Archived Just thought I'd vent.

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GrumpyAP

Go To Six
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Jun 12, 2012
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I hate the coupon policy.

I'm getting it from all sides. Cashiers/GSAs/GSTLs who are of mixed conscience about accepting $825 in coupons for stuff but are told to say YES! to everything. AP Colleagues who want us to cut down on shortage when this is a growing trend in our area. ETL-GEs who won't support AP in preventing shortage for obvious people who are repeatedly scamming the system.

Why in the hell does Spot think it makes sense to say YES! to obvious shortage-driving folk; heavy coupon abusers, no-receipt-returns (probably from off the flo0r), price markdown (just take their word for it, even if it's obviously bullshit)? These people are not loyal. They are not guests who conceive of the local store as a valued member of the community's infrastructure. These are barnacles. Why do we give two shits of a fuck if we lose the business of someone who's scamming our pants off?

Apparently leadership would rather ignore the problem insofar as it immediately inconveniences them, rather than uphold a policy to its letter or maintain a position of professional integrity.

Moreover, I find it sucks a ginormous fatty that hourly people, with or without LEADER in their title, are not heard, considered, respected ... simply because they're not part of the bright-shiny-chipotle-ordering-on-channel-six clique.

Thank you. I will now prepare for my closing shift. :/
 
The tough part is that down the road some bright boy at Spot will look up and go OMG! we're losing a lot of money.
Then an email will come from above for everyone to start getting tough again.

Of course that will cut back on the scam artists but all the regular customers who got used the lax rules will get caught too and there will be screaming and gnashing of teeth.
 
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Ugh I get so mad! I had a woman with a $100 purchase the other day. She had so many coupons ($2.50 coupons for baby food including jars that only cost $0.50, $5.00 coupons for ANY pillsbury product so she grabbed cooking dough that was on sale for $1.50 etc) and my GSTL made me take them all. She ended up paying $0.65 for all her products.
 
You do not have to do "accept" and do the whole amount, you should be doing it manually and entering the correct price of the item, and writing that on the coupon. It says "up to", not "always" for the price being higher.

This drives me insane.

As does the OPs issues, but this is one part you can control and make it right.
 
You do not have to do "accept" and do the whole amount, you should be doing it manually and entering the correct price of the item, and writing that on the coupon. It says "up to", not "always" for the price being higher.

This is only for BOGO and free-item coupons where you have to specify the amount of the discount. If the coupon is for a set amount (example: $2.00 off XYZ item), it can't be adjusted.
 
You do not have to do "accept" and do the whole amount, you should be doing it manually and entering the correct price of the item, and writing that on the coupon. It says "up to", not "always" for the price being higher.

This is only for BOGO and free-item coupons where you have to specify the amount of the discount. If the coupon is for a set amount (example: $2.00 off XYZ item), it can't be adjusted.

This! If you are adjusting any other coupon from a manufacturer you are committing coupon fraud and will likely be termed once someone catches on.
 
You do not have to do "accept" and do the whole amount, you should be doing it manually and entering the correct price of the item, and writing that on the coupon. It says "up to", not "always" for the price being higher.

This is only for BOGO and free-item coupons where you have to specify the amount of the discount. If the coupon is for a set amount (example: $2.00 off XYZ item), it can't be adjusted.
I've never had fixed price coupons that were for more than the amount of the product, so I wasn't referring to that.

The practice at my store seems to be for the free and bogo, to just hit "accept anyway" giving them the max value instead of doing it manually. I'd not adjust the price of a printed coupon - but you can bet id be trying to make sure they were real. We get that $ back from the manufacture, so it isn't any skin off my back if they get it, but I will ensure the others match.
 
You do not have to do "accept" and do the whole amount, you should be doing it manually and entering the correct price of the item, and writing that on the coupon. It says "up to", not "always" for the price being higher.

This is only for BOGO and free-item coupons where you have to specify the amount of the discount. If the coupon is for a set amount (example: $2.00 off XYZ item), it can't be adjusted.

This! If you are adjusting any other coupon from a manufacturer you are committing coupon fraud and will likely be termed once someone catches on.
So you're saying, if I am buying a lysol product for $2 ... and I printed off a $10 coupon from www.boredhousewives.com ... and i'm using that ... and the cashier says 'yeah that dog dont hunt' and marks the coupon from $10 to $2 ... that cashier is in the wrong?
 
You do not have to do "accept" and do the whole amount, you should be doing it manually and entering the correct price of the item, and writing that on the coupon. It says "up to", not "always" for the price being higher.

This is only for BOGO and free-item coupons where you have to specify the amount of the discount. If the coupon is for a set amount (example: $2.00 off XYZ item), it can't be adjusted.

This! If you are adjusting any other coupon from a manufacturer you are committing coupon fraud and will likely be termed once someone catches on.
So you're saying, if I am buying a lysol product for $2 ... and I printed off a $10 coupon from www.boredhousewives.com ... and i'm using that ... and the cashier says 'yeah that dog dont hunt' and marks the coupon from $10 to $2 ... that cashier is in the wrong?

Depends on the store...at my store, we wouldn't be termed. My store, we are required to adjust it. My GSTL, who has worked with the coupon stuff, says that the manufacturers can (and do) check our transactions and will give us back the cost of the item/what we took off, but won't reimburse us for the full coupon in the example that GrumpyAP cited.

Honestly, I don't know if that's true or how it works, and in the end, don't particularly care anymore. I just do it how my boss wants it done....so I will save you all the trouble on jumping on me how it isn't right and I'll be termed for it...because I won't.
 
You do not have to do "accept" and do the whole amount, you should be doing it manually and entering the correct price of the item, and writing that on the coupon. It says "up to", not "always" for the price being higher.

This is only for BOGO and free-item coupons where you have to specify the amount of the discount. If the coupon is for a set amount (example: $2.00 off XYZ item), it can't be adjusted.

This! If you are adjusting any other coupon from a manufacturer you are committing coupon fraud and will likely be termed once someone catches on.
So you're saying, if I am buying a lysol product for $2 ... and I printed off a $10 coupon from www.boredhousewives.com ... and i'm using that ... and the cashier says 'yeah that dog dont hunt' and marks the coupon from $10 to $2 ... that cashier is in the wrong?

If the coupon is legitimate that scenario doesn't happen. In very rare cases if the item is on a very good sale you might get 50 cents of coupon overage, but yes you are not supposed to alter it. The manufacturer reimburses based on the printed coupon.
 
This is only for BOGO and free-item coupons where you have to specify the amount of the discount. If the coupon is for a set amount (example: $2.00 off XYZ item), it can't be adjusted.

This! If you are adjusting any other coupon from a manufacturer you are committing coupon fraud and will likely be termed once someone catches on.
So you're saying, if I am buying a lysol product for $2 ... and I printed off a $10 coupon from www.boredhousewives.com ... and i'm using that ... and the cashier says 'yeah that dog dont hunt' and marks the coupon from $10 to $2 ... that cashier is in the wrong?

If the coupon is legitimate that scenario doesn't happen. In very rare cases if the item is on a very good sale you might get 50 cents of coupon overage, but yes you are not supposed to alter it. The manufacturer reimburses based on the printed coupon.

Last Christmas there were some Little People coupons out for $10 each. The coupons were poorly worded, so even though they were meant for the higher priced, $20 items, in the accompanying explanation, the coupon just said "Little People item." So people were grabbing the $3 items and trying to use the $10 coupons.

The problem is, the manufacturer means one item, but doesn't specify it properly, and people find those loopholes. And it isn't uncommon at all, unfortunately.
 
I don't really understand all this cashier talk but I try to buy a 2$ item with a coupon that says 5$ off that specific item/brand, do I get it for free or what?
 
This! If you are adjusting any other coupon from a manufacturer you are committing coupon fraud and will likely be termed once someone catches on.
So you're saying, if I am buying a lysol product for $2 ... and I printed off a $10 coupon from www.boredhousewives.com ... and i'm using that ... and the cashier says 'yeah that dog dont hunt' and marks the coupon from $10 to $2 ... that cashier is in the wrong?

If the coupon is legitimate that scenario doesn't happen. In very rare cases if the item is on a very good sale you might get 50 cents of coupon overage, but yes you are not supposed to alter it. The manufacturer reimburses based on the printed coupon.

Last Christmas there were some Little People coupons out for $10 each. The coupons were poorly worded, so even though they were meant for the higher priced, $20 items, in the accompanying explanation, the coupon just said "Little People item." So people were grabbing the $3 items and trying to use the $10 coupons.

The problem is, the manufacturer means one item, but doesn't specify it properly, and people find those loopholes. And it isn't uncommon at all, unfortunately.

I've had this discussion with you before. It's very clear in our coupon policy what to do. In workbench it states. "The coupon value should not be overridden or adjusted , even if the item purchased retails for less than the coupon value." Do not adjust coupons down, it is a direct violation of Target policy.
 
And like I said, my boss tells me to do it, so I do it. I can't change what I am told to do because someone on the internet tells me differently. If he tells me that he has worked on the reimbursement side and says we get reimbursed from the transaction records and not what the coupon says, then that's what I have to go with.

And in the end, I just don't care enough to argue with him or you over it.
 
I agree that you can't go over your TL's head, but you shouldn't be telling team members here that it is ok when it's clearly stated on workbench in our coupon policy that it's not.
 
All I said was that it depends on the store, and at my store, we wouldn't be termed for that.
 
Coupons do not cause shortage unless they are fake, target gets reimbursed from the manufacture. Had a regional AP visit not to long ago and was told to not really worry about it unless you suspect the coupons are fake.
 
You do not have to do "accept" and do the whole amount, you should be doing it manually and entering the correct price of the item, and writing that on the coupon. It says "up to", not "always" for the price being higher.

This is only for BOGO and free-item coupons where you have to specify the amount of the discount. If the coupon is for a set amount (example: $2.00 off XYZ item), it can't be adjusted.

This! If you are adjusting any other coupon from a manufacturer you are committing coupon fraud and will likely be termed once someone catches on.
So you're saying, if I am buying a lysol product for $2 ... and I printed off a $10 coupon from www.boredhousewives.com ... and i'm using that ... and the cashier says 'yeah that dog dont hunt' and marks the coupon from $10 to $2 ... that cashier is in the wrong?

If the coupon is truly legitimate and the guest has the correct product, then the coupon value shouldn't be adjusted. Any overage would apply to the rest of the sale. If there are no other items in the transaction, then there's a problem.

It's very rare that this actually happens. Most of the time, the item is something of lesser value from the same manufacturer, such as a travel-size. The POS only seems to recognize the manufacturer, not the specific item, nor does it recognize manufacturers' exclusions (like no travel-size). For example, if a guest uses a $10 coupon for Crest WhiteStrips on a $0.99 Crest travel toothpaste, the POS will still accept the coupon even though the item is not the correct product because the manufacturer matches. This is why scammers buy tons of travel-size items and use lots of manufacturer's coupons on them - they exploit this loophole in the POS software.
 
I've heard from various big-for-their-britches ETLs that we get reimbursed for coupons based on weight. .... ORLY?
 
Coupons will be accounted for in expenses, if you want your shortage results to be impressive, focus on operational shortage and theft.

Also, coupons aren't reimbursed by weight, whoever told you that has absolutely no idea what they're talking about or they were being sarcastic. The only thing you need to worry about with coupons is that all of the coupons which are used by customers are turned in and processed correctly.
 
I've heard from various big-for-their-britches ETLs that we get reimbursed for coupons based on weight. .... ORLY?
Our DTL came for a visit and said exactly this to me as a reason to accept expired coupons and in general bend over backwards to win the guests back. That was the first I had heard of this practice.
 
From what I've read online, it looks like stores may have up to six months after the expiration date to turn in coupons for reimbursement, so even if that process takes two months, there's still a big window to take them.

Of course whether or not that six month period is true, is anyone's guess.
 
We've always been told that we weigh the coupons. We've also always been told that allowing returns of opened software CDs, DVDs etc. was against federal law. Are they just ignorant or dishonest?
 
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