The short answer

Start with a simple coffee loyalty card: an eligible purchase earns a stamp and a completed card earns a specific drink. Choose the purchase requirement, reward and exclusions around your costs and customers’ visit frequency. Visible progress makes the remaining effort easy to understand.

Repeat visits — StampiGram
Actual app components · sample data

1. Choose an attainable goal

A long path can feel irrelevant to guests; a very short one can undermine margin. Review normal visit frequency and select one clear reward. The real StampiGram demo card shows five of seven stamps: two more eligible purchases unlock a gift. This is sample interface data, not customer performance evidence.

2. Calculate reward economics

For “buy seven, receive the eighth drink free”, divide the reward’s cost by the seven paid purchases as a starting point. Also account for redemption, packaging, incremental labour and purchases that would have happened anyway. A reward can be valuable to the guest while still having a controlled cost to the venue.

3. Write the rules before issuing cards

Explain which purchases qualify, how many stamps an order earns, which drink sizes the reward includes and when it expires. Specify upgrades and participating locations. Make the conditions available both when the guest joins and when staff redeem the reward.

4. Show progress after each purchase

StampiGram’s customer app displays earned stamps, remaining progress and reward status. The guest presents a QR code for staff to scan. Digital cards remove the need to keep a paper card but still require customers to use the app. Include that step in your counter conversation.

5. Measure your own customer behaviour

Track time to the next visit, completion rates and contribution after rewards. Separate new participants from established regulars. A control pilot is preferable where practical: a before-and-after comparison can reflect seasonality rather than the effect of the program.

Action plan

  • Define the purchase that earns a stamp.
  • Choose a stamp target and a specific reward.
  • Model costs under active redemption.
  • Publish rules and exclusions.
  • Measure time to the next visit.

What to measure

Card completion rate = completed cards / cards from the same cohort with enough time to complete. Do not compare newly issued cards with mature ones.

Open the calculator

Where StampiGram fits

StampiGram displays earned progress and reward availability. Research about bonus starting stamps does not imply that automated bonus stamps are a released product feature.

Source: Kivetz, Urminsky, Zheng (2006): reward-program research ↗

FAQ

Are digital stamp cards better than paper cards?

Paper needs no app installation. Digital cards keep progress and rules in the account but require onboarding. Choose according to guest habits and operational costs.

Does a loyalty program require constant discounts?

No. A reward after a series of purchases is a separate mechanic. It provides a clear goal without reducing the price of every order.