By: Erika Stevens
Tecmark, Inc.

Back in June I posted a blog highlighting Caribou Coffee’s Stay Awake for Summer loyalty program. Participating in the program was as easy as picking up a card, buying seven drinks and getting the 8th for free. The programs simplicity and easy reward structure was appealing to customers and I know I looked forward to the free drinks I earned over the summer.

When I returned from Lollapalooza in early August I learned that Caribou had stopped giving out new cards and stamps. The abrupt ending to the summer loyalty program created backlash from customers who felt they were wronged. This backlash escalated when customers posted complaints on the Caribou Facebook page and those complaints were deleted. One of those customers was frustrated by the situation and vented her frustrations on her blog which attracted the attention of the local news. Suddenly the simple loyalty program Caribou had launched for the summer to reward their customers was attracting attention in all the wrong ways.

Knowing that customers aren’t always perfect I immediately wondered if Caribou had prepared for dissatisfaction when they launched their loyalty program. There are two important steps to anticipate when launching a loyalty program of any type.

1. Clearly communicate rules. This is true for any promotion, contest, and reward as well as loyalty program. Caribou had this covered because they clearly stated on the back of the card that the loyalty program would end September 6th and that card quantities are limited and available only while supplies last.

2. Listen to your customer’s feedback – positive or negative, and respond accordingly. Social media has opened the customer feedback floodgates and many businesses large and small have struggled to find the appropriate way to handle the chatter. In this situation Caribou customers complained that after voicing their complaints on Facebook when they checked back their comments were deleted and they were no longer a fan of the page. Caribou responded that each customer that complained was issued a response.

Though I don’t know specific results of the summer promotion I would have to imagine that Caribou’s loyalty promotion was successful given the number of people that were upset with its sudden end. Bad publicity is an unfortunate end to their initiative to earn customer loyalty by offering rewards. As I mentioned before who doesn’t love a free drink? You can’t always avoid a disaster but when a loyalty initiative, or any promotion, brings negative feedback but you can control how you handle the situation. In this case Caribou clearly communicated the rules of the promotion and responded to comments left by their customers.