CRTC seeks contractor for nationwide ‘secret shopper’ review of sales practices

The CRTC is looking for proposals to run a nationwide secret shopper project examining how telecom and broadcasting services are sold in Canada. The project will gather information that informs the CRTC’s “ongoing assessment of misleading or aggressive sales practices” and to measure compliance with industry codes of conduct, the regulator said in a tender notice issued Monday, Aug. 11. Bids are due Aug. 29. The CRTC says it wants to “gain a better understanding of how front-line employees” of Canada’s largest communications service providers sell their services and how consumers experience the sales process. The study will particularly examine whether interactions are clear and simple or misleading and aggressive. It will also look at sales approaches for consumers with diverse backgrounds, those who may be more vulnerable due to age, a disability, or a language barrier, and differences between the experiences of new customers and existing customers. The scope will include interactions related to changes or cancellations during trial periods as well. The selected contractor will be required to conduct a minimum of 1,400 secret shops across the country. These shops will be strategically distributed among Canada’s largest service providers and their flanker brands. Interactions will take place through three distinct sales channels: 50 per cent in person, 25 per cent over the phone, and 25 per cent through online chat functions. Bidders are asked to state how many shops they can complete with a maximum yearly budget of $220,000. Secret shoppers will follow four scripted scenarios, designed to mimic realistic consumer experiences. These include inquiries about downgrading current plans, upgrading current plans, seeking low-cost or occasional use plans, and accessible plans for people with disabilities. There must be gender parity among the shoppers and vulnerable populations must also be represented, such as seniors, people with disabilities, and people facing a language barrier or from a diverse background. This is not the first time the CRTC has commissioned research through secret shopping. The regulator raised the idea in 2019, and deployed its first project from late 2019 to early 2020. The exercise was conducted again in 2021-2022. The contract, once a winning bid is selected, is slated to run from Oct. 1, 2025 to Sept. 30, 2027, with the option for up to three additional one-year extensions under the same terms. Payments to the contractor will be made in milestone-based installments, tied to the approval of the project plan, pilot fieldwork, completion of fieldwork, data analysis, and the delivery of final reports. Should the project plan be approved in October, a draft schedule expects the final reports to be given to the commission by July 2026. phalentm@thewirereport.ca

CRTC seeks contractor for nationwide ‘secret shopper’ review of sales practices

Regulatory |
By Phalen Tynes-MacDonald
| August 12, 2025

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CRTC seeks contractor for nationwide ‘secret shopper’ review of sales practices

Regulatory | By Phalen Tynes-MacDonald | August 12, 2025

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