Starbucks Giveaway How To

I’ve gotten SO MANY MESSAGES for instructions on how to do the Starbucks free coffee giveaway, so I have the step by step for you here!

1) Purchase a Starbucks gift card online and they send you a confirmation email with a barcode. I’ve not tried this with other businesses, but in theory it should work the same.

2) Take that barcode and paste it onto a graphic or photo. You can easily do this via Canva. On my birthday post last week I had the graphic put on a photo of me with a coffee cup, but in years past I have just put it on a graphic. This can be as fancy or elaborate as you want to make it.

Seriously … that’s it!

IMPORTANT – before you share online claim the ownership of your gift card so it doesn’t get “hijacked” and added to someone else’s account. To do that go back to the app, click SCAN, then a plus sign in the top right corner and add the card number and security code.

We have always included the letter/number code that is below the barcode so the cashier can type it in in case they have a hard time scanning the barcode, however I have heard from friends who have done this that people can “steal” the entire balance of your card by typing the numbers in online without even going into a store. If you follow the above step that should prevent that issue.

There is also a way to see how much is left on the card, how much each transaction was and where was it spent. That’s an additional perk of registering your gift card in the app.

To check balance and transactions go to the app, click HOME then in the top left corner – history.

I’ve used these on so many occasions! I do this on my birthday each year, and have on occasions done on Mother’s Day or a special anniversary. When I post it I almost always post on both my business account AND my personal account.

You can also do this with a small local coffee shop by having them set up a tab for you. On my personal and real estate business accounts I do this with a local coffee shop in my geographic farm. In which case, there is no barcode but my post says for them to mention my name in the store. I set this up in advance with the owner who notifies whomever will be working that day. I also give them a total to cap the tab at, just like I would with a gift card.

It is true that someone can take advantage and use the gift card in store for a ridiculous amount of purchases. It did happen to us once, but I believe in karma and they will get theirs. 😉

Give it a try!