Starbucks Hype Especially Around Pumpkin Spice Season

 Starbucks Hype Especially Around Pumpkin Spice Season

The brand I chose is Starbucks. People are going crazy over the fact that pumpkin-flavored items are back. Pumpkin-flavored items at Starbucks come and go due to the season and weather, they are only around for a very short time (2 ish months). I was interested in this topic because who doesn’t love Starbucks and the idea of a yummy pumpkin drink in the Fall.

Starbucks' brand proposition is to do business responsibility and to make the community a better place. They really try to enforce the idea of making the best coffee along with making everyone's day better and the community a better place.

Starbucks is a well known and liked company which receives many good reviews especially when it’s pumpkin spice season. A positive comment from whoistravon stated, “BEST DRINK EVER”. Another positive comment from coldbrewaffirmations wrote, “This looks so gooood”. One user commented, “Not to be dramatic, but this is the best thing I’ve ever drank in my life” Having these positive comments and having Starbucks replying to them really improves the wellness and likeliness of Starbucks. Customers like that Starbucks replies to them and posts updates of their company and menu which is what keeps them coming back. 

                            

The product/services/messages that Starbucks is trying to sell is coffee, not only coffee but they provide limited time drinks and food depending on the season/time of year to keep customers engaged. Although Starbucks does have loyal every day coffee drinkers who are going to support them because of their kindness and affection to making everyone's day better along with the community regardless of their limited time menu items. 

Starbucks is a very well-known, premium coffee brand that has experienced rapid global expansion. Some say Starbucks is iconic due to their amazing customer service. According to IIM Skills, “The Successful marketing strategies of Starbucks address all four Ps of the marketing mix: product, price, place and promotion. It strengthens Starbucks’ position as the world’s leading coffeehouse chain.” They then went on to say that product is shown through the idea of them providing a high-quality premium cup of coffee that will be perfect every time. Price is shown by justifying the price by the high-end technology/variety that's provided along with such great customer experience. Place is represented through the larger number of Starbucks all over the world, thanks again to the rapid global expansion that allowed this to happen. Lastly they went on to state that promotion is in place due to social media platforms such as Facebook and Instagram as well as TV advertisements. Starbucks works hard to keep their brand consistent in order to keep their brand expanding and high-end. They do this by providing consistent customer service, consistent coffee and consistent packaging. A challenge that Starbucks faces is pricing. 

Starbucks has had to raise their prices many times over the years which is always concerning to them. However never once has it negatively impacted their company as their customers are so loyal and will stick with Starbucks over choosing another coffee shop. 

How I might change this issue would be by understanding that the customers aren’t necessarily excited for the prices to rise. I would know that my customers deserve something such as discounted or extra points every now and then and they need to be extra supported as I realized they are choosing to stick with my company even during higher prices when they could easily go get coffee somewhere else. 

I learned from this assignment that the way you represent yourself and a company is super important. Starbucks is only so successful because of how they and all the employees represent themselves. Every interaction at Starbucks is important and meaningful to the employees which is what makes Starbucks have such a big impact on the customers, which makes them stick with Starbucks even during their challenges. 

Sources

https://www.forbes.com/sites/greatspeculations/2016/12/05/starbucks-challenges-and-how-it-can-overcome-them/?sh=2a82f6794be9

https://iimskills.com/marketing-strategy-of-starbucks/

https://www.starbucks.com/careers/working-at-starbucks/culture-and-values/