Cheers!

America’s Tipping Problem

As tipping amounts increase and the practice becomes more frequent, customers are growing increasingly frustrated. Many are opting not to tip at all, creating significant problems for staff who rely heavily on these earnings. This issue is especially common in cafes, where customers often feel uncertain about where their tip money is going and are expected to tip up to 30%, whether they simply picked up a water bottle or received full table service. 

Backed Up By Research

To identify the issues customers faced with tipping, how it made them feel, and where they felt the most tipping anxiety, our team conducted three weeks of research. Through secondary research surveys, interviews and a workshop with customers, servers, and business owners, we discovered that customers often felt unappreciated for their tips, anxious about tipping in public, and pressured to tip even when they performed most of the work themselves.

Our Vision

Cheers aims to reinvent the tipping experience by providing customers autonomy, privacy, and comfort when tipping. This will create higher customer retention, confidence, and comfort for customers when tipping service workers. 

How Might We...?

How might we redesign the tipping experience at cafes to make customers feel comfortable, motivated, and confident during their tipping experience?

Testing

We conducted two rounds of user testing. The first round identified areas of difficulty in our prototype, elements causing confusion, and features that users liked. Based on this feedback, we made several adjustments to our app clip and terminal. The second round of testing was successful, with users finding the prototype intuitive and natural to use.

Cheers Product Ecosystem

Cheers' Terminal

Cheers' Full Phone App

With the full app, customers can collect thank you notes from the servers they tipped. Additionally, servers can track their tip amounts and personalize a thank you note to send to customers.

Cheers' App Clip

Small part of an app that allows users to perform a specific task without having to download the full app. 

How Cheers Solves The Tipping Problem

Privacy

Giving users the option to tip later allows them to wait until they are ready, experience the full service, and avoid the pressure of tipping in front of the server and with a line of people behind them eagerly waiting to be the next. Even so, for those who choose to tip immediately, the vertical, ergonomic shape of the terminal and interactive swiping motions ensure their privacy from the cashier in front and people in the back  

Transparency

Before confirming their tip, users can see a breakdown of who will receive the tip and who will not. This personalizes the transaction and builds a direct connection between the customer and the service provider. This transparency encourages people to tip more, as they feel their contribution is directly benefiting the individuals who served them.

Kind Writing

Our considerate UX writing is designed to make users feel at ease, even if they decide not to leave a tip. We understand that fostering a comfortable and pressure-free environment is essential for a positive user experience. By reframing the act of tipping as a gesture of appreciation, we seek to create a more positive and rewarding experience for users. This subtle shift in language underscores our commitment to fostering a culture of gratitude.

Quick Interaction

Many of the initial concerns about creating a product like this were that tipping would become a chore, requiring a long interaction to complete. And this, in turn, might lead to fewer people tipping to avoid the hassle. However, with Cheers, the average tipping experience takes only three clicks! Simply state the type of experience you received, rate it, and select your curated tip amount. Opting for a custom tip adds just two more clicks. From our testing, users took an average of only 40 seconds to complete the tipping process using our terminal and app clip.

Confidence

Allowing users to express their thoughts about the service helps alleviate any guilt associated with their tipping decision, making them more confident in selecting the appropriate tip amount. Additionally, by having users respond to both an objective and subjective question, the system can provide a more accurate tip recommendation, further enhancing their confidence in the amount they choose to tip.

Humanizing

Tipping today often feels impersonal, like just another part of paying the bill. Cheers changes this by making tipping feel more human and reminding customers that their tips help real people. We use hand-drawn designs and images of hands to emphasize this personal touch. Plus, with Cheers, customers receive handwritten thank you notes from the servers they tip. This encourages more tipping and makes customers feel valued and appreciated.