Shayden Summit Reno

"Eight Cents of Humanity: What Starbucks Forgot About Loyalty" We live in the Attention Age—where every interaction is a moment of truth, and every customer is one tap away from becoming your greatest advocate or your loudest critic. Starbucks knows this. Or at least, their brand marketers do. But brands aren’t built on billboards. Brands like Starbucks are built at the counter—one moment, one interaction, one cup at a time. That’s what made my recent experience so disappointing. It was a hot afternoon in Reno, Nevada. I was thirsty. Really thirsty. I walked into the Shayden Summit Starbucks with one simple request: a cup of water. No Frappuccino. No caramel drizzle. Just tap water. I had a dollar bill in my hand. That’s it. “A cup of water is one dollar,” the barista told me. That was more than I expected, but I was parched and handed him the dollar. “With tax, it’s a dollar and eight cents,” he said flatly. “All I have is this dollar,” I replied, expecting some kind of understanding. Instead, I got, “No can do.” I asked if he could take eight cents from the tip jar. “No,” he said again, with the tone of a vending machine. Then came the kicker: “It’s policy. We have to be consistent.” So, I asked to speak with his manager, thinking surely someone with more common courtesy would do the right thing. “I am the manager,” he said. And that was that. I left. Overheated, baffled, and without water. As Seth Godin would say, “People don’t buy goods and services. They buy relationships, stories, and magic.” What story did Starbucks sell me that day? One where a thirsty 62-year-old couldn’t get a sip of water because he was eight cents short. Where’s the magic in that? My wife did a little digging. Turns out, as of January 27, 2025, Starbucks updated its policy: free water is now reserved for paying customers. But—and this is crucial—it also states that baristas are empowered to use discretion. Discretion. The freedom to act with empathy. The freedom to lead with humanity. That’s what this manager chose not to use. I called Starbucks Customer Service. Forty minutes later, I was promised a callback from a customer service expert. I’m still waiting. Starbucks spends millions on marketing and loyalty programs. But loyalty isn’t earned through clever copy or double-star days. It’s earned at the counter, in the in-between moments when the brand has a chance to behave like a human. That moment—eight cents short—wasn’t about money or policy. It was about being treated with a little bit of dignity. A little humanity. Starbucks, the brand that built itself on a warm, welcoming, and inclusive environment - its “third place” philosophy - fell short at the Shayden Summit Reno location. Wouldn’t it have been a better approach for the manager to act with more humanity? I didn’t cause a fuss or throw my weight around. I tried to be understanding and polite. In fact, I chose to be nice. But now I’m a nice customer sharing my bad experience with you… and others. And I’m the nice customer who will never return.