Supermarket shoppers who avoid ordering online out of fear they’ll be given a “dodgy substitution” may be able to avoid the problem entirely. And, potentially score a freebie — with one simple move.
In recent weeks, Woolworths staff have been sharing screenshots of notes from customers who prefer to have their grocery haul delivered to their door.
While some are a little curt, or even a bit cheeky, with one shopper requesting home brand items be replaced with more expensive products, the majority posted online appear to be rather kind. “In between size is fine, hope you’re having a beautiful day!” someone scrawled in the note section after selecting a lamb leg roast.
“Thanks so much, hope you’re having a good shift,” another reads.
While it appears some customers write the messages with the hope of avoiding a surprise substitution, Woolworths workers revealed the split-second act could have an even bigger payoff.
It’s not every day that Aussies leave such polite notes for personal shoppers, “so it makes people happy”, and perhaps even a little generous, employees explained on Reddit.
“Last time someone wrote a special thanks message, I gave them a free cupcake. It makes everyone’s day to be nice,” one staffer said.
Speaking to Yahoo News Australia, a Woolworths spokesperson said the notes are “very helpful” for the supermarket chain’s personal shoppers, and “it is always a bonus when they receive a nice message from a customer”.
Woolworths workers say the notes could result in nice surprises for customers. Source: Yahoo News/Reddit/Username_Sladey
Woolies workers include surprises in online orders
Customers also shared the surprising responses they’ve received.
“I get nice paper notes back from my local metro store. With smiley faces on them,” one person wrote.
Another said they asked for “something deliciously creamy and indulgent” because they were having a bad day, and got a little something extra in return. If the store was out of stock, the shopper asked them to substitute it with “anything…just a treat”.
“They were so sweet and gave me two, wrote a note on one saying ‘Hope your day gets better with a second!’. My day did get better with that,” they recalled.
Someone else said she asked Woolies staff to pick bananas that “erred on the yellow side”.
“I put the note on there because I’d received several green ones over time even though I selected the ready to eat ones,” she said.
“I received a wonderful note in my shopping that they were as close to yellow as they could get them (they were only a touch green) and that I could ask for a refund if they weren’t good enough.”
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Nice shopper notes ‘always a bonus’ for Woolworths staff
A Woolworths spokesperson told Yahoo News Australia that the shopper notes option for online orders “allows customers to share specific preferences such as the ripeness of fruit or specific substitution instructions, to help our personal shoppers select items just as the customer would in-store”.
“Our personal shoppers take great pride in hand-picking the best produce for our customers and following their order closely,” the spokesperson added.
Yahoo News understands that Woolies has seen a steady increase in eCommerce, with sales from July to September last year increasing by 12.9 per cent.
The growth has been driven by Woolworths’ Same Day and On Demand home delivery services.
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