How Dutch Bros Made a Seamless Transition to Digital Loyalty
What happens to a punch-card rewards program during a global pandemic?
That’s the problem Dutch Bros faced in 2020. The specialty coffee and frozen drink shop with more than 600 locations in 14 states needed a fast, frictionless, and personalized way to maintain a connection with its customers and communities as the world went into isolation.
That’s when the drive-thru coffee operator turned to Paytronix for a digital customer experience solution. Leveraging data and user insights, “Dutch Rewards” was born. An app that’s built on the Paytronix platform, Dutch Rewards is a points-based loyalty program where customers can earn free drinks, win contests, collect signature Dutch Bros stickers and more.
“For a brand like Dutch Bros with an amazing stamp-card loyalty program, the move to digital loyalty and contactless mobile payments had incredibly high stakes,” said Jesse Dundon, CEO of Hathway, a digital growth company and Paytronix partner. One month into the program, Dutch Rewards garnered 1.4 million loyalty members.
Dutch Bros, founded in 1992 in Grants Pass, Ore., is hallmarked by not only a specialty proprietary coffee blend but also its energetic, vibrant culture and superior customer experience. From start to finish, customers are made to feel welcome and delighted, whether they get their regular order or ask for a “surprise” drink from the menu.
Creating a digital experience that felt personal and rang true to the Dutch Bros brand was key to the reward program’s success. Paytronix’s loyalty campaign capability, with innovative mechanisms such as “Instant Win” contests, brought this experience to life.
Personalized Offers
Paytronix’s AI to IA(SM) technology was an especially useful feature, as it allowed for customer segmentation and ultra-specific messaging to reach the right person, at the right time. Through campaigns such as free drink offers or “Double Dutch, Double the Points” campaigns, Dutch Bros successfully incentivized 93,300 members to use points, plus 220,000 lapsed members.
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Paytronix’s platform empowers Dutch Bros to leverage data, retain customer loyalty, and offer new and exciting ways to engage its customers. Dutch Bros President and CEO Joth Ricci believes Dutch Rewards to be a crucial step toward a digital future, where customers can expect a seamless user experience, as they would when shopping online. “One of my goals for the company and thoughts are that it has the potential to be the most dynamic digital business in the industry,” he said.
This falls right in line with Paytronix’s ethos of making a frictionless, flawless user journey, turning each customer experience into a great one. And it takes great customer experiences to maintain loyalty, boost transactions, and hold a strong footing in a competitive landscape.
Since the release of the digital loyalty program, Dutch Bros has been awarded the platinum badge-of-honor from the AVA Digital Marketing Awards and a 4.9-star rating by users on the App Store and Google Play.