Store credit cards.....

[Giggle Goose]

I wish everyone would write a letter to corporate so they get bombarded with all this negative feedback until they cave and quit pushing the cards. At the place I worked at, it was the same situation where if you didn't solicit a certain number of applications you would get written up or fired. (I usually only asked when the manager was around ) I no longer work there, but pushing the cards was something I hated. The employee handbook explained that it saves the store money because they have to pay fees when customers use other credit cards, which really add up. It sucks for the company, but I know that pushing the cards makes customers so uncomfortable that a lot of them probably choose to stop giving their business. In my opinion, it's better to just keep sales higher by getting customers to come back, and if they like the store so much they'll get a card on their own. But I dunno, I'm not some overpaid corporate suit, so what I'm saying probably doesn't make sense.

[Department stores *sigh*]

im supposed to push credit cards onto people but i get in a little trouble with managment if i dont. I actually use it as a ay to get people looking for a discount off my back. If you sign up for a credit card you get 10% off your purchases fo that day in any of our stores.

we are supposed to ask every customer if they want to sign up for a card. I find it annoying to ask so i just dont.

[tenaciousb]

We have them at my store but they are business credit cards. We never ask anyone if they want one. Mostly the people that request them have terrible credit, and get decline anyway, so they are wasting our time.

What pisses me off is we are supposed to ask people if they have a rewards card, which is just like the savings cards at a grocery store.

And you get the asshole know-it-alls that answer "No thankyou" when you ask if they have one. Thankyou for what shitface? Did I ask you if you wanted to sign up? I didn't think so.

[Gurndigarn]

And you get the asshole know-it-alls that answer "No thankyou" when you ask if they have one. Thankyou for what shitface? Did I ask you if you wanted to sign up? I didn't think so.

I think you're being a bit hard on them. So many places push their store cards that it's just a quick pavlovian response to the question. That question has gotten as bad as "Do you want fries with that?", and it's usually asked in the same bored, I-know-you're-going-to-refuse tone.

[Mighty Girl]

See, I need a way to get them off my back while still being somewhat nice since I usually have my young daughter with me. Before I became a mom, I would usually say no a couple of tmes and if they got pushy I'd pull the shocker statement "Well, if you didn't charge such a---raping interest rates, I'd consider it". Then they backed off immediately and refused to even make eye contact (which was actually kind of nice after being harassed).

[Mighty Girl]

But I dunno, I'm not some overpaid corporate suit, so what I'm saying probably doesn't make sense.

I'm sure it crimps their lifestyles quite a bit..... after all having to step down from that Benz and get a Town Car instead... oh I just get all weepy thinking about it.

[CrazedClerk]

where I work we don't have credit cards, but we do have a store discount card. We're given a quota of so many cards per $ sold (for example 1 card for every $200 in sales) and expected to meet this goal weekly.

Sometimes I do and sometimes I don't. The cards a money maker for the company and we get no commission for selling them. (what's wrong with this picture?)

But here's something that will get your blood boiling: In our employee selling manual, it specifically states that we are expected to ask THREE times for the discount cards, even if the customer says "No" the first time. Not that I always follow that rule (in fact I very rarely do) but that's actually what it says in our book.

[pbmods]

I find that having a sense of humor about the whole thing really makes it easy on both parties. You don't want a card, but she has to ask you if you want one. Neither of you is happy with this situation, but you have to get through it. So have fun with it!

If nothing else, just flash a *GENUINE* smile when you say no. Makes it a lot easier on everybody. Even if you're in a bad mood, smiling does help make you feel a little better (there's science out there somewhere that supposedly backs this up). So do it anyway

On the other side of the counter, though I don't have to worry about selling store discount or credit cards, I have found that customers will be nicer to you in general if you smile at them and use unassuming phrases, such as "Did you know..." or "Have you ever thought about...".

Whenever I pitch a product or service, I start out by offering information and *then* follow it up by trying to close.

As an example, suppose I want to sell the camera on our store-brand film. The customer picks out what he wants, and then I ask, "Have you ever tried our *******-brand film? It costs less, but it will give you identical results to the national brand."

Customer follows up with objections that I can overturn, and eventually (usually), I make the sale.

Compare that to, "Did you want to try the *****-brand film today?" Usually, customer's won't even get to the, "What's in it for me?" phase of thinking before they say no to that (as Gurndigarn aptly put it, it's a Pavlovian response).

[Bella_Vixen]

"It also works well to do your best impersonation of David Spade in those Capital One commercials and say no in as many creative ways as you can.

I loved those commercials!

[friendofjimmyk]

people who can't/won't take no for an answer, and people who invade my space.

This reminds me of one evening at Blockbuster. Well, actually two.

1st story - The store was relatively busy, lots of people perusing titles and milling around. This female sales clerk stopped me not once, not twice, but three times to ask if I needed any help finding something. Just me. No one else. I felt a little uncomfortable as maybe she thought I was doing something wrong. I was never impolite to her, but the last time, I laughed and said, "No, really, I'm okay!"

2nd story - Same Blockbuster. They have someone employed there who is just a little too happy to be working at Blockbuster. Nothing wrong with that, it's just that I think the person is not all there. Nice, pleasant lady, but very persistent and knows EVERY special the store is running. She greeted everyone walking in, told everyone the special movie deal, was rather loud, but not overbearing. When I walked up to the line with two movies, she told me that there was a three movie special. Okay, so I got a third movie, no biggie. When I walked back up, I also decided I wanted a bottle water and she saw me with my one bottle and told me their drink special. I declined. She told me how great the deal was. I again declined. She asked if I was sure. I said that I was. She proceeded to tell me about the candy specials. I declined....same as the drink deal. Asked me three times.

Even though both these ladies were nice, I like to be asked once. Just once.

And I too, HATE being asked if I want a store credit card. I even tell them that my credit is terrible and I will not qualify, but they still insist.

[MMATM]

Tell them that, and then hand them an Amex Signature Ultra Platinum Preffered Super Duper My God your Credit is Great card.

That made my day.

Valid point though, maybe they have a quota. It'd be pretty ridiculous to have one, but it's possible.

[RecoveringKinkoid]

"And you get the asshole know-it-alls that answer "No thankyou" when you ask if they have one. Thankyou for what shitface? Did I ask you if you wanted to sign up? I didn't think so."

Well, that's called "Cutting to the Chase." No, you didn't ask. But it's safe to assume you will. (I know you said you don't, but after getting bombarded by this crap at every other store, people are naturally going to assume it will happen again at yours. ) And people just dont' want to hear the sales pitch. They say "No thank you" as a polite way to tell you to save your breath.

I'd have to say Belk is hands down the worst. The record for me getting pitched to in a single shopping trip is 4 times. I'm polite, because I know they are forced to do this (one of them told me this. It was a slow night, and the cashier and I were chit chatting.) Most are not persistant with me, probably because when I am firm or curt, I am VERY firm or curt.

[RecoveringKinkoid]

Okay, I went to Books a Million tonight and I got a persistant one. The clerk was very, very nice, and I was nice back to him, but he seriously began to get on my nerves toward the end there.

I wasn't sucky to him, but if I had been, it would have been because he invited it.

Clerk: Will you be paying with cash, visa, or store credit card?
Me: Visa check card.
Clerk: Do you have a store credit card?
Me: No. I don't need one, I don't usually buy books in stores.
Clerk: Okay.

awkward pause

Clerk: This purchase would actually be perfect for that, you could get blah blah percent off....
Me: No, thank you. It's fine. I don't want one.
Clerk: Okay.

awkward pause

Clerk: (holding up some sort of coupon showing the discount with the store card) See, that's how much....
Me: (looking hard over my specs at him, ignoring whatever he's showing me, and giving him the tight smile that is not really a smile.) ......
Clerk: Okay. Have a nice night!
Me: You too! (sheesh! I wanted to )

[AFpheonix]

Maybe I'm special, but I never have this problem with people. They ask me once, I smile nicely and tell them I'm all good, I'm left alone. Or....maybe it looks like I have no money, either

We have a discount drug card you can sign up for for $20 per year, and usually it pays for itself on the first fill, but we are NOT encouraged to tell people about it, unless they don't have coverage and specifically ask if there's any sort of plan available, at which point I can start the schpiel.

[MadMike]

Okay, I went to Books a Million tonight and I got a persistant one. The clerk was very, very nice, and I was nice back to him, but he seriously began to get on my nerves toward the end there.

I've actually stopped going to some places because of that type of thing. I remember one time at Media Play, I got it from two different people on the floor, and then again from the cashier. And not one of them backed down when I said no the first time. I stayed away from there for close to a year after that.

Not surprisingly, when I did venture there again, I found out they were going out of business. Guess I wasn't the only one who didn't like being harrassed like that.