Guess what – you’re doing great!  You took the first step by signing up, then you built your confidence by going out there and starting – which we all know is the hardest part!  What next?  Now, you need to get faster and better so you can make more money!  That’s the goal right?

Today I will share some tips to keep you moving and making money.

• Accept your batches quickly and get moving
• Keep a notebook in your car to look your start/finish mileage for every shift and/or batch
• Take advantage of every down time moment – go to the bathroom, get a snack, log your mileage etc…
• When you get to the store park as close as you can to the cart returns
• In between batches, practice memory games on your smartphone.  This will help you remember the grocery list after one or two scans through
• When you can’t find an item – find a suitable replacement as quickly as possible.  Try not to second guess yourself – once you make a decision, stick to it
• If you can’t find an item, ask a store clerk if there are any “out back”

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• Always use the store bags – paper if possible.  Customers do not like having groceries delivered in boxes (such as from Aldis).  They never complain if they have to pay for the paper bags.
• Always put cold/hot items in a cooler bag to keep them at an appropriate temperature – you can get them pretty inexpensively on Amazon.
• When you are at a store that charges for bags – opt for paper rather than plastic.  They are more durable and can easily hold far more than a comparable number of plastic bags.  Many customers are repeat Instacart customers so you will see them on a regular basis.  At this time there is no way for them to select a specific personal shopper but they will get to know your shifts so you will see them regularly.  It is worth creating business cards for your services.  Besides at this time there are plenty of shifts to go around and I am sure it will continue to get even more popular – people are just too busy to shop.
• Keep a flashlight in your car.  I find it much more of a challenge to deliver in the dark.  Some people’s houses are not marked clearly and they don’t leave the porch light on.
• Dress for success – consider this your business and wear business casual.  I tend to wear a black pair of pants or black jeans, and a colored polo shirt.  You will get an Instacart tag on a lanyard that you can wear but to me it just gets in the way and is annoying so I don’t wear it – you are not required to.

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• Always bag meats, fish, poultry, fruit and vegetables
• Do not give the customer their receipt – they get theirs in their email directly from Instacart
• Always keep a quarter with you in case you need to “rent” a cart
• Keep a phone charger with you – your job is relying on your phone
• Some people keep a hand truck in their vehicles to help with apartment type deliveries but I live in an area that doesn’t really necessitate that type of delivery
• Keep hand sanitizer in your car and use it often – the last thing you want is for some sort of dirty hand prints to be on their products
• In warmer months keep some sort of ice product in your cooler bags.  You can use frozen water bottles, or even frozen ice pops (my personal favorite so I can even eat one if I need to)
• Call or chat with shopper support if you need to
• Join Instacart Facebook groups – yes they do exist!

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