Archived Red Card Cashier incentives?

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Target NPC said:
I will never understand how giving incentives to TMs will somehow make the GUEST want a Red Card.
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I'm sure you're joking but either way...

Everyone at Target is a salesperson, some people are naturally inclined to do well in that position, but I have a feeling most Target cashiers don't fit that mold. So if you give incentive to those cashiers to sell the "benefits" of the RedCard you open up the opportunity for more guests to apply.

I'll admit that it's kind of lousy that Target isn't successful enough from merchandise sales that they feel the need to push a credit card on every customer...but it's really not that big of a deal. The guest has every right to say no and you're crazy to think plenty of other companies (retail and beyond) don't push seemingly unnecessary things on their employees and customers.

It's just business and it's better to adapt and find your own way to thrive in your work environment than complain about it and bring everyone around down with you. (don't take that personally, just a general statement)
 
My store does random small incentives, like the next person to get a red card gets a drink from Starbucks. I don't drink anything from Starbucks so when I got it, I asked for a box of $3.50 protein snack bars that they were selling on the front lanes.
 
Keep in mind we are no longer just asking cashiers to ask if people want RedCards. We expect then to continue to try to persuade people after they say no. That is not an easy thing to do. That kind of salesmanship takes training and experience.
Also many of our guests are disgruntled by the time they get to checkout. There's no one on the floor to help them find the things we probably don't have then they have to wait in lines to pay.
I think our cashiers deserve incentives.
 
They stopped incentives at my store ages ago after people abused it ( people who got multiple red cards) nowadays maybe just maybe we will get stickers or a pencil from one spot but nothing like it was in the past like a gift card from McDonald's or free Starbucks.
 
BullseyeBabe said:
Keep in mind we are no longer just asking cashiers to ask if people want RedCards. We expect then to continue to try to persuade people after they say no. That is not an easy thing to do. That kind of salesmanship takes training and experience.
Also many of our guests are disgruntled by the time they get to checkout. There's no one on the floor to help them find the things we probably don't have then they have to wait in lines to pay.
I think our cashiers deserve incentives.
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So, so, so, SOOOOO true. When I was a GSA I kept telling my cashiers you're not doing your job by asking them if they want a Redcard, you're doing it when your SELLING them the Redcard. People usually say no right off the back because they don't know anything about it, they just think I don't want another card in my wallet. I'd tell the cashiers, after they say no keep ringing them up quickly and ask them if they knew it did this or they could save that, if they said no again then stop (2 no's is the limit, 3 or more is harassment) lol. If I saw them doing that and the guest still said no then there was nothing that could've been done and I'm happy because they're trying (I'd even give small incentives like being able to pick from a bucket of candy or chocolate I req'd out). My ETL-GE and I were both GSAs before getting promoted and she was telling me she did the same things I did when I was a GSA. At the end of the night if I have 3 Redcards and I only had 40 transactions, then there's no reason you shouldn't have at LEAST 2 and you had 400. Yeah cashiering is completely different at Target than it is at other companies but the expectations were laid plain the first day and obviously agreed to them. I could sound like that asshole GSA right now but at the end of the day the ETL and STL didn't go to the cashiers and ask them what was going on with Redcards, they went to me.....sorry for the length 😳
 
TeamRed said:
They stopped incentives at my store ages ago after people abused it ( people who got multiple red cards) nowadays maybe just maybe we will get stickers or a pencil from one spot but nothing like it was in the past like a gift card from McDonald's or free Starbucks.
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what do you do with you 549 acct then? Their must be a lot of food in the break room or FFF days 😵.
 
There's no way 😱 it would flag so quick that after the first time they'd be looking for a new job. That's worse than the ETLs get a group lunch with their P card myth 😵
 
Hardlinesmaster said:
Spot is starting a red card bonus thing, now.
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It's just for the 549, from what I gather. That's not going to motivate properly unless stuff is requisitioned just for the top-performing TMs.

cobycord said:
There's no way 😱 it would flag so quick that after the first time they'd be looking for a new job. That's worse than the ETLs get a group lunch with their P card myth 😵
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Yeah, I think some people just can't get over the idea that ETLs make enough money to eat expensive food whenever they want.
 
BullseyeBabe said:
Keep in mind we are no longer just asking cashiers to ask if people want RedCards. We expect then to continue to try to persuade people after they say no. That is not an easy thing to do. That kind of salesmanship takes training and experience.
Also many of our guests are disgruntled by the time they get to checkout. There's no one on the floor to help them find the things we probably don't have then they have to wait in lines to pay.
I think our cashiers deserve incentives.
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I agree. People who WANT high pressure sales jobs have them & they (like car/ furniture salespeople) are compensated for that pressure by being paid a commission. They SELL more & they MAKE more. Target instead pays cashiers the lowest starting wage and then "rewards" them with threats if they don't produce or pointless prizes if they DO. MY store has started telling cashiers that if they don't make their RED card quota during one shift they are expected to make it up during their next shift......WTF??!!
 
tinkerbell333 said:
I agree. People who WANT high pressure sales jobs have them & they (like car/ furniture salespeople) are compensated for that pressure by being paid a commission. They SELL more & they MAKE more. Target instead pays cashiers the lowest starting wage and then "rewards" them with threats if they don't produce or pointless prizes if they DO. MY store has started telling cashiers that if they don't make their RED card quota during one shift they are expected to make it up during their next shift......WTF??!!
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I still say and repeat that the expectation and the role of what needed to be done as a cashier is given with the offer amount. If they didn't wanna do it for the amount given then they could respectfully decline.
 
cobycord said:
I still say and repeat that the expectation and the role of what needed to be done as a cashier is given with the offer amount. If they didn't wanna do it for the amount given then they could respectfully decline.
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If you are good enough to sell red cards you might as well sell elsewhere and get paid for it. Macys and many department stores give commission to strong sales people.

I know you are an experienced GSA well versed in the companies party line. But Target has yet to convince us why red cards are so darn important. Its not even a true rewards card its a straight credit card. Costco has a deal with Visa and once did with Amex but their cashiers didnt ask you if you wanted one everytime you went thru the line.
 
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HRZone said:
If you are good enough to sell red cards you might as well sell elsewhere and get paid for it. Macys and many department stores give commission to strong sales people.

I know you are an experienced GSA well versed in the companies party line. But Target has yet to convince us why red cards are so darn important. Its not even a true rewards card its a straight credit card. Costco has a deal with Visa and once did with Amex but their cashiers didnt ask you if you wanted one everytime you went thru the line.
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It's not that I think that it benefits anyone or that I think it's a great card. Hell, I could not care less if every time someone applied a double rainbow appeared in the sky.....BUT the way I saw it when I was a GSA was this company that pays my bills and puts food on my plate placed me in a position where my main goal was to get as many people to apply as I could and that's what was expected of me. A sales floor TM is held accountable for having a crappy zone, a CA is held accountable for not bringing in all the carts and emptying recycling and trash before their shift is over, and a BRTM is held accountable for not pulling CAFS and not picking flexibles on time, so what should, if not Redcards, cashiers be held accountable for? I totally agree, if you're great at selling it then if you ever get tired of cashiering go be a salesman somewhere else. But until then you have to do what's expected of you....or if you don't like it....quit, at the end of the day a cashier not asking guests or not getting Redcards won't be there long anyhow.
 
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cobycord said:
It's not that I think that it benefits anyone or that I think it's a great card. Hell, I could not care less if every time someone applied a double rainbow appeared in the sky.....BUT the way I saw it when I was a GSA was this company that pays my bills and puts food on my plate placed me in a position where my main goal was to get as many as people to apply as I could and that's what was expected of me. A sales floor TM is held accountable for having a crappy zone, a CA is held accountable for not bringing in all the carts and emptying recycling and trash before their shift is over, and a BRTM is held accountable for not pulling CAFS and not picking flexibles on time, so what should, if not Redcards, cashiers be held accountable for? I totally agree, if you're great at selling it then if you ever get tired of cashiering go be a salesman somewhere else. But until then you have to do what's expected of you....or if you don't like it....quit, at the end of the day a cashier not asking guests or not getting Redcards won't be there long anyhow.
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I may not fully agree but I respect everything you said.
 
cobycord said:
But until then you have to do what's expected of you....or if you don't like it....quit, at the end of the day a cashier not asking guests or not getting Redcards won't be there long anyhow.
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Honestly, in the interview process, the whole RC thing is mentioned and yes, you agree to "sell" the cards but I don't think any cashier really accepts the job knowing/understanding that RC are such a big part of their job because it's cashiering.

I really hope the new Cartwheel takes off because it, more than anything, has made the guests at our store excited. They love scanning their Cartwheel, accruing points and getting free perks. People don't want a credit card or a debit card, dammit. Selling it is tough. Selling the new Cartwheel is significantly easier and the guest actually gets a tangible reward for their loyalty which is more valuable than 5% which basically covers the tax on a purchase.
 
I see both sides of this argument. Perhaps it's all the years that I spent having to push these on people and of course I never once liked doing it...But I learned how to make it work for me.

I understood it was a part of the job and tried to adapt to at least give a good pitch to a guest, so even if they declined, I could honestly tell my leadership that I tried my best.

I actually think this conversation would make great feedback for the thread regarding updating the new hire orientation. New TMs should have a clear understanding of the expectation to sell the card. To do that you really need to speak to the lowest common denominator and really break it down how important the process is to the cashiering role.
 
cobycord said:
I still say and repeat that the expectation and the role of what needed to be done as a cashier is given with the offer amount. If they didn't wanna do it for the amount given then they could respectfully decline.
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Ah, no. My only in person interview was with the STL, and all that she said about RCs was to ask me if I was 'comfortable' explaining the benefits of a RC. No mention of goals, quotas or expectations. At that time starting wage was $7.75. Even worse, new hires hired weeks after me were paid $9/hr in anticipation of the first wage increase.
 
@PassinTime ...WOW...when did you start? I remember making that much at Target 10 years ago.

Back then they certainly never made it clear just how "important" selling the RedCard would be. I certainly hope they've improved their communication regarding expectations.

I have orientation for this holiday coming up in a few weeks, so I'll see how they address it then. In my interview we only glossed over it but I assumed that's because I have a lot of Target experience.
 
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