Review: Name-on-the-Cup Policy

This morning I ordered my tall nonfat green tea latte, and the barista asked me for my name, adding, "we're supposed to put names on the cups now". I have seen this before in other Starbucks stores, so I wasn't too surprised. But this particular store had never asked for my name before, so I suspected that this was part of the 5:30-9 training session yesterday.

I admit that I have mixed feelings about the name-on-the-cup policy. I suspect that Starbucks is encouraging baristas to provide that that je ne sais quoi of a personal touch that McDonalds and Dunkin Donuts cannot provide.

Here are my thoughts: I'm pretty close to my baristas anyway, so the name policy seems like overkill. They know who I am. Plus, that former bond created by the game of barista-customer privacy where the barista pretended not to know my name, drink and food preferences, study habits etc., etc., is now squandered when my name is shouted out to the whole store. Additionally, I kind of like at least a little bit of anonymity at Starbucks since I often sit and study for a while, so I would rather things didn't get too personal. And here's a another thing: the name policy does not end at the door of Starbucks. The cup is now a name tag you carry with you throughout the day. This hardly seems fair especially since even the baristas themselves don't have to wear name tags...

Okay, yes, Starbucks is trying to out-do McDonalds and Dunkin Donuts. But why the insecurity? The whole Starbucks environment is so much more friendly than any of its so-called competitors that it's hard to believe that a name policy would actually matter. The name policy suggests that customers would find Starbucks insufficiently personal without the name policy, and sufficiently personal with the name policy. To people that actually believe this: I dare you to sit in a McDonalds or Dunkin Donuts for 3 hours. Even the thought of this freaks me out. Starbucks wins the friendliness award hands down.

But, you never know what people nationally and globally are thinking, and I don't want to bite the hand that feeds me caffeine, so....I will try to be reasonable.

Thus, I will concede that the name policy has the advantage of reducing confusion during peak hours. Sometimes there can be rapid-fire latte orders and cranky, tired, early-morning customers can just start chugging the first drink that kind of sounds like theirs. One time I saw someone take a sip right after she grabbed it and then made a sour face as she realized it wasn't even close to what she'd ordered. She put it back down with a big lipstick stain on the rim and tentatively admitted that she had mistaken the drink for her own. The baristas resolved everything for the people involved, but the whole ordeal slowed things down for everyone else behind them in line.

So, here's a recommendation that is a nice compromise:

Will the Starbucks baristas at least write my name in the middle of the cup (next to the logo), so that after I grab my drink I can cover my name up with a coffee sleeve?