Beginning this December,  150 Starbucks shops in the Portland, Oregon area will have the opportunity to test a new preorder app to avoid the daunting morning coffee lines. Linda Mills, spokeswoman for Starbucks,  states that upon arrival the beverage will be sitting at the counter, and “If we need to remake your beverage to make sure it’s the right temperature, we’ll gladly do it.” Starbucks is not the only chain to incorporate preorder apps, large food-chains such as Pizza Hut, Domino’s Pizza, Taco Bell, Dunkin’ Donuts and McDonald’s are also in the development phase of testing these sort of new apps.

The startup OrderAhead from San Francisco are assembling merchant networks and they work by acquiring a 5-10% cut of each transaction. Jeffrey Byun, former derivatives trader and founder of OrderAhead, states that “OrderAhead addresses latent demand. We’re enabling behavior that was not possible before.” The mobile-payment startup Square is also releasing a preorder all for restaurants in San Francisco and New York. Richard Crone, researcher at Crone Consulting, believes that in the next couple years every quick-service enterprise should have a mobile express lane in order to have a chance at staying in the business.

Different chains will be rolling out their apps at different times and in different ways, whether the app gives an estimate duration until the order will be complete, or if there will be a separate line in store for mobile ordering pick up. Mills believes that while baristas will be challenged to work in the mobile orders into their routine,“the hardest part is just customer awareness, just getting them used to a different behavior and a different routine.” To read more about the different nuances in preorder app rollout and development and how they will help increase efficiency in stores, click here

Yesterday was National Coffee Day, and in honor of this, many fast casual enterprises offered free coffee to their guests. This pseudo marketing ‘holiday’ (comparable to Doughnut Day or Gummi Worm Day) began in the U.S in 2005 and has been observed every year by chains such as Dunkin’ Donuts, McDonald’s, Starbucks and Krispy Kreme amongst many others. While it is a clear marketing scheme, this year, due to higher coffee prices, the amounts of free cups of joe given away actually cost companies more than last year.

The price of coffee rose significantly this year due to a poor crop in certain growing areas of Brazil that suffered from poor weather. Michelle King, Dunkin’ spokeswoman, mentions that, “Coffee commodities fluctuate, and this year’s offers cost a little bit more than the offers from last year.” However, Dunkin’ did not believe the increased cost of coffee should halt their free coffee campaign as it would be a great way to introduce their new dark roast.

While prices are not as high as they were three years ago when Central America and Colombia suffered from very poor weather conditions, the situation is still not a positive one. Eventhough the International Coffee Organization foresees a coffee shortage over the next couple years, chances are that the marketing opportunity that is available for companies on a ‘holiday’ such as National Coffee Day will continue as it is a great way to gain loyal guests for breakfast which is the most competitive day part in the coffee segment.

To read more about the increased cost of coffee and what it meant for companies on National Coffee Day, click here