Starbucks Coffee

Thanks for listening and bringing a smile to our faces with the perks.  I love the happy surprises of coupons and special offers that arrive in my mailbox sometimes!

1) How about getting a free pound of coffee after (10) coffee drink purchases?  

2) Starbucks Card- for every $100.00 put on a card, get a free pound of coffee?

3) Limited Starbucks merchandise: ie: Hat, Shirt, Cups etc?

I honestly miss getting the 10% discount. Especailly because I'm out and about a lot and usually get food items along with my drink.

Maybe they should offer some sort of discount or stars for food item purchases too?

I miss the discount as well.  Also would like to use the cards a rewards card alongside my regular debit card instead of having to preload it like a gift card.  Thanks for all the perks!  LOVE Starbucks!

Allow Gold Members to choose their preferred gift card benefits.

My friend and I have to contemplate using our Starbucks Gold cards verses the (Starbucks) RED gift card program or the Green Conservation gift card program which each donate $0.05 to their respective programs each time the card is used.

Why not allow gold members the option to select a single program which donates $0.05 a transaction from ANY gift card registered to their account, or at least a transaction from the Gold card?

Social responsibility and increased user flexibility. Sounds like a win-win!

It's exciting to hear how Starbucks is listening.  I live 20 miles from the nearest store.  I've bought the Via Cold Coffee to keep me drinking when I'm home.  Extra star when we buy products for home would be great.

Also, I would love to find out about classes at my Starbucks on-line to learn more about coffees and how to make espressos at home using my machine.  The drinks I make at home are never as good as Starbucks in-store drinks but I use your products.  

You know, I've been a gold card member since I believe December or January and I have yet to receive any coupons, other than my free drink after 15 stars. Am I missing something? I would love to get offers like that!

I want a discount again too... I visit Starbucks about 4 times a week... that 10% savings really adds up for me!

I would like to have the choice of "stars" for drinks or the 10% off.  It is more convenient for me to have the 10% off.  It seems I purchased more when I had the 10% off.  This included food, cups, etc. along with the drinks.

Also, I don't mind paying a fee for the gold card as long as I have the 10% off of anything.  I know I paid for mine...I have had a gold card since it was first made available.

@rossthewriter - You can use any registered Starbucks card to earn stars and be a part of MyStarbucksReward. If you like the (Red) card, definitely use it! You will still get all your gold card perks.

@GraceL - The idea of a free pound of coffee after 10 drink purchases sounds overly generous, and not profitable for Starbucks. However, I'd love to see Starbucks think up more promotions surrounding whole bean - Encourage people to buy their beans!

Generally speaking, I miss the 10% off. It saved me more, it was immediate, and it rewarded me in proportion to what I spent.

funny.  I just came on and was about to say every thing that Melody just did!  So, I am in agreement with all that Melody just wrote.....informing and speaking what many of us think: we certainly preferred the 10% off card and altho Sbux attempted to make the 'rewards' easier....(as compared to when the old 10% gold card could not overlap with many other card rewards..... requiring two cards),  they actually ended up creating this multi-tiered program that seems anything but simple.....as just seen in some of the above inaccurate thinking about what earns stars.

I totally appreciate the rewards that I receive.  We're just trying to, I think, make it easier, simpler and still beneficial for both parties!

As a cold card member, give credit for buying Starbucks wherever.......even if it is in an airport or hotel where the Starbucks vendor is "licensed", not owned by Starbucks.  I'm loyal, so treat my loyalty wherever I buy.

I'm a fan of the 10% off as well.  Restore the 10% discount for Gold members.

 ps: to ilovecoffee01: you DO get a star for any item purchased at Sbux as long as you have them rung and paid for individually.  that's the Sbux program, *star* per transaction.

Congratulations to Starbucks for being a well-customer oriented establishment.

Im a fan of the  10% or any outright discount against the purchase. Savings is a big help for all sbux customers...and the GOLD card holder should feel also that "GOLD" program means really something GOLD.

Isn't it true that some of the Starbucks located in hotels and grocery stores will earn a star?  The ones that can accept Starbucks cards as payment?  I know they don't have the ability to redeem the free drink coupons, but I thought the Starbucks card could recognize the purchase and earn a star for it.  

Can someone please clarify if some of those stores have that capability?

-I too have yet to receive any offers or coupons as a gold card member.

-I would NOT pay to be a gold card member. My loyalty should be enough, right? I'm there giving you money all the time!

-Free upgrades in sizes would be a good perk to replace the free wi-fi since everyone gets that now, even without registering any card.

-My gold card seems pretty flimsy and is all scratched up from the credit machines already and is pretty new. And I don't see any benefit from the people at the counter from using it. They take it like any other currency without batting a lash or acknowledging this loyalty. As long as I can use another registered card and still get my gold benefits, I might do that.

-Tired of no one following thru with sugar free options on the classic lattes (gingerbread, pumpkin, etc) and so this may render my loyalty moot very soon.

-Let me get my rewards right at the counter. Why wait for paper in the mail? Seems like an outdated, non-earth friendly way to go. Or send it email and I can print it myself.

2 fer 1 is really nice, but please don't forget the single people, how about 50% off once in awhile?

I'm very happy being a Gold member, and I worked hard to become one.  But I have to agree with some of the comments posted.  

Why send postcards instead of posting rewards to the card itself?  I have the Starbucks card app on my iPhone, and it certainly knows my balance instantly, although it's a bit slower crediting my rewards.  

Why not require licensees to accept Starbucks cards as part of their license?  I'm tired of going to conventions, meetings, etc. and waiting in line in my wheelchair only to find they won't take my card.  I don't carry a lot of stuff, and sometimes it means going without until I go back to my room for cash.  I'm already being charged a premium price for the drink - for goodness sake, take the darn card!

Why no stars at grocery store or hotel Starbucks?  If you take the card, give the star!!

I am blessed with a terrific local Starbucks which treats me like a queen.  They actually spread out my service dog's blanket and bring him water!  I'm not going to ask them to ring up multiple drinks on separate receipts.  But I'll keep that in mind when I'm traveling.  Thanks!

P.S. Thanks for a very entertaining app.  It's fun watching the little stars dump into my cup on my card app.  Little things please little minds!

Hayley-

I believe that as long as the location accepts the card as payment like in a Kroger or hotel, you will earn your star. Locations like Barnes & Noble that don't accept the card as payment will of course not allow earning a star.

So far, I haven't had any problem from earning a star at a non-corporate Starbucks store; however, redeeming coupons can only be done at corporate-owned stores and not in hospital, hotel, bookstore or grocery store locations.

Hope this helps clarify!

Hi:  I'm newly registered to this site.  How does one get a Rewards card?  Thank you.

@asklej - Hi there! It's easy to be a part of My Starbucks Rewards. Start out by getting a Starbucks gift card. It can be any card you like, whether a (Red) card, the card with 2 espresso shots on it, an older card - Pick a card.  Make sure you register that card with Starbucks. Go to this link here:

http://www.starbucks.com/card

Load money on to that card - You can do that online or in person in the stores.

Now, use your registered card to pay for your purchases, and you are now enrolled in MyStarbucksRewards. That's all there is to it.

MattSmith --

I just stayed at the Hilton Union Square in San Francisco. There is a Starbucks located in the lobby.  I paid $8.85 for a grande caramel macchiato and a cranberry scone, paid for it with my gold card and received no star!  The next day I walked one block down the street to a stand alone Starbucks, ordered the same thing, was charged only $6.14 and got my star.

So it apparently they can take the gold card and not award you the stars.

Very disappointing.

expand out of Calgary and into the rest of Canada soon please!

"Members value the coupons for sweet treats and exclusive offers coming by mail, like Free Oatmeal, Buy One Get One Frappuccino® blended beverages, and more, much more!

"

I would take issue with the "more, much more".   These coupons are very rare.  And yes, my address is correct on my account.

I prefer the current rewards program. I order a venti latte with a syrup and soy milk routinely. I save about 20-25% each drink.

However, if, for example, my drink is rung up as a vanilla latte as opposed to a latte with vanilla syrup added, the cost of the syrup is not deducted. And if I want the real caramel instead of the syrup, that is charged as well.  Why?  It seems that as a gold member these should also be covered.

I also think that stars should be given per drink, for food items or a coffee purchase or merchandise purchase (perhaps above a certain dollar value). Receiving one star per receipt feels like a let-down when I spend a lot of money on non-beverage items or when buying drinks for friends.

Thank you for listening to us!

For many of us, getting a Gold Card can take as little as a month to qualify. It's been mentioned a lot here that there needs to be another tier for those of us who are truly loyal (read: crazily addicted) customers. If I'm spending $100/month at Starbucks, shouldn't we bet getting something more than just a free drink? The 10% off seemed way more appropriate and I miss that kind of reward.

Please, please, pretty please make a VIA 12-pack purchase the 'equivalent' of a 1-lb. purchase of whole beans - and reward your Green and Gold card members who love VIA with a free beverage.

Please, please, pretty please make a VIA 12-pack purchase the 'equivalent' of a 1-lb. purchase of whole beans - and reward your Green and Gold card members who love VIA with a free beverage.

I still want the option to get the card for the rewards. The one thing I like about them is the ability for me to use it to get something different, and maybe more expensive than my regular drink. If you are just going to add a set amount to my card to cover my regular drink I'd rather you go back to the way my black card originally worked, 10% off each purchase.  It would be better to just get the savings upfront.

If you get rid of the cards, please offer an option for us to at least get them via email and print them.

the current program has a few severe problems. the first is missing rewards cards. the burden is on us to find out if a reward arrives. you have removed the rewards history and shorted the transaction history so we can not go back and figure out if there are any mistakes. earning a star for each transaction and not every drink is an accounting trick that dilutes the rewards program and makes other programs much nicer.

This was written over a year ago and the whole free drink card through the mail v loading directly to cards or emailing has been under consideration for over a year - I just don't get why this is so difficult of a decision or taking so long to implement - it's always a number one w/ tremendous votes on the my Starbucks list - people add new comments all the time - why so long?  I am a big proponent of this especially since I recently had 5 cards "no-show"  I just spend too much money and the little reward that goes to someone else is really disappointing to say the least

I agree, this post is over a year old. I haven't received the last 4 drink coupons in the mail, nor have I received any additional coupons as of late. Everything from Starbucks gets "lost" in the mail. If Panera can load rewards directly on to a card, why can't Starbucks? If you do not want to load rewards directly on a gold card, then have them e-mailed or printed on the receipt so you can ensure they are received by the card user (also person who is spending money). At the very least you should have to show your gold card in order to use the drink coupon. This is truely frustrating.

FREE DRINK ONLY FOR 15 STARS???

WHY NOT FREE PASTRY CHOICE TOO???

I don't like your new birthday and star rewards expiration. We travel and are gone during the winter and our cards would expire before we would return home. You need to send them by email or post them to my phone's app. If you can't do that and since we will be in Santa Monica we will change to Urth Cafe and Peet's. Hope you can make a more usable program for retired travelers.

Really like that you are reviewing making the gold card a little extra special.  Since the price of coffee went up again, my venti iced beverage is now 5.22....phew, this daily habit is costing me serious money!!  I would love to see a reward for us loyal customers, despite the raise in prices, that keep coming into Starbucks doors.  

I would love to see:

1.  every drink or item I purchase gets a star, not just one star per transaction.

2.  maybe let the free drink be after 10 stars instead of 15.

Just some ideas.  I love starbucks and really want to continue enjoying my daily coffee, but with the prices continuing to rise and the perks the same...it's becoming expensive.  

Your loyal fan,

Amanda

aside from not using snail mail for the reward of a free drink after 15 stars and having them expire. Have them tracked on the account and when you are paying with your starbucks card have the barista give you the option to redeem your free drink or pay for it. Have this also available when using the mobile app.

I think its great that we might soon get paperless rewards.  It will save trees and also not get stolen,,,, er- 'lost' in the mail.  But I am PRAYING that Starbucks will make it the CUSTOMER's choice when to use their free beverage they earned.  ie: when I get my postcard in the mail I keep it and use it when I want to.  I DO NOT want to go in and order my drink and have it just taken AUTOMATICALLY off my rewards account.  I want to CHOOSE when I will use it.  Like--for those times when I am short on cash and my card balance is running low, or on weekends when I am taking my teens and their friends out for a treat at Starbucks.  I choose to use my free drink postcard then.

Its great to have them on your account-- but Starbucks MUST maintain the right and privilege to the customer to decide to use the rewards when he/she CHOOSES to and not just use it the next time the card is swiped after earning it!

@ brand_kb

I agree I spend over $200 a month at Sbux and one drink every 15 stars isn't a great deal.  I liked the 10% off with the old black card better.  I got a discount every time I purchased.  Plus 15 stars for me is a cost of $65+.  My drink cost is 16% of that.  I think a free drink for every 10 stars is better.  That way it is equal to the 10% we used to get under the old program.  So if I get 10 drinks, I get the 11th one free.  That is a 10% savings.

I'm a Chai Tea drinker, not a coffee drinker and have been a gold card holder for a few years now.  I get frustrated with all of the coffee perks, but nothing for those of us who non-coffee drinkers.  I would love to see some added benefits because at $4.31 a cup I deserve it!  

Not a quality loyality rewards program. A least that's the word "on the street" as opposed to Starbuck's customer "handling groups"