National Shopping Service expands global presence

ROCKLIN, CA (PR LEAP) February 1, 2006 — National Shopping Service went global in a big way in 2005. The mystery shopping leader expanded its international coverage significantly, with companies operating in 22 countries now using their highly successful techniques for improving business performance.

With its international business seeing a 2,200-percent leap overall last year, National Shopping Service also broadened its linguistic capabilities from one language to seven, and its secret shopping operations now cover 12 time zones.

National Shopping Service’s international presence evolved gradually from its successful domestic programs in the United States. It’s now a leading mystery shopping option in five of the seven continents – North and South America, Australia, Europe and Asia.

Jonathan Zachreson, production advisor at National Shopping Service, said that companies are going international with their mystery shopping programs for the same reasons they work in the United States – “Conformity, consistency and ensuring their quality standards are being met.”

“Our clients requested shops in Canada, then the United Kingdom in 2004,” Zachreson explained. “By mid-2005, our international coverage had rapidly expanded to the level that we see today.”

Zachreson said the biggest challenge for National Shopping Service to expand its international presence has been “starting from scratch.”

“We didn’t have time for shoppers from Nicaragua or Russia to come to us and say, ‘I’m interested in mystery shopping,’” Zachreson said. “So we worked hard to find various partners, businesses and individuals that were interested in working with us.”

In Mexico, China, Korea and the United Kingdom, this networking and collaboration has paid off. National Shopping Service has successfully performed thousands of mystery shopping assignments in these countries in 2005.

“We’re focusing on building global business relationships where we can share our extensive mystery shopping experience and gain from a thorough knowledge of each market,” Tony Yorba, National’s executive vice president, said. “Like our clients, the test we face in providing worldwide coverage is maintaining our guaranteed level of quality and professionalism.”

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About National Shopping Service:
Founded in 1972, National Shopping Service offers businesses a unique combination of mystery shopping resources and measurement solutions focused on brand alignment and customer retention. Using state-of-the-art collection methods, Web-based technologies and proprietary processes, National Shopping Service provides managers with the actionable information necessary to understand and affect customer loyalty while improving overall business performance.

For more information, contact National Shopping Service at (800) 800-2704, or visit www.nationalshoppingservice.com