BrightSign Personalizes the Drive-through Experience at Starbucks

Starbucks is known the world over for the continuity of its customer experience. Whether in Athens or Atlanta, customers can expect the same high-quality coffee drinks, made by friendly baristas who act as ambassadors for the world’s most iconic coffee brand. BrightSign integrator, OSM Solutions, has further personalized that experience with a new digital signage technology that gives drive-through customers a live look at the barista as their drinks are prepared.

Six franchised Starbucks locations (and counting) with drive-through facilities now feature an outdoor digital menu board that packs a great deal of content onto a relatively compact screen. Menu content changes depending on the time of day, weaving in promotions and featuring seasonal items when appropriate. In addition to this dynamic menu content, customers are greeted with a live video feed of the barista’s station, where they can witness their drinks being prepared in real time.

Drive-through facilities are often viewed as a convenience that sacrifices human interaction. This innovative use of digital signage is yet another example of how savvy business owners embrace technology to enrich customer interaction. Now weary drivers on the Pennsylvania Turnpike can pull off for a quick pick-me-up at this Starbucks and enjoy a personalized touch that raises the bar for drive-through dining experiences.

Key Facts

Industry: Coffeehouse Chain

Location: Valley Forge, PA

Integrator: OSM Solutions

Project: Starbucks Coffee Drive-through

Installation

• Outdoor digital menu board powered by a BrightSign HD222 digital signage media player
• Video surveillance camera located inside the store sends a live video feed of the barista via IP to the BrightSign HD222 in full HD
• Menuboard Manager® content management system for the BrightSign hardware utilized for remote content management

Challenges

• Required the ability for corporate to manage menu board content remotely, online
• Limited drive-through space had to include standard menu boards supplemented by a digital screen for displaying seasonal content with a live video feed of the Starbucks barista taking customer orders
• Video camera live feed of barista located in the store had to be displayed in HD on an outdoor digital menu board located more than 150 feet away

The Solution

• Outdoor menu board powered by BrightSign with multiple zones, with the majority of the screen dedicated to the menu and promotional items, with a smaller zone allocated for the live video of barista located inside the Starbucks store
• Surveillance camera with PoE distributing HD video to BrightSign over IP
• Media content from Starbucks corporate is managed by the franchisee and then served via Menuboard Manager® with system designed and built by full-service integration partner, OSM Solutions

Benefits

• Franchisee has the ability to customize content, while still adhering to Starbucks’ corporate standards
• Personalized approach gives the franchisee a competitive advantage over other drive-through establishments by showing the barista via a live camera feed during the ordering process
• Franchisee has the added flexibility of distributing content remotely