‘Just print the receipt’: Man always gives 1 star at Walmart self-checkout. But not everybody’s on board

In the modern era of quality assurance and the ability to survey every experience, shoppers have more opportunities than ever to make their frustrations with large retailers known.

Nearly every retail operation now offers a survey to customers, sometimes with an incentive attached.

Now, some customers are using these surveys to express their displeasure with a handful of things. For example, having to use self-checkout, or not being able to use digital wallets like Apple Pay.

In a video posted to TikTok that has drawn over 970,000 viewers, user Cabinet Carl (@cabinetcarl on TikTok) writes that he selects a one-star review in the self-checkout every time he goes to Walmart.

@cabinetcarl

♬ original sound - Cabinet Carl

The Daily Dot has reached out to Cabinet Carl via TikTok direct message. We've also contacted Walmart via a contact form regarding the video.

An audience divided

The eight-second video was somewhat polarizing to viewers, who fell into roughly two camps on the matter.

Some viewers were more inclined to give a higher rating, joking that they were rating their own performance.

"I always do 5 because im an excellent cashier," one commenter wrote.

"I choose 5 because I'm thrilled to check myself out so I don't have to interact with anyone," another echoed.

Others were solidly in the camp of only providing one-star ratings to these surveys. This was whether to prove a point to the retailer about using self-checkout or because they hoped doing so would improve the store.

"I used to work there, the cashiers would get yelled at if the stars were dropping because management would get a bonus for a certain star average," one commenter wrote. "I always press one now."

"I always do a one star because (in my opinion) the owners don't want to pay their employees and then they want to get mad when the customer doesn't ring it out right!" another said.

"I do this!" one user commented. "1 star is better than no review at all and I’ve noticed way more regular check outs open even when I go in to our Walmart late at night, so it must be working!"

What are grocery store surveys even for?

Grocery store surveys are usually administered at point-of-sale or through an invitation printed on a receipt. They measure customer satisfaction with certain aspects of the store and obtain data like purchase amounts and number of shoppers.

By collecting in-store feedback, retailers can determine whether they need to make changes to the shopping experience. This can include opening more manned registers or making different adjustments.

Are they always helpful?

Some say no. Customer surveys do not always allow the customer to differentiate between the corporation and the employees they've interacted with. If a customer has a moral or practical issue with a company's operations and makes leaves poor reviews, the company may assume that they are reviewing their direct experience with an employee, say a cashier or department manager. This can muddy the waters of how effective surveys are, and potentially have negative effects for workers, according to a Jacobin report.

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