Lily Snyder

Do you love Starbucks? Do you love it so much that you want a permanent badge showcasing your purchases? Maybe you just like trying new things and getting coffee as part of it is a perk. Well, Starbucks Odyssey is for you!

A brief explanation of Starbucks Odyssey

Starbucks Odyssey is Starbuck’s entrance into Web3. Basically, it’s a new loyalty program for them to try out blockchain and NFTs. The twist is they use the term stamps instead of NFT. They don’t mention blockchain or crypto. You can purchase stamps with a credit card. The program is still in beta. You can sign up here.

My personal experience with the program so far

📓 The Starbucks journey feels like high school homework. You have to watch videos and take quizzes and solve puzzles in order to complete a “journey”.

💰 Of course you have to buy Starbucks coffee and beans as part of the journeys… but Starbucks is not my favorite. One of the journeys is to try a non-dairy drink. Many people, like me bought a coffee with non-dairy creamer but this didn’t count. It was only after I purchased a $5 coffee that I realized it. A week later, when I was invited to the Starbucks Discord server did, I see the post about what constituted a non-dairy drink.

📍This would be more fun if done at a local level. Like how they have the Been There series mugs. ☕ Then instead of generic stamps, you’d at least get to show off something a little more personalized.

💁‍♀️ I asked the barista at my local Starbucks about the Odyssey program. She had no idea what I was talking about… 👀

What is Starbucks Odyssey Beta?

Starbucks is hitting some key targets to Web3 adoption for their customers.

1. They used their already existing loyalty program so participants don’t have to start totally from scratch.
2. Starbucks Odyssey focuses on the journey and rewards, not Web3 terms like Web3, blockchain, or NFT.
3. They created FOMO by starting out in beta – people want to be part of the Odyssey program.
4. Starbucks is using Discord to build their beta community. Discord seems to be the default “Web3 app” brands go to to build community. It’s another platform to create an account for and log into. I think it would have been better for them to integrate something into Starbucks.odyssey.

The Experience of Starbucks Odyssey

User interface and navigation

Participating in Starbucks Odyssey is fairly seamless. There is a separate website to view the journeys and check on your progress. In order to get journey points, you have to pay through the Starbucks’ app.

Once you earn a stamp, you can view it on Nifty Gateway… but you have to

1. Log into Starbucks Odyssey > Click Marketplace

2. A new tab opens where you have to enter a code sent to your email

3. Log into email and get code

4. Paste it into the Nifty Gateway site.

So that’s a lot of logging in and switching tabs to view the NFT. I’m sure there’s a way they can streamline that process.

Customization options and personalized recommendations

As far as customization and personalization goes, you can choose your avatar and that’s about it. You can choose between a hummingbird and two other animated pictures.

Criticisms and Challenges of Starbucks Odyssey Beta

Technical difficulties and limitations to Starbucks Odyssey

Some people seem to have a lag between when they order a drink on the Starbucks app and it showing up in their journey count. Other limitations are all the different log ins and websites to go to depending on what you want to do.

• Log in to the Starbucks app to reload your card and place an order
• Remember the Starbucks Odyssey URL and log in information
• Going back and forth between the custom Nifty Gateway URL and your email to log in to see your NFT

User adoption and feedback

Now that I’m part of the Discord Server, I can see where to provide feedback to the Odyssey program. The community leaders created a separate feedback form for an Ask Me Anything event.

Final thoughts on Starbucks Odyssey

Does Odyssey have staying power or is it pure novelty? In the future, are people going to want to have to compete challenges and order drinks they might not actually like in order to get a stamp?

I don’t think Odyssey will replace the basic app ordering any time soon.

Will I end up selling stamps so I can get my money back for all the Starbucks I ordered?

As for me, I’d rather drink local.

Speaking of coffee… ☕