you're supposed to be doing.

If you're shopping for an automobile, show some interest in the vehicle. If you're evaluating an apartment, ask the kinds of questions someone looking for an apartment would normally ask. If you're eating in a restaurant, enjoy your meal while paying attention to the service.

Don't stare at someone's name tag for 10 seconds trying to memorize the spelling. Don't walk around counting ceiling tiles unless the instructions somehow require it.

The more naturally you behave, the easier the assignment becomes.

You also don't have to remember everything at once. Concentrate on the important points as they happen.

For a restaurant shop, I might mentally break the assignment into pieces: arrival, greeting, ordering, food, service, cleanliness, and departure. Once I've finished one part, I move on to the next.

That makes a lengthy questionnaire much less intimidating.

Write Things Down as Soon as You Can

When the assignment is finished, I like to get the important details recorded while they're still fresh.

Your mystery shopping company may have rules about notetaking, so follow the instructions. The important thing is not to make yourself obvious by standing outside the front entrance typing a detailed report into your phone.

Get away from the location first.

Once I'm somewhere appropriate, I can record names, times, descriptions, and anything unusual that happened. If I wait until I get home, especially after completing several shops, the details can start running together.

Keep your receipt somewhere safe, too. Losing a required receipt after completing an otherwise perfect assignment is a frustrating way to lose credit for a shop.

Start With Something Easy

Another part of learning how to feel less nervous during a mystery shop is choosing the right first assignment.

I wouldn't recommend beginning with a complicated new home shop containing a long sales presentation and pages of narrative. Start with something easier.

A convenience store, fast-food restaurant, simple retail visit, or telephone shop lets you learn the process without having 50 things to remember.

After several assignments, you'll notice something happening. You'll begin anticipating what the report is going to ask. You'll automatically look for the employee's name. You'll remember to check the time. You'll know where you put the receipt.

Things that required conscious effort on your first shop become habits.

I've done enough mystery shopping that I know something unexpected can still happen. An employee may ask a question you weren't expecting. The person you're supposed to evaluate may not be working. A location may be closed. You may forget one of the questions you intended to ask.

Don't panic and don't invent information.

Continue the assignment as naturally as possible and follow the mystery shopping company's instructions about what to do when something goes wrong. Contact the scheduler if necessary.

Nobody completes every mystery shop under perfect conditions.

If you're wondering how to feel less nervous during a mystery shop, experience is ultimately the best answer. Prepare carefully, know the important requirements, act like the customer you're supposed to be, and write down the details afterward.

Your first shop may feel strange.

Your tenth probably won't.

Your Best Next Step

If this article helped, read these next:

About the Author

I'm Mystery Don, and I've completed mystery shopping assignments for restaurants, hotels, apartment communities, automobile dealerships, and new home builders.

I created this website to help people avoid the mistakes I've seen—and to show new shoppers how legitimate mystery shopping really works. 

My book Take That Job And Mystery Shop It! lists over 150 mystery shopping companies to contact.  I offer beginner-friendly tips and honest guidance without hype.

We're always looking for new faces to visit different places. 

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