The Starbucks Corporation has expanded very rapidly from the 1990s into millions of stores across the world. Its growth from the expansion of physical stores is becoming exhausted leaving Starbucks to develop new and innovative ways to attract its customers.
I picked Starbucks because it is a newer company that continues to expand their market share of coffee drinkers. They have employed many new techniques to grab different types of audiences that they had not considered in the past. It is very interesting for me to evaluate and research how customers reacted to these trends and how they affect the company. As a Starbucks customer myself, I have had strong reactions to many of these new techniques they are evoking in an attempt to capture a different market.
Recent Trends
Starbucks now has introduced a fair trade line of coffee to make their company more approachable for people who are conscious about the harmful treatment of workers abroad. Those who normally would go to the nearest local coffee shop in an attempt to escape the corporate cruelty of the manufacturing process are now reassured that Starbucks is an ethical corporation. The company also introduced a line of sugar free (skinny) and decaffeinated beverages to capture the needs of high maintenance customers. As the population becomes more health conscious people need a different way to enjoy a Starbucks drink, and the company instills confidence that it is there to support customers’ needs.
We discussed in class how Starbucks designs their stores to cater to the unique needs of the population encompassing the store. For example, a Starbucks in a University area might have more study tables with outlets and chairs that are more rigid. I want to know how Starbucks decided to employ this strategy and if it has increased overall customer satisfaction of the environment in which consuimers sip their coffee.
Another trend they recently introduced was the availability of a breakfast line at selective stores. Starbucks decided to offer a variety of breakfast sandwiches to go with the coffee they produced. In addition to this, Starbucks transitioned the environment to play music from radio stations as opposed to the calmer CDs which they promoted in the stores. I am curious to see why these trends were not successful and how the company concluded that they should not continue them.
Starbucks has recently introduced the Starbucks Via line which enables customers to instantaneously enjoy coffee just by adding water. At about $1 per pouch, I highly doubt that this watered down coffee gives me the same experience as the $3 cup that I pay at the store. I would rather go to a competitor such as McDonald’s to receive a better quality cup of coffee. I have not researched how consumers have reacted to this but I do not think that the benefits outweigh the costs for this product.
In essence, I want to know why people choose Starbucks when they could go elsewhere for their coffee needs. According to the article the Brand Report Card (http://scholar.google.com/scholar?hl=en&q=starbucks+coffee&as_sdt=10000000000000&as_ylo=&as_vis=0), there are ten attributes that a well known brand must possess, and that Starbucks captures them all. I want to know how competitors like McDonald’s effect their growth position, and what tests they conduct to determine if they want a new product line. I want to know how their seasonal drinks effect their sales and growth, as well as the discontinued drinks they do not product anymore. My concerns for this paper is that the specific information that I am searching for will not be available to me, and will leave me with an ambiguous understanding of the customer insights’ of Starbucks consumers. Starbucks has numerous examples of successful and unprofitable trends they introduce that strive for the company to progress for a greater market share, and it is important that I understand why they succeed or fail.
I picked Starbucks because it is a newer company that continues to expand their market share of coffee drinkers. They have employed many new techniques to grab different types of audiences that they had not considered in the past. It is very interesting for me to evaluate and research how customers reacted to these trends and how they affect the company. As a Starbucks customer myself, I have had strong reactions to many of these new techniques they are evoking in an attempt to capture a different market.
Recent Trends
Starbucks now has introduced a fair trade line of coffee to make their company more approachable for people who are conscious about the harmful treatment of workers abroad. Those who normally would go to the nearest local coffee shop in an attempt to escape the corporate cruelty of the manufacturing process are now reassured that Starbucks is an ethical corporation. The company also introduced a line of sugar free (skinny) and decaffeinated beverages to capture the needs of high maintenance customers. As the population becomes more health conscious people need a different way to enjoy a Starbucks drink, and the company instills confidence that it is there to support customers’ needs.
We discussed in class how Starbucks designs their stores to cater to the unique needs of the population encompassing the store. For example, a Starbucks in a University area might have more study tables with outlets and chairs that are more rigid. I want to know how Starbucks decided to employ this strategy and if it has increased overall customer satisfaction of the environment in which consuimers sip their coffee.
Another trend they recently introduced was the availability of a breakfast line at selective stores. Starbucks decided to offer a variety of breakfast sandwiches to go with the coffee they produced. In addition to this, Starbucks transitioned the environment to play music from radio stations as opposed to the calmer CDs which they promoted in the stores. I am curious to see why these trends were not successful and how the company concluded that they should not continue them.
Starbucks has recently introduced the Starbucks Via line which enables customers to instantaneously enjoy coffee just by adding water. At about $1 per pouch, I highly doubt that this watered down coffee gives me the same experience as the $3 cup that I pay at the store. I would rather go to a competitor such as McDonald’s to receive a better quality cup of coffee. I have not researched how consumers have reacted to this but I do not think that the benefits outweigh the costs for this product.
In essence, I want to know why people choose Starbucks when they could go elsewhere for their coffee needs. According to the article the Brand Report Card (http://scholar.google.com/scholar?hl=en&q=starbucks+coffee&as_sdt=10000000000000&as_ylo=&as_vis=0), there are ten attributes that a well known brand must possess, and that Starbucks captures them all. I want to know how competitors like McDonald’s effect their growth position, and what tests they conduct to determine if they want a new product line. I want to know how their seasonal drinks effect their sales and growth, as well as the discontinued drinks they do not product anymore. My concerns for this paper is that the specific information that I am searching for will not be available to me, and will leave me with an ambiguous understanding of the customer insights’ of Starbucks consumers. Starbucks has numerous examples of successful and unprofitable trends they introduce that strive for the company to progress for a greater market share, and it is important that I understand why they succeed or fail.
Nisha - I know we talked about this quite a bit already, so let me know if you want to discuss something further as you go to build your extended outline.
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