4 Mystery Shopper Tips for Raising Objections Without Raising Suspicion

Apartment ResidentsMystery shopping has its nuances, and it helps to have a few tricks in your pocket when you need to raise an objection and report how the target responds.  Some leasing agents are very shopper savvy, and certain things can alert them to your mystery shopper status if they are not handled in the right way.

Here are a few mystery shopper tips to make raising your objection a little less daunting and help you avoid revealing your status as a mystery shopper.

  • Don’t try to think of something when you are standing in front of the agent.  Think about your objection ahead of time.   You are more likely to appear relaxed and natural.
  • Make an objection the leasing agent can overcome.  If you say you would rather have an apartment in a high rise and the community is all on one level, the agent may not be able to overcome this because it is out of their control.
  •  Don’t present the objection as a deal breaker.  You want the leasing professional to perform their follow-up.  If you disqualify yourself based upon your objection, they may not feel there is any reason to follow-up with you after your visit.
  • Be natural and use your own wording so that the objection does not sound too rehearsed.  Personalize the objection to make it believable.

A thorough mystery shopper report should contain objections by the shopper to measure the ability or willingness of the leasing agent to provide solutions!!… And the following mystery shopper tips and ideas may help you to think of something that applies to your own unique story or situation.

Your objection might be:

  • “I have a lot of bedroom furniture.  I’m just not sure if it will all fit in this bedroom.”

Suitable answers to overcome this objection might include:

  •  The leasing agent might ask what kind of furniture you have.  They should follow up with a suggestion or solution.
  • They can offer to measure the room for you or give you the room dimensions.
  • They may suggest that perhaps the nightstand or dresser will fit somewhere else in the apartment.  “Perhaps it would fit in the walk-in closet, the spare bedroom or den, or garage.”
  • Some leasing professionals will mention the additional storage off the patio or in the apartment, or offer additional storage outside the apartment if available.

mystery shopperAnother objection might be:

  • “I am moving from a house.  I just don’t think these cabinets will be enough storage for me.”  Possible responses to attempt to overcome this objection could include:

Possible ways to overcome this could include:

  • “Don’t forget, there is a large storage room off your new balcony.”
  • “Did you notice the large pantry?”
  • “Did you notice the shelves (or cabinets) above the sink?”
  • “There are two closets in the hallway.  Perhaps you could use one for storing some of your seldom used kitchen appliances and supplies!”
  • “There is a mini-storage company just a block away if you need additional storage.  They are very reasonable!”

Or your objection could be something like:

  • “I think this apartment is just too small overall”

The leasing professional may respond with something such as:

  • “We have a two bedroom available (if you originally were looking for a one bedroom) on special right now for not much more than the one bedroom.  That might solve your space issues perfectly.”
  • Again, if they ask about your furniture and try to make suggestions for placement or offer any suggestions to make the apartment work, give credit.
  • If they offer you another floor plan with more square footage.
  • If this is the only apartment they have, they could offer to put you on a waiting list for a larger floor plan to open up.

Perhaps your objection was the following:

  • “The highway noise is very loud!”  Suitable responses might include:

The leasing professional could offer these solutions:

  • “Let’s look for a quieter location when we get back to the office!”
  • “The double-paned windows block out the noise when they are all closed.”

These are just a few of the scenarios that a mystery shopper can use when shop details say you should raise an objection to something in the apartment.  There are many more.  If you say you prefer to be closer to the pool, they can check availability for or offer to place you on a waiting list for a more desirable location.   The challenge is for the target to offer suggestions or solutions.  If they try to solve the problem, they have done their job.

As long as the leasing professional makes an effort to overcome the objection, point out a solution, or to work with you to come up with ideas to overcome it, they should receive credit.  If the target says nothing, or simply answers “No,” then they have failed the challenge.

Be creative, use challenges you have in your current home, or challenges you see with the space you would have if you were to actually choose that apartment and you will sound sincere.  After a few successful encounters, you will feel completely at ease when you an in a situation that calls for an objection to be made.

There are many more mystery shopper tips listed on this site so if you are thinking about a career in mystery shopping then start here…