In this episode, we are talking about the launch of the Starbucks Odyssey programme.  Looking back on the history of their rewards points scheme, we discuss the success of this and how they are now bringing this into a Web 3 world.

We also discuss how big brands are trying to ease people into this digital universe by not pushing the comfort zones that consumers know well.

MENTIONED IN THIS WEBSITE
Starbucks Odyssey – https://stories.starbucks.com/stories/2022/the-starbucks-odyssey-begins/
Starbucks Odyssey Waitlist – https://waitlist.starbucks.com/#/learnmore

We hope you enjoyed the show and that it inspired some ideas. Join us next week to delve further into the Metaverse

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IMPORTANT NOTICE
This podcast is for entertainment and education purposes only. We do not give any investment or financial advice and we strongly recommend you always DO YOUR OWN RESEARCH.

Enjoy!

Show Transcription

[00:00:00] Cheryl: Welcome to Women of the Metaverse. I am Cheryl Laidlaw

[00:00:07] Angela: I am Angela Harkness. We have been and are still on a journey to discover the Metaverse with 3.0 NFTs and anything that we are required to know to join this world. 

[00:00:21] Cheryl: From this podcast, we will help you to unlock how the Metaverse is going to impact your brand, your business, and even your personal 

[00:00:30] Angela: life.

[00:00:30] Angela: Join us as we take the mystery out of this new digital universe. Welcome to Women of the Metaverse. In this episode, we are going to talk about the Starbucks honesty Program. First, let us take you back to the. . The S Rewards program is brilliant. Whether you do or don’t like Starbucks. From a business perspective, this was a genius move.[00:01:00] 

[00:01:00] Angela: What is clever about it is you add money to Wadi that sits there until you spend it, so that money is there for Starbucks to use. It’s like a float. It means their reliance on people just walking through the door is reduced. . If you weigh the actual cost of making any drink, it’s actually pennies that cost nothing to make a black coffee compared to how much a consumer pays.

[00:01:26] Angela: Even when you earn enough points to get a free drink, again, that cost to Starbucks is minimal. So there is a lot of additional income that sits in those wallets. On top of the fact that you can’t get your money back, you can’t take your money off the card, you have to wait until you spend. . I have currently 50 pounds on a Starbucks card because that doesn’t surprise me, 

[00:01:47] Cheryl: Angela, at 

[00:01:48] Angela: all.

[00:01:49] Angela: right? But I added it when I was traveling to London a lot, and then Covid hit, and I don’t have a Starbucks close to where I lived. So it’s just sat there for Starbucks to do what it liked with it. [00:02:00] So this actually came from a Leaf article from March, 2022 that. As of the company’s most recent annual report, Starbucks reward members have bought over more than 2 billion to the coffee powerhouse without getting a single frappuccino for it.

[00:02:19] Angela: So they’ve not used that money yet. It is just sat there, um, until they spend it. That’s 2 billion for that.

[00:02:31] Cheryl: I’m learning as we go, guys. . 

[00:02:33] Angela: In fact, as of 2022, the rewards program makes up 53% of the company’s revenue. Also to take into account the loyalty app has 50 million registered users. I didn’t realize it was that. Okay. Powerful. So as you can see, it is a hugely successful piece of the Starbucks. So what’s next?[00:03:00] 

[00:03:00] Angela: Well, in 

[00:03:01] Cheryl: December, 2022, they launched Starbucks Odyssey to try and take their rewards program to another level and bring in line with the current technology. They’re referring to it as the next generation loyalty platform currently in beta. So only available to a few loyal clients and members of.

[00:03:23] Cheryl: Basically it combines their loyalty rewards with of course, NFTs and gamification elements, which come in the form of an interactive activities called Journeys. It is a web three extension to their rewards program where members can complete journeys to earn journey stamps in the form of NFTs or odyssey points that will open access to different benefits and experiences both virtual and in the real world.

[00:03:57] Cheryl: If you read Starbucks release [00:04:00] for Odyssey, they talk a lot about community. Of course they do, and this is a quote from their website. Starbucks Odyssey is an experience surrounded by a digital community where members can come together, interact, and share their love of coffee. 

[00:04:18] Angela: This is, this is big on the kind of, uh, published release where they are talking about community, which we have gone on, on, on because it’s always, it seems to.

[00:04:34] Angela: When anybody tokenizes something, it’s sort of to bring those loyal clients or customers together in a community and, and 

[00:04:42] Cheryl: Starbucks have the most loyal, loyal, custom customer base. E even when it became trendy to have a Starbucks cup in your Instagram pick in like nine in 2015. I’m like, what 

[00:04:57] Angela: was that all about?

[00:04:58] Angela: I know, love them [00:05:00] or hate. , they are really smart with some of the things they do, just like the red cup, how just to change your cups to red over Christmas becomes this big thing and this big talking point and their rewards program, as we’ve just spoken about, is really smart. So whether you like them or not, they, they have been really smart in some of them moves they make, and this is just the first 

[00:05:22] Cheryl: was Starbucks the first to come over?

[00:05:25] Cheryl: I felt like there was a sort of few of them that sprung up at the same time. But Starbucks have really 

[00:05:29] Angela: led the. . I, I’m not sure. I just know that they’ve been very smart in how they move. I think other others have been a bit ha have spread to the suburbs like Costa and what’s the, a Niro Right. Sort of tend to have more suburban, but we have a Starbucks now.

[00:05:50] Angela: but it’s in a bit of a rubbish place and it’s not easy to get to. But when I worked in London and lived in London, they’re on every corner. I could, you know, I spent so much [00:06:00] money then at Starbucks, whereas now, I mean, 

[00:06:02] Cheryl: yeah, who, who fills their card up with 50 quid? 

[00:06:05] Angela: Angela? Well, because it was the easiest thing to do, but then Covid and it’s just sat in house, so, okay.

[00:06:13] Angela: So the 

[00:06:13] Cheryl: way it works is if you will log in, Members will be able to take part in the journeys, which will be series of interactive activities. These currently include, obviously in beta, a virtual tour of Starbucks Coffee Farm, or answering trivia questions about the history of the company. When a journey is complete, the member is then rewarded a journey stamp in the form of an N F T.

[00:06:42] Cheryl: And bonus points are added towards the overall point total. As more stamps are collected and members gain more points, which generates additional access to different benefits being unlocked, there are going to be three levels that can be unlocked, [00:07:00] and at each level, the benefit becomes more unique and impressive.

[00:07:04] Cheryl: I’m sure we’ve spoken. This in previous episodes about different levels? Yes. And opening levels 

[00:07:10] Angela: up ade, which is Game of Vacation, isn’t it? 

[00:07:12] Cheryl: So, yes. Brilliant. The first level could include a virtual espresso martini making class, and access to a unique merchandise. And as the levels go up, you could be rewarded with an invitation to Starbucks Reserve, roasty Roastery, or at the highest level, a trip to Starbucks Coffee Farm in Costa R.

[00:07:35] Cheryl: Angela, do you want to explain about how the tokens work? 

[00:07:39] Angela: Okay, so as we have explained, they are referred to as journey stamps. Essentially they are NFTs. What is interesting, and I read an article and, and I keep trying to find it, I can’t find it again. Um, and they talk about how mainstream brands are entering this world and are trying to [00:08:00] take the fear outta it by talking about.

[00:08:03] Angela: These sort of more technical terms or crypto type terms in a more mainstream way. So it’s similar to how food and drink companies introduce a new ingredient. They will do it with something we are comfortable with. Vanilla is a perfect example. Green tea with vanilla, kombucha with vanilla. It helps people ease into trying something.

[00:08:25] Angela: Starbucks have done the same with their NFTs by calling them stamps. We’re much more familiar with that concept. Comfortable with the stamp, you know, 

[00:08:33] Cheryl: I mean, yeah. Do they have stamps at the moment? 

[00:08:37] Angela: Well, you get your, well, you get your reward points, don’t you? 

[00:08:40] Cheryl: The reward scheme? I think it’s Snap Cafe Nero.

[00:08:42] Cheryl: That’s still have the stamps. Yes. 

[00:08:43] Angela: Still have your little, your old card with a Samsung. So the first stamps will depict Starbucks history and designs that they are famous for. There’s a design, which is the first location in Park Place market, Seattle, and also their famous red holiday [00:09:00] motif. So just a couple you’re gonna see on these stamps.

[00:09:03] Angela: Members will have access to the Starbucks Odyssey market, powered by Nifty Gateway, which sits on the Polygon blockchain where they can buy or sell their. Again, more mainstream To appeal to a wider audience you can buy using a credit card. There’s no need to purchase a cryptocurrency or even have a crypto wallet that’s not required for this.

[00:09:27] Angela: If you purchase a stamp, this will also go towards your member’s total points. Earlier this year, they will release their first n T collection, which they are calling limited edition stamp for people to. As with most of these collections and something you would expect from a large corporation, a certain percentage will go to charitable causes.

[00:09:51] Angela: What I can’t find, which will be interesting to know, is how much Starbucks may make on the secondhand market. If people sell on their [00:10:00] stamps, I’m sure at some point we’ll be able to find that out, but mm-hmm. If every time somebody sells a stamp on a star that’s gonna get 5%, that’ll be totally interesting.

[00:10:09] Angela: Yeah. Yeah. so anyone can join the wait list, which I did yesterday, and we’ll leave a link in the bio for that. Oh, look at you. No, 

[00:10:18] Cheryl: no. I love it. This is a really interesting project and release and it validates more that the, the use of tokens and web three are creeping into the everyday life and if you run a business, this is another good example.

[00:10:33] Cheryl: Of an idea that you could transfer into your own business. So again, when I’m thinking about stamps, I’m thinking about hairdressers. I’ve, I’ve also had a stamp book from my hairdresser. Why can’t they do 

[00:10:45] Angela: something creative? Well, even one of the, um, like retail stores. Like a small retail store. Yeah. She had like a royalty loyalty reward.

[00:10:55] Angela: There’s nothing stopping anybody from doing it really is there. It’s just another [00:11:00] tokenization of your business. It’s a clever, and it’s it, the way they’ve put it forward. They’ve been really smart about how they’ve done that, haven’t they? So, absolutely. 

[00:11:09] Cheryl: It’s a great project. Well, we hope you’ve enjoyed this episode.

[00:11:13] Cheryl: Join us next week as we continue our journey into the Metaverse. 

[00:11:17] Angela: See you then. Bye for now.

[00:11:22] Angela: Thank you for listening to this episode of Women of the Metaverse. 

[00:11:27] Cheryl: You can find all information, links and people we talked about in the show notes on our website. 

[00:11:33] Angela: If you have enjoyed this podcast, Please come in and subscribe. 

[00:11:37] Cheryl: Join us again in the next episode as we continue this exciting metaverse journey.