The Holiday Rush

It is October and the Halloween candy has been out since the last week in August. . .really.  Then I went into work today and a customer asked for stamps.  The stamps had Santa Clause riding a sleigh.  And around the corner right next to the Halloween candy were Christmas decorations.  Seriously.  There was tons of Christmas stuff--holiday wrapping paper and ribbons, Christmas tree ornaments, Santa hats.  And it was only October!

I just think it's crazy how every year the stores seem to put out holiday stuff just a little earlier.  Before you know it we'll be stuffing turkey, then people will be putting up Christmas light, watching it snow outside and bundling up in hats and scarves.  Then we'll be celebrating a brand new year, waking up on January 1 slightly hung over.

But for now, for the next few weeks, I'm just looking forward to the fall leaves changing colors, Halloween, maybe carving a jack-o-lantern and cups of warm apple cider.

Happy fall everyone!   I hope everyone has a chance to stop and take a minute to enjoy fall and Halloween before the craziness of the holiday season gets into full swing!

5 Types of Customers

Working in customer service every customer is different (of course) but I noticed that there seems to be five "types" of customers who come in to the store.  If you work in customer service do any of these types of people sound familiar to you?

1. the over sharer. . ."My husband left me 10 years ago and he ran off with a younger woman and now I have to take care of his dog." This may sound like the title of a bad country song, but it is not. This is what a customer (I'll call her Nina) told me once when I asked how she was. Now please don't misunderstand me. Nina seemed very nice and I am sorry for everything that she was going through because divorce is never easy (whether it happened a month ago or 10 years ago). And I told her I was sorry for all that had happened. But, overall. . . ummm, awkward. I am just a cashier checking out your groceries. . .I'm not a therapist or even a bartender. I guess overall, if it made Nina feel better to talk about her problems for a few minutes then I'm glad I was there to listen.

2. The strong, silent type. . . I don't know if it's true but I perceive these people to be nasty and I generally don't like them very much. The cashier says, "Hi. How are you?" and the strong, silent type doesn't answer. The cashier says, "Do you have any coupons" and the strong, silent type just hands the coupons to you without saying a word or if they don't have any coupons they just stare blankly into space without answering. They never look at you. They never talk or smile.

3. The talker. . .I generally like these customers. They smile at you. They are pleasant. They make nice conversation--talking about sports or the weather, or their kids activities at school.

4. The Professional. . .The professional shopper comes in with a stack of coupons and almost every item they have bought is on sale. They are polite, efficient, and almost always rush to bag their own groceries (using the reusable bags they have brought from home, of course). If there is a mistake on their receipt they notice it--and generally notice it before they even leave the store. I like the professional shopper because they are smart and aware.

5. The Regular... I have to give credit where credit is due. My sister suggested that I write about the regulars. I had actually considered this earlier but didn't know what I would say about them other then they came into the grocery store enough that I recognized them, but then I thought about it for a while and here is what I came up with. Presumably everyone knows what a "regular" is (and no, it's not what happens what you eat enough fiber...ha ha). Generally I like regulars because it's nice to see familiar faces while your a cashier. The regulars (in my opinion) tend to "get away with" a lot more, too. Here's what I mean--I have a customer (I'll call him Harry). Harry is the strong, silent type and he always throws his money on the conveyor belt. Now for those of you who have been reading my blog for the past few weeks you know these are things that normally drive me CRAZY and the combination of both of these things together would normally cause my head to explode! But I always smile and talk to Harry (even though he doesn't talk back) because he is a regular. There's another customer (Alice) who breaks my number one rule because three times a week she comes into the grocery store 1 minute before we close! She actually came through the checkout at 11:55 once with a huge stack of coupons. I smiled, said hello and rang up her order. Then I gave her the total and she said to me, "Oh my god, I forgot my debit card at home. I just live around the corner, can I run home and get it?" Again...normally this would have caused World War III. But because Alice is a regular I smiled and said, "No problem." and she ran home and got her debit card. So that is why I think being a regular tends to benefit customers, too. The cashier gets to know the regulars and how they like their groceries bagged. There are some people who like their groceries bagged in plastic and not heavy. There are some people who like paper bags in plastic bags. If you become a regular the cashier gets to know your preferences. That being said I have a small piece of advice. . . find a grocery store that you like and stick with it. Going even a small step further I would recommend that you try to go to the store at about the same time every week--now, of course, I know this might not be possible for everyone. For example, if you like grocery shopping at night there are generally a handful cashiers who are always on the evening shift...so by going at the same time you will have a few cashiers who get to know you and recognize you. If the cashier gets to recognize you and gets you know they will be more friendly (and generally more helpful).

Are you any of these types?

Well, that's it for today. . .take care and happy shopping!

5 things I hate about being a cashier

1. The money. . .I know they always say money can't buy happiness but it could buy a better car while I drive around looking for happiness. And being happy is something that's really important but realistically you can't pay the bills with happiness. Anyway, the money sucks and by the time they take out taxes it sucks even worse. Let me just give one quick example. . . when I go to the gas station to fill up my car it costs between $35.00-$40.00. . .well my paycheck from the grocery store for the week is normally around $86.00. That means about half of my paycheck goes to filling up the car with gas. Some days it feels like its not even worth driving to work. . .but then I give myself a little pep talk and I remind myself that every little bit helps and I drag my sorry ass into work.
Also let me tell you a little story, I'll call it "A Tale of Two Paychecks." One paycheck is from a job where my take home pay is approximately $550.00-$600.00 a week as a paralegal, the other is the paycheck I earn working at the grocery store where I earn approximately $86.00 a week. Now many of you may say that this is an unfair comparison because one is a full time job and the other is working a few nights a week making minimum wage. And I agree with you--it's like comparing apples to oranges, but it's still discouraging. Imagine trying to pay bills and earn a decent living on minimum wage. . .it's tough. Think about some of your monthly expenses--Rent or a mortgage, bills, student loans, groceries, utilities, maybe a car payment is in there. It's more then tough it's pretty close to impossible to live on minimum wage.
2. It's BORING, BORING, BORING! This job requires absolutely no skill, no talent, no creativity, no imagination. It's mundane, mindless oh, and did I mention boring? You do the same thing for hours on end, you ask every customer the same question for hours on end. Like, "Do you have any coupons?" "Would you like paper or plastic?" Blah, blah, blah. It's like standing around watching grass grow...it's worse then watching grass grow and if you're not in great mood to start with having to stand around and cashier can be torture!
3. The uniform and that awful name tag! The uncomfortable, itchy button-up polyester shirt is gross. Definitely not cute!
4. That 2%. . . I said 98% of the customers are really nice and I definitely mean that. But then there is that 2%. . .the other customers. The other 2% can be bitter and nasty. Some of them yell. Some of them call you names. I had a customer call me a bitch once, all because I had the nerve to tell her that her coupon was expired. Overreact much lady and do you kiss your mother with mouth? Also when I was working at the bank, I once had a customer tell me I was really bad at my job. Ouch! Although, to be fair (and totally honest) I was a really, really bad bank teller. But I do realize that the customers (even the mean ones) are the reason cashiers have a job and the reason we get a paycheck every week. So yeah, customers are the best and worst part of working in customer service.
5. The money. Oh wait, I already said that. Number 5 is the awful uniform. No, I said that already too. Ok here is the number 5 thing I hate about being a cashier. . .about once a month our store raises money for charity (local children's hospital, the United Way, there was a campaign to end hunger). All of these are great causes and I really like that the store contributes to the community and does fundraisers for charity but I absolutely hate the way they do it! Cashiers are forced (practically with a gun to their head) to ask every customer that comes through their line if they would like to donate money. There are a few reasons I am so opposed to this. First of all--times are tough and money is tight (I know this--especially working two jobs just to pay the bills). So I hate asking people who have just spent $150.00 on groceries with 2 kids sitting in the shopping cart to cough up money they may not have (even when it is for a good cause). It sort of feels like entrapment at the checkout stand. Now I know that the person is always welcome to say no and not make a donation but I know how I feel when I go to a store and cashier asks me to donate to a good cause and I have to say no. I feel guilty and bad when I say I can't make a donation. Secondly, I really have no idea where this money is going or what portion of the money that is donated actually makes it way to the designated charity or how it is being used. . .so how can I in good conscience ask people to donate when I don't even know where the money is going or what is actually going to be done with the money that is donated? Also, there are some causes they seek donations for that I don't support so I don't like to ask for money.

5 Things I like about being a cashier

I had a terrible day at work on Saturday. I just kept thinking, 'I hate my job. I hate being here.' I am basically a prostitute, pimping myself out for $7.50 an hour--which makes me a very cheap prostitute, which is even worse. It's not even like I'm not even a high price call girl. But, I'm an optimist...glass half full kind of girl so I decided that today's blog would focus on the positive. Here it is. 5 things I like about being a cashier. . .

1. Flexible hours-this is pretty self explanatory. It's nice to be able to tell my manager when I can work and when I can't. If I need to request off or if I am going out of town for a week, no problem (well, besides not getting paid). Compare this to working at a typical 9:00-5:00 office job where vacation time has to be planned out as far in advance as possible. Imagine that you are out of the office for a week on vacation. You will most likely come back to the office to find a stack of phone messages on your desk and tons of paperwork to catch up on. At a typical office job there are deadlines and e-mails and paperwork. At the grocery store when your shift is over, you punch out and your done. You don't take paperwork home with you. And at the grocery store if I am scheduled and something comes up at the last minute and it turns out I can't work there is generally someone looking to pick up some extra hours, so I just make a few phone calls and I can find someone to cover my shift. I have to say the hours have really allowed me to have a well-rounded schedule. Being at this job has given me time to write, do volunteer work, take care of things around the house and do the other things that need to get done.
2. The people--I really enjoy working with people and being around people. Everyone I work with is really nice (well almost everyone) and it's a relaxed place to work. In my opinion there are very few places where you could work with a kid from high school for a few hours (and talk about how he just got his drivers' license) and then a few hours later you are working with a woman talking about taking her grand kids to the park and then talking to a college student about midterms. The employees at grocery stores are of all backgrounds, ages, and educational levels so it's a really interesting mix of people. The customers who come into the grocery store are young, old, rich and poor and the cashier gets to interact with all of them. And 98% of the customers are really nice, too.
3. Reading magazines (for FREE!) at the checkout. I am addicted to entertainment magazines but they can be pretty expensive. Working nights things generally slow down at around 10:30 or 11:00 at night so I have the chance to read all the magazines at the checkout stand (which I am really not supposed to do, but I do it anyway). This is how I stay caught up on all my celebrity gossip. Now this may not seem like a big deal (and yes, I know you can go to any local library and flip through magazines there for free, too) but hey, it's something. . .
4. I am writing about 5 things I like about being a cashier and I have to admit I got stuck at 4. But I thought about it for a while and the number 4 thing I like about being a cashier is the food. I love food so working at a grocery store is the next best thing to working in a restaurant, getting to be around people cooking and preparing the food. At the store I get to see what new products we have coming in. . .like did you know that they have pickles that come in snack-sized containers now? Yum! There's a new snack in the snack aisle called granola bites that I had never seen before that looked sooo good. I also found root beer flavored ice cream topping next to the peanut butter and jelly and for just a minute I felt like Christopher Columbus stumbling across the new world. I never would have known there are apple cider doughnuts for fall if a customer hadn't come through the checkout line with them. There are new oatmeal cookies with butterscotch chips that sounds soooo good. These are all products that I may never have seen if I wasn't in the store working. Also, I get to know what the good sales are.
5. I like that being a cashier helps me keep things in perspective and put myself in someone else's shoes. It can be easy to get frustrated when you are a customer--I think working at a grocery store has taught me to take a deep breath and try to be a more patient, understanding customer (not that this always works). I think about when I'm working how a nice customer can make my day much more pleasant and that makes me try to be nicer when I am a customer. I think being here has taught me in some small way to be thankful for what I have.

But it's my day off. . .

What are you doing reading this? It's Sunday. I'm taking the day off! Enjoy the rest of your weekend everyone!

Quote of the week

Hi faithful readers or those of you reading this for the first time... it's Saturday! Happy weekend! Every Saturday I will try to post a quote, a joke, or catchy little saying that I think is funny, inspiring, thought-provoking or just generally enjoyable. I know this doesn't really have anything to with cashiers or grocery stores but hopefully these little sayings will help get your upcoming week off to a good start! So here is the quote of the week:

"If at first you don't succeed. . .skydiving is not for you."
Hee hee. This one makes me laugh every time. Tune in again next week. Until then take care and happy shopping!

Tip of the Week

This weeks tip is simple...The tip is that it never hurts to ask (especially when it comes to questions about saving money). So speak up! Ask questions! Don't go home, look at your receipt and think, "Oh, I wish I had asked about that while I was still at the store." A customer came through my checkout line last week with a few dented cans and asked if there was any sort of discount taken off for dented cans. I wasn't sure but I told him I could ask. It pays to ask these types of questions. . .primarily, because (as many of us know) economic times are tough so if you don't mind a few dented cans in your cupboard it may just be an easy way to save money. And, of course, this tip doesn't just apply to dented cans at the grocery store. I mentioned before that I used to work at a book store. The book store where I used to work had a standard 10% discount for customers buying damaged merchandise. They didn't advertise this it was just store policy. I learned this one day when a customer came up to pay for a book she wanted to purchase. She handed me the book and pointed out that it was damaged. She showed me the damage and asked if there were any other copies of the book in the store. It turned out that was the only copy of the book we had in the store so she asked if she could have a discount. I asked the store manager and he came up and hit a key on the register that took 10% off the book. Voila! This customer would have paid full price if she hadn't asked for the discount. So don't be afraid to ask. . . the worst someone can say is "no" and then you are no worse off then when you started and if they say yes it was a fairly easy way to save yourself some green. I also went to another local grocery store and asked if they offered discount on dented cans. The cashier at the counter told me their grocery store generally doesn't offer a discount for dented cans and they would rather just send any damaged products (like dented cans) back because they receive store credit for them. But he told me that this grocery store does have a section of the store where they have discontinued merchandise and he told me those items are always discounted. Your grocery store may have something similar. And, of course, this tip doesn't just apply to questions about dented cans or damaged merchandise--don't hesitate to ask questions like if the store will accept competitor's coupons or the store's policy on taking expired coupons (for example, Bed, Bath & Beyond takes expired store coupons that they send out in mail). Well, I think you get the idea. And my dear, frugal, thrifty shopper, of course, I am not advocating buying damaged products that may be contaminated or could cause you to become ill (any product with a broken safety seal, for example) just for the sake of saving a few cents. . . that just wouldn't be worth it, would it? And of course each store has its own policies and procedures so I have just mentioned some of my own personal experiences here.

So, to sum it up. . . there are lots of ways to save money that the store may not advertise so think outside the box and ask lots of questions (if you have time--or just send your questions to me and I'll to come up with an answer for you). Remember and educated consumer is a better shopper.

Take care and happy shopping!