4 ms·

Sbux Math: Calculate Your Starbucks Reward Program Changes

31 points by SeanKilleen 11y ago

gitah 11y ago
I get a grande drip coffee every morning just for the star. Looks like I now have to go 32 times to earn the reward. Guess it was too good to last; I'm going to stop using the reward system and just drink coffee from the office.
- deleted 11y ago
  [deleted]
joeax 11y ago
Thanks. I didn't realize how much the new system sucks til I looked at the math. Before I was spending $30-40 bucks to earn a free drink. Now I have to spend $63 in the least, not accounting for truncating the cents off each purchase + tax, so more like $70-80 for the same perk.
- latch 11y ago
  "free drink"
- jchin 11y ago
  FAQ indicates you'll get partial stars for the cents. "What will happen in the new program if I spend an uneven amount? Do I get credit for the change?+ Yes, your change counts towards partial Stars. We’ll keep track of all your partial Stars and apply them to your total Stars. For example, if you spend $6.20 (i.e., not including tax, tips, alcohol or other exceptions), you will earn 12.40 Stars. The .40 is not always visible (we like to keep things simple), but you can always view your Stars and purchase history at starbucks.com/rewards or in the mobile app." http://morestars.starbucks.com/#section1 http://morestars.starbucks.com/#section1
  - SeanKilleen 11y ago
    This web site calculates partial stars behind the scenes. So the equivalent visits uses the sum (including partial stars) in the calculation.
  - joeax 11y ago
    Thanks for the clarification. The new plan is still terrible, unless they plan on ramping up more bonus star promos.
gd2 11y ago
This change feels like a bad fumble, even if Starbucks is a great marketing engine. Under the old program, even that it was kinda dumb, I liked getting the stars and the reward, and it somehow made me feel like a member a my club. This changes seems to bust that.
JoshGlazebrook 11y ago
The last change they made to their reward system decreased the amount of stars required to receive a free drink from 15 to 12 stars, but the big thing was soy milk and additional syrups were no longer free. This really pissed off non-dairy drinkers and I can understand why since soymilk is an extra $0.60. But now with this new change it seems like they're catering to the customers that already shell out the money for the $5.00+ drinks (frappuccinos, lattes, etc) in their larger size forms. It's like they're just giving the middle finger to the people who only come for regular coffee and teas. On top of that, they're making it even more complicated to understand. Like how exactly do they think managing hundreds of stars and calculating stars earned based on the amount of money paid is better in terms of simplicity for the ordinary customer vs. the current (soon to be old) system where 1 purchase = 1 star, 12 stars = free food/drink. It's overly complicating an already simple system. Surely there had to be another way to fix the issue of people wanting their orders split up into individual orders to get more stars while still giving more value (in stars) to larger orders.
- plaguuuuuu 11y ago
  Why bother going to Starbucks for regular coffee anyway? They're not good at it.
  - JoshGlazebrook 11y ago
    Their cold brew iced coffee is actually pretty decent. But I myself do mainly go for the lattes, iced tea, and occasionally frappuccinos. But as far as the new rewards system goes, for trying to be a coffee company, especially with the recent drinks like the "flat white" which cater more towards plain coffee drinkers and coffee snobs, they sure gave the middle finger to them with this change.
- toomuchtodo 11y ago
  > but the big thing was soy milk and additional syrups were no longer free. This really pissed off non-dairy drinkers and I can understand why since soymilk is an extra $0.60. > It's like they're just giving the middle finger to the people who only come for regular coffee and teas. Cater to your more profitable customers. Business 101. > It's overly complicating an already simple system. The previous system could be gamed. A revenue-based system can't be. Airlines learned this a while back. > Surely there had to be another way to fix the issue of people wanting their orders split up into individual orders to get more stars while still giving more value (in stars) to larger orders. This is that way.
douche 11y ago
Circle-K stores (Irving's gas station convenience chain) used to do a deal where you'd get a free coffee every six or ten. Most of the time, if you hit them in the morning, the cashier would just punch the whole card when you bought one... It's terrifying the amount of money you can save when you get in the habit of making your own coffee though. It's not quite on the level of movie popcorn, but it's up there.
- chrissnell 11y ago
  I'm painfully aware of the cost of my daily large triple-latte habit but I can't seem to motivate to do what it takes to replace my high-quality PNW coffee shop with homemade espresso. These are the obstacles, as I see them: - The espresso machine. The $150 one you get off Amazon just isn't the same as the La Marzocco that they use at a good coffee shop. Count on spending a minimum of $2,000 for a machine, or as much as $5-6,000 for a commercial-quality machine that will last for years of use. The quality of the grind is one of the most important aspects of good espresso, so figure another $500-1000 on a high-quality grinder, and another hundred or so for accessories and such. Yes, there are cheaper devices but there are reasons that the good stuff cost so much: high-quality all-metal construction, consistent and accurate pressure and temperature, serviceability, etc. - Learning to be a barista. Operating and maintaining the equipment, pouring technique, knowledge of coffee beans--these are all skills that I lack. I don't know where to learn them, either. I have a busy job and I don't have time to apprentice at a coffee shop. I wish there was some kind of class that I could take over a weekend where I could learn to be as good as the guys and girls working at my local shop. Still, even with all of the hurdles, it's worth it. I'm spending $35/week--that's almost $1,900 a year--on espresso drinks. I could pay for a nice Faema or La Marzocco in only a few years of drinking at home. EDIT: I spoke too soon. Look at this: https://a.zozi.com/#/express/seattlebaristaacademywa/products/64317 https://a.zozi.com/#/express/seattlebaristaacademywa/product...
  - x0x0 11y ago
    I cultivated a taste for aeropress. You don't need an espresso grind so you can get a good grinder for under $200, and the aeropress itself is under $30 on amazon. With good coffee it tastes great! Not as good as a cortado, but way cheaper. And no need to stock milk.
ww520 11y ago
The only reason I got a Starbucks card is for the reward. I actually didn't like the card since it tracked my visits. Now there's less reason to do so. When people are switching back to credit cards, those small transactions are going to hurt more with the per transaction fee.
boling11 11y ago
The best part of this change is the ridiculous email where they couched it by saying it was the "#1 request we heard from members."
- SeanKilleen 11y ago
  Yeah, that really grabbed my attention. Of all the people who've used it so far, I haven't seen any report that they'll be favorably affected.
fencepost 11y ago
I'm going to make a push to get my gold status renewed for one more year before the new program goes into effect, but after that I'm not going to worry about it much. I'm one of the people they're not looking for anyway, since I get either a morning blonde roast or a midday Americano when I do go in there. I also haven't actually been in very much since I got a Zojirushi mug for Christmas - these days I make a pot in the morning, fill up an older mug (for immediate drinking) and the Zojirushi mug for 2-4 hours later (when it'll still be quite hot), and I'm done with it for the day.
et2o 11y ago
I never understand the extent to which people get upset about these programs. Taking the absolute worst-case scenario: You spend only $1.75 every weekday morning on a plain coffee. This website says you now get a free drink every 36 visits instead of every 12 visits. Assuming you have 240 visits (48 weeks/year), that comes to $408/year instead of $385/year, or a difference of $23. That's only about 5% more. Over time, you'd save much, much more just making your own coffee or even buying a machine for the office. If you're buying a $3.65 latte everyday (apparently these are much cheaper nationally than in Manhattan), this rewards program change takes it from $832/year to $813/year, or about a 2% change.
jstelly 11y ago
This is a good change for people in offices that take turns buying coffee for a regular group of people.

31 points by SeanKilleen 11y ago

gitah 11y ago

I get a grande drip coffee every morning just for the star. Looks like I now have to go 32 times to earn the reward. Guess it was too good to last; I'm going to stop using the reward system and just drink coffee from the office.

deleted 11y ago
[deleted]

joeax 11y ago

Thanks. I didn't realize how much the new system sucks til I looked at the math. Before I was spending $30-40 bucks to earn a free drink. Now I have to spend $63 in the least, not accounting for truncating the cents off each purchase + tax, so more like $70-80 for the same perk.

latch 11y ago
"free drink"
jchin 11y ago
FAQ indicates you'll get partial stars for the cents. "What will happen in the new program if I spend an uneven amount? Do I get credit for the change?+ Yes, your change counts towards partial Stars. We’ll keep track of all your partial Stars and apply them to your total Stars. For example, if you spend $6.20 (i.e., not including tax, tips, alcohol or other exceptions), you will earn 12.40 Stars. The .40 is not always visible (we like to keep things simple), but you can always view your Stars and purchase history at starbucks.com/rewards or in the mobile app." http://morestars.starbucks.com/#section1 http://morestars.starbucks.com/#section1
- SeanKilleen 11y ago
  This web site calculates partial stars behind the scenes. So the equivalent visits uses the sum (including partial stars) in the calculation.
- joeax 11y ago
  Thanks for the clarification. The new plan is still terrible, unless they plan on ramping up more bonus star promos.

gd2 11y ago

This change feels like a bad fumble, even if Starbucks is a great marketing engine. Under the old program, even that it was kinda dumb, I liked getting the stars and the reward, and it somehow made me feel like a member a my club. This changes seems to bust that.

JoshGlazebrook 11y ago

The last change they made to their reward system decreased the amount of stars required to receive a free drink from 15 to 12 stars, but the big thing was soy milk and additional syrups were no longer free. This really pissed off non-dairy drinkers and I can understand why since soymilk is an extra $0.60. But now with this new change it seems like they're catering to the customers that already shell out the money for the $5.00+ drinks (frappuccinos, lattes, etc) in their larger size forms. It's like they're just giving the middle finger to the people who only come for regular coffee and teas. On top of that, they're making it even more complicated to understand. Like how exactly do they think managing hundreds of stars and calculating stars earned based on the amount of money paid is better in terms of simplicity for the ordinary customer vs. the current (soon to be old) system where 1 purchase = 1 star, 12 stars = free food/drink. It's overly complicating an already simple system. Surely there had to be another way to fix the issue of people wanting their orders split up into individual orders to get more stars while still giving more value (in stars) to larger orders.

plaguuuuuu 11y ago
Why bother going to Starbucks for regular coffee anyway? They're not good at it.
- JoshGlazebrook 11y ago
  Their cold brew iced coffee is actually pretty decent. But I myself do mainly go for the lattes, iced tea, and occasionally frappuccinos. But as far as the new rewards system goes, for trying to be a coffee company, especially with the recent drinks like the "flat white" which cater more towards plain coffee drinkers and coffee snobs, they sure gave the middle finger to them with this change.
toomuchtodo 11y ago
> but the big thing was soy milk and additional syrups were no longer free. This really pissed off non-dairy drinkers and I can understand why since soymilk is an extra $0.60. > It's like they're just giving the middle finger to the people who only come for regular coffee and teas. Cater to your more profitable customers. Business 101. > It's overly complicating an already simple system. The previous system could be gamed. A revenue-based system can't be. Airlines learned this a while back. > Surely there had to be another way to fix the issue of people wanting their orders split up into individual orders to get more stars while still giving more value (in stars) to larger orders. This is that way.

douche 11y ago

Circle-K stores (Irving's gas station convenience chain) used to do a deal where you'd get a free coffee every six or ten. Most of the time, if you hit them in the morning, the cashier would just punch the whole card when you bought one... It's terrifying the amount of money you can save when you get in the habit of making your own coffee though. It's not quite on the level of movie popcorn, but it's up there.

chrissnell 11y ago
I'm painfully aware of the cost of my daily large triple-latte habit but I can't seem to motivate to do what it takes to replace my high-quality PNW coffee shop with homemade espresso. These are the obstacles, as I see them: - The espresso machine. The $150 one you get off Amazon just isn't the same as the La Marzocco that they use at a good coffee shop. Count on spending a minimum of $2,000 for a machine, or as much as $5-6,000 for a commercial-quality machine that will last for years of use. The quality of the grind is one of the most important aspects of good espresso, so figure another $500-1000 on a high-quality grinder, and another hundred or so for accessories and such. Yes, there are cheaper devices but there are reasons that the good stuff cost so much: high-quality all-metal construction, consistent and accurate pressure and temperature, serviceability, etc. - Learning to be a barista. Operating and maintaining the equipment, pouring technique, knowledge of coffee beans--these are all skills that I lack. I don't know where to learn them, either. I have a busy job and I don't have time to apprentice at a coffee shop. I wish there was some kind of class that I could take over a weekend where I could learn to be as good as the guys and girls working at my local shop. Still, even with all of the hurdles, it's worth it. I'm spending $35/week--that's almost $1,900 a year--on espresso drinks. I could pay for a nice Faema or La Marzocco in only a few years of drinking at home. EDIT: I spoke too soon. Look at this: https://a.zozi.com/#/express/seattlebaristaacademywa/products/64317 https://a.zozi.com/#/express/seattlebaristaacademywa/product...
- x0x0 11y ago
  I cultivated a taste for aeropress. You don't need an espresso grind so you can get a good grinder for under $200, and the aeropress itself is under $30 on amazon. With good coffee it tastes great! Not as good as a cortado, but way cheaper. And no need to stock milk.

ww520 11y ago

The only reason I got a Starbucks card is for the reward. I actually didn't like the card since it tracked my visits. Now there's less reason to do so. When people are switching back to credit cards, those small transactions are going to hurt more with the per transaction fee.

boling11 11y ago

The best part of this change is the ridiculous email where they couched it by saying it was the "#1 request we heard from members."

SeanKilleen 11y ago
Yeah, that really grabbed my attention. Of all the people who've used it so far, I haven't seen any report that they'll be favorably affected.

fencepost 11y ago

I'm going to make a push to get my gold status renewed for one more year before the new program goes into effect, but after that I'm not going to worry about it much. I'm one of the people they're not looking for anyway, since I get either a morning blonde roast or a midday Americano when I do go in there. I also haven't actually been in very much since I got a Zojirushi mug for Christmas - these days I make a pot in the morning, fill up an older mug (for immediate drinking) and the Zojirushi mug for 2-4 hours later (when it'll still be quite hot), and I'm done with it for the day.

et2o 11y ago

I never understand the extent to which people get upset about these programs. Taking the absolute worst-case scenario: You spend only $1.75 every weekday morning on a plain coffee. This website says you now get a free drink every 36 visits instead of every 12 visits. Assuming you have 240 visits (48 weeks/year), that comes to $408/year instead of $385/year, or a difference of $23. That's only about 5% more. Over time, you'd save much, much more just making your own coffee or even buying a machine for the office. If you're buying a $3.65 latte everyday (apparently these are much cheaper nationally than in Manhattan), this rewards program change takes it from $832/year to $813/year, or about a 2% change.

jstelly 11y ago

This is a good change for people in offices that take turns buying coffee for a regular group of people.