Starbucks is a well-known company for its coffees, teas and pastries. Founded in 1971, in Seattle, Washington, it has grown from one to near 30,000 locations around the world (Statista, 2018). Its presence is noticeable in the national and international markets.
Brand positioning is the process of positioning your brand in the mind of your customers (“How to Create Strong Brand Positioning,” 2015). How was Starbucks brand positioned?
Mission, Vision and Values
The mission of Starbucks states “To inspire and nurture the human spirit – one person, one cup, and one neighborhood at a time” (Starbucks, 2019). The connection between the Starbucks brand and the consumer is not based solely on having a good product. Starbucks gives the message that they want to give a good experience to the consumer. People go to a place where they can feel relaxed, in a warm environment to share time with friends, use technology, and feel cozy. But, this warm relationship is not only directed to the customer. Employees also feel valued by the company. They are called “partners” and receive constant training for their work, and have the possibility of obtaining scholarships to continue with their higher education. In addition, with each purchase, consumers have the option to make a donation for a social cause. This way of proceeding is aligned with the vision and values of the company which are “Performance driven through the lens of humanity (Starbucks, 2019).”
Logo and Slogan
The Starbucks logo has changed since its inception. At the beginning, the Starbucks logo was a topless siren and had a visible double fish tail. Later, it was cropped. Now, the logo shows only the top part of the siren body and the tails. The color of the logo changed too. It began as a brown color, and now the green color is used in all its products and remembered by clients. The green color is associated with renewal, youth, as well as trees and plants (Bourn, 2011). Probably, the success of using this color may be that this color meaning is related with Starbucks’ target who are young and care about environmental causes.
Starbucks doesn’t have a slogan. Its way to advertise is through its logo which is known in people’s minds.
Successfully Positioned
The Starbucks brand is positioned as a high-quality customer experience brand. It sells products and services at premium prices. The quality of its products and good customer experience are the main differentiators of this brand from other coffee brands.
Failed Position
In 2010, Starbucks tried to increase people in its locations at night serving beer, wine, and some menu changes, but it failed. The Starbucks brand is too ingrained in the minds of consumers, and beer/wine doesn’t fit (Anderson, 2017). People going at night were there to study or work, and wine didn’t contribute to productivity (Anderson, 2017). Then in 2015, it closed its La Boulange locations and converted them to Starbucks since they didn’t reach their goals (Anderson, 2017).
How to Develop a Brand?
Strategies from Starbucks that Can Be Used When Developing a Brand Name in an Organization
There are many strategies that we can take from Starbucks when developing a brand name. One strategy is to focus on customer service. First, you need to meet your customers (Sullivan, 2015). A way to meet them, is asking and listening to them. It will not make any sense to produce a drink that is not pleasant to consume, or sell a piece of cake that does not taste good according to the customers’ expectations. The famous phrase, “the customer is always right,” is not a simple cliché. It is a reality that the companies have to face. Therefore, Starbucks has a presence in the main social media channels such us Facebook, Instagram, and Google, where it is interacting, engaging, and responding to its followers to meet and known them better. A second strategy is the use of mobile pay for the business transactions. It is not a secret that Millennials and the new generations are constantly using technology to communicate and for their activities in daily life. Consumers spend more time today connecting on their phone than on any other device. It’s important that companies tailor the mobile experience to their audiences (Sullivan, 2015). So, organizations should pay attention and get an optimized mobile site and create apps to interact with customers. Another strategy that will never fail is simply being a responsible company. It means getting ethical sourcing, environmental stewardship and community involvement. Starbucks has long‐term relationships with farmers all over the world to purchase high-quality coffee. Its goal is to use ethical trading and responsible growing practices (“Starbucks Company Profile,” 2015). The environment is something that Starbucks worries about. It believes in the importance of caring for our planet and encouraging others to do the same (“Starbucks Company Profile,” 2015). And, community involvement is part of its existence. It not only gives donations, also it contributes with volunteer hours to help the communities.
References
Anderson, George (2017). Starbucks Knows How to Fail Fast, Just Like Amazon. Forbes.
Retrieved from:
Bourn, Jennifer (2011). Color Meaning: Meaning of The Color Green. Retrieved from:
https://www.bourncreative.com/meaning-of-the-color-green/
How to Create Strong Brand Positioning in Your Market (2015). The Cult Branding Company. Retrieved from: http://cultbranding.com/ceo/create-strong-brand-positioning-strategy/
Starbucks Company Profile (2015). PDF Document. Retrieved from:
Statista: Number of Starbucks Stores Worldwide from 2003 to 2018 (2019). Retrieved from:
https://www.statista.com/statistics/266465/number-of-starbucks-stores-worldwide/
Starbucks: Our Mission (2019). Retrieved from:
https://livingourvalues.starbucks.com/en-us/mission-values
Sullivan, Caitlin (2015). 3 Customer Service Lessons from Starbucks. Retrieved from:
‘https://www.targetmarketingmag.com/article/3-lessons-starbuck-s-customer-service/
EK Marketing Blog by Ericka Koehler 