Starbucks Corp. plans to combine its gift and loyalty card programs to spur consumers to visit more often with the incentive of free beverages.

The new program, dubbed My Starbucks Rewards, allows some registered card holders to redeem a complimentary drink after every 15 purchases, the Seattle-based company said in a statement Friday. It grew out of complaints from some of the 850,000 members that their paid subscription didn’t offer more perks, said Terry Davenport, senior vice president of marketing.

The Seattle-based coffee seller is looking to give consumers a reason to come to its cafes more often after many pared back visits and bought fewer coffees. It began the Gold Card program last year, with a $25 annual membership fee and a 10 percent discount on beverages, and found holders spent 15 percent more with the card than they had before, the company said in January.

“We need to understand our customers better than ever and we need to understand how to stay relevant to them,” Davenport said in an interview Tuesday. “We brought this out to appease our Gold Card members who wanted to earn free drinks.”