Coffee subscription program? Is this really the best new trend in loyalty? For its latest innovation, R-Kiosk Estonia is announcing the launch of its “coffee pass”, a recurring subscription programme for coffee lovers available across their entire network of almost a hundred convenience stores
Estonia is a charming country of just over 1.3 million people in Northern Europe and is consistently rated one of the most digitally advanced societies in the world. By way of example, in 2005, it became the first nation in the world to allow its citizens to vote online!
And it’s this level of “digital intelligence” that makes R-Kiosk in Estonia such an exciting client for us in Liquid Barcodes to work with. Their loyalty app is one of our favourites, featuring coupons, stamp cards and “refer-a-friend” campaigns as well as sign-up and birthday rewards.
Within the app, users enjoy discounts and coupons that are not found in shops, and loyal customers can also enjoy every sixth hot dog, hot drink, R-Kiosk water, health shot, and wrap free of charge.
The R-Kiosk app can be downloaded here.
Cashless Coffee Pass
The “coffee pass” is a recurring coffee subscription programme available across their entire network of almost a hundred convenience stores.
With so much flexibility on offer within the Liquid Barcodes subscription platform, there was plenty of debate with the team around exactly what proposition would be most compelling for R-Kiosk customers in Estonia. Eventually the unique idea of a digital pass giving “30 coffees a month, pick them up whenever you want” was chosen for members. Pass-holders can enjoy their 30 coffees at any time during their 30 days – they can choose to enjoy them all on one day, or perhaps one a day, or anything in between!
The idea is being positioned as a “pass for cashless coffee” – with the word “pass” chosen as a simpler idea for Estonian customers to understand than the word “subscription”. As you can see from the simple graphic below, there is also a focus on sustainability and affordability, with customers bringing a re-usable cup paying €40 a month, and customers choosing disposable cups paying €50 a month.
Both passes offer significant savings for customers, with individual drinks costing €2.30 or €2.50 depending on the size chosen – Classic drinks are 300ml and Grande drinks are 400ml. With the cashless coffee pass, there is no price difference no matter which size drink the customer takes.
The R-Kiosk “cashless coffee pass” offers two options for subscribers
Other benefits include a FREE second month for all new customers buying the pass, but most importantly, the simplicity of simply opening their app at the coffee machine to scan and pay – the ultimate convenience – with no need to ever queue again to pay.
The “coffee” pass includes ALL classic coffee drinks as well as tea, cocoa drinks and speciality coffees, with either cow’s milk or vegetable milk and in either Classic or Grande sizes.
The Company and the Coffee Subscription Concept
R-Kiosk Estonia belongs to the Norwegian family company Reitan Group, which is the second-largest retail chain of consumer goods in Europe, with more than 39,000 employees operating over 3,800 stores, across seven countries.
The brand enjoys learning the latest industry ideas, and its leadership team was impressed by the concept of coffee subscriptions in convenience retail. Of course, we’ve written about this idea extensively, with case studies including Leon and Pret a Manger in the UK, Espresso House in Sweden, Norway, Finland, Denmark and Germany, as well as Panera Bread in the US.
Inspired by just how many of these leading brands were adopting this new model, R-Kiosk identified some compelling opportunities for a coffee subscription program concept for its customers in Estonia. These include:
- The opportunity for subscribers to enjoy the “jump the line convenience style” experience – the “ultimate convenience”.
- An opportunity to create a new subscription business model to capture more younger customers, who love anything cool and cashless.
- The ability to create new campaign concepts and incentives such as sign-up rebates, personal rebates, promotion codes and seasonal rebates.
Separately, a McKinsey survey on loyalty programs found that members of paid loyalty programs are “60 per cent more likely to spend more on the brand after subscribing, while free loyalty programs only increase that likelihood by 30 per cent” so, with that insight, R-Kiosk Estonia was excited with the opportunity!
The coffee subscription program screens have been designed with simplicity in mind.
We asked Johanna Ambre, Head of Innovation and Marketing at Reitan Convenience in Estonia, why the coffee subscription program became such an exciting idea for her and her colleagues at R-Kiosk in Estonia. She told us:
“Our customers are both clever and cost-conscious. Our younger customers in particular love to feel they are getting a great deal and we knew that the idea of a quick and convenient “cashless coffee” was something they would love. With this exciting offer, they can skip the line and I’ve no doubt they will become our most loyal customers, coming to the store for their daily coffee, and perhaps picking up an extra treat too.”
From our side, this project became a superb opportunity to connect our subscription loyalty marketing platform with Ayden as a payment partner, ensuring our subscription model becomes even easier for other retail brands to introduce.
Of course, we are also excited to have such momentum growing from clients around the world, so whether it’s for car wash subscriptions with brands like Circle K in multiple countries, or now for coffee with the Reitan Group, there is no doubt in our minds that subscription loyalty, powered by auto-renewals, is the “ultimate loyalty”.
We look forward to keeping you up to date on the success of this program and other clients and case studies from around the world, who, like us, believe in loyalty, powered by subscription!
About Us:
Liquid Barcodes is a leading global loyalty and digital marketing technology company specialising in the convenience store and foodservice industries. Our proprietary cloud-based technology platform allows retailers to create and manage their digital marketing campaigns with a proprietary process we call the “customer connection cycle’ to engage, promote and reward customers’ activities in real-time across digital and media channels.
How we Help you Launch your Own Coffee Subscription Program:
We have developed the most advanced loyalty and digital marketing technology platform specifically for convenience store and foodservice retailers globally.
Retailers use our self-service dashboard to create and manage loyalty-driven marketing campaigns that increase purchases with their existing customers, as well as effectively target and acquire new customers through partners or paid media channels.
One core component of live loyalty is gamification. We have gamified branding, loyalty and promotions. We believe this approach is essential in order to get customers’ attention and ultimately truly engage them with repeatable actions thereby winning their loyalty.
Check out some of our exciting/proven results here:
About Me:
Chief Content Officer, Liquid Barcodes and Loyalty Podcaster
With over twenty-five years of marketing experience, I specialise in loyalty marketing articles and podcasts. In addition to working with Liquid Barcodes, my clients have included Telefonica O2 Priority, Three Mobile, Electric Ireland, Allied Irish Bank and The Entertainer Group (UAE), as well as Avios – the global points currency for some of the world’s top airlines. I am also a former judge for the Loyalty Magazine Awards and proud host of the “Let’s Talk Loyalty” podcast – the industry’s first podcast for loyalty marketing professionals.
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