Reward pool recipes: 15 examples that actually work.
A practical cookbook of reward pools for cafes, restaurants, salons, fitness studios, and bars — with probabilities tuned to a 10% reward budget.
Merchants ask us two questions constantly. First: “What rewards should I offer?” Second: “What odds should I set?” The answers depend on your category, your margins, and the emotional texture you want the game to have. Here are fifteen reward pools we've built across the shops we're piloting with, tuned to a 10%-of-margin reward budget.
These are starting points. The dial on the Sticki dashboard lets you move from 5% to 20% budget and we re-allocate probabilities automatically. Use these as the shape of a pool, not the law.
Cafes & beverage shops
1. The neighborhood coffee shop (average ticket $4.50)
- Free pastry · 4%
- Oat milk upgrade · 18%
- Drink size upgrade · 12%
- 10% off next drink · 20%
- 2× points · 18%
- Try again · 28%
2. Morning-rush high-volume shop (average ticket $5.25)
- Free next drink · 2%
- Free pastry · 4%
- Oat milk upgrade · 20%
- Extra espresso shot · 18%
- 10% off · 15%
- Try again · 41%
3. Juice / smoothie bar (average ticket $8)
- Free smoothie upgrade (regular to large) · 10%
- Free protein / supplement add-on · 18%
- Wheatgrass shot · 12%
- 15% off next order · 15%
- Try again · 45%
4. Boba / tea shop (average ticket $6.50)
- Free boba upgrade (jelly → lychee) · 22%
- Free topping · 15%
- 10% off · 18%
- BOGO tea (weekend only) · 5%
- Try again · 40%
Restaurants & takeout
5. Fast-casual taco joint (average ticket $14)
- Free guacamole on next order · 15%
- Free side (chips, rice) · 15%
- Free dessert · 8%
- Free protein upgrade (steak) · 5%
- 15% off next visit · 20%
- Try again · 37%
6. Neighborhood pizzeria (average ticket $28)
- Free appetizer on next order · 10%
- Free breadsticks · 18%
- Free topping · 15%
- 10% off family-size pizza · 12%
- Try again · 45%
7. Sit-down dinner restaurant (average ticket $55)
- Free dessert · 8%
- Free starter · 10%
- Complimentary upgrade to a premium side · 8%
- 15% off tab · 12%
- Priority reservation slot (Saturday) · 2%
- Try again · 60%
8. Bakery with full kitchen (average ticket $18)
- Free croissant or scone · 12%
- Free coffee with baked good · 15%
- Bakery box 10% off · 20%
- Free cake slice (once-a-month unlock) · 3%
- Try again · 50%
Salons & personal care
9. Nail salon (average ticket $60)
- Nail-art upgrade · 10%
- Paraffin treatment · 10%
- File & buff add-on · 20%
- 15% off next service · 22%
- Try again · 38%
10. Hair salon / barbershop (average ticket $75)
- Deep conditioning treatment · 15%
- Scalp massage add-on · 20%
- 15% off next cut · 18%
- Free beard trim (barbershops) · 10%
- Try again · 37%
11. Lash / brow studio (average ticket $90)
- Free fill extension (15 min) · 8%
- Brow shaping add-on · 18%
- Lash tint add-on · 12%
- 15% off next appointment · 20%
- Try again · 42%
Fitness & wellness
12. Yoga / pilates studio (drop-in $30 / membership)
- Free guest pass (bring a friend) · 15%
- Mat / prop rental waived · 20%
- Retail 15% off (merch, apparel) · 18%
- Free signature class upgrade · 8%
- Try again · 39%
13. Martial arts / dance studio (average $150 / month)
- Free private lesson (30 min) · 3%
- Bring-a-friend week · 20%
- Guest access to specialty class · 12%
- Branded gear 15% off · 18%
- Try again · 47%
Bars & nightlife
14. Cocktail bar (average ticket $38 — note compliance caveat)
- Free appetizer · 12%
- Premium pour upgrade · 15%
- Priority seating weekend · 3%
- Branded glassware 50% off · 10%
- 15% off tab · 12%
- Try again · 48%
In regulated states, alcohol-specific rewards default off and get substituted with food or merch. Sticki's pool builder handles this automatically based on the shop's state.
15. Brewery taproom (average ticket $25)
- Free flight upgrade · 8%
- Branded pint glass to keep · 6%
- Free appetizer · 15%
- Merch 20% off · 15%
- 10% off tab · 15%
- Try again · 41%
Tuning principles
Three rules we follow when we build these:
- The rare wins should be the talked-about wins.Free dessert, free drink, priority seating. These hit 3–8% of spins but drive 70% of the emotional conversation about the program.
- The frequent wins should be nearly free. Drink upgrades, add-ons, size bumps. Customer feels rewarded; you eat $0.20 of marginal cost.
- Never put “Try again” below 35%. If you push it lower, your reward pool EV explodes. Stay in the 35–55% range for “Try again” probability.
One last thing: the reward budget is a knob, not a commandment. Shops running their first Sticki campaign typically start at 10% budget, watch A/B retention lift for 30 days, then tune up or down based on what they learn. The whole point of Sticki's A/B-by-default design is that you don't have to guess.