I've worked at a Kroger store for about two months now. When I first started, the HR person said that I have to ask every customer if they've found everything ok and ask for the loyalty card. If I don't do those things and I get a secret shopper, apparently they can use that against me.
I ask 75% of my customers if they have a loyalty card. But I'm sorry -- I cannot do the canned, forced "Did you find everything ok?" thing. It is so cloying, basic and blah. It's everything I hate about corporate's (and my manager's) expectations for "customer service" all rolled up into one meaningless question. The question in and of itself is nothing more than an obvious marketing ploy. It gives off the vibe of being disingenuous. Yeah, I really hate that question! I hate being asked it at stores, too.
The few times I have managed to ask it, customers tend to mumble a forced "yes" unless they're of the bored Chatty Cathy variety. On the floor, I could see it having a purpose if a customer is clearly wandering around confused. If they're already at the checkstand, what am I gonna do now? Give them a map of the store and a list of the products we carry? lol
I have absolutely no problem with being friendly. I strike up conversations easily with many of my customers. I guess my question is, will this count against me if I have the unfortunate luck of getting a secret shopper? Do they really have some check list? Should I just suck it up and go into robot cashier mode?
Honestly it's just something that has somehow grown to be more of a 'habit' phrase more than anything else (or that's how I see it). There's no where in your conduct handbook that says it's required of you to ask that question basically.
A secret shopper is looking for several things: whether you acknowledged, assisted, and appreciated the customer. So if you ignore the customer that's the biggest flag, if you're mean and pissy that's another thing. Just be nice basically and make sure the customer has met all of his or her needs. Just simply ask: is there anything else I can help you with? Or something along those lines.
Also: if a customer asks you where something is make sure to bring them to the item instead of just telling them (AND engage the customer service you walk them to the item). Now if you're at customer service I dont think a secret shopper would ask you to take them to an item (or deli, or any other service department). But just giving you a heads up as many people have been penalized for these last two many times.
Honestly it's just something that has somehow grown to be more of a 'habit' phrase more than anything else (or that's how I see it). There's no where in your conduct handbook that says it's required of you to ask that question basically.
A secret shopper is looking for several things: whether you acknowledged, assisted, and appreciated the customer. So if you ignore the customer that's the biggest flag, if you're mean and pissy that's another thing. Just be nice basically and make sure the customer has met all of his or her needs. Just simply ask: is there anything else I can help you with? Or something along those lines.
Also: if a customer asks you where something is make sure to bring them to the item instead of just telling them (AND engage the customer service you walk them to the item). Now if you're at customer service I dont think a secret shopper would ask you to take them to an item (or deli, or any other service department). But just giving you a heads up as many people have been penalized for these last two many times.
This is not too bad for small stores, but jeez some stores are colossal with 30+ aisles. I don't see how there is time to walk people half a mile to their destination and back again lol.
I usually ask "Find everything alright today?" just as an ice-breaker, something to say aside from "Hi how are you", asking for a card, and "have a good day". It can be useful too, if let's say there's a lot of people complaining that they weren't able to find a food in produce, or if a long-time customer laments that they took a certain item off the shelf.
To my knowledge though, we were never penalized for not asking by secret shoppers, so long as we're attentive, greet them, ask them how they are, etc. we tend to get top marks.
Honestly it's just something that has somehow grown to be more of a 'habit' phrase more than anything else (or that's how I see it). There's no where in your conduct handbook that says it's required of you to ask that question basically.
A secret shopper is looking for several things: whether you acknowledged, assisted, and appreciated the customer. So if you ignore the customer that's the biggest flag, if you're mean and pissy that's another thing. Just be nice basically and make sure the customer has met all of his or her needs. Just simply ask: is there anything else I can help you with? Or something along those lines.
Also: if a customer asks you where something is make sure to bring them to the item instead of just telling them (AND engage the customer service you walk them to the item). Now if you're at customer service I dont think a secret shopper would ask you to take them to an item (or deli, or any other service department). But just giving you a heads up as many people have been penalized for these last two many times.
This is not too bad for small stores, but jeez some stores are colossal with 30+ aisles. I don't see how there is time to walk people half a mile to their destination and back again lol.
Well, the good thing is they don't grade cashiers on that. They won't ask someone on a checklane where an item is and expect to be taken to it. Anyone else out on the floor, however, is fair game.
TL;DR: if you're on a checklane, just tell customers where items are.
You don't have to say "did you find everything okay," you could say, "can I help you with anything" or "are you finding everything you need so far" or something. Like Going Bananas said, it's just an icebreaker, try getting into the habit of doing it for a day as much as you can, and then it'll come automatically and you won't feel like it's weird or whatever.
I usually ask "Find everything alright today?" just as an ice-breaker, something to say aside from "Hi how are you", asking for a card, and "have a good day". It can be useful too, if let's say there's a lot of people complaining that they weren't able to find a food in produce, or if a long-time customer laments that they took a certain item off the shelf.
To my knowledge though, we were never penalized for not asking by secret shoppers, so long as we're attentive, greet them, ask them how they are, etc. we tend to get top marks.
Yeah, but I feel like it's become such a cliche that most customers tune it out. I've rarely ever had a customer respond to "find everything ok?" in a way other than "uh fine thanks".
I love talking to many of my customers. I find that there's a lot to talk about, like whatever game is on that day, the weather, what they're buying, how my day went, whatever I learned in class that day... I just prefer to make jokes and be genuine and friendly rather than ask them canned lines.
Good to know about the secret shoppers though. So as long as you're friendly you don't get in trouble?
I got an A+ on my mystery shop last week but didn't receive any reward promised by management (3 OSAT dollars). So now I don't even give a **** about what the mystery shopper says about me since I'll be going around speaking Russian.
I got an A+ on my mystery shop last week but didn't receive any reward promised by management (3 OSAT dollars). So now I don't even give a **** about what the mystery shopper says about me since I'll be going around speaking Russian.
wow they actually had a reward...lol. With all the confusion in my store and getting my stuff done during my shift i dont worry about the mystery shopper.
I got an A+ on my mystery shop last week but didn't receive any reward promised by management (3 OSAT dollars). So now I don't even give a **** about what the mystery shopper says about me since I'll be going around speaking Russian.
Don't be so hasty to get mad about not receiving any reward. It was only last week. Some managers take a month or more to dole out rewards for things.
Eh, I was there during a mystery shop last week when the whole store got a 100%. The bakery was listed as a category with 100% on interacting with customers but then on the detail paper where it mentions who they talked to, there's one for E V E R Y department but ours. It's happened that way twice now. Deli gets mentioned but not us. So why try?
