The king of the coffee industry and the No. 2 quick-service company by U.S. system-wide sales, Starbucks would seem to have all of its ducks in a row when it comes to the back of the house. But the Seattle company apparently has at least one Achilles heel: the drive thru.
Read How Starbucks Reinvented the Customer Experience in the Drive Thru
According to this year’s data, Starbucks ranked last in drive-thru speed of service and in the bottom half with order accuracy. Further, the company’s customer service scores were average at best—not quite the high-quality hospitality the company touts of its team members.
Things could be on the mend, however. Recently, operations consultant King-Casey worked with Starbucks to improve its drive-thru systems, which included enhancements to its signage, messaging, and wayfinding; mobile-ordering capabilities; and even a digital menuboard that projected the face of the barista to make the experience more personable.
“Our scope of work focused on helping them assess their current drive thrus and identifying opportunities to improve sales and their customer experience,” says Tom Cook, partner at King-Casey. “The biggest ‘aha’ moment came when we recommended they ‘bring the inside customer experience outside’ to the drive thru.”
