Here's how the Target visa card works--it's random, at least that's what we're told. But chances are, it asks you because you shop there a lot with another check, debit or credit card and the system knows you haven't used a Target card. So, this little window pops up and tells the cashier to ask you, even if you're only buying a candy bar and pop. Cashiers are encouraged to get at least 1 person a day to sign up.

You get a 10% off IF IF IF IF * you are approved that day in store. They print out a temporary card on receipt paper that you can use until you get the plastic one in the mail. The next 10% of you get in the mail with your card is usually ONLY for ONLINE PURCHASES! There is not a way to scan those, nor key in a code, because it is for ONLINE USE ONLY.

The 10% is a good deal if you're planning on making a big purchase, like lets say, a grill or patio furniture. Because why? You can apply, get approved, PAY OFF THE CARD THE SAME DAY AT GUEST SERVICE and then call and cancel the card. If you're one of those people who don't like using credit. Take advantage of the system, really.

You keep earning a point for each dollar you spend at Target, 1/2 point for each dollar spent anywhere else, because you can do that with a Visa card. When you get 1000 points, you get another 10% off. You can also sign up for Target to donate to a school of your choice, this isn't something you're charged for. Also, every 10 perscriptions, you can get a 10% off card. But you have to sign up for that one online or call.

Its really not that hard if you just read, pay attention, and ask questions. If you aren't getting clear answers, ask for a manager. Chances are, someone is at least trying to help and they're just trying to earn a living. Unless you're an LOD--Team Members aren't paid nearly what they should be for dealing with some of the people that shop there.

If you apply for either Target credit card (store card or VISA) and are approved while filling out the application in the store, you immediately get a coupon for 10% off shopping day for your purchase(s). One day. You do *not* have to use it that precise day (the cashier should ask you again if you want to use it right now or save it for later), and the coupons expire in 30 days. (If you're not approved on the spot, you'll get the 10% off coupon in the mail if you're approved after further processing.) Every time you use the card, you rack up points that earn you more 10% off coupons. Generally it's 1 point for every $1 you spend at Target, and once you hit 1000 points you get another 10% off coupon. There are other ways to accumulate points/rewards faster (pharmacy rewards, bonus points on certain items every once in a while), but I won't go into it.

If you use your coupon, either the one you receive after being approved or the one you earned and received in the mail, the cashier should give it back to you because you can use it multiple times that day. Again, you can use it for one day up until the end of the expiration day. Can't use it to make a purchase today and then use it again a week from now, etc. (Also, if you use your 10% coupon right away upon opening a card, the coupon printed at the register will have the date printed right on it saying that you used it that day.)

Furthermore, you have to use the Target card when using your 10% because your coupon is linked to your card. If you don't insert that Target card, it won't let the coupon go through, and you can't use a 10% reward with a Target card other than the account you used to earn it. So if you have the Target business credit card and personal Target credit card, you can't use your own personal 10% off coupon with the business one and vice versa. Contrary to what others have said, you can use other forms of payment (cash, check or Target gift card only) when using your 10% but you still have to charge at least part of it to the Target card. It's best to ask the cashier to charge a certain dollar amount to your Target card and then give it to them to swipe manually and then go ahead and use a gift card, etc.

I hope this helps someone!

So we can use credit cards, as long as they are Target issued.

For the record, the coupon I refer to was received via mail - a Target rewards program 10% off one day shopping pass. I use a pre-tax flex spending account for daycare which comes out of paycheck. I have to pay daycare first and then get reimbursed from the flex acct. I used to charge daycare each week and pay it off every month when I get the flex funds back. I have earned quite a few of the 10% reward coupons. Never had any issues until this one. I love shopping at Supertarget - good sales and good in-store coupons, combined with manufactuer cpns and the 10% I was saving over $45.00. During this visit I spoke with every manager I could hunt down and got the same story - "we can't override the computer to give you the discount". I used their phone to call the Credit card company (number on back of card) and they insisted their was no way to track by purchases to see if a target coupon had been used. I spoke with a supervisor at the credit card company and got the same story. I was in the store for over 3 hours (shopping & trying check out). Had to pick up my daughter from school and couldn't waste any more time with Target so I left the store without purchasing the cart full of stuff I had picked up. Since I got laid off my kids don't go to daycare so no more coupons for now. Makes me mad that it's their word againist the customer but they can not prove anything. I kept asking them to show me when/where I used it but nothing. (I realize I could have used it already but I doubt it since I am strategic when when using it -coupons, sales etc.) but hey Target just prove it to me and I won't feel jipped.

@kmiles: what is even better is that you have to use your Target card to make the purchase. I tried to use the 10% off with my debit card and they told me that I have to use the Target credit card in order to use the 10% coupon. Ugh! I said forget it.

About 3 weeks ago at officemax. A coupon my mother received in the mail that week was rejected at cash register. The checker didn't know why. When the checker asked the manager he looked at and first said it was expired. But wait it just came in the mail and the exp. date wasn't until the end of next month. Then he came up with the fine print reason. In the fine print it would work on sonthing we didn't need even though in the big print it should have covered the item we were trying to purchas. He said in the fine print that only select items in the big print catagory were actually covered by the coupon not the entire catagory. So we just walked leving almost $300.00 worth of merchandice on the counter and in the cart. because of a 10% off coupon scan.

I told him it was to complicated to buy anything from office max if you had to get a microscope and a lawyer to figureout the fine print.

They had a cart full of little stuff to restock from all over the store. it will cost them more in time to restock the merchandice then the coupon savings.

Recovering BestBuy Officemax rebate scam victom.

Target employee 10% discount applys only to cash or gift card purchases. You cannot use the discount when purchasing with a credit card..FYI

Target has to pay the credit charges and woud lose money
if they let employees purchase with a credit card.

Some managers make it hard to use the discount in the first place esp.for dependents using the dependent card.
Making it embarassing to try to use it..

Refusing to pay and making them back out the purchase would have brought a manager over to void the sale. Whereupon the odds are pretty good that he/she would have overridden the cashier and given you the discount.

Otherwise if they still didn't just let them restock the shelves and take your business elsewhere.

I wonder if they didn't accept it because of the recent target coupon scam that went round and they wouldn't accept a certain type of coupon? Maybe ALL 10% coupons got blocked.

Most of the time, yes, but not for the Target 10% coupon. It's good all day, and you can use it for separate transactions, so they give it back to you.

I was offred the 10% off at Christmas a few years back, and had about $300 worth of purchases. They transfered the transaction to customer service where I applied for the card, and was approved (to my surprise) saving me $30.

Since then, I use that card for most of my daily expenses, and pay it off each month, and I usually get a new 10% off coupon every couple of months. When it comes in, I make a big shopping trip to my local Super Target - I stock up on groceries, buy a pre-paid phone card, and even get my prescription for 10% off.

1. The employees understand how annoying it must be to be asked about
that stupid credit card every time someone bought something. My
electronics department used to joke about how annoying it probably is.

2. It is shoved so far down the employees throats to ask about a red
card (credit card) every darn time. I know when I was working there,
there was actually a screen on the computer that you had to clear
before finalizing a transaction reminding you of the 'red card'.

3. The computers don't give a reason for it being rejected, so how
would the average employee know why it was rejected? In my own
personal experience working for target, 9 times out of 10 it turned
out that the customers significant other had used it already ( mind
you this is after a 20 minute ordeal ). The other 1 time the 10% was
almost always just taken off the bill by the LOD (manager).

4. The interest rate is sky-high, so I would never suggest anyone to
get one of these cards even if it means saving that extra $30 on the
P.O.S. Target T.V. you are purchasing.

Every time you spend a grand, Target sends you a coupon card for 10% off purchases on any single day -- e.g., you can use it all day long, but it expires after that day. Never had a problem using these.

Correct me if I am wrong. But normally when you use a coupon dosn't the retailer keep the coupon? Most keep the coupon so it can be redeemed by the retailer. So obvioulsy the coupon could not have been previoulsy used or it would not be in hand.

@Michael Belisle: That's $5, not 10%. And for those that did legitimately receive the coupons through the mail directly from Target, those same individuals were sent another letter letting them know that the previous coupon should be discarded and to kindly use the included $5 Gift Card instead.

And to the OP: Simply call Target Credit Services (number on the back of your card) and explain to them. They are based in Minneapolis and competent. With my experience with them they are able to apply the 10% discounts to past Target purchases- and do so very liberally.

@cf27: Exactly. I would of come back later on in the day, loaded up 5 different carts and tried again -- once again, to be refused, then leave 5 carts of crap for them to return to the shelves LOL.

@roguemarvel: Agree on both of your main points.

As someone who has worked at both corporate and mom and pop places I can tell you, depends on the customer.

If you are being a big pain in my ass and making a big stink about something I can't do anything about or are just being a big bitch then good riddance. I don't want you in my store.

If you are truly getting screwed over and are trying to be nice (but still upset) I will bend over backwards to help you. Especially if you threaten that because I don't want to lose a good customer.

Of course I've run into more of the first then the second.

Exhibit A
10% off
toy purchase

or

Exhibit B
10% off
      purchase

There are signs at my Target showing a that they're no longer accepting a online toy coupon that people edited to make into an anything coupon. It's possible that this is that coupon.

The rewards cards can get annoying, but if you sign up for a credit card without researching it first you might be getting what is coming to you. In this case though, there is no telling what actually happened at the store or with the discount, but it would have been nice for the people working that day to give her the discount. I don't know what it is like at the store she shopped at, but one thing I am noticing with all of these Target posts lately is that every Target is different based on who is working that day or who the management is.

Ahh who knows, complain enough and you should get your 10% just fine.

"Quick note, Walmart owns target. "

Quicker note, no they don't.

Target (Formerly Dayton- Hudson Corporation,name changed in 2001 ) Trades under the ticket symbol TGT and reports no shareholdings by WalMart Corp. (The U. S. Justice Department would probably never allow this).

WalMart trades under WMT,has a market capitalization of $230 Billion and doesn't have enough cashiers.

Glad to set the record straight.

"I love it when they ask me if I would like to open a Target credit card and save 10% when I buy a 20oz Diet Mountain Dew. One of these days I'll take them up on it and save . . . 12 cents"

I worked at Barnes and Noble for a few years and I asked a guy who was buying a 50 cent newspaper if he wanted to purchase a membership card for $25 to save 10%...and he did!

@mythago: Actually, the Target credit card (at least the one we have) carries a 9.9% interest rate. I would consider it one of the best store credit cards around. Regardless, you should only buy what you can afford and pay off the balance each month.

Personnally, I hate credit cards, but my wife convinced me this one was necessary -- and I agree. As a homeowner with two kids under 4, we do a lot of shopping at Target. As a result of using the card, we get tons of coupons in the mail. We also use their pharmacy. Every ten presciptions filled (and, that's pretty easy with kids) awards us a coupon for 10% off everything the next time we shop.

By the way, your coupon is good for a whole shopping day. So, if you have to go to another store to get something not in stock at the store you are currently at, you can still use your discount. (Or, what I used to do, search the clearance at 5 stores in one day for the best discounts.)

I used to be a big Target shopper getting a rewards card every month, but once corporate shipped my hubby's job to India (IT job, not a call center one) I have barely used my Target card or even shopped at their store. Want to know why sales are down Target? You let go perfectly good people and now none of their families will shop with you!!! In my family alone, that is 37 people that changed their shopping habits to other stores.

With the opening of a new account they also gave me a coupon for 10% off my purchases for the rest of the day. The salesman told me that I could use a debit card at the front of the store to pay off my balance and then charge it up again, getting the 10% off.

Later that day I went into the store and paid off my balance on a debit card (instant funds transfer, right?). When I got to the register with my $200 worth of stuff, they told me my card was at the limit and I couldn't charge anything to it. The cashier actually put me on the phone with someone at their corporate office (or call center) who proceeded to tell me that they changed their policy so that transactions will not clear until the next day.

This combination of circumstances means it is impossible to use the "10% off for the rest of the day" coupon that they printed off when I opened my account... I bent over and took the beating, but I have shopped at target a lot less since that event.

The interest rates on the card are extreme. I wouldn't think of actually using this thing, but I guess the $120 I got off my TV was nice...

Thank god I am in College.

@mythago: yeah, I agree. As a student, I was happy to have store cards, you know, to build credit. But seriously, why does anyone even buy into this anymore? So you save 10%, but then you pay 24% interest -- 22% if you've been a good customer. It's not worth it.

I guess that should say MOST big box stores have so many customers...forgot about K-mart. :P

@Scoobatz: They don't, big box stores have so many customers they could really give a shit less if one leaves.

This applies to most big operations.

A mom and pop shop might take you more seriously since every potential customer loss could be damaging.

However for the most part the "I'm shopping/going to take my business elsewhere" is an empty threat.

Put on your negotiating pants and calmly tell Target that you're going to cancel your account, transfer your balance, and buy everything at Walmart from now on if they don't send you another coupon

Does this really work? I'm always tempted to tell the store manager that I'm going to take my business elsewhere, but do they really care? And, am I really never going to shop again at Target, Best Buy, Circuit City, Lowes, Home Depot, Walmart, Costco, Genuardis, Acme, ... and all the countless other stores that pissed me off at some point in the past?

If you are prompted while checking out for a Target card, you would save 10% on that purchase, and get a coupon for 10% off anything else you buy at Target that day. The coupon will already have printed on it the day the coupon is first used.

If you just walk up to a cashier and apply, then you get a coupon for 10% off a future shopping day. Also, you get a shopping rewards coupon, which is 10% off one day's purchases when you earn 1000 points/10 prescriptions from the pharmacy paid on you're card.

Simply put, the OP doesn't provide enough information to determine which 10% coupon was rejected. Furthermore, the cashier has no clue as to when the coupon was first used unless it has been dated.

And finally, I can take a Target card or gift cards with rewards coupons, but not cash. That isn't even a payment tender option.

(Statements are personal and do not reflect the Target Corporation nor are expected to be policy positions. Legal stuff about posting online, blah.)

I've been avoiding Wal-Mart because it's always dirty, crowded, and miserable and I've been told Target is a better choice. But I find the bright red decor unsettling and it seems their customer service is even worse.

As a former Target credit-card pusher, I can verify kmiles and cf27 are correct. The day you apply (and you must be APPROVED, using fake info won't get you anything) you get a coupon good for that day's purchases.
You also must use your Target Card to make the purchases, even though you can turn right around and pay it off at Guest Services. Maybe the 10% off coupon was rejected because she was trying to use a different card? Although a cashier should have known that.
The other possibility is that she was trying to use the "online" version. When you earn a new discount from using your card they send you both an in-store and an exclusively online 10% off coupon. I've gotten then mixed up in the past.
Either way, if she was buying a bunch of stuff and had a coupon Target should have just grabbed an extra one and let the lady have her discount.

I still rarely go into one, most of the things they sell aren't of a very good quality.

It sounds like she bought the stuff anyway -- I would have said "Fine. you're not giving me 10%? I'm not buying any of this stuff" and walked out.

I didn't realize target's profit margins were so thin that they couldn't afford a 10% discount!

Well where else would they fill it out at? They can't save money "today" if they don't fill it out in the store. When my father applied for one in line, they closed down the lane and opened up another one.

@TideGuy: What is even worse is if the person in front of you says "yes". Then the cashier whips out the credit card app. and the person starts filling it out AT THE REGISTER.

Or maybe there's an unscrupulous cashier using the coupons for those "friends and family" discounts."

Regardless, Target's managers should have sucked it up and offered the 10% off.

I love it when they ask me if I would like to open a Target credit card and save 10% when I buy a 20oz Diet Mountain Dew. One of these days I'll take them up on it and save . . . 12 cents

(well deserved in my opinion)