Instacart - who does week in advance orders?

amother

Mon, Apr 06 2020, 10:01 am

I'm trying to instacart. I've been given lots of options and picked a store but after spending 20 minutes they only do same day orders and were booked.
Has anyone used Instacart? Anyone know if there's a google site that lists the stores and delivery options? My google skills aren't good now.
Thanks and brachos, to whoever answers and everyone.

amother

Pewter

Mon, Apr 06 2020, 10:21 am

depending on the shopper you can end up with only half the grocerys you order
in the app you should write no substitues by each item the shopper can sunstitute with what ever they want and it will not be kosher
once the shopper is shopping you can not ad items
you are lucky to get a time slot
they arrive 20 hours late but they tell u
they tell u when the order will arrive
\I ask for order to be left out side
u can tip on th app

Amarante

Mon, Apr 06 2020, 10:22 am

I do instacart in Los Angeles and delivery is generally about a week from when I place an order. The only store that is extremely difficult to order from is Costco which often shows no delivery available. I did go onto the App early Sunday morning to do a test and Costco would deliver but in a window of five days meaning it could be fulfilled at any time during that period.

The other supermarkets are the same in terms of availability of delivery time slots - I can get a slot about a week from when I place an order. I generally order to lock down a delivery time because you can add and modify until the order is placed.

There are two bottlenecks potentially. Instacart won’t put your order up for shoppers to select until your time has come. Once your order shows up, shoppers might not choose your order if the money isn’t good which is why tipping well is important as this will show up when they see potential orders. Of course tipping well is important just as a mentchlik thing because they are risking health to provide a valuable service to me. I am tipping at least 15% of total order.

If you have any questions let me know. Trying to place an order very late or very early sometimes helps get a slot.

ETA - You don't google Instacart. You download the App or go to their website - Instacart.com. You register and provide credit card information. Based on your zip code, the stores available will show up and you select which one you want to shop from.

Last edited by Amarante on Mon, Apr 06 2020, 10:42 am; edited 3 times in total

Amarante

Mon, Apr 06 2020, 10:28 am

Once the person is shopping you can text in the app. Often a shopper will let you know status of certain items.

When you select items you can let the shopper know what to do. No replacement or specific replacement Inventory of some stuff is low and so might not be in store.

amother

Mon, Apr 06 2020, 10:47 am

I'm in the midwest.
Let me clarify. I shopped in a store I like that is good for curbside pickup. The only deliver they offered was same day. I then shopped another store that should be good. The only delivery option they offer is same day.
WHO OFFERS WEEK IN ADVANCE SCHEDULING? sorry, just ranting.
I found the customer service number. Not taking phone calls. I'm chatting. Do I have to stare at the screen all day (it's been 40 minutes)?

Amarante

Mon, Apr 06 2020, 10:56 am

amother [ OP ] wrote:

It is a simple matter of supply and demand.

There are only a certain number of shoppers and since the pandemic there is a huge number of people who want groceries delivered through Instacart.

Before the pandemic I could get delivery the same day in a few hours. Now the earliest I can get is about a week from placing the order and I am grateful to get any kind of delivery slot at all.

Customer service is not available because the pandemic is straining Instacart's ability to provide services. They never dreamed their business would expand so quickly. Last week they said they were hiring 300,000 more shoppers just to meet the demand.

If you need groceries delivered, assume that it will be delivered at least a week from the time you place the order and then order accordingly. As I posted, while you wait for delivery, you can modify the order to add stuff.

Amarante

Mon, Apr 06 2020, 11:05 am

amother [ OP ] wrote:

Im ok if it comes next week. But the ONLY delivery option I'm given is Today, and they're ALL full. I cannot order let alone be disappointeed next week.

You can try ordering late or early to see if there are time slots.

Instacart is just a service that depends on individual shoppers. So you might have very few shoppers in your area and therefore not enough to service the demand caused by the pandemic.

Every area is going to have individual experiences because each area will have a different number of shoppers and a different number of customers.

amother

Mon, Apr 06 2020, 11:08 am

Amarante wrote:

Thanks. This clarifies.
It seemed like the magic bullet but truth is, I should be good.
We're ok for produce this week and Iprobably have a lead for next. I think there are drugstores that deliver for a product I really need.

Hope everyone has what she needs, berevach!

southernbubby

Mon, Apr 06 2020, 11:09 am

Although I don't need to worry about it at the moment, BH, there's two companies that ship odd produce, Misfit Foods, and Imperfect Produce. The prices are good but it's only for open minded eaters.
I don't know how long their stuff takes to arrive and they obviously don't sell kosher meat and dairy products.

amother

Puce

Mon, Apr 06 2020, 11:11 am

I've been using Instacart regularly for 2 1/2 years. Up until this pandemic, grocery deliveries were within 2 hours our less from 7 stores in the area!
Obviously now there is such a huge demand for grocery delivery. They can't keep up.
Last week, it became within 2 days delivery. Then I noticed on Friday, it was four. On Sunday it became a week.
I'm basically scheduling orders in advance with a few basics I know we will need. Then I keep adding to the order as the days go by, and I realize what else is needed.