New to online supermarket shopping-any tips?

MysteryMe

Yes, people are forgetting that when you sign in you get what is in stock in your local store.

I was trying to work out what my Waitrose click and collect bags were today, so mystery solved by GaleSF63 

Debran

Asda, for me, seems to be the only supermarket with delivery slots that enable me to plan ahead.

I make up my order and checkout, keeping a written list of what I have ordered and the date of delivery.  I then have another written list that I add any additional items to as and when I think of them throughout the week.  On the day before delivery is due I add/delete items on the order.  This way I have a better idea of what is in stock.  What's in stock will change from day to day between the time you place the order and when the order is "picked" so I've found this method easier and less frustrating than making amendments during the intervening days.

badger09

Debran said:

Asda, for me, seems to be the only supermarket with delivery slots that enable me to plan ahead.

I make up my order and checkout, keeping a written list of what I have ordered and the date of delivery.  I then have another written list that I add any additional items to as and when I think of them throughout the week.  On the day before delivery is due I add/delete items on the order.  This way I have a better idea of what is in stock.  What's in stock will change from day to day between the time you place the order and when the order is "picked" so I've found this method easier and less frustrating than making amendments during the intervening days.

Tesco works fine for me and no need for me to keep any separate record.

I choose my slot (I could have 1 priority slot each week but only book every 10 - 14 days). Choose a slot, start filling basket & check out to confirm slot. Instant email confirming date, time & items ordered. Then at any time up to 23.30 on the night before delivery, I can add, remove, increase etc whatever I want so I know what's in stock at that moment. Email confirmation of changes. I always check late in the evening before delivery.

Obviously nothing is guaranteed until it turns up. I've had a couple of substitutions, which have been perfectly logical and acceptable. Only minor gripe is, tried to order chicken thighs on 2 separate occasions - in stock when I last checked night before. Never received any, as apparently none in stock and, annoyingly, no chicken of any sort substituted, which I find really odd.

Debran

badger09 said:

Tesco works fine for me and no need for me to keep any separate record.

Wait till you get to my age.  You'll have notes on bits of paper everywhere.  

Same process with Asda as you have with Tesco (difficult to get a slot with Tesco though).  Like you, I get an email but I find a list is simpler for me to refer to.   Horses for courses.

Steve_L

GaleSF63 said:

Steve_L said:

I've just noticed that, if you sign into the ASDA online shopping website, cornflour is shown as "out of stock". It's made from corn, which isn't used predominantly in commercial baking, and it's not a ground flour. Its American name of "corn starch" is more accurate. As usual, if you don't sign in, it's shown as available. Has the person "managing demand" on the online shopping website made a revealing error?

If you sign in you get a more accurate idea of what's in stock for you because it knows which store you are served by.  

That's presuming that what you see on screen is based on what's on the shelves at that store. I suspect that it isn't and that ASDA are "managing demand" onto higher margin items. This is very easy to do online. It's also very tempting to do at present, because the "footfall" in all their stores has to be lower and their revenue must be as well.

I suspect that this is why, compared to the years when I shopped in store, I'm paying more for the same types of items. It's the cheap low margin versions that I have to choose that are shown as "out of stock". They were never so before when I shopped in store and, on the few occasions when I've had to risk my life and shop in store in order to get things I really need but can't get online now, there have been plenty of them on the shelves as before.

Shopkeepers have always managed demand. Imagine an old-fashioned shop. You go in, and the shopkeeper (who may or may not have Yorkshire accent and a stutter) asks, "Can I help you, Sir?". "Yes, I'm looking for <whatever>", you reply. The shopkeeper reaches down and brings out a selection of what you've asked for. The cheap stuff is still under the counter.

But this has never been right. And more so today, it means that I have to, at best, go without or, at worst, risk my life.

To this end, has someone on ASDA head office made the same kind of decision that Ford did about the 1971 Pinto? For information, they knew that the fuel tank could rupture in a rear-end collision. They calculated that fixing this would cost $113 million. They calculated that the legal claims from victims would cost $49 million. So, they launched a "death trap". However, such a decision would be easier for ASDA: how could anyone trace a CV death back to someone shopping in one of their stores?

Stompa

Steve_L said:

However, we have a new problem. ASDA (and apparently a lot of other supermarkets) have run out of bags. 

FWIW, since lockdown began I've had five deliveries from Asda. The first was in bags, the subsequent four were not.

pumpkin89

Steve_L said:
on the few occasions when I've had to risk my life and shop in store in order to get things I really need but can't get online now

Sorry, I can appreciate your frustration, but it's ridiculous to claim that a cheap product being out of stock online means you need to risk your life.  Plenty of different types of food are cheap; of course we all want our own preferred items to be available, but ultimately there is a lot of choice (and you don't have to be loyal to Asda, since you're finding them so annoying!)

GaleSF63

Steve L - The store you shop in may not be where your online order comes from. There are several Tescos, including 2 superstores,  nearer to me than the one which delivers which is 30 miles away. 

I think ASDA will more likely be worrying about getting stock into the shops whatever it is, at the moment, rather than picking and choosing. Probably whatever is quickest. 

athomegrind

I try to use a combination of discount codes, loyalty cards and cashback websites whenever I need to do any online food shopping. I am genuinely surprised about how much money I have saved so far

badger09

Debran said:

badger09 said:

Tesco works fine for me and no need for me to keep any separate record.

Wait till you get to my age.  You'll have notes on bits of paper everywhere.  

Same process with Asda as you have with Tesco (difficult to get a slot with Tesco though).  Like you, I get an email but I find a list is simpler for me to refer to.   Horses for courses.

I'm no 'spring' badger but I'm very familiar & comfortable with electronic notes & communication methods. Far more convenient for me to keep everything I need to remember/keep a record of (which is just about everything!) in my phone. Husband only 3 years older is still very 'paper based' lol. As you say, horses for courses.