ShipVantage - Save on Shipping this Holiday!

Nov

20

2009

 

Talk about a great deal…has anyone heard of the new Holiday ShipVantageprogram on Sears.com? In my opinion, this has got to be one of the greatest deals – ever!

 

I was on Sears.comlooking for a new headboardfor my daughter’s bedroom when I noticed my selection was eligible for ShipVantage. With ShipVantage you can receive unlimited shipping on all mailable items to the U.S. for just $19.99 for a 60-day trial or $79 for 12 months. And yes, the headboard was flagged mailable!

 

Benefits include:

-shipping of 3.5 million items

-shipping as often as you want - unlimited free shipping

-shipping as many as you want - no minimum purchase required

  

Now, with the holidays near, this is a perfect option for me. I love shopping online, but the thing that drives me crazy is paying all the shipping charges. Just last week, I just purchased an item on a web site and then two days later I saw something else I wanted – thus, I had to pay two base shipping rates. The second item I bought was only $9.99 on sale (which was great price), but with shipping, it was $16 – nearly the same price I would have paid in store.  

 

With ShipVantage, I don’t have to worry about any of that. Shipping is free once I’ve purchased the membership, so I can place 10 $10 orders and don’t have to pay shipping each time. Also, if I want to expedite my shipping, I get a discounted rate.

 

*Membership includes unlimited FREE Standard shipping

*Expedited shipping is $.99 per item

*Premium shipping is $3.99 per item

 

As Black Friday nears (and with all the special promotions and Deals of Day on Sears.com), this is a great option for someone like me, who is a bargain shopper, looking for good buy.

 

SHC-MichelleH is a wife, mom and Sears Holdings employee who blogs about her experiences using Sears.com.

The Holidays Are Officially Here!

Nov

13

2009

Sears Wish Book. Need I say more?

 

It has been an exciting tradition in my family for years. My grandmother told me that the Wish Book came out in the 1930s. I remember as a kid looking through the Wish Book with my family. To me, it meant that the holidays were near!  Now, I am excited to be able to share this tradition with my own daughter. 

I brought the Wish Book home last week to get some gift giving ideas. (If you’ve seen some of my other posts, you know I am quite the planner!) My daughter grabbed the book from me, immediately! Our course, she flipped right to toys and circled everything she wanted for Christmas. She’s really good at telling me what she wants! The Barbie® Dream Townhouse and Pink Scooter made the top of her list.

 

Then, my husband picked up the book and pointed out some things to add to his list – a turkey fryer and a new TV for our room. (Great choices!)

 

I just can’t get over the fantastic selection of gift ideas and the great prices wrapped in to the new Sears Wish Book. And the best part is, the traditional hard copy version is complemented by an exciting, online interactive catalog, so shopping for those special people in your life is a breeze anyway you look at it.   

Next on the list – my parents in Texas!

SHC-MichelleH is a wife, mom and Sears Holdings employee who blogs about her experiences using Sears.com.

A Vacuum for a Birthday Present? Absolutely!

Nov

10

2009

My husband loves Dyson vacuums. He’s never owned one, but being the technology geek he is, he stops and watches the commercials every time they come on. Well, after nearly five years of asking, I’ve finally decided to get him one for his birthday in November.

 

With such an assortment at Sears.com, I had no idea which Dyson vacuum was right for us. I found it extremely helpful to review the customer ratings and discussion forums on the vacuums page.

 

 
  

The community provided such great insight, I was hooked from the beginning. After about 15 minutes of research, I feel I am educated and ready to make that purchase next week. I’ll keep you posted on which one I finally settled on.

 

SHC-MichelleH is a wife, mom and Sears Holdings employee who blogs about her experiences using Sears.com.

Tips for Holiday Shopping

Nov

06

2009

This holiday, things will be a bit tight for my family; as I’m sure it will be for many families across the country. Anything I can do to make my dollars stretch, even just a little bit, will help tremendously.

Between my husband and I, we have about 25 people to buy for this year with a $750 budget. We have one daughter, seven parents, seven grandparents, seven younger siblings, and six nieces and nephews – so it’s going to take a lot of hard work and creativity.

Over the next 6-8 weeks, I’ll write about my holiday shopping journey. Hopefully, we can work together to take control of our budgets and make our dollars work harder and smarter for us. Feel free to share what you have learned over the years. We're all in this together!

 

Below are a few tips that I will be implementing into my holiday shopping routine.

 

1. Set a Budget – This is a must! I have found that if I don’t formally decide on a budget (and put it in writing), I could spend up to 2-3 times what I had unofficially intended. And, this year isn’t a good year to get off track.
2. Make a Holiday List – We don’t realize just how many special people we have in our lives until we pull out the pile of presents from the closet and start wrapping. Be careful. This could throw off our budget! Take control by deciding from the start when it’s appropriate to provide a group gift or shop just for kids.
3. Don’t Forget About Those Gifts You Bought on Sale – In January! – If you are like me, you buy things when they are on clearance and put them away for future use. This could save you money or it could cost you. Most of the time, I find that I have way too many gifts for the number of people I have to buy for, because I bought things just because they were on sale. If you do this, just be sure to add the items you already purchased to your budget document/holiday list to help you pair up those great bargains with a loved one.
4. Buy Popular Items Now – Yes, I love sales, too, but popular items will sell out quickly, so get them while you can. If you don’t want a repeat of the Cabbage Patch dilemma of the 80s, purchase those special gifts now. If you aren’t able to purchase, see if your item qualifies for Layaway. For a small fee, you put your items aside and pay a little each week until you pay it off. Check out Sears’ new Online Layaway program for added convenience.
5. Get a Christmas Club Card –Purchase a Christmas Club Card online at Sears.com or Kmart.com. It is quick and easy, and you can earn a 3 percent reward just for purchasing. 

SHC-MichelleH is a new Sears Holdings associate writing about her experiences utilizing Sears.com.

Social Media “People Watcher” Turns Blogger

Nov

05

2009

I’m SHC-MichelleH. 

A thirty something, mom with one rambunctious 5-year-old daughter, a wonderfully supportive husband, a loving calico cat and a beta fish that fights with rocks. I’m also a budget conscious, working woman in grad school with absolutely no time for myself! I look for great bargains and anything that will make my life a little easier.  

 

I am not really a social media geek as much as I am a social media “people watcher.” I interject into conversations when necessary, but for the most part, I sit back and observe what others are saying. I do have Facebook and Twitter accounts because I love the brevity those mediums provide, but you typically won’t catch me blogging…until now!

 

Sears changed me. I am new to Sears Holdings Corporation (and the MySears Community) and have been an occasional Sears shopper for more than 20 years. While exploring Sears.com my first several weeks here, I realized that Sears provides an extremely robust online shopping experience. I totally appreciate the convenient tools they provide such as TV MatchMaker, Shoe Finder and Appliance Advisor. Anything to make my life a little easier is good news!

 

Check back soon, because I'll be blogging about a lot of interesting things, including life, love and Sears!  

But if you can't wait until then, check out the TV MatchMaker! It will help you find the perfect TV! I love it!

 

 

Sears Hometown Shop Talk – Customer Satisfaction

Oct

02

2009

What do you think about when you are asked about great customer satisfaction? 1) Were you greeted promptly? 2) Were you able to locate the products or services you were looking for? 3) Was the store neat and clean? 4) Quality of the product? I think the number one driver of customer satisfaction is often overlooked by many store managers, business owners, and service providers.

 

All of the above are valid drivers of customer satisfaction, but dedicated, knowledgeable associates are the key. Each one of us is a consumer and we all experience frustration with customer satisfaction from a store manager, business owner, or service provider on a daily basis. These frustrations usually end up driving us away from their place of business. Unfortunately, sometimes we settle for the best of the worst in satisfaction because we have no other options.

 

Imagine if your business had engaged, knowledgeable, and friendly associates! What would that do for your business? Customer surveys attempt to quantify the level of associate engagement, but that responsibility really falls directly on the associates’ supervisor or manager. Do we really spend enough time every day teaching, coaching, and training our associates? We all worry about sales and getting our assigned tasks done. But, how much energy do we put in developing our number one asset – associates?

 

Food for thought. Every business has had a great associate who decided to leave for one reason or another. When the associate leaves, there is a void, which impacts your business. The question I ask is, “Why did that associate leave? How could we have kept them on the team?” In most exit surveys, the number one reason quoted is not salary or benefits or work environment or schedule. It is “how I am treated by my immediate supervisor.” The simple answer to retain associates is to make sure you treat them with respect, listen to their ideas, and teach, coach, and train them every opportunity you get.

 

I started with Sears in 1971 as a tire installer in a small store in New Rochelle, NY where I was born and raised. A little known fact about me is that I have only received a W2 from one company, Sears! I have had many assignments and in almost every case I’ve been fortunate to work with teams that are passionate about our business and care about our associates! When I first started out as a Division Manager, I definitely had different priorities than today. I had four young children involved with lots of activities and a house to maintain on a limited budget. So, I made two requests of my boss. First was to make sure my paycheck was accurate and on-time and second was to have a flexible work schedule (so I can be a part of my children’s lives while working a 50+ hour work week). Obviously, my managers delivered and I, in turn, delivered by working extremely hard to meet or exceed Sears’ expectations.

 

If we look at each associate and take the time to understand and meet their needs, we will develop great associates who in turn will keep our customers coming back to us!

 

Please voice your opinion and leave us a comment and please support your locally owned and operated Sears stores.

About Me

My name is Jim Flynn. I am the Divisional Vice President, Operations and Process for Sears Hometown Stores, LLC.

 

About Sears Hometown Stores

 

Sears Hometown Stores are two Sears store formats located away from shopping malls. Hometown Store is locally owned and operated Sears stores and Home Appliance Showroom is the leader in home appliance shopping. Our friendly and knowledgeable store owners and showroom managers proudly serve your local community and offer you largest selection of home appliances, tool and lawn and garden equipment, and home electronics, exceptional customer service, best price guaranteed plus credit, delivery, installation and protection agreements.

 

Sears Hometown Stores established in 1993

www.SearsHomeTownStores.com

 

Sears Home Appliance Showroom established in 2007

www.SearsHomeApplianceShowroom.com

 

Sears in Spanish

http://espanol.sears.com

   

Sears Hometown Shop Talk – Holiday Shopping Tips

Sep

29

2009

Is it really too early to think about the holidays? Many of us would say “yes” it is. But, reality hits. The temperature in Chicago drops from 75 degrees to 54 degrees with 25 miles per hour wind gusts, my girls ask about Halloween costumes, my parents want to know Thanksgiving plans and now the holiday season is closer than I realize.

 

I ask myself how can I make holiday shopping easier and save myself the stress and anxiety of picking up last minute gifts.  We all know it is never fun picking a gift from the holiday gift leftovers. So, I gave myself the task of planning early and in my research I found some great tips.

 

First, make a list. I know it sounds so simple since 82% of us are doing it today and it is the easiest way to get started.

 

Second, set a budget (and don’t forget to save your change). In a time when many of us are being careful with our spending it is important to set a budget and see value in the budget. 

Then I realized there is a great budgeting tool available to me and everyone else this holiday season.  Why didn’t I think of this sooner?  It is the  Sears Christmas Club Card.  You can find the card at any Sears Hometown Store and it pays me back.  I can start saving today and place money on the card weekly either by stopping in the store or on-line plus Sears will pay me a 3% reward on the money I save.  Now I know I am way too busy when I didn’t think of this sooner. I will be starting my savings today.

Another great tip is to get the “easy” gifts out of the way early with Sears Layaway. My grandma always said it was the smartest way to shop. Gifts to the paper boy, teachers, and your boss don’t need to come out of your holiday budget for the family. So how can I do that without breaking the bank? First, my $500 holiday budget is now 3% higher (thank you Christmas Club Card savings program). Second, because Sears Hometown Stores has layaway, I can pick out all the gifts I need, pay for them over an 8 week timeframe, and have them just when I need them. Look out Will (he’s my boss), your Craftsman hammerhead (the hottest gift in tool innovation) is going on layaway today. 

  

The most important holiday tip is to enjoy the season, family and time together.  I know it all sounds so simple but every now and then a few tips can help make the holidays easier.  When you are shopping and working on your holiday lists, please stop by your local retailers and share your favorite tip.  We would love to hear your feedback at Sears Hometown Stores.

About Me

My name is Keri Durkin and I am the Division Vice President for Merchandising, Planning and Assorting for Sears Hometown Stores, LLC. I am excited to see how far my budget will take me this holiday season.

About Sears Hometown Stores

 

Sears Hometown Stores are two Sears store formats located away from shopping malls. Hometown Store is locally owned and operated Sears stores and Home Appliance Showroom is the leader in home appliance shopping. Our friendly and knowledgeable store owners and showroom managers proudly serve your local community and offer you largest selection of home appliances, tool and lawn and garden equipment, and home electronics, exceptional customer service, best price guaranteed plus credit, delivery, installation and protection agreements.

 

Sears Hometown Stores established in 1993

www.SearsHomeTownStores.com

 

Sears Home Appliance Showroom established in 2007

www.SearsHomeApplianceShowroom.com

 

Sears in Spanish

http://espanol.sears.com

 

 

Calling all Moms: Ready for your child to return to college?

Jul

30

2009

 

What are you thinking about sending your child off to college? Is this their first year? How are you planning to prepare - both emotionally and by making sure they have the things they need to get them off to a great start?

Sears has put together some great checklists to help you think through the basics - check them out!

We're interested in your thoughts! Share your parenting perspective on "back to campus"!