Archived Suggestions (red card prompt?)

[ameliapond]

Hi all! I'm a new hire and today was my first day. I was hired to the sales floor, but they had me on the cash register all day. I've cashiered before, so that was no big, but the whole "you HAVE to ask EVERY guest if they want to sign up for a Red Card" deal made me so anxious. I work better if I get told what to say in that regard. They kind of just threw me to the wolves and expected me to at least get 3 by the end of my shift (and I didn't). Does anyone have any tips or suggestions? Cashiers, what do you tell guests to get them interested?

 

[lazyartist]

I find the whole "ask every guest to apply for a REDcard" ridiculous. To sign up for a debit, you'd need a check book; hardly anyone carries around their checkbook anymore. In the past week, I've had at least three guests who wanted to sign up for a Target debit REDcard, but they couldn't because they did not have checks with them. And no one wants to apply for credit. At my store, those who work in the Electronic section will say that they have an easier time getting guests to apply for the cards. But for those of us who are upfront, it's a miss 90% of the time. I suppose you can always ask your friends and acquaintances to swing by to sign up for a card. Just pretend you don't know each other and treat him/her like any other guests.

 

[mrknownothing]

http://www.thebreakroom.org/index.php?threads/red-card-drought.6770/

 

[Jill of All Trades]

My pitch:

"Would you like to save five percent today?"
"No."
"What if it wasn't a credit card?"
"N- wait. How does that work?"
"Our debit card is totally free- no fees ever- and you get five percent off every time you shop! It uses your existing checking account so there are no bills to pay- everything is automatic. It's just like using your own debit card, but you get five percent off everything."
"So it's free?"
"Totally. All you need to sign up is a check from the account you want to use."
"I don't have a check with me."
"Okay, well if it's alright I'll just put one of these (brochures) in your bag to remind you to bring your checkbook next time. Or we also have a credit card option that gives you all the same benefits- five percent off, free shipping from target.com and an extra 30 days on returns- and it's a standard credit card."


Obviously I didn't get through the whole thing with every guest- most people shut me down after "uses your existing checking account" but it worked fairly well for me.

 

[ZombiePanties31]

3 per shift is not a realistic goal. That's management's fantasy goal. Some days at my store we only get one or two cards the whole day. Just ask everyone and make sure you're talking up the check card sometimes. You can't force people to sign up, and the team leaders know that. But if you are at least asking, then they can't do anything about it.

 

[lazyartist]

My team leader would always encourage us before the beginning of our shift to keep asking the guests to sign up. But I notice that whenever she's cashiering as a backup, she never asks a single guest to do so. One of our team members who works in the deli told me that the last time she asked anyone to apply for a REDcard was two and a half years ago. She still works there and cashiers from time to time, so I'm guessing my store is quite lenient when it comes to those cards.

 

[isak922]

GSA here, with tips that has recently helped my store go from a 1.04 Conversion to a 2.14 in a two week period.

What I've been telling my cashiers during our mini-huddles basically breaks down to a few key points.

1. Always at least mention the benefits to the Guest. I don't honestly expect them to get a REDCard with a $5 purchase, but it at least gets it into the Guests mind for next time.

2. Be Positive. "Hey! How are we today? Good? Good! Are you going to be saving 5% today with your REDCard?". Have a catchy attitude. Again: BE POSITIVE. Excitement sells.

3. If a Guest is paying with a REDCard, THANK THEM! And remind them of other benefits. Free shipping from Target.com, extended return policy, Take Charge of Education. It's a conversation piece that will help with survey's, but it also plants the "seed" in the next Guests mind.

There will always be that Guest which will NEVER sign up for one. But if you talk about it the right way, it gets a LOT easier. Being comfortable with it is 90% of the work. Asking is the rest.

 

[PinkZinnia]

Management is very good at setting unreachable goals. They (district and above) want their numbers to improve, yet they continue to accept bogus coupons, give away the world every time a guest complains about something, but still feel that the credit card interest will make them mega bucks. -smh. Can anyone tell me what they make on the debit card? All I can think of is that they make money any time a person overdrafts their account and has to pay a fee.
As far as getting redcards - I ask every guest, I am persistent as hell, even when they say no, I continue, always nice about it. Sometimes I even thank them for listening to my spiel. If a person tells me they have bad credit, I will say, then apply, it won't hurt anything, and there is a chance you might get one. I used to get at least 2-3 a day. Many times up to 6 a day. Ever since the breach I'm lucky if I get 3 in a week.
The bigwigs need to take off their rose colored glasses and face reality that the numbers they want are a fantasy.

 

[Retail Girl]

PinkZinnia...with the REDCard debit card, they "make" more money because a guest who has a REDCard will buy more from us over the year than a non REDCard holder. Also, when they use the REDCard, that means that Target is not paying out a transaction fee to another bank, which they would if the guest used a different card.

 

[ameliapond]

Thanks guys. It really helps knowing I'm not alone. My GSA is totally intimidating (he kept walking back and forth behind me and giving me side eye my whole training shift), but I'm just gonna roll with it...

 

[GlobalJ]

It's 2014. I'd think we'd be able to do the debit card with a routing and account number. I've lost many opportunities due to the lack of checks.

 

[Jill of All Trades]

Thanks guys. It really helps knowing I'm not alone. My GSA is totally intimidating (he kept walking back and forth behind me and giving me side eye my whole training shift), but I'm just gonna roll with it...

Don't be too intimidated. Your GSA is keeping an eye on you because you are training and they probably want to be nearby in case you need help or there's something new they can teach you. Training is not the time a GSA/GSTL is looking to get you in trouble- training is when they want to be hands-on and help you develop good habits so that they can rely on you to perform well in the future.

 

[buliSBI]

Hi all! I'm a new hire and today was my first day. I was hired to the sales floor, but they had me on the cash register all day. I've cashiered before, so that was no big, but the whole "you HAVE to ask EVERY guest if they want to sign up for a Red Card" deal made me so anxious. I work better if I get told what to say in that regard. They kind of just threw me to the wolves and expected me to at least get 3 by the end of my shift (and I didn't). Does anyone have any tips or suggestions? Cashiers, what do you tell guests to get them interested?

Asking every guest is to CYA.

If its a noticeably big purchase $50 $100 or more. Start off the transaction with the guest about applying for the card, and then throw in another card question with the amount they could save at the end. And you can either apply for the credit card version or get the debit card version if you are worried about interest rates and payments.