Starbucks Changes How Loyalty Is Doled Out

Customer rewards will be based on dollars spent rather than number of visits.

February 23, 2016

SEATTLE – Starting in April, Starbucks customers in the United States, Canada and Puerto Rico will earn two stars for every $1 spent on coffee, food, drinks and merchandise, rather than one star per visit under the coffeehouse chain’s current loyalty program, Starbucks announced Monday.

In April, My Starbucks Rewards becomes Starbucks Rewards, a loyalty program based on customer requests to be awarded more stars based on what they buy rather than shopping frequency.

According to the company’s “Ideas in Action” blog, when Gold members earn 125 Stars, they’ll earn a reward that they can redeem for just about anything on the menu. The loyalty program is upgrading all Welcome Level members to the Green Level so they can start enjoying more benefits of membership right away. Lastly, Starbucks is introducing a new benefit for Gold members: monthly “double-star days.”

Matt Ryan, global chief strategy officer for Starbucks, told USA Today that most customers spend around $5 per visit. “At that rate, a customer would still need to visit about 12.5 times, or spend a little more than $60, before earning a free reward,” writes the news source.

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