The feeling experience strategy of Starbucks brand

Author: Yi Ran J.

The sense of taste：

100% Arabica coffee bean. Starbucks provide the best quality of coffee bean and develop new varieties of coffee bean & Brewing method.

Smell:

"Starbucks" provides the strong smell of coffee.When people enter or just pass through the Starbucks, they can smell the incomparable aroma.

Vision:

The design and pictures are related to the coffee and build elegant and classical atmosphere.
Hearing：

"Starbucks "has their own music and their music is related to the coffee.
Touch:

"Starbucks" allow customers to touch the coffee beans and some appliances related to the coffee.

This feeling strategy makes customers only contact with "Starbucks" coffee when they enter to "Starbucks " coffee shop.

Coffee shop brand: top 5

Author: Yi Ran J.

  

1.Starbucks (America,1971)

Starbucks coffee shop are full of atmosphere of North America.You can taste morn than 30 kinds of delicious coffee which come from Central America,Africa and Indonesia,etc..In the meanwhile,you can enjoy a series of handmade beverage,fresh baked cake. All of the Starbucks coffee bean was grinded within 1 hour to keep the taste of Latin and America's original coffee.The standards is:each of coffee that customers order is made within 20 seconds and serve customers efficiently.
 

2.Doutor (Japan,1962)

Doutor already had 1222 chain stores.Most of aged people are attracted by Doutor coffee to have a taste.because its price is relatively low and its atmosphere is very comfortable.What is different is Doutor allow customers to smoke. Especially in the period of economic depression, people prefer Doutor coffee because of its reasonable price.

 

3. Tchibo(Germany,1949)

Tchibo has experienced very long time and now Tchibo is the world's fifth largest coffee seller.The brand image is golden coffee beans with the blue background. Nowadays, "Tchibo"group already has more than 900 coffee bar, providing coffee and dessert, coffee machine, sealed cans, and a wide range of consumer goods and services. 

4.  Diedrich Coffee (America,1983)
  

  In 1916, Charlotte Diedrich inherited a coffee plantation in Costa Rica and then he has running the coffee business.In 1983, Martin Diedrich created the first coffee shop.Nowadays,Diedrich Coffee has become the second largest coffee retailer in the United States. However, Diedrich is a plant-based coffee shop.so he pay more attention to the quality of coffee and that's why the coffee shop can attract more and more clients among the competition.

 5. Second Cup (Canada,1975)

"Second cup" is commonly acknowledged as one of the world's largest coffee chain and the largest professionalcoffee retailer in Canada."Second cup "provide consumers delicious coffee and at the same time,they pay more attention to the service and comfortable environment;that's why "Second cup"is so competitive.

From the portrait of Starbucks brand to the portrait of a customer

Author: Anna N.

Interesting fact is when we try to match brand personality with the brand target audience, we can see that the Starbucks customer has really changed during the last years. Who was a typical Starbucks customer since a long time? This person should have certainly love coffee, even be addicted to coffee. It means he probably should have had an active life rhythm, as he needed something to cheer up and probably on a regular basis. He probably should have got enough money. He probably perceived himself as a person with a good taste and style and a certain knowledge of his needs, which means in the environment he mostly appreciated the style and personal attitude in service. If we have asked this person, with what type of personality Starbucks associates to you, he would definitely answer: the same as me. In spite of the fact that Starbucks is still associated with something stylish, the “style” of the customer has changed itself, transforming from something “luxury” to something more “clerk” or “hipster”. However, over 70% of respondents agreed to some extend that Starbucks is the best among competitors, but still across different countries Starbucks is now more associated with such low price segment competitors like McDonald’s or Dunkin Donuts, which also confirms the mentioned switch in the consumers’ mind. This switch may also explain the decline in the percentage of people, considering Starbucks to be a part of their lifestyle and visiting Starbucks following the “call of the heart” (graph 1, 2 & 3).

Graph 1: If you visit Starbucks on the regular bases, what is your main motivation?

Graph 2: How often do you visit Starbucks?

Graph 3: Remember your last visit to Starbucks. Why you choose it among other cafes?

Graph 4: Thinking about Starbucks brand values, choose 3 from the list that you appreciate most of all?

The survey results show that nowadays Starbucks for the customer is not about a tribute to fashion, like it was before, but more about practical benefits, like coffee taste and convenience of the café location (graph 4). 

Taking into account the above results we will not be surprised, why among the points of improvement the most of the respondents (30%) mentioned “reducing the prices” variant – if the brand is not considered as luxury anymore people are not willing to pay more. So what can be the reason of such a change in the consumers’ mind since the last years? Does it mean that today the customer, who remembers the Starbucks being a “cool place to go” and “cool cup to carry” just got more mature, with higher incomes and higher expectations? Or may be because today less and less people from the so called early adapters would like to be associated with “clerk” or “hipster”? And does these trends mean that Starbucks today should rely more on occasional customers rather then those, who are really addicted to the brand, and focus more on the new generation of young people and stake on the mass market rather then keeping to it’s selectivity? Still this is a rather common life circle for the majority of brands from being something special to being something cool, but already usual. And in most of the cases the brand doesn’t need to fight against changes in the consumers’ minds, but to follow the wave and move along with these changes, adapting its marketing strategy to them.We already can notice that Starbucks is adequately reacting to changes on the target market, for example, developing some loyalty programmes on the facebook platform, reaching the younger audience by this, as well as planning to open the “healthy food” points to respond to the needs of a more mature audience. So Starbucks still keeps its strong positions and strong brand perception. And moreover, it still gives a pleasant experience and makes people feel different. But may be just different (=other) people. And what do you think?

Brand as a person: who is Starbuscks?

Author: Anna N

Because brands are more than just a name and a logo, getting to precisely what people understand by a brand can be difficult, particularly once you are into the emotional content of the brand. One very common technique for assessing a brand is “personification” - imagining the brand is a person and then trying to describe that person. According to the recent survey, provided by the author of this article among the people from 23 to 35 in Russia, France, Belgium, UK, Georgia, China, Morocco and Germany, Starbucks brand has a very strong personality in the consumers’ mind. Being asked “Thinking of Starbucks as a person, what type of person is it?”, the respondents gave very specific and descriptive answers. However, they were different at some points, but still this variety of answers allows to make a very concrete “portrait” of a Starbucks brand. In terms of the gender half of the respondents said it is a male, 5% – female, the rest – no concrete gender. As for the age overwhelming majority mentioned that he is young, at the same time 20% marked the age of 30 or around it, 12% – below 30, 10% – within a scale from 20 to 40, 7% – more than 40.

Among the most popular characteristics prevailing were the positive ones:

1. Stylish / Modern / Trendy / Good looking / Elegant / Fashionable / Good taste
2. Smart
3. Active / Dynamic / Busy
4. Open-minded
5. Creative
6. Positive / humorous / funny
7. Communicative / friendly / social

Also we could meet such descriptions, like easygoing, cheerful, wealthy, polite, independent, free, rich, urban. However, rather negative descriptions could be met, like snobbish, greedy, superficial, a bit stupid. Some respondents gave really detailed and complete portraits of a Starbucks person:

«Guy,below 30, hipster, travels a lot, tends more to home parties than clubbing, can cook complicated dishes, single, has dog, able to paint»

«A smart bad guy around 35 who is perfectly aware of how to sell simple things like coffee for ridiculous prices to a shallow young ladies imagining themselves being Carrie Bradshaw»

«A male person in the 30ies from a fancy district of town and in love with himself»

«20-35, disregarding gender, this person has an iPhone or dreams about an iPhone or any other apple product, probably dreams to live in New York, has seen series "Friends" not once, probably most of seasons, likes yoga or light fitness, probably think about environment to "think modern" even if he/she doesn't care much. However, this person probably has good imagination, designer skills, good at communication - lives at twitter and facebook»

«20-45 employee, last year student, freelancer, expat, American, the one, who wants coffee and  sandwich quickly, the one, who likes cheesecakes for the atmosphere of Christmas and for wi-fi»

«Probably male; late 30s; audi-driver, likes modern neutral style, clean, non-threatening, relaxed but professional and proficient»

«40 years old man. Mean, but trying to look generous. Wears green scarf»

Why Starbucks is a strong brand?

People may love Starbucks or not, but there is no doubt that this brand has a very strong personality and a perception in the consumer’s mind. You can ask everyone, what is Starbucks and what associations it gives to you, and everyone will give the clear answer. Isn’t it an approval of a brand power? The question is, how a brand can build in consumers’ mind such a strong perception, and what are the main brand attributes, allowing the brand to become not only strong and known, but a part of a lifestyle?

 The obvious answer may be here that when the brand is associated not only with the product, but with a certain experience, this may be a key to success. Indeed, when we think about Starbucks, we imagine not only a good coffee taste, but also a pleasant time that we may spend in the Starbucks café, the pleasant service you we will get there, at last, the typical cup with a lid that is so pleasant to carry. These mean pleasant experience, and you will be glad to demonstrate to the others, that such kind of experience suites to your lifestyle. Because it will differentiate you from the one hand, and attribute to a certain community from another hand. And this particular feeling of “being different” plays a key role in the brand success. 

Author: Anna N

Starbuck's brand building blocks

Author: Valérie C.

We started the analysis of the brand positioning a few weeks ago with the identity prism, let's continue with the brand building blocks:

Starbucks SWOT analysis

Author: Anne-Laure N


As Starbucks is a love brand, we have to study the SWOT of the company: which are its strengths? Its weaknesses? Its opportunities? Its threats? A brand has to continually enhance its identity and position. So, let's present the Starbucks SWOT:

Logo and Identity

Author: Valérie C

The change of a logo necessarily implies a change of identity? This is what one might expect to believe face dissatisfaction with the recent change of the logo of the brand. We have already explained in a recent article what the change involve. The CEO, Howard Schultz, introduced that change by explaining it through a video. He argued the new logo respect traditions, reflect the will of Starbucks to go “beyond coffee” and its adaptation to a new world. 

Starbucks has changed its logo … for better or for worse??

Author: Valérie C.


New world, new logo

Spring 2011 was an important event for Starbucks that celebrated its 40th anniversary! At the occasion of that special event, the famous coffee company has chosen a controversial strategy: adopting a new logo! So, Starbucks put an end to the logo existing since 1992 to implement a new one.  The company renews it by removing the Starbucks name and keeping only green color and “the siren”.

 

Consumers fear changes?

Consumers didn’t welcome well that change. Indeed, the company has to face many criticisms from its customers on the web. “Ugly”, “Stupid” was some comments on the Facebook page of the company.

So, this “scandal” around logo change helps us to raise some issues about branding. How important is a logo for consumers? What challenges companies face by changing their visual identity?

Starbucks ’logo is the sign that allows consumers to identify the brand and indicate its value. In fact, the equity of the brand was directly linked to the logo, its awareness, the values and image it conveys. The choice of a siren, green colors and a clear name reflected the responsible and traditional positioning of Starbucks.

Now, we could almost say that Starbucks has become a kind of anonymous brand since the company’s name doesn’t appear anymore.

A few brands can remove their name from logos. Indeed, it implies a high recognition and notoriety. Nike and Apple are some examples, and their logos exist for years. However, Starbucks penetrated French market only in 2004, so quite recently!

It explains why consumers could be confused when they saw the logo! After about 6 months, Starbucks seems to be willing to keep this way, but others brands finally changed their mind.

In October 2010, Gap launched its new logo.  Consumers immediately reacted saying that it was terrible. Facing a quick spread of criticisms, they decided to withdraw it and keep the old one.

Companies take risk by changing the visual identity of a successful brand. Moreover, Internet increases the power of consumers since it allows them to quickly spread the word and create huge communities to express their opinion.

Anyway, Starbucks took risks but we hope its customers won’t blame it for that! 

 

 

The competitive environment of Starbucks: Porter’s five forces

Author: Anne-Laure N.

To understand how Starbucks has become not only the leader in coffee, but also a strong and recognized brand, it is necessary to understand its strategy with its competitors. Both domestic as Tully's Coffee, Gloria Jean's, Caribou Coffee and international competitors such as Dunkin Donuts and McDonald's, always require Starbucks to evolve, differentiate and grow.

Let us study the Porter model to better analyze the strategy of the brand. This model aims to identify the forces in the competitive environment and their intensities, to adapt its strategy to gain competitive advantage and well, to make a profit above the industry average.

Starbuck's brand positionning: identity prism

Author: Valérie C.

Having a coffee, a hot chocolate or their famous Frappuccino means a lot when you’re in Starbucks. That you take it away or lie on sofas chatting with your friends, this is the Starbucks experience.

Cozy, connected are some words we can use to define this place. We all have opinions, images about the brand. But, what really are the brand values? How does the brand want to be seen? How does it interact with you? 

To answer those questions and better understand the brand positioning, let’s use the famous brand identity prism by Kapferer (1986):

Why Starbucks is called Starbucks?

 To the extent that Starbucks is a brand known worldwide, we have forgotten the unusual nature of this name. It has become a common word in our vocabulary. The name Starbucks seems so ordinary that no one asks what its meaning is. The obviousness of the word is also somehow proof of his success: the brand asserts itself in evidence; his name is just a sound that has the meaning that consumers give. But the word does have an origin, a very literary origin. The name “Starbucks” was inspired by a very famous novel written in the 19^th century by Herman Melville: Moby-Dick. When they created the first store in Seattle, the three creators (all lovers of literature) wanted to find a link to the mining camp called "Starbo" located on Mount Rainier to the southeast of the city. They found that the name reminded them that of a very brave officer of the famous novel. He is not only young and brave: he brings all the last human values like tolerance, loyalty and kindness. Through this name, Starbucks appears like a very human brand, loyal and kind, almost like a friend. In a way, Starbucks is always here for us. The story is also interesting because Starbuck is a lover of coffee on the boat of Moby Dick.Through this name, Starbucks is positioning itself as a brand-friend, a place where you will be always protected, a brand which will always be there for you and never let you down.

Author: Anne-Laure N.