Valued Customer Cards

[Aramika]

This is my first post about SCs so please be gentle.

At my grocery store, as like many grocery stores, we have those cards that customers can sign up for for free and receive discounts, be entered into contests, etc. Now, those cards are supposed to be easy to use and hassle free for the customer and the cashier right? WRONG!

I have had many, many MANY problems dealing with customers and their cards. Here is the main problem.

Unlike many other stores, if a customer does not have their card with them, we cannot look it up at the register or type in their phone number. We also do not have a special card at the register that they can "borrow" either. Also, they cannot borrow a card from a different customer unless it's a relative or something. Company policy, been that way for years now. But people still cannot seem to understand it.

Here's an example.

Me:
SC: now who could this be?
italics: my random thoughts

Me: Do you have your valued customer card with you today?
SC: No, I left it in the car. (This is the most common reason, mostly because the SC left little Jimmy or whoever out in the car with it running and the card is on the key ring.) Can't I just give you my phone number?
Me: I'm sorry sir/ma'am. Our registers aren't set up that way. You'll have to go to customer service to get it looked up.
SC: Well, don't you just have a card you can swipe or something?
Me: No, I'm sorry. You'll have to go up to customer service to get it looked up.
SC: Well, I don't want to go up there. That will take too much time. (Yeah, about as much time as you've wasted talking to me about this already.)
Me: Well, if you want, you can pay for your stuff and the receipt will show how much you could have saved. You can then go up to customer service and they can refund that amount back to you.
SC: But I don't want to go up to customer service. (Well then why didn't you bring your freakin card in with you so we wouldn't have to have this conversation!?)
Me: I'm sorry, but the only way you can get your savings is by going up to customer service.
SC: *turns to the customer behind him/her* Can I use your card? I left mine in the car.
Me: I'm sorry, but we're not allowed to let you use someone else's card unless you are related to them.
SC: Why not? You only make us use these things so you can track how much money we spend in your store.
Me: Actually, that's not the reason. The problem is if you are paying with a check or a debit or credit card, and you use someone else's valued customer card, and if your check bounces, it can cause problems with the person whose valued customer card you borrowed.
SC: But my check isn't going to bounce, I have money in the bank.
Me: I realize this, (Like I know exactly how much money you have in the bank) but I still cannot allow you to use someone else's card. I'm sorry, it's the company rules.
SC: Hmmmrph! Fine. I'll just go up to customer service and get my card looked up.
Me: Why didn't you do that 5 minutes ago? In the time you wasted you could have had your number looked up, paid for your stuff, taken it out to your car, and be halfway home by now! Why did it take you so long to use the only option that you have?!?

And the sad thing is this happens so many times a day, it's not even funny. Not 10 minutes later.....

Me: Do you have your valued customer card with you today?
SC: No, I don't, I left it in the car (Why is it always in the freakin car? Do cars have some unnatural affinity to valued customer cards or something?). Do you have one that I can borrow?

*sigh* Lather, Rinse, Repeat.

[Andara Bledin]

Heh. I keep my "valued customer" cards in my wallet, in the next compartment over from my bank card & license.

I don't use grocery cards, however, since the only groceries that use them are at least 20% more expensive than the local ones that don't use them.

^-.-^

[retaildrone]

(This is the most common reason, mostly because the SC left little Jimmy or whoever out in the car with it running and the card is on the key ring.)

I have something for people who leave their kids in the car, especially with it running.

[Trayol]

The dairy store I work for has something similar, but it's more like a frequent-buyer card. There would be many people who would forget to bring it with them when they came in. At least we could look it up for them.

[Aethian]

(Why is it always in the freakin car? Do cars have some unnatural affinity to valued customer cards or something?)

Yes...mine as a afinity for my B&N card and my Sam's Club card. (Actually Sam's club gets used to wipe off the ice from inside the card and that only gets there cause of all the snow that sticks to my boots in the winter.)

I also think it ate my Border's card...can't find that one anywhere.

[Becks]

How weird am I? I keep my card on my keychain...that I carry with me wherever I go.

[Aethian]

How weird am I? I keep my card on my keychain...that I carry with me wherever I go.

Mine break off too fast...I think I'm just unlucky...Mom still has one on her keychain from over ten years ago AND it still scans.

[theredbaron47]

I guess I'm lucky. At CVS, while a number of people forget their cards for one reason or another, we're able to look them up in the registers by just punching in their phone number.

Of course, that doesn't account for the fact that I hardly ever ask them if they have one of our cards, though. I figure that the ones who care will offer them to me.

And then there are the people who, on their way out, pull their card out of their keychain or wherever they may have it, and go, "Oh, do you need this?"

[smileyeagle1021]

oh, I get the same thing at work with people not having their frequent traveller card... and no I can't look it up with your name... no I can't look it up at all... why because it has your billing information on it and in some cases your credit card on file... this is why only employees in account services who are trained on how to verify who you are or a front desk employee looking at your photo ID can look up your account... seeing as i'm niether I won't look it up for you... oh and did I mention even if I wanted to I don't have the software.
i feel your pain aramika

[SuperB]

I don't even know where my card is. We've yet to shop anywhere that you can't just punch in your phone number. The only problem I've had with those cards, as a customer, is the fact that my in-laws aren't able to get one. Someone who has moved away is still in the computer with their number and despite any proof that the number belongs to my in-laws they won't fix it so they use my number. I don't know about all of the stores but ours has some limitations so if my mother in law uses one of the limited specials, I'm SOL.

[Cyphr]

I have something for people who leave their kids in the car, especially with it running.

ouch

[Estil]

This is a perfect example of why I wish my grocery store too would get rid of those stupid gimmick cards (the proper name for 'em). I also don't like how they indirectly discriminate against out of town shoppers that don't have our store where they're from. Furthermore, we can do the phone number thing, but if the phone number is outside our Louisville region, it won't work.

And did I forget to mention some of our competitors like to crow about how they're so great because they don't make you have a stupid gimmick card?

[theredbaron47]

I agree with Estil about the proper title being "gimmick card", but the GE cards actually save me money on gas, so that's the only one I buy into.

Oh, and the CVS gimmick cards, but my employee ID card is also my ExtraCare card, so that's kind of mandated.

[Estil]

I also heard a few years back on the Michael Reagan radio talk show about how the info the company gets from your gimmick card can be used against you (and not just to get put on junk mailing lists). For example, suppose your health insurance provider got a hold of your grocery records (from its gimmick card) and thought you were buying too much junk food or cigarettes? What do you suppose their response will be regarding your premium?

I guess the best thing to do is simply have faith that enough customers will get fed up with the gimmick card hassle and if enough complaints are sent to the fat cats, eh, I mean corporate, maybe they'll come to their senses and get it through their heads that customers don't want to be forced to use a gimmick card to get the sales prices when they don't have to.

[theredbaron47]

Estil, something else to consider, at least with CVS, is that we have a "universal card" at the register. As we know, CVS runs weekly deals on products that you need the gimmick card to qualify for. If a customer doesn't want to sign up for a card, but still wants to get the special price for the products on sale that week, we simply scan the "universal card" and it tricks the register into thinking we scanned the customer's gimmick card, and they thus receive the products at the sale price.

That is nice of corporate, I think. I don't know how prevalent this is, but I think it cuts down on the indirect discrimination you mentioned.