I'm a big fan (and consumer) of Starbucks. Their marketing is good, their coffee is good, their tie-in with iTunes is good, their sense of style is good...heck, they even distribute a newsletter called GOOD.

So it was with eager anticipation that I awaited the arrival of my Starbucks Gold Card.

Starbucks Gold is their new membership program that gives you discounts off of pretty much everything, and little freebies along the way. The discount more than covered my annual purchases, so I went online to set myself up.

Herein lies the first problem in what is proving to be a hair-pulling experience with the company I love. My local Starbucks did not hand out actual cards that you could register online...just little promo sleeves. So I went online and found the card ordering process to be ridiculously convoluted. You're exited out of the "Gold" site and into the regular Starbucks site, where you're asked to pick a card, of which the Gold card isn't one. So I pick another one, figuring my order of a Gold Card will be enough to convince them that's what I wanted. Today, my card arrives in all it glorious black and gold-ness. I could almost hear the angels singing...ohhh OOHHH!

I go online to register it...punch in the number on the back of the card, only to be told that it's not a valid Gold Card number. Oh? It's a Gold Card. The number is printed on the back of it. How is it not a valid number. The website says if I have problems I should call the customer service number, which I do.

The automated service then tells me that I need to register my Gold Card online. Are you beginning to see the hair being pulled? I wait patiently and finally am patched through to a customer service rep, who was extremely courteous and helpful, but was totally flummoxed by the whole situation. Apparently the card number they had assigned me in the system was different than the one I received. Apparently they had gotten confused because when I tried to order it online, I picked a different card design...EVEN THOUGHT THERE WAS NO GOLD CARD CHOICE!

So apparently now my case is being elevated to something with the word "Resolution" in it, which sounds good to me. Meanwhile, I've got a dead Gold Card in my hand and a new one coming in 10-12 DAYS?!?

I'm sure it will all be resolved. I'm sure by Thanksgiving I'll be happily sipping my discounted grande soy white mocha. Until then, I will marvel at how the company that does everything so well messed up a promotion designed to capture its most valued customers.