Starbucks Social Media Marketing Strategy and Target Audience Analysis

Starbucks Personas Savannah Jung Social Media Marketing February 21st, 2017

Table of Content Executive Summary Primary and Secondary Target Audience Venn Diagram Personnas

Executive summary Starbucks started as a single store in Seattle s Pike Place Market back in 1971. Howard Schultz, Starbucks chairman and CEO, traveled to Italy and fell in love with the sense of community in the coffee houses there. He returned in 1987 to purchase Starbucks with the help of investors and grew it to be an international coffee phenomena. Products Starbucks offers coffees and teas in a variety of forms and flavors. They also sell bakery goods, lunch items, snacks and other food items. They have a line of coffee mugs, cups, tumblers, presses and machines that customers can buy to recreate the Starbucks experience in the comfort of their own home. Social Media Marketing Starbucks uses all four platforms (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Pinterest) for the similar purpose of promoting their coffee and advertising all their products. After looking at their social media myself and reading an article on socialmediatoday.com it is obvious each platform ahs a specific purpose. The use Facebook mainly for telling their audience about new products and announcing their stance on social issues and what they are doing to better communities everywhere. Twitter they post some original content but mainly share testimonials from customers who tweet about their experiences in store.

Executive Summary Target Audience Starbucks is aiming their messages at consumers who enjoy more than just a cup of coffee. They are reaching out to those who want a social experience and a personal interaction when they go to get their daily cup of joe. This means their audience is people who want stimulating conversation and a good environment to work in. Their customers are mainly 18-35, working professionals or academics with higher levels of education. They are critics or conversationalists because they like comparing ideas and opinions with others. Social Media Strategy According to their website, one of their main values is Being present, connecting with transparency, dignity and respect. This is reflected in their social media on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. They are actively responded to comments or posts, retweeting or sharing posts from their customers, and engaging the audience to share pictures and stories with the Starbucks community. Just like how their stores are meant to have a warm, friendly sense of community, the embody that through digital platforms too. Creating Buzz Starbucks uses their Facebook page to create buzz by posting about new drinks, specials and deals to that platform. It allows for people to comment with questions if they have any and give the company the ability to be creative in how they announce new things. They also use Facebook to post more personal stories and testimonials either about workers or from the perspective of a loyal customer.

Executive Summary Creating Community The Starbucks Twitter account is where you can really see the interaction between customers and the company. There is occasionally original content, but a majority of the platform is used to retweet customers tweets, pictures and videos. It is also used to answer questions and concerns directly. The platform is used more like an interactive forum and provides the company with transparency when interacting with their customers. Position Starbucks positions itself by encouraging customers to try their new drinks and offering deals like buy a drink get one free. Along side this, they also offer discounts on holiday drinks when you bring in a friend. This is all keeping with their mission to bring the community together using coffee and a fun environment. Conclusion Starbucks is dedicated to bringing people together and staying transparent in their business practices. Their use of social media is narrowly tailored to each platform they are on. Their what you see is what you get approach makes customers feel they can trust the company and more likely to stay loyal over time.

Sources Huff, T. (2014, August 23). How Starbucks Crushes It on Social Media. Retrieved February 13, 2017, from http://www.socialmediatoday.com/content/how-starbucks-crushes-it-social-media Starbucks Facebook https://www.facebook.com/Starbucks/ Starbucks Twitter https://twitter.com/Starbucks Company Information. (n.d.). Retrieved February 13, 2017, from https://www.starbucks.com/about- us/company-information Starbucks Consumer Insights and Demographics. (n.d.). Retrieved February 15, 2017, from http://infoscout.co/brand/starbucks Grossman, S. (2014, July 1). Map: Most Popular Starbucks Coffee Drink Orders In U.S. Cities. Retrieved February 15, 2017, from http://time.com/2946311/these-are-the-most-popular-starbucks-drinks-across- the-u-s/

Analysis of Primary and Secondary Primary Target Audience: Ages 18-34 $100k-$125K Higher education (college degree or more) Prefer basic brews or lattes The target audience for Starbucks is young professionals who are highly educated and enjoy a well brewed coffee. They can be working or furthering their education but are overall academics. Asians and Caucasians are some of the highest frequenting ethnicities. Starbucks prides itself on providing a sense of community and a meeting place to enjoy a cup of coffee over good conversation. This attracts younger people wanting to study/work with others and an older crowd looking to have good conversations. Secondary Target Audience Ages 65+ $125k+ Higher education (advanced degree) Looking for sense of community

Starbucks target audience Primary Target Audience Persona: College students Type: Conversationalists Primary Target Audience Persona: Young working professionals Type: Critics Personas with NEEDS that Starbucks can meet Primary Target Audience Persona: High school students Type: Collectors Secondary Target Audience Persona: Academics Type: Spectators Personas that are INTERESTED in learning more about Starbucks products Personas with enough MONEY to purchase Starbucks products Secondary Target Audience Persona: Retired individuals Type: Inactives

Primary Target Audience

High School Students Goals: Have a 4.0 Get a scholarship Graduate valedictorian Motivations: Have a well-rounded college application Make parents proud Sure I d love to hangout later! After class and my debate meeting lets get coffee and go to the basketball game. Pain Points: Loss of sleep stressing over classes Long days Having energy for friends Behaviors: In multiple clubs Hosts study groups Gossiping with friends Name: Sierra Type: Collector Role: Debate team

Young Working Professionals Motivations: Rise ranks in the company Show family & friends he is successful Goals: Get a promotion in the next 5-6 months Make time to socialize outside the office The boss said I can sit in on next weeks client call. I m going to work on the brief till it s perfect. I ll bring coffee and donuts in the morning too for the whole team. Behaviors: Working late with the team Takes clients out for dinner Blogs in spare time Pain Points: No time for personal activities Doing lots of low level work Name: Philip Type: Critic Role: Account Manager

College Students Motivations: Graduate a year early with honors Good rec letters from internships Goals: Graduate with honors Have a job offer by graduation I can t go out tonight. I have to work late in the city and then I m studying all night for my exam tomorrow. Let s go to that dive bar that has the live bands Saturday though! Behaviors: Late night cram sessions with friends Spends extra time at internship Pain Points: Heavy course load Falling asleep at work and in class Name: Cara Type: Conversationalist Role: Marketing Major

Secondary Target Audience

Academic/Scholar Motivations: Stimulating conversation Staying current on world events and academic advances Goals: I just saw a new article was released from the Scholars Journal of Economics. Let s get coffee after classes and discuss it, I would love to hear your thoughts on its theory. Become tenured in the next few years Get published in a research journal Pain Points: Not much socializing outside of colleagues Needs somewhere stimulating to work outside of office Behaviors: Reading research journals Meeting with other scholars to discuss news Name: Arthur Type: Spectator Role: Economics Professor

Retired Individuals Motivations: Spend more quality time with friends Stay active in community Goals: Build tight bond with friend and spouse Stay current in world events We love our cell group because it gives us something to do during the week. We meet up at the local coffee place and its great getting to talk with everyone. The house gets too quiet some days so its nice to get out every now and then. Pain Points: Looking for quiet relaxed environment for group meetings Gets tired easily Behaviors: Hosts cell groups Attends community events with friends Name: Richard & Emily Type: Inactives Role: Cell Group Leaders