Admissions are the lifeblood of educational institutions. In today’s competitive landscape, every detail in the admissions journey can have a profound impact on conversion, occupancy, and reputation.
Mystery Shopping, when delivered with care and expertise, helps you see your processes through the eyes of prospective students and parents, so you can make meaningful improvements where they matter most.
Schedule a discovery call or call now on 01392 984224.
Testimonial
Customerwise have been consistently supportive, attentive, and flexible with our requirements for mystery shopping in International schools. Paul and Tam have been meticulous in ensuring they recruited shoppers appropriate to the local context and culture of our schools. Furthermore, Customerwise have advised us and suggested developments throughout the relationship, adapting fundamental reporting structures and the reporting dashboards; as well as actively seeking feedback on how they could further support us moving forward. We have been extremely pleased with the level of detail and insight received through the reports generated and we look forward to continuing a positive working relationship with Customerwise.
Orbital Education
Who We Help
We support universities, colleges (further and higher education), and private schools. Our work covers every stage of the admissions journey, from first enquiry to open day and follow-up. We recognise the unique challenges faced by each type of institution, whether it’s the intense competition and focus on open days in universities, the varied and complex course enquiry processes in colleges, or the financial pressures on private schools.
Selecting and Preparing the Right Shoppers
Believability and realism are crucial for effective Mystery Shopping in education. We carefully select shoppers who can convincingly present as prospective parents or students in each scenario. For private schools, this means choosing individuals of the right age and demographic group who can play the part of parents considering options for their child.
For college and university assignments, we use teenagers or young adults who can convincingly present as prospective students, including those with enough foundational knowledge to hold relevant conversations about technical or specialist subjects.
Every shopper is thoroughly briefed and prepared, so they can engage knowledgeably and credibly with staff at every stage, from initial enquiry to open day discussions and follow-up.
Our Mystery Shopping Services for Educational Institutions
Each enquiry or journey assessed generates its own report, designed with your input and broken down into key stages. Reports include both scoring and narrative feedback, and are delivered via SASSIE, our online platform, with clear dashboards and supporting files such as call recordings and visit notes.
In-person Mystery Shopping
We conduct in-person Mystery Shopping enquiries that mirror the real experiences of prospective students or parents, from initial enquiry through open day attendance to follow-up. This reveals strengths and weaknesses in face-to-face interactions, staff professionalism, and follow-up effectiveness.
Telephone Mystery Shopping
Telephone Mystery Shopping can reveal a great deal about how enquiries are handled, covering scenarios such as course information requests, admissions queries, and follow-up calls. Our telephony system assigns a unique number to each enquiry, so every call to and from your institution uses the same number throughout the process. This means staff see a consistent caller ID and can reach the same “prospective student” if they call back, supporting realism and continuity across all phone-based interactions.
Online Mystery Shopping
We assess how online enquiries—via web forms, chat, or email—are managed. This includes response times, information clarity, and follow-up quality.
Multi-stage Mystery Shopping
Admissions journeys often involve several stages and channels. We design programmes that follow a prospective student or parent from initial enquiry, through online and telephone contact, to in-person visits including tours and open days, and follow-up communication, giving you a complete picture of the process and where opportunities for improvement exist.
Competitor Mystery Shopping
We can mystery shop other institutions, benchmarking their admissions processes, open days, and enquiry handling against your own. This provides valuable context and helps you identify opportunities to improve and stand out.
Video Mystery Shopping
Covert video can be used where required and where appropriate permission exists. It can provide a detailed, objective record of how staff interact with visitors and present the institution.
Audio-recorded Mystery Shopping
Audio recording can be used to capture the details of in-person interactions, where appropriate, helping you review key conversations and identify training needs.
Schedule a discovery call or call now on 01392 984224.
Testimonial
Customerwise conducted a comprehensive Mystery Shopping study of our admissions processes and enquiry handling standards, across a range of different course subjects and levels, where the processes for each often varied significantly.
We found Customerwise to be great to work with – they were thorough and methodical while also being flexible and adaptable. Most importantly, the output was extremely valuable to us as an organisation in helping to learn where and how we could improve. After the study they also assisted with a training exercise to help the leadership team to engage with the findings and put the lessons into action. We would highly recommend Customerwise to any educational institution looking to improve their admissions processes and enquiry handling standards.
Walsall College
Other Services for Educational Institutions
In-moment Customer Feedback
In educational settings, in-moment feedback can be an extremely powerful way to gather feedback in many areas and from many groups. Feedback can be provided quickly and easily "in the moment" by students, staff and visitors. Feedback can relate to specific experiences or activities, facility (e.g. toilets) cleanliness and functionality, and even staff morale.
Feedback can be gathered using physical feedback terminals, and/or using branded signs with QR codes or NFC technology, through digital invitations such as SMS or email, or through a combination of all these methods.
Terminals and signs are especially valuable during open days, in high-traffic areas, and in general student and staff spaces, making it easy for people to share their views on the spot. Digital invitations can be used to follow up after key interactions or events. These tools are effective for capturing clear, specific and immediate feedback. They are also widely used to gauge staff sentiment and employee satisfaction. In-moment feedback can help you monitor the experience and sentiment across a broad range of areas and stakeholders, and to then make informed improvements to both admissions and daily operations.
Strategic Consultancy
We work alongside your team to interpret findings, identify trends, and set priorities. Our consultancy goes beyond reporting, supporting you to implement changes that increase admissions and occupancy.
Customer Interviews
We can conduct in-depth interviews with students, parents, or guardians who have engaged with your admissions process, exploring what influenced their decisions and how their experience could be improved.
Website Competitor Studies
We compare your institution’s website with those of your competitors, using real, relevant human testers who match your target demographic. This provides feedback on usability, clarity, and the overall appeal of each site, helping you identify strengths, weaknesses, and opportunities to improve your digital presence.
Customer Survey Deployment
We can design and manage structured surveys for prospective and current students, helping you collect and analyse feedback systematically. More in-depth, routine survey results can be incorporated into one integrated solution.
Why Choose Customerwise?
Established 2016, MSPA Elite Members (MSPA members since 2018)
- Extensive experience supporting educational institutions with complex admissions journeys
- Flexible, bespoke Mystery Shopping programmes for every type of institution
- Advanced telephony and reporting systems for realism and total visibility
- Objective, actionable insights to help you raise standards and improve results
- Fully customised reporting and dashboards
- Switched-on, committed, and proactive account management
Ready to Improve Your Admissions Process?
If you want to boost admissions, raise standards, and stay competitive, contact us to discuss how Customerwise can help.