So many mystery shoppers just love their jobs… that is, until it comes time to sit down and write their reports. Few people enjoy writing, and when you are a mystery shopper writing reports for a paycheck, you can feel some intense pressure to really get the details down right and to avoid grammatical and spelling issues. You know if you don’t get the report right, it could cost you. Issues with a report can, after all, affect your ability to get more assignments and may even result in not getting paid for the assignment you are working on. With this pressure on your shoulders, you will want to review these hot report writing tips so you can get your report written fast, easily, and accurately!
Take Notes. One of the biggest factors that throws many mystery shoppers for a loop with report writing is not being certain on the facts. You can, after all, go through your site visit step-by-step and completely cover all of the bases when it comes to following the shop guidelines and requirements. Yet when it comes time to sit down and write the report, you can draw a blank on key areas. Things like times when you entered the site or left the site, names of employees that helped you out, and so forth can really make you pause and think. Often these small but very important details can really cause you issues. One way you can combat this issue is by taking notes. Obviously you will have to take notes incognito, such as on your cell phone or by scribbling on a fake shopping list. However, often just a few quick notes here and there can really make report writing much easier.
Don’t Ramble. Many reports have you do a free-writing, narrative-style response to questions, and this is an area where many mystery shoppers struggle. It can be pretty difficult to write open-ended responses to questions without rambling on, but you will want to really focus on providing concise answers that respond to the question asked. Read through the question a few times before you start, and then take time to think about your response before you start typing. Then do a quick review of both the question and the answer to make sure they jive and that all information is accurate. Rambling on in your response only serves to confuse your reader, and this can cause some issues with you when your report is turned in.
Proofread. If you are not in the practice of proofreading your reports before you submit them, you absolutely should get into this routine starting today. Even the best writers and best mystery shoppers will make mistakes, strike the wrong key on the keyboard, and other silliness. Yet this silliness can cause your report to get bounced back to you, which can delay your payment on the assignment and cause you more work on a future date when you are forced to find time to correct the report in your busy day. Simply taking a few minutes to read through the report before you submit it can really save you a lot of headache and hassle later on.
As you can see, there are some pretty easy ways you can make your report-writing far easier and more successful for you. Take time to adopt these practices into your report writing today, and you will really start to see the difference!
Thank you for the advise!1 I agree sometimes we all forget, notes are the best way.
I take a tablet with me now because as you indicated, the pressure of remembering details is tremendous. I provide an outline of the details most companies require in their reports. When sit down to input/write the narrative, it only takes a few minutes with the details from my visits recorded.
I have my spell checker dedicated in a separate word processing program and common technical shopping terms, materials names and etc are loaded into that spell checker.
Also, I always open a word processing report titled with shop name and other information. As I spell check each paragraph(s) they are “cut and pasted” into the work sheet for the report and easier to locate if having to do a correction.
Finally, I used Microsoft Calendar program and any space to make notes gets limited. After entering the shop name and time into the assigned day, I always enter who the shopiing company is and the contact telephone number. Saves a lot of time looking of who to call with a question.
Here is an example:
10:00 AM – Oil Change – Midas/Osseo Jiffyshopper.com 1-800-435-9990 Ann contact.
Are you doing any research on using the new Ipad or other tablets to download and complete the reports as a shopper waits around? I am pondering how to download a workable report to the note tablets and be able to complete a lot of the time and other minute enteries required for a report.
Also, just placeing the raw data of names, descriptions and other data in the paragraph boxes seems to make sense to permit faste editing and style correction when you arrive back home to enter the report.
Please let me know. This may be an application with a dos based table rather than the new Apple Ipad2. ALso, you can bring along an electronic book to read.
Thanks Dennis Small
Minneapolis Area.
Make mental notes and in most cases you can slip into the
restroom and quickly fill out a “Prepared” cheet-sheet.
Works great if you have to inspect the Bathroom anyway.
Prepare your cheet sheet the night before or day or shop.
This way you can just circle your answers such as dark or
gray hair. The extra effort your put into being prepared
will payoff in the end. The proofreader’s job will go smoother and you should end up with a better outcome, depending on what kind of “story” you write.
Good Luck…you’re always learning.
I like Katy’s comment and I use the cheat sheet alot. Being prepared is the secret. I also keep a small 3X6 notebook and pen in my jacket pocket for quick notes. Thanks Mav love your articles.
These are good tips, does anybody use a small recorder to help with your report?
After reading many of the rsopsnees I think we REALLY need a chapter on grammar!Speaking of grammar is there somewhere that I can sign up to proofread the instructions and forms we have to read? I am told that we need to be sure that our grammar and spelling are exemplary but much of the information we receive is so badly written that I want to cry!I would love to get into the composing end of the forms and instructions. I think I understand most of the information that companies want and think I could get it for them without a lot of the time consuming, repetitive form filling that we so often face. For example I had one form that asked four times if the table was clean.Thank you for doing this, but PLEASE make sure you get it proof read before it goes out! (Um, your articles too.)