Waitrose

[StoneofDestiny]

Just tried the 'new offers' on Waitrose. You have download the offers at home but then scan to scan a QR code at the til point and click into a coupon for every offer. Surely they could put the offers directly into your Waitrose Card like M&S Sparks Card does?
Given John Lewis is on a downward track - surely making shopping difficult at Waitrose won't help keep customers. Anybody else found this as unnecessarily complicated?

Maybe Waitrose have been on Mumsnet? This was out in The Grocer today (shame the just can't add to the card!)

But a flood of complaints claiming the programme was “confusing” and “discriminating” towards those without access to a smartphone app have now forced the company to revert to a printed vouchers system

The Grocer has learned that “thousands” of the supermarket’s customers – particularly the older demographic – have flocked to its customer service helplines ever since the relaunch, after being told in store that their physical card was not enough to redeem MyWaitrose rewards

“We know this is a big change for our customers,” the spokesman said. “Digital first does not mean digital only and, now that we have a better idea of which customers are engaging using smartphones, we’ll be identifying customers’ preferred ways to receive their offers, including print at home, vouchers in the post and coupons printed at till.”

@eunace yes that does seem to be the way they've actually designed it...

HOWEVER some of the back end design fails can work in our favour. For example I now have a free newspaper voucher that appears on my app (as well as the website) every day. I no longer have to spend £10 to get the free paper. Can't see how that's good for Waitrose but it's great for me as I would often be running around trying to make it up to a tenner.

Also, this morning I used a voucher that was meant to be £5 off a bottle of port (who drinks port in March...) to get £5 off a bottle of white wine instead. It seems that the way it's been set up, as long as you stay within broad categories (in this case Beers Wine & Spirits), the voucher still works. I work in retail design so I have a professional interest in how these schemes work but I was pretty amazed to be able to do this.

I'm sure this isn't how Waitrose intended it to work but right now, I am spending less and enjoying bigger, more regular savings. The only faffy bit is the having to go to the website to get the offers onto my phone.

including print at home

Who on earth is going to print a voucher for 50p off stuffing at home!

It’s madness

The newspapers meant people spent enough to get a free newspaper. There’s no reason to spend anything now.

I'm so hacked off with the app that I really can't be arsed with it. I used to use my local Waitrose a lot, now I go to the next town and shop in Sainsburys where you at least get Nectar points.

Too much of a faff for me. I'd rather have a free coffee.

There's an update to the Waitrose app now enabling you to add the eVouchers from the app, rather than faff email th the website.

Also it looks like they've quietly upgraded the value of the vouchers. Last order I got only £1 vouchers off my shopping - this time £4.50 in vouchers plus any other savings through over product savings. 🌹

Yes this is better however they should never have released a crap, clearly untested app, expect better from John Lewis.

Anyway you can still only pick 2, you still have to scan as a voucher. Why can't they be loaded onto the MyWaitrose card and why can't you have more than 2. The other problem is that if you pick your 2 and then they are out of stock you get nothing!

I am stopping using my loyalty card until they fix this. I can barely get my loyalty card on the app to scan in store anyway, let alone arse about finding and scanning separate vouchers.

Really poorly thought out. And their attempts to put the blame on complainers "We do understand change is difficult" actually gives me the rage.

Who on earth is going to print a voucher

I did! I have access to free printing and use my phone only for communication, so I'm not representative. You can do that already, when you click on the voucher and it opens up with the barcode, that can be printed. The lady at the till was pretty surprised too :) and agreed that the current system was not working well.

I agree about the inappropriate tone of the communications, incredibly condescending.

Well, I was all ready to fire off an email of complaint, pointing out the apparent stupidity of a move which would seem to be designed to reduce footfall, and increase customer dissatisfaction, when I though maybe I’d better have a closer look at the app first.

Downloaded with no probs (am verging on a demographic often described as ‘old’ on MN ), to find that my vouchers include 3 with £4.50 off items which I frequently buy, in addition to a separate section for newspapers which entitles me to a free paper every day!

I now feel quite shallow about how easily they’ve turned my head , but will reserve judgement until I’ve actually attempted to use the app in store, which might have me ranting again!

Where is the newspapers section?

I've used them; third week now, in store. My advice is to screen shot the vouchers if you are not sure re phone signal in store. The first week I had to do that and it felt fiddly. Last week I used the barcodes no problem; about to go this week and hopefully save £7.50!.last week I bought fish from the counter which had good savings on for my waitrose card holders also.

@Merrymouse

Where is the newspapers section?

When I went on the app, once I signed in (email, and password for Waitrose account which I’d forgotten, so had to re-set) I clicked on ‘my vouchers’. Then there are 2 options at the top - ‘just for you’ which has your individual offers, and ‘newspapers’ which offers a free newspaper each day for the coming week. Mine specifies the same paper every day (not the DM ), but don’t know if you can swap.

I only have ‘just for you’ vouchers.

I much prefer shops with no loyalty cards and just cheaper products, but I'm a cheapskate. I just haven't got the headspace to deal with offers / tokens etc

A bit better this week for our online delivery. Instead of 2 x 50p vouchers off regular products plus a newspaper voucher, we got 1 x £2 and 1 x £2.50 plus the newspaper one. So 'saving' £8 this week instead of £4.50 last week. Still a faff though to choose and add them and then remember to use them at checkout, but at least it helps to balance out the delivery fee.

Waitrose STILL haven't changed the name of their Chicken Kyivs though!

If it’s any consolation I spoke to he manager in my local Waitrose last night. I’d had to try and remember my MyWaitrose password to get the vouchers I’d chosen earlier (I chose them on my laptop but needed to use them on my phone), then realised I needed to scan my card first (also on my phone, but in a different place) and it was all just such a faff.

I asked the manager if Waitrose knew how unpopular this all is (I mentioned this thread!) and he said “Oh God, yes. They know because we’ve had an unbelievable amount of negative feedback”.

Just give us the coffee back and stop with all the bloody faffing.

Have just returned from a successful (voucher-wise) trip to Waitrose. No problems with phone or scanning at checkout. I met a friend in there who also doesn’t have the newspaper option, Merrymouse. She said she hadn’t often made use of the ‘free newspaper if you spend X amount’ offer, whereas I regularly got a paper, so maybe that’s why?

They've tried to reinvent the wheel and the new wheel is shit.

No newspaper offers for me either, using the website. I got a paper on almost every Waitrose shop, but maybe I was in there too rarely to count.

@Precipice

No newspaper offers for me either, using the website. I got a paper on almost every Waitrose shop, but maybe I was in there too rarely to count.

Same here. I’d swap all this crap for free newspapers in a heartbeat.

I complained too via email. Shopped a few weeks ago online and added the vouchers, then this week presumed when the offers were selected and card presented in store that the reduction would be taken off. Very poor reply from Waitrose which ended "hope this helps"! Not sure if it could be more rage inducing!

If you want the free paper complain by email and I expect they'd add it for you on request. I think I got it automatically because I shop there most days and always get a paper.

@Noisyprat if the thing is out of stock you can just use the voucher for anything in the same category. And in fact even if the thing isn't out of stock but you'd prefer something different in that category, you can still use the voucher. So I used a voucher for £5 off a particular bottle of port (that was v much in stock) to get a bottle of white wine that I actually wanted for next to nothing. Which is probably 'cheating' but I wanted to know how this whole thing was set up so thought no harm in having a go.

I couldn't see where to find this weeks vouchers on the app, it is very user unfriendly, however have found them now and are higher in value than previous weeks, but need to use screenshots as my local branch has very poor Wi-Fi.Can't say Im impressed overall, if M&S can add Sparks offers onto your card why on earth can't Waitrose do similar!