Have you ever performed a mystery shopping visit and forgot one aspect of the kitchen or color of the walls? Here are three quick memorization techniques that professionals use to help activate and recall our memory. The techniques used are called Association, Visualization and Sing it.
To use the Association technique, you need to associate the item to something you enjoy. For example, if the colors of the apartment walls are white, but have an accent brown colored wall you can associate this coloring combination to something you enjoy, like a vanilla ice cream with chocolate syrup.
Another technique that is used is called Visualization: Since some people are more visual, this tip allows the individual to visualize an item like a picture or image in your mind. The leasing office may be decorated in a contemporary style décor and you can visualize this room in your mind as a picture of a contemporary art picture with similar colors or any mental image. The visual image created in your mind helps you recall the details later when you type your report.
Lastly, another popular memorizing technique is Sing it! If you are an auditory person, think about which area of a mystery visit you tend to usually forget when you write your report. For me, I tend to forget the color of the kitchen appliances. However, when I create a short memorable singing jingle and replace a word with the color of the appliances. I use, “I’m having a White Christmas”, and insert “I’m having a White Appliances”, and I immediately recall if the appliances were white or another color.
Using any combination of these memory techniques can save hours of work on remembering your visit. However, don’t forget to write down anything as soon as you can after a visit on a notepad and not in view of any employees.