For Starbucks, mobile payments mean more than just convenience for customers. They mean a chance to make venti-sized profits. Mobile payments now account for over 20 percent of total transactions at Starbucks — this percentage is higher than that of others in the food and beverage industry. Indeed, the coffee giant is a pioneer in this technology.
Starbucks, a company that has been seeing
solid growth over the past few years, clearly views mobile payment technology as a way to increase business. Here’s how they’re making it happen.
Starbucks Places the Customer Experience First
Long wait times are the second main complaint against retail businesses. Starbucks is utilizing mobile technology to eliminate this issue. Not only can customers order and pay faster with mobile payment options, but Starbucks has also unveiled mobile ordering, allowing customers to place orders from their phones. The app then provides a time frame for when the beverage or food will be ready. Now, in theory, customers don’t even have to line up; they can come into the coffee store, sit down, order and wait to be called. That clearly meets the needs and demands of today’s on-the-go world.
Starbucks Integrates Mobile Payment With Its Loyalty Program
The mobile ordering system, known as “Order & Pay,” serves the additional purpose of increasing a loyal customer base. To use the service, customers have to become a member, which not only benefits them as they build up rewards, but it also benefits Starbucks with an additional revenue avenue. So, it’s no wonder that during the mobile payment platform’s first year, Starbucks saw a 28 percent participation increase in its loyalty rewards program.
Starbucks Mobile Payment Platform Enables Customization
This is the era of the customer experience. If businesses want to succeed, they need to deliver products and promotions that speak to each individual customer. After all, a whopping
73 percent of consumers support brands that use data to deliver a more personal experience. Thanks to the data collected from its mobile payments, Starbucks is able to do just that.
The
company can perform data analysis and derive insights that let it offer customers the right products at the right time and right price. When it comes down to it, that equals more conversions and more profit.
Starbucks: Ahead of the Game
For Starbucks, its mobile payment initiative is the glue that completes its end-to-end customer platform. Best yet, it’s all centered around a loyalty program that keeps the relationship going. Customers get a seamless and personalized experience each time they order coffee, and Starbucks gets the info they need to continuously satisfy their customers. In the end, everybody wins.
Starbucks app: home screen by Rob Enslin is licensed under Attribution License
