Ok so this just happened to me last night and I feel so uncomfortable and uneasy about it. So during a secret shop that I was conducting I was confronted about being a secret shopper. He made me feel so uncomfortable and disrespected like I was only doing it for the free food. Has this happened to anyone else? And if so what did you do? I’ve been shopping for years and this has never happened. So awkward and uncomfortable and frankly inappropriate

Though I have never been confronted about it, I have been in that situation before where I felt that the employees of the jack in the Box knew what was going on. Considering there is limits to what can be bought usually and how much to spend, it does make it seem unusual to some people that this may happen.

Now then, if I may ask, What made him approach you. were you taking pictures of your food displayed in the way that its documented? if that was the case, and or if you had a been looking at your watch etc that catches their eye if they are observant and you are alone or among very few patrons.

On approach by him, you could have explained you are a "Yelper" this can throw a lot of people off especially. When I am in a dining facility while shopping I put my smart phone on the yelp page for that business and start reading reviews. That way if I do take a picture I pretend its going on yelp.

I have never been approached by anyone at any time about being a mystery shopper. However if I was, my response would be something like

A " You are a mystery shopper aren't you?"

ME: " Huh, what's that?" or "Is that really a thing?" or " i get a meal for free,? where do I sign up?"

The trick is to never acknowledge that you are indeed a shopper, or that you know anything about this thing called mystery shopping.

I had a salesman at a UTV shop say, "You're not a secret shopper, are you, I've been burned by them before." I said, totally deadpan, "I don't know what that is."

Maybe ask how they "burned" him.

Good idea. Just to let you know, he told me all about how they burned him for the next 20 minutes. He was very upset.

Michele_15032031952719 @ May 22, 2019 6:56:17 PM

Maybe ask how they "burned" him.

I've never been pinged. I'm that good.

You mean detected right?