Starbucks Brand Analysis - Essay Example

? Brand Analysis A brand is a collection of symbols or experiences that is associated with a product, service or organization (Gupta, 2009, p. 01). The brand of a company reflects the organization’s concept, principles, ethics and values. Let us take the example of Starbucks and analyze the various aspects of the brand in terms of brand promise, personality, values, attributes and identity. Before Starbucks emerged on the market of coffee shops a cup of coffee meant a cup of steaming black brew (Burks, 2009, p.01). After a few years, Starbucks completely redefined the American coffee shops. High priced Brews, Lattes, Moccachinos, Cappuccinos and Frappes awakened the senses of 50 million customers across the globe (Burks, 2009, p.01). The company was formed in 1971, in Seattle. It was an initiative of a group of three friends-Gordon Bowker, Jerry Baldwin and Zev. Initially, the store was named as ‘Starbucks coffee, Tea and Spices’ (Burks, 2009, p.01) and the brand logo depicted a chocolate brown colored two tailed mermaid (Gilbert, 2008, p. 13). Later, the name of the store was changed to ‘Starbucks’ and its logo was re-colored to bright green. Starbucks was initially formed with the motto of selling good coffee with a unique flavor that a regular coffee brand wouldn’t offer. After the company was listed in the National Association of Securities Dealers Automated Quotation (NASDAQ), the growth of the company accelerated and it opened 16,680 stores across the globe. Today, it has become a global brand with its footing in 47 countries around the world and its net revenue reaching over $ 10 billion (Burks, 2009, p.06). Most of the consumers associate a brand with its logo, which reminds them of the brand promise that an organization makes. Brand Promise of a company is an attempt to make a promise for the benefits of the customers, conveying it and then delivering the promise through their products or service (Pringle, 2008, p.103). The brand logo should be very distinctive. Either the concept of the logo should be unique or colors used in the logo should be vibrant enough to attract the customers. Starbucks remained true to its vision and its promise to use the best quality beans. Consumers generally prefer Arabica beans over Robusta coffee beans. Arabica coffee accounts for 75% production of coffee beans all over the world (Burks, 2009, p.07). Brand Personality refers to a set of human like attributes associated with a particular brand. Brand personality enhances the appeal of the brand to the consumers. Most of the consumers associate a brand to a person’s character; it can take the form of an actual person, animated figure or generalized person (Gelder, 2005, p. 41). Coffee consumption in America was not as high as in Scandinavia. From the 1990’s the American coffee market scenario completely changed when Starbuck’s redefined the coffee houses. The European Coffee houses were traditional and had an old charm to it and a warm atmosphere. Starbuck stores were modern and hip, offering variety of coffees including hot and cold beverages, fancy decoration, positive and uplifting environment and an access to Wireless Local Area Network connection (Strehle & Cruickshank, 2004, p.03). They connected with the requirements of customers. As the customer’s taste and preferences change, the company tries hard to introduce new flavors of coffee which suits the taste buds of the consumers (Rakocevic, 2011, p. 13). Brand Value helps in differentiating between right and wrong. The brand values provide a perspective on how the company is expected to act towards its consumers. When a company expands its network in other countries, the original values are hard to retain because different countries have different cultural values and ethics (Gelder, 2005, p. 37). Starbucks’ success can be attributed to a strategy that focused on different sets of value drivers rather than on three big competitors: 1. Quality instead of quantity; 2. Restaurants instead of grocery stores; 3.Close proximity as opposed to supermarket selling (Cameron, 2006, p. 154). As has been mentioned earlier, Starbucks uses the strategy of constant innovation, introduction of new flavors of coffee and participation of the customers. Customers prefer customized orders rather than choosing from the menu. Orders like “one tall non-fat soy latte “ or “ two pumps of vanilla with sugar-free hazel nut coffee “ are very common. Customized orders make customers feel special and create an emotional bond between the service provider and them (Michelli, 2006, p. 11-12). Brand Identity is a set of aspects that convey what a brand stands for: its background, purpose, ambition and in addition to that, it has certain visual identities which consist of the design aspect of the brand and helps the customers to relate with the brand (Gelder, 2005, p. 35). Brand Identity is the brand expression element, which is employed to convey a brand’s credentials (Gelder, 2005, p. 35). The identity of the brand should be unique and distinctive, and should capture the attention of the consumers. The Logo of Starbucks promises a hot cup of coffee, something that an individual yearns for, in the morning. The hot and cold beverages too are extremely favorites of the customers. International market expansion of the company has been very successful with its diversification all over the world. The Company has maintained a stable and profitability growth. Apart from retail store customers the company has partnerships with leading giants like Pepsi, Dreyers, Barnes and Nobles. Partnership with these companies improves the image and has a strategic value as it helps Starbucks to develop new products. The biggest competitor of Starbucks is Mc Donald’s, which is known for its large infrastructure and networks but gained a different image altogether. Despite this fact, Starbucks has become the biggest player in this business but a certain amount of contribution of its success goes to its international presence (Strehle & Cruickshank, 2004, p.03). In conclusion, Starbucks has emerged as a leading brand. Apart from its excellent coffee making ability, its loyalty and sincerity towards customers has made it a household name. References Burks, B. M. (2009). Starbucks: corporations that changed the world. California: Abc-Clio. Cameron, S. K. (2006). Competing values leadership: creating value in organizations. Massachusetts: Edward Elgar Publishing. Gelder, S. V. (2005). Global brand strategy: unlocking branding potential across countries, cultures & markets. London: Kogan Page. Gilbert, S. (2008).The story of starbucks built for success. United States of America: Creative Education. Gupta, S. (2009). Branding and advertising. New Delhi: Global India Publications. Michelli, A. J. (2006). Starbucks experience. New Delhi: Tata McGraw-Hill Education. Pringle, H. (2008). Brand immortality: how brands can live long and prosper. London: Kogan Page. Rakocevic, I. (2011). Brand personality. Berlin: Grin Verlag. Strehle, P., & Cruickshank, M. (2004). Starbucks - international business concept and starbucks in germany . Berlin: Grin Verlag. Read More