Maximizing Your Access to Batches

Shoppers choose Instacart for the flexibility it offers — providing an opportunity for you to work where and when you want, whenever is best for your schedule. We know that a crucial part of this flexibility is making sure you can reliably pick up batches whenever you want to shop, which is why we are constantly working to provide more resources and features to help you understand how you can maximize your access to batches.

Whether that’s by improving your shopper rating, knowing when and where the most batches are available, or unlocking all possible available batches in your area, we want to provide you with the tools you need to best understand how to get the most access to batches. As we work to deliver a consistently fair and reliable experience for shoppers, today, we’re introducing a few new resources to help.

Reintroducing Priority Access to Batches

At the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in North America, with an increase of customer orders and limited available inventory at many retailers, we found that shopper ratings were fluctuating based on many factors that were outside of shoppers’ control. Based on these factors, we temporarily paused prioritizing access to batches based on average star rating. We also automatically forgave all ratings under 5 stars, so the factors that were outside of shoppers’ control were not reflected in their rating moving forward.

In the last few weeks, the marketplace has rebalanced to allow the reintroduction of priority access to batches based on star rating. This means that starting this Thursday, June 11, the highest rated shoppers in your region will be able to view and accept batches first. We’ll continue to show available batches based on factors such as distance, delivery time, and eligibility such as alcohol or prescription certification.

As we turn back on prioritization, we want to make sure that we’re continuing to address ratings in a way that is reliable, fair, and accurate. While we’ll no longer forgive every rating below 5 stars, we will continue to forgive ratings for reasons outside of your control, which at this time includes ongoing lack of inventory at many retailers across North America.

Requiring Customer Feedback for Low Ratings

We know that shoppers always strive to deliver a great customer experience, and it can be disappointing when a customer chooses to leave a low rating, particularly if you don’t know why they’ve chosen to do so. Customers will now be required to provide feedback when they rate a shopper below 5 stars. This will help provide better visibility into why you received that rating and how you could improve in the future. We feel it’s important to collect this feedback from the customer and share it with the shopper to ensure you understand the customer’s concerns and learn how you might be able to improve moving forward.

Identifying the Areas with the Most Batches

We want to make it as clear as possible for you to understand where you might be able to find the most available batches. We’ve been testing a new feature over the last few weeks to help you identify nearby locations that may have more batches available.

If your current zone has limited batch availability, and there is another zone nearby with more batch availability, we’ll surface a map that may help you determine where you want to shop. The map lets you view orange and red “busy areas” that indicate where there are more batches available. By clicking on the map, you can view the locations and retailers where we’ve seen a higher amount of available batches, and can move to that area if you choose.

Testing a New Way to Accept Batches

We’re continuing to listen closely to shopper feedback and test new features to help improve the shopper experience. Based on direct shopper feedback, we’re testing a new way for shoppers to accept batches within the Shopper app. In several regions across the country, batches will be offered to shoppers directly rather than selecting from the list view, and they will be given time to review without other shoppers being able to accept the batch. We’ll be sharing additional information with shoppers in the pilot regions later today.

As we continue to act as an essential service for families across North America, we’ve been closely listening to shopper feedback to offer the best possible experience. We understand that shoppers want more clarity around how to access batches, how your rating can help, and why you receive the ratings that you do. With these changes, we’re hoping to provide more transparency and understanding for all shoppers. We are continually grateful to the shopper community for all that you do.

Instacart

Instacart is the leading grocery technology company in North America, partnering with more than 1,400 national, regional, and local retail banners to deliver from more than 80,000 stores across more than 14,000 cities in North America. To read more Instacart posts, you can browse the company blog or search by keyword using the search bar at the top of the page.