Wawa

This morning, as I'm sitting in my study reading the latest edition of “Hoagie Lover Magazine” and sipping on a delightful beverage, I glance to my phone to see an update to one of my favorite mobile applications - the Wawa app. I threw my drink and my light reading into the fireplace and began to feverishly download the new version. I call my personal assistant Janet and let her know to clear my afternoon. As she begins yelling at me, begging me to attend a job interview and my mother’s birthday party, I hang up the phone. This is important, Janet. Frothing, I began to peruse the new app. The once dark backdrop to Hoagietown has been replaced with bright, refreshing visuals throughout. While mobile ordering, I now see glorious/high-res/glossy images of my favorite condiments. A new feature, the addition of a “Rewards Card”, allows me to pay for my hoagies with my payment of choice instead of my Gift Card – which is a delight to me, as I can finally begin to deplete my collection of rolled nickels and earn rewards while doing so. Just as my unrelenting excitement for the Wawa Mobile App couldn't get any more intense, they go ahead and release a fully redesigned app! This concludes my review, as I will be placing my order for a Classic Italian and then stopping at the park to shout at the ducks. The perfect day awaits me!

I visit Wawa semi-regularly, and because my daily life takes me back and forth between Philly and the Malvern area, I have five stores that I frequent. If I’m reading the store locator map correctly, I visit stores 97, 125 and 21 near where I live and the stores 205 and 8091 (this new one is super nice!!) near where I work. During other travels, I’ve also visited the stores 270 and 191 on a less frequent basis. I have always had great experiences at all of these stores. The stores are clean, the food is always just how I wanted it, the coffee is perfect and the staff is always friendly, polite and helpful. The only time I was ever sad that my favorite coffee was all out, a staff member noticed and made a new pot just for me and then made sure I got my coffee for free for having to wait. I didn’t mind having to wait at all, especially since it was late afternoon and I was on the way home from work anyway, but getting free coffee for it definitely made my night. I wish now that I could remember which store that was, but all of the ones I visit are pretty awesome. Keep up the good work, Wawa!

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The app works better since the new update. I’m not getting randomly kicked anymore and it’s easier to reload gift cards. There are little problems, like I’ve paid extra to get avocado spread added to my sandwich and I’ll get there are they’ll be out of avocado. Caramelized onions are available on the app but if you order in-store it’s not an option (as of last week). Or something won’t be available on the app but when you get to the store it is available. Small things like this that could pretty much happen anywhere. Two serious problems with the app. First, you can’t use rewards when you pay in the app. Only if you pay in store. If this is a function, I’m pretty tech-savvy and I haven’t figured it out so it should be made easier. My main problem with this app is they don’t start making your order until you get to the store. What in the world is the point of that??? The entire reason for online ordering is so it’s ready when you get there and you can skip any wait at the store. If I order 20 minutes early, why am I waiting another 10-15 minutes when I get there?? Ordering on the app and waiting for your food takes the exact same amount of time as ordering in store. So basically the only convenience of the app is it stores your gift card so you don’t need the actual card.

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So I just had a store open near me, the line was long so I figured I’d try mobile order. I went to create my account using Facebook. Filled out all verified with Facebook and was brought back to the main screen. Thought huh, that was weird so I tried it twice more with the same result. Then I decided to just try to login with the credentials I set just to see and got a message that said account not verified. As a person with 10+ years in the web development and app development world I read that message loud and clear, check my email...surprise (4) emails waiting for me. (1) to verify my account and three others about a reward account. Success I logged in. Now on to adding a gift card to my account. Clicked add new gift card, yay, added payment type, cool tried to add funds....FAIL. Couldn’t add funds. I know the card was good as I went into the store and paid with the same card for cold cooler pre-made items, didn’t get to enjoy a fresh made sandwich, but guys really? Come on? You are an great rapidly growing company with lots of successful endeavors in your future time to grow your tech side and get some good UI/UX people on your staff.

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DON’T WASTE YOUR TIME! HERE COMES ROYAL FARMS!!! ROYAL FARMS IS GOING TO BLOW WAWA OUR OF THE WATER!!! If they keep this up! Not only has the app been slacking, but their employee hiring in stores has been getting worse and worse!!!! The only thing that you will accomplish by trying to use this app, is your blood pressure reaching record breaking heights. All the money Wawa wastes on advertising for this pathetic app and it doesn’t even work... maybe Wawa should focus on building an app that actually works before blasting advertisements all over in regards to their new app. Or maybe they should take a closer look at whoever is in charge of the department that oversees, manages, builds the app, because clearly they are terrible at hiring employees. Seems like the idiot in charge, hired a bunch of 2 year olds that don’t even know what technology is. If I were Wawa, I’d clean the house of that entire department, and focus on hiring quality employees who can build, run and maintain a productive app. All the money Wawa has, and they can’t put together a decent tech team to build an app that actually works. As popular as Wawa is, and their app is slower than the Slowski’s Family on the Xfinity Commercials. Dial up internet from the early 2000’s is faster than the Wawa app.