Blog 3. Is it just the caffeine that is addicting?

An eight o’clock class would not be an eight o’clock class if half the room weren’t still wearing the pajamas, glasses, and holding a hot cup of Starbuck’s coffee. Starbucks definitely earns its share at UT and probably most other college campuses across the country. It also appeals to business men and women, stay at home moms and dads, teenagers, retirees, pretty much anyone who can manage to spend four dollars on a cup of coffee. It seems that Starbucks is targeting the segment of the population that has enough disposable income to spend around a hundred dollars a month on this addicting habit. But I don’t think it is just the caffeine that has made this coffee addicting. Starbucks has the ability to create a beautiful customer experience that has created a loyal and wealthy client base. They appeal to their customers need to wake up in the morning, “fit in” with other employees at work, or just enjoy a relaxing night at home with a book.
Let’s begin by investigating how Starbucks uses the SENSE strategic experiential model to keep their customers addicted. When you walk into a Starbucks, regardless of whether you are in Southern California or Long Island New York, there are the same comfy chairs and the same light fixtures in every store. The store design makes you feel like you are at home even if you are on vacation thousands of miles from where you live. The music they play in the stores has become well respected. Starbucks has even started selling the playlists they play in stores and loyal customers purchase these CDs because they have a respect for the store and therefore respect for its music tastes. Before Starbucks started using aroma-tight packaging for their products, the smell in the store was the same throughout the country. You could walk into a Starbucks blindfolded and still, the sensations of incredible coffee smell and the noise of coffee grinders would be a dead give away to where you were. And, lastly, the taste: the characteristic that is supposed to make coffee drinkers decide what coffee they want to drink. But this brings us back to the beginning. Are the customers paying the most for the best tasting coffee or the best customer experience? I believe that Starbucks is doing a perfect job and selling the coffee experience.
Starbucks also does a fine job using the FEEL strategic experiential model. The baristas at Starbucks work routine shifts which allows them to build relationships with routine customers. My parents used to walk to our local Starbucks every morning around 6A.M. They become so familiar with the employees that the employees would notice if my parents missed a day. They also became friends with other Starbucks’ morning regulars. Walking to get coffee in the morning had turned into a part of their lives, and without it, my parents would be losing friends. Furthermore, the barista at “my parents Starbucks” knew their orders. Rather than my parents asking him for coffee, he would “wow” them by remembering what they wanted. This made my parents feel special in front of all of the not-so-regular Starbucks customers. The relationships built at their Starbucks made my parents FEEL like they had a relationship with the coffee as well. When they think of morning coffee, they think of friends and fun and of course, Starbucks
Lastly, Starbucks shows that it has no trouble RELATING to the population. Every cup they sell is a walking advertisement for their brand. The more cups you see, the more you think…everyone really does drink Starbucks. If you see someone studying for a test and holding a cup, you think…maybe that could help me study too. If you see someone on their way to work and holding a cup, you think…maybe that would help me wake up too! No matter where you look, there is someone to RELATE to. And Starbucks has a huge advantage. For once, a customer pays to advertise for the brand rather than the brand paying to advertise to their customer.
Starbucks has grown from 1,000 stores to 13,000 stores in ten years. This has changed the customer experience in certain ways as the company looked to cut corners. Still, I believe Starbucks has done a great job in creating the perfect and most expensive experience for its customers.