Starbucks Advertising Campaign for Selfie Coffee

Starbucks Advertising Campaign for Selfie Coffee

Created by Marcus Amadei

Starbucks History

1971

Starbucks opens first store in Seattle

1982

Howard Schultz joins Starbucks as director of retail operations and marketing. Starbucks begins providing coffee to fine restaurants and espresso bars.

1997

Establishes the Starbucks Foundation.

2008

Launches My Starbucks Idea, Starbucks first online community. Also joins Twitter and debuts Starbucks Facebook page.

2009

Launches Starbucks VIA® Instant.

Launches My Starbucks Rewards® loyalty program and Starbucks Card mobile payment.

2014

Enhances iPhone app with shake to pay and digital tipping.

Launches Starbucks Mobile Order & Pay.

Starbucks Situational Analysis

Who are We?

            Starbucks Corporation is a leader in the coffeehouse industry, with more than 24,000 stores spread in 70 countries worldwide. It offers premium quality Arabic coffee and a unique experience.

Mission:

            Our Mission is to inspire and nurture the human spirit – one person, one cup, and one neighborhood at a time.

Principal Competitors:

·           Dunkin’ Donuts

·           McDonald’s McCafe

·           Peet’s Coffee

·           Local Independent Coffee Shops

SWOT Analysis

Strengths:

            The scale of Starbucks could be one of its greatest strengths and also provides it with a competitive advantage. They are able to lower the costs of the coffee and its distribution. Brand awareness is very high due to the presence of its 24,000 stores worldwide. In the US alone, one can see a Starbucks in almost every corner.  They provide a unique experience, not only by serving premium quality coffee, but also providing excellent customer service, a friendly environment, and free Wi-Fi. The functionality of the Starbucks app of having a digital cash card and having rewards has also increased the habitual purchase of its consumers. All that contributes to guarantee loyal customers.

Weaknesses:

            Higher prices and imitable products are some of the weaknesses. Similar products can be found in the competitors at a lower price. The dependence on the American market is also a problem given that 73% of the revenues come from it. There is also a declining growth in Revenue for the total company over the past 5 years.

Opportunities:

            There’s an opportunity to expand to countries with growing economies like Africa, Middle East and Asia. The Starbucks revenue from these countries right now is just at 20% or 3 billion.

There is a growing demographic of Millennials in the United States at 83.1 million as of 2015. This makes up ¼ of the total US population.

Threats:

            Competition coming from the big coffee chains is still present. They are continually trying to innovate through their new product menus and also continuous improvement of their customer service. Another source of competition is the growing worldwide trend in local and independent coffee shops. These coffee shops are trying to change the idea of coffee from “a staple commodity to something more like wine.” They get their coffee beans straight from the small coffee farms in Nicaragua or Costa Rica.

Recommendation:

            To launch a product that would address the decline in revenue coming from the competition while also following the trends in coffee house drink personalization.

Coffee House Trends:

            There are 3 major trends with regard to coffee house drinkers in the United States. The first is that people are gearing towards supporting local and independent coffee shops. The appeal of a neighborhood café where the barista knows your name seems to be gaining traction. In LA alone, dozens of local coffee shops are opening such as Pie Hole and Alfred’s Coffee & Kitchen to name a few. Second, consumers are becoming more discerning in the coffee that they drink, considering ways how to make it their own. Previously, it would just be a choice between brewed coffee or a latte. Now, you can choose how to actually prepare your coffee, whether it is through drip, aero press or pour overs. One can also choose what design of latte art to put in the coffee.  A drink that is becoming popular in Asia experiments with mixing coffee and tea. Third, house special or single origin coffee is becoming more popular. These coffee drinks consider which region the beans were grown, how long the beans were roasted, and even what kind of water was used to make the coffee.

Marketing Climate:

            The Starbucks advertising strategies play a crucial role in the success of the business. Although they advertise in TV and magazines nationally, the advertising strategies adopted are more local and differentiated rather than standardized. Local newspapers and radios are a frequent medium used by the company. Schultz, the CEO of Starbucks frequently says that “Our stores are our billboards”. That’s why you will see later that our selection of mediums to promote the “Selfie Coffee” will concentrate in the local market, continuing the system adopted by the company. Another tool used that is paying the effort is the use of product placement, promoting the company in movies like “Meet the Fockers 4”. They are also very active in Social Networking Sites doing social media campaigns on Instagram, Facebook, Youtube, Twitter, Tumblr and at their website interacting with customers with the “My Starbucks Idea”.

Target Audience

The target audience selected is the Generation Y or Millennials, born from 1983 through 2001. They have been outspending all previous generations with an average of $5,000 per year spend with food and entertainment, what makes them very attractive to bring to your business. They are also the public that most consumes at coffee shops; especially Starbucks, that have a friendly environment and free Wi-Fi. They are very hard to be pleased, so services and advertisements need to be extraordinary to get their attention. According to Kleppner’s, “Marketers will have to learn to think like they do”, and that’s why all the Starbucks Selfie Coffee advertising campaign will be focused on pleasing them.