Retail Employees Trying to Sell Additional Merchandise or Credit Cards

I have heard many people complain about rude cashiers who either complain about their jobs or try to sell customers credit cards or more stuff. I have worked in retail for about five years now and take offense to some of the comments I have often heard.

First, I completely agree that retail employees should not be rude to customers. If there were no customers, I would not have a job. If you don't like your job, keep it to yourself. This is something everyone should keep in mind, not just retail employees. Customers and coworkers probably don't want to hear incessant complaining.

I have heard more than one person say if a cashier doesn't like their job so much, they should go back to school so they can get a better job. Did it occur to you the person ringing you up may have already gone to school? That this may be the best job they can find at the moment? Fantastic jobs can be hard to come by. I got my B.A. a year ago, and I know other retail employees who have gone to school. A girl's gotta eat, and a retail job does put food on the table. Please don't assume a retail employee is uneducated.

Upselling, or trying to add additional merchandise to a customer's purchase, is annoying to some customers. I get that. If you really don't want to buy one more thing that's fine. But this is part of a retail employee's job. At my current and past retail jobs, associates have been expected to use suggestive selling so that the store will meet sales goals. Most stores not only aim to sell so much in a day, but so much per hour. Goals are also typically set for the average dollar sale of a purchase and average amount of items per purchase. Additionally, associates may be given their own sales goals they have to meet in order to keep their job. So if a cashier asks you if you'd like to add one more thing, don't flip.

I also understand that it can be annoying to be asked to open a credit card every time you shop. However, credit cards are so important to stores that associates are required to open a certain number of credit cards per shift or per week. Associates are also required to ask every customer if they'd like to open one. This has been a requirement of all associates at all stores I've ever worked at. If you don't meet credit goals, your job can be at risk.

So, if upselling and solicitation of credit cards bother you so much, complaint to the companies. The cashiers are only doing their jobs for the most part. If you say "no thank you" and the cashier doesn't respect that, you have a right to be annoyed. But if you're asked once during the transaction to add on another item and/or open a credit card, and that's the end of it, let it go.