How Jonathan’s Card Really Works: A Very Caffeinated Social Experiment

Save this photo to your phone and use it next time you head to Starbucks! You can thank @jonathanscard.

When I was 18 years old, an anonymous donor gave me $20,000 out of his pocket so I could attend the University of Oklahoma, my top-pick school. When I was 22, I paid $1,000/month for rent in Manhattan on an intern’s salary. I tell you this to prove two things: 1. I truly admire random acts of kindness, and 2. I understand how much a free coffee can make someone’s day.

Which is why Jonathan Stark is my new hero. Not only because his Starbucks Card has its own Twitter account, but also because Jonathan combined my three favorite things (kindness, coffee and social media) in an experiment in social sharing.

How many times have you made it to the Starbucks drive-thru only to find out your cup-holder coin stash had run dry? How many times have you wanted to buy a coffee for the person in line behind you who might just be a poor, starving intern in need of a serious caffeine fix? Just put it on Jonathan’s card.

Read below to see how it works. I recruited my coworker Chris Reeves to test it out. Here’s our attempt to make someone’s day with free coffee (not without its technical difficulties).

*Note: I’m aware that we didn’t actually “feed the hungry” during this experiment, but we did here.

HOW IT WORKS

Visitors to his site are instructed to save a photo onto their cell phones (the photo is a screenshot from Jonathan’s phone that shows his Starbucks card number and unique barcode), and then hold that picture in front of the barcode scanner at the register. But first, pull up the card’s Twitter account (@jonathanscard) to check the balance.

A tweet is sent out every time money is added to or taken from the account. I’ve been watching the balance rise and fall for the past two days, mesmerized by the constant flow of tweets. So where does the money come from? Generous do-gooders like me and you. His website explains “How to Get a Coffee” and “How to Give a Coffee,” so anyone can reload the card with donations.

Jonathan encourages people to share a photo of their coffee or tweet about their experience, therefore benefiting Starbucks as well. And what does Starbucks think about it? @Jonathanscard tweeted: “Response from Starbucks: ‘We think Jonathan’s project is really interesting and are flattered he chose Starbucks for his social experiment.’”