The Couponator 5: Online Decline
Alberta, At The Checkout, Canada, Coupon, Retail | Right | April 21, 2018
(A woman comes up to my register to pay for her items.)
Me: “Hi, is that all for you today?”
Customer: “Yes. I have a $5 coupon on my phone; I just need to pull it up.”
Me: “Okay, great, no problem.”
(I see her struggle to load the page; after a few moments she shows me a blank screen.)
Customer: “It’s not loading, but it’s right here.”
Me: “I’m sorry. Since that’s just a blank page and there’s no barcode or sku number, there’s no way I can actually put the coupon into the system.”
Customer: “There has to be a way you can honour it! Can I speak to a manager?”
Me: “She’s not in right now; it’s just me. But even if she was, there’s no way our system will let us use the coupon since we can’t actually see it.”
(I spend a few more minutes trying to help her get the page to load. After a moment, I realize she’s connected to a Wi-Fi hotspot several blocks away.)
Me: “Do you have LTE?”
Customer: *blank stare*
Me: “Do you have mobile Internet on your smartphone? If you do, you’ll be able to connect to the Internet, as we don’t have Wi-Fi here.”
Customer: “I don’t have that.”
Me: “Okay, then, I’m sorry. It’s not possible for me to take your coupon today.”
Customer: “That’s ridiculous! What good is a coupon if I can’t even use it?!”
Me: “I’m sorry, ma’am. Next time be sure to print the coupon, or take a screenshot next time you are connected to the Internet.”
Customer: “This isn’t fair! You should be able to honour it!”
Me: “It’s not our fault that you don’t have Internet, ma’am. I’m sorry that you feel inconvenienced.”
(I ring up her purchase.)
Me: “Thank you. Have a nice day.”
Customer: *mumbles incoherently, snatches her bag, and storms off*
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