Scary anti-credit app lady

[RammsteinGirl]

You probably will think this is SC-ish, but when I go to Kmart, I know they have to ask that, so when I go to the checklane, I always tease the checker by very politely saying (before they get a chance to ask), "...and no, I would not like a Sears credit card but thank you for asking." Sometimes that does get a chuckle from the checker since we probably both agree it's silly. And you know what else is silly? Both their store and mine (grocery store) make cashiers do that stupid "blue lining" thing where they stand in front of the checklane when there's no customers. As if the customers are too stupid to see that the lit up checklanes are the ones you go to.

Actually.. heh.. I would say 50% of customers will not go to a checkout lane unless they see a cashier standing RIGHT THERE. It doesn't matter if the light is on or not. When I go shopping and it's time to check out, I never look for the cashier.. only the registers with the light lit up.

At Kmart we're supposed to stand out in front of our register and invite people in (they call it "Operation Invitation," but because Kmart is so severely understaffed, we're always busy with something while we're not ringing up customers, like filling the checkouts, folding clothes, cleaning checkouts, or tearing out ad signs. So in reality, no one performs Operation Invitation.

It always irks me when I step away from my register (with the light on, mind you) for a moment to go get change or if I'm performing another assigned task (always with a good eye on my register) and a customer comes up and doesn't even give me time to get back to my register - they immediately start yelling "IS ANYONE HERE? IS THIS LANE OPEN? WHERE IS THE CASHIER!" Aghh! And I know cashiers SHOULD stand at their station at all times, but at Kmart we can't just stand their with our thumb up our butt, or we'll get yelled at by management.

[RammsteinGirl]

I used to work overnight at K-Mart in hardlines. Sometimes, I'd have to cover the front line while the regular cashier on duty was on break or at lunch. I never had to worry about asking about the Sears card. That was one benefit of working overnight. We were a skeleton crew, and there was only one, maybe two, supervisors to stand over your shoulder throughout the entire store. I could call if I had an issue requiring their attention, but was otherwise left to my work most nights. They did encourage, but not require, us to offer the Smart Plan on qualifying items. If it came up, I'd ask the customer if they were interested, but respected their first and final answer.

You must have worked in a Super Kmart that's open 24 hours. I work at a Big Kmart that's open 8 A.M. to 10 P.M. .. so our overnight crew doesn't have to worry about customers.

I just find it so hard to promote things I don't believe in. Sears Cards suck, with their 26% interest, and the Kmart so-called "Smart" Plans (extended warranties on qualifying items, usually electronics) are a rip-off too. I've actually advised a customer NOT to buy a Smart Plan before (if the item already has a lifetime manufacturer's warranty, why buy a 1-year Kmart warranty for it?), which could have resulted in me getting terminated. I'm just way too honest to be a good salesperson. We DO get commission for getting people to apply for Sears cards and buying Smart Plans.. but it's such a meager amount that it's really not even worth it..

[LadyAndreca]

I work at Target, which has its own card. Part of our job performance rating is on the number of card applications we've processed, so skipping the 'Would you like to apply for a Target Red Card?' will hurt you in the long run. Our store is too understaffed for a 0 score there to get you fired, but we've been warned it can happen. Also, Target's secret shoppers specifically check to make sure we're asking, so a cashier that doesn't will be reported by name.

[Irving Patrick Freleigh]

What a bitch.

So you don't want the credit card. Neither does anybody else, but asking customers if they'd like to sign up is part of the cashier's job. Just telling the cashier never to ask you again will not suffice, because if the cashier were to honor your request the next time you visited his/her lane, that cashier would get in trouble with the manager for not asking.

The only way you can put a stop to those damn cards is not to sign up, and to complain to corporate about them. Stores wouldn't be so anal about bothering customers if there wasn't any profit in them doing so.

[JustaCashier]

Stand in FRONT of the checkout lane? Wouldn't that make them harder to see if you were looking for a checkout lane with a cashier in it? What is the point in that?

That's Corporate Logic.

It makes about one degree less sense tha SC Logic!

Mike

[Mark Healey]

I work at Target, which has its own card. Part of our job performance rating is on the number of card applications we've processed, so skipping the 'Would you like to apply for a Target Red Card?' will hurt you in the long run. Our store is too understaffed for a 0 score there to get you fired, but we've been warned it can happen. Also, Target's secret shoppers specifically check to make sure we're asking, so a cashier that doesn't will be reported by name.

A couple of questions:

1) Does the cashier have to verify anything the person puts on the application?

2) Does the cashier get dinged if it turns out to be bogus?

I can always use a discount. I pay cash. I could apply as Mark E. d'Sade but don't want to get some innocent cashier in trouble.

[workerbee222]

I'll bet the old woman must have run into one of my former colleagues.

At Every employee rally, "Trudy" won an award for the most credit applications submitted. She said, "I just don't take 'No' for an answer." When she got out of earshot, another clerk said, "that's why some of our regular customers avoid her like the Plague!"

[MoonChild2007]

I'll bet the old woman must have run into one of my former colleagues.

At Every employee rally, "Trudy" won an award for the most credit applications submitted. She said, "I just don't take 'No' for an answer." When she got out of earshot, another clerk said, "that's why some of our regular customers avoid her like the Plague!"

I have a coworker like that too. She is sweet as can be but I just wonder how she can get people to get anything when people hardly listen to me! I ask and they say no, she asks and she always gets a yes! I don't understand what she is doing.

[Becks]

C leans over the Service Desk toward the old bat and tells her in a quiet yet sinister voice, "Now you listen to me. We don't want to ask you if you want to apply for a Sears card anymore than you want to hear it. But we have to ask because we want to keep our jobs. If you have such a problem with it, you need to call corporate and complain to them. OH.. and DO YOU WANT A SEARS CARD MA'AM?"
HE ACTUALLY SAID THAT TO HER!!! I told C afterwards that he was my HERO! I guess she just stormed out of the store after he said that to her. I'm surprised she didn't want to complain to management.

Oh, my damn. He rocks.

I could apply as Mark E. d'Sade

Clever.

I'm surprised I don't know of anyone who tried to put that on a nametag.

[JustAGirl]

I used to work at Target and had to ask all the customers if they wanted to apply for a RedCard.

I would ONLY ask if my supervisor was walking around me, or if their purchase was over $100.

If a customer said "no" I would not ask again. NO matter who was around or what they said.

I used to get asked a lot but I'd always politely decline.

Though one time I wanted to go off on this one girl. Fiance and I went in line and it was this one girl who seems to always get the most redcard applications. She totally hounded me. I said no at least four times. If I could turn back time, the third time I would state "look, I said no twice, I will not change my mind again!".

I hate being asked so I don't usually ask. I refuse to ask certain people... Namely:

1. pregnant women (or, those who look pregnant)... I'm sure they want to stand around filling out an application while their baby is laying on their bladder.
2. people with frozen foods... no need to hound them while their food defrosts.
3. people with kids, any age... no need for them and me to deal with kids acting up because she or he is filling out a form.
4. Cell phone talkers
5. Rude people.

There are others, but those were definitely it.

[Noelegy]

The day came that I actually WANTED to sign up for a store credit card...and I couldn't! I asked at Customer Service, and they sent me to Jewelry. I asked at Jewelry, they said they had a kiosk but it wasn't working yet. They sent me to a register, where a girl had to call for a manager to walk her through the process.

I guess that's a variation on the law that states that when you're just browsing, store employees will be all over you, but when you actually need help, nobody will be in sight.

[BookstoreEscapee]

EVERY TIME I COME IN THIS DAMN STORE YOU ASK ME THAT AND I TOLD THEM LAST TIME ----NEVER----- TO ASK ME THAT QUESTION AGAIN AND YOU'VE DONE IT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

Further evidence for my theory that customers think all employees of an establishment share a brain that they just hand off to each other at shift change (kinda like how we did with the keys to the change drawer)...

Does she want her damn picture posted above every cash register with the words "DO NOT ASK THIS WOMAN ABOUT A SEARS CARD"?
.

That would be awesome if you could print a still from the security camera and actually do it! Bonus points if you can catch her mid-scream!

I always hated pushing member cards, too. I would always ask but unless they were spending enough to pay for a good portion of the fee right there, I wouldn't push it. If they spend more than $250 I would point out that their savings that day would pay for the card right there, and then they'd have it for a year (this was especially effective during the holidays, because even if they only shopped at Christmas it would still be good for the following holiday season). I have had customers say "I don't want a card" before I even got a chance to ask and I always would just chuckle and say OK. If you say it with a sense of humor it is most definitely not sucky at all. (Then again, with the member card, I sometimes heard the people complain so much about how tired they were of being asked I just wanted to say, If you've heard it that many times maybe it's time you just got one already!)

And personally I think it is totally unfair to penalize employees for not getting "enough" credit card applications. We had incentives, sometimes just friendly competition between cashiers and sometimes involving actual prizes from management but no one gets written up for not getting new members.

And my way of handling card pushers: I will just say "No thank you" or sometimes I will just say I already have one (even if I don't). Just because I have one doesn't mean I have to use it. I like to use my Discover card because of the cash back bonus. I have an Old Navy card but I only use it when I order online. I also have a Sears card but I got it for the discount when I was making a fairly large purchase and I haven't used it since.

Heehee, Betty White was always the one to use the word "bitch" on Golden Girls, which was a pretty racy thing back then!

[LadyAndreca]

A couple of questions:

1) Does the cashier have to verify anything the person puts on the application?

2) Does the cashier get dinged if it turns out to be bogus?

I can always use a discount. I pay cash. I could apply as Mark E. d'Sade but don't want to get some innocent cashier in trouble.

1) The application (and approval) is done by computer. We have to scan/swipe their driver's license, but the customer enters all their information into our card reader. (It really annoys some people that you have to not only be approved, you have to use the card to get the new account discount.)

2) As far as I know, no.

[Irving Patrick Freleigh]

Please pray for us....

Had a meeting this morning to discuss our service scores and some other things. One of the "other things" is a new store credit card we will be rolling out in August.

Damn. And my employer was about the only place you could go to shop without having to listen to a cashier pimp a credit card.

Of course, all we heard about is the positives to the customer--no annual fee and certain rewards when you spend a certain amount of money using the card. But all we employees will get is the pressure being laid on us thick by corporate suits wanting us to get the card in as many wallets and purses as possible, and shitfits from customers who are understandably upset about having to listen to a credit card spiel every time they visit.

Meh. I'm not a cashier and not cashier-trained either, so I don't have to worry about this...yet

[IT Grunt]

Does she want her damn picture posted above every cash register with the words "DO NOT ASK THIS WOMAN ABOUT A SEARS CARD"?

Oh, this reminds me of my time working at the bank. I got sent to a branch in the 'upper crust' section of town to fix a teller machine (I got so good fixing that old Culverin equipment, my co-workers dubbed me 'Tellerman!', not to mention being the one sent out to fix them all the time. ). While I was in the back area, I saw a mug shot style pair of photos of a man on the cork board, with a note of this man's name and that you were never, EVER to ask him for his ID. Curious, I heard the story from one of the tellers.

It seems that this man routinely came in to make deposits of $50,000 or more, being a local businessman. Bank policy was that for deposits over a certain amount, ID had to be presented. This guy pitched a FIT every time he was asked, until he went to the bank president and whined about having to show his ID. "They should know me by now!" So, the exception was made, the photos taken and shown to all tellers so that they would know of the royal decree that this man was exempt from showing his ID. A classic example of someone who thinks that because they're rich, they're famous and thus exempt from following the rules.