Family Dollar Coupon Policy & Issues


 
TO: All store managers



FROM: Barry Sullivan



RE: Coupon Acceptance





DATE: January 30, 2012




Over the past several weeks we have received several customer complaints about stores not adhering to the coupon policy.


Here is a list of some of the important key points from the coupon policy we would like to bring to your attention.



1. Coupons are legal tender. As long as you send the coupon in the blue coupon envelope every other week the supplier will reimburse the store for the value of the coupon used. Do not act as if the customer is trying to rip us off. If you have the product to sell and the customer has a coupon for the product, accent the coupon and thank the customer for shopping in our store.

2. We DO accept all forms of coupons. Including manufacturers printed, internet printed, mobile coupons and Family Dollar coupons.

3. Most coupons state the verbiage "one coupon per transaction." This statement means that a customer can use one of these manufacturer's coupons per item purchased, not per register transaction or store visit. EXAMPLE: A customer wants to purchase 10 cans of dog food and the coupon states $.25 off a can of dog food "one coupon per transaction." The customer can use 10 coupons, one for each item purchased.

4. Coupons can be redeemed for items that are equal to the price of the item and reduce the price to free. These coupons have a dollar value on the coupon and are accepted regardless of the price of the item that is for sale. EXAMPLE: "$4.00 off a Scrubbing Bubbles kit" and the kit retails for $4.00 or "$1.00 off and Cover Girl item" and the price of a Cover Girl Queen item is $1.00. ACCEPT THESE COUPONS!

5. Coupons can be redeemed if the value of the coupon is greater than the price of the item. In this case, the value of the coupon will be discounted to match the price of the item. EXAMPLE: A customer wants to purchase a bag of Lay's chips that are $.75. They present a coupon for $1.00 off any bag of Lay's chips. The "Manufacturer's Coupon" button will be used to apply the discount. Apply a $0.75 discount to the price of the bag of chips. The customer can only redeem the value of the coupon up to the retail price of the item sold.

6. The picture on the coupon does not dictate the item the coupon can be used on. The verbiage on the coupon is what dictates what the coupon can be used on. EXAMPLE: A Cover Girl coupon has a picture of lip gloss. The verbiage on the coupon states "$1.00 coupon off any Cover Girl item." In this and all cases, the customer can use the coupon off ANY Cover Girl item(lip gloss, nail tools, nail polish, etc.)

7. Our current POS(point of sale) does not allow all coupons to be scanned. But, we DO accept all coupons listed on the coupon policy, regardless of whether the coupon scans or does not scan. In this case, use the "Manufacturer's coupon" button on the POS keyboard to manually enter the coupon. In some instances, you will have to split up the coupon value over two or more items to apply the discount. EXAMPLE:A customer wants to purchase two Cover Girl Queen items, one for $1.00 and one for $1.50. The customer has a coupon that states $2.50 off any two Cover Girl items. The "Manufacturer's Coupon" button will have to be used to apply the discount. Apply a $1.00 discount to the $1 item and a $1.50 discount to the $1.50 item. This will equal the value of the coupon, $2.50.


8. Coupons that are buy one get one free are accepted. The coupons will state "buy X get X free." A number of these coupons will have to be manually entered. The "Manufacturer's Coupon" button may have to be used to apply the discount. EXAMPLE: A customer wants to buy two Reach toothbrushes. The customer presents a coupon that states "Buy one Reach toothbrush and get one Free." The coupon CAN be accepted. If the coupon will not scan then the discount can be manually applied to one of the item for the full retail value. The "Manufacturer's Coupon" button will have to be applied to apply the discount.



9. We do NOT accept coupons that are for "free" items that do not require a purchase at this time. The coupons will state "Receive a free X"

Bottom line is the use of coupons is a common practice in today's retail environment. The entire store team must be familiar with coupons, the coupon policy, and how to apply them at the POS register. If we are not we will lose customers and sales.



The coupon policy is available on Portal. Use the word "coupon" in the search tool. If you have any questions about coupons, the coupon policy, or how to apply coupons in the retail POS, please contact your DM or the ETC at XXX-XXX-XXXX


Please remember that customer service is our number one priority. Treat all customers with respect, regardless of that form of payment they are choosing to use.



Please review the information with ALL team members to ensure that everyone understands our coupon policy and how they are processed at the register. Once the information above has been reviewed with each team member, mare this Project Management task as completed.



Thank you.

Barry Sullivan
Executive Vice President
Store Operations
Family Dollar Stores

11 comments:

  1. So glad i just saw this. i tried to use the 2.50 covergirl coupon and they wouldnt let me they acted like i was crazy wish i would have know this

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  2. This will be one to print off. In my small town even our Wal-Mart sometimes doesn't like printed coupons and I have to fight the good fight lol!

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  3. This is good to know. I have never had a problem but still, good to know. Thank you.

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  4. Problems too with Family Dollar employees accepting coupons listed in the above breakdown....I've read the store policy due to their "issues" but glad to see this posted as well

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  5. i think a lot of us it seems have had a problem with the using coupons at the Family Dollar Stores, This is information should be put out there for everyone to read, Thanks again for all this information Dorothy Boucher @tisonlyme143

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  6. Honestly, it all seems like common sense to me, but I guess they don't ask their employees if they have common sense when they hire them.

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  7. MY FAMILY STORE HAS A COUPON MAILER EVERY WEEK -BUT NOT TO MANY COUPONS,BUT WILL HONOR SOME....I LOVE COUPONS !!!!!!

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  8. Thanks for this. I've sometimes had issues with my local FD accepting coupons. I blame the management, not the cashier.

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  9. Maddie, I agree entirely. Management needs to know their specific trend of customers and adjust accordingly how they react to questionable coupons. I used to work in a grocery store in a bad area. We'd get shoplifters every night, and I'd say every ten customers or so would try to rip us off. The management at my store had a right to be suspicious towards "customers". BUT, if the customers coming into the Family Dollar stores are mothers and known neighbors, then managers need to be a little less paranoid.

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  10. I shop at Family Dollar sometimes; thanks for info.

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