For the past two years, consumer groups including Consumer World have tried to sensitize leaders in the supermarket industry about the discriminatory effect of offering certain grocery deals only when using a digital coupon (see story). The issue is that many seniors and lower income folks don’t have cellphones or internet access. As such, they have been cut out of a major way to save on one’s grocery bill at a time of very high grocery prices.
In addition, digitally-savvy shoppers have complained that the digital coupon section of supermarket apps is hard to use because there are hundreds of coupons there thus making that week’s sale item coupons hard to find.
So, are stores doing anything to address these concerns?
| Star Market and Shaw’s |
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MrConsumer got very excited recently when Star Market and Shaw’s in New England (owned by Albertsons) seemed to be offering an easy way to clip all that week’s digital coupons required to purchase advertised sale items with just one-click of the cellphone.
And when he followed their instructions, this is a screenshot of what he saw:
*MOUSE PRINT:
We tracked down the firm that helps create functionality like this for companies. They claimed it worked after testing it around the country (but we suspect they did not follow the explicit instructions noted above to scan the QR code in the app where it absolutely did not work). But, when we contacted Albertsons, they admitted they goofed.
The QR code does not scan from within the 4U Rewards app. We recognize that the verbiage in the flyer needs to be clarified, and our team is making these updates for future circulars. We apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused.
They also indicated that all the QR code does is bring one to the coupon section of their app where “the customer can click on the deals that are most valuable for their shopping trip.” So contrary to the plain wording in their circular, the company did not create a simple way “to add all the digital offers” to one’s account.
| Safeway |
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Albertsons owns many other supermarket chains including Safeway. For several years, they have utilized “clip or click” coupons but in only some of their locations. These allow non-tech-savvy shoppers to clip and use their digital coupons the old-fashioned way with scissors. Great! More chains should do that.
But despite what some might assume, those with the Safeway app cannot simply scan the coupons they want to load them directly into their account. They have to visit the Safeway website or app, and sort through the hundreds of digital offers there to find and e-clip them individually.
In reply to an inquiry from us, Albertsons demonstrated that roundabout way one has to e-clip digital coupons to one’s account. We suggested they could make the system so much easier if they allowed coupons in the ad to be scanned directly into one’s account. They did not comment.
Shoppers at Safeway also cannot automatically “add all digital offers” from this ad to one’s account by scanning the master barcode in the upper right corner of the circular. As with Star and Shaw’s, all that code does when it works is take you to the coupon section of their website or app. Then you have to find the ones you want.
We continue to hope that supermarkets will make it easier for all shoppers, tech savvy or not, to save money by being able to buy digital-only sale items with less hassle. That day is coming at some chains… so stay tuned.
Thanks for challenging these corporations. Albertsons/Safeway and Kroger – Fred Meyer (locally) have made the digital discount price applications intentionally difficult to use. Any IT application Developer would normally test the product they release and improve it to make it “user freindly”. This not the case for these apps.
On the Safeway app, you not only have to clip the coupon, but then you have to add all the coupons to your account before checkout. If they are going to have a sale, have a sale!! I wish we could boycott these stores but alas, we need to eat and we strive to save.
No surprise, and reminder if you DO use those digital coupons to verify whether they actually show up at the register. Unlike paper coupons, which will beep “accepted” and show right way during checkout, these are a little more hidden. Yesterday at Shaw’s I had a coupon clipped for Yogurt. Had my membership scanned at the register and of COURSE the coupon discount did not show. Fortunately, I paid attention and called it out and had it corrected. A reminder to always check. As with anything else technological, this is perfect for errors, mistakes, both accidental and intentional
Last Friday I tried scanning the QR code and got the same message. Normally there’s a bar code you can scan with the app and it immediately brings up the item which you can then add to your coupon list. Of course, I didn’t get the item (butter in this case).
I think what’s really happening is grocery stores can advertise a low price (maybe to get you in) but not to have to actually sell at that price because people just give up trying to use the coupons.
Our local supermarket chain also has this scheme. I thought nothing could be more irritating that the “loyalty card,” but I was wrong! Trying to go through the hundreds of online coupons is maddening. I don’t know what they were trying to accomplish, but they have succeeded in making me happier about taking my money to Walmart, with no loyalty card required.
Stores are figuring this thing out. I shop Kroger and Meijer in my area. Kroger has a qr code in their ad. I don’t use that. I go to the store without a definite list. My goal is to buy only the items with a Mega-Buy deal or digital coupon. Kroger is very good with applying shelf tags that clearly show the deals and which kind of deal it is. What they haven’t done is make it easy to find some digital coupons by just searching in their app. When I see an item with a digital coupon shelf tag I simply scan the barcode of the sale item in the app. When it comes up it has a place below the item where you can check the box and the coupon is loaded. I do the same thing at Meijer. If you aren’t prepared to use the apps the process is a lot harder.
I’m finding it a real annoyance having to load digital coupons using the laptop and grocers’ websites (no cell phone/app). If I see an item on the shelf at the store that I’d otherwise buy, but it requires a digital coupon for the sale price and I haven’t loaded it, I won’t buy it. I’m doing more and more of my grocery shopping at Winco, where everyone gets the same item at the price that’s on the shelf. It’s a better shopping experience for me. Also, Albertsons/Safeway changed the Rewards program, and I haven’t been getting enough points to use them before most of them expire at the end of the month. So that contributes to the feeling of a bad shopping deal at the store.
Why is it necessary to have to clip the coupon if the sale is being offered by the supermarket store itself? Why not plain and simple advertise that it’s “2 for $5” and leave it at that without having to clip out the coupon to get the discount? If seniors are having such difficulty with digital coupons, why not get rid of it all together, at least if it’s for store sales. I understand clipping out manufacturers coupons because you can get more discount on top of the already advertised sale price. Can someone enlighten me?
Tess… They offer some items only with a coupon because they don’t want to lower the price of the item for every shopper who buys it. That is the way manufacturers’ rebates work too. People always ask why doesn’t the seller just lower the price by the amount of the rebate for everyone? Because they could not afford to simply lower the price for everyone who buys the item. They count on most people not following through with the rebate process and thus they only have to pay those who do.
Fight the good fight Edgar. Unfortunately, I believe that some of this is pretty intentional. It is outright false to state that the barcode adds all the offers like they obviously advertise, but they’d also never want to make that QR code as scanners would just get in the habit of scanning it every time and never looking at the actual coupons. Like many other things in life, coupons have been redesigned to shove as may sponsored options in your face as possible.
My local store’s digital coupons are a flat out scam. They have no way of knowing who I am at the store. We don’t enter an account or phone number anywhere. You can load all the digital coupons you want. They just don’t “do” them at my local store (Rouses in Covington, LA. Not to mention that their gluten free section is full of wheat products, but that’s another story…)