Social Listening - Starbucks Coffee

 

The brand I chose is Starbucks Coffee, a multinational coffeehouse renowned for its high-quality coffee, innovative beverages, and inviting atmosphere. With over thirty-eight thousand stores globally, Starbucks reaches and influences consumers from diverse backgrounds. The value proposition of Starbucks revolves around offering customers high-quality coffee and offering customers a “place between work and home.” They pride themselves on providing a welcoming and comfortable environment and ensuring an enjoyable customer experience. As Summer begins, I am curious to see how consumers are commenting on their latest seasonal menu.

Starbucks maintains a robust social media presence on platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok, posting frequently and engaging with consumers in comments. Generally, Starbucks receives positive feedback on its social media accounts. For instance, on their latest post on Instagram centering their Starbucks Reserve Roastery in New York City, @joeh1227 wrote “Quite enjoy our visits to the Roastery! Also loved my Cold Brew Flight.” To this, Starbucks replied and said “Yay! We couldn't be happier to hear this.” And on Facebook from their post on July 2nd showcasing some of their new Summer beverages and food items, @LeslieHughesHiggins commented, “Melon Burst ice energy is the best” and Starbucks replied, “We're happy you enjoyed it, Leslie!"

Even with the majority of customer engagement online being positive there are still people expressing their dissatisfaction. Since the most recent seasonal drop, many customers have voiced their disappointment with more non-coffee drinks being added to the menu. For instance, @BethMungeJones on Facebook said, “Starbucks, what I'd really love is a s’mores or coconut latte or some other different kind of latte. The Winter holiday options are great. The Summer ones are lacking. There's too much focus these days on non-coffee options.” And @KariPerrine on Facebook said, “UGH, can we please have some more coffee variety please!!!.” The almond croissant has also been a point of contention for many years. In 2017, the croissant was removed from the menu, but it was reintroduced a year later due to backlash. Recently Starbucks has removed the pastry from the menu again and has not announced any plans for its return. @SarahSchultz even commented on one of Starbucks' posts, “Taking the almond croissant away was my breaking point.”

Starbucks' use of marketing across social media platforms has proven successful as they have 37.6 million followers across Instagram, Facebook, and TikTok. The brand does well at keeping customers engaged by posting on both their page and stories, creating reels, sharing behind-the-scenes footage, and interacting with customers in the comment section. The challenge the brand is currently facing is the backlash from the newest summer drop. Starbucks does well at interacting with customers who leave positive feedback on their posts but seems to ignore the customers who share their negative experiences or voice their honest opinions and frustrations. As of now the company has not commented on anything regarding summer coffee beverages or bringing back the almond croissant. As the brand manager, I would push to create seasonal menu drops catering to all customers. I understand that there is no world where everyone will be happy but doing my best to meet the needs and preferences of all customers would be my top priority. Working to bring back the almond croissant would also be a key focus. Creating guidelines on how to respond to unsatisfied customers on social media would also be a primary concern. Interacting with all customers and making sure everyone feels heard and appreciated is key to creating a loyal customer base and a successful business. 

I learned from this assignment the importance of using social media in marketing. As social media is used by more than sixty percent of the population, it is essential businesses use it to its full potential. Creating a unique and interactive social media presence can increase brand awareness and customer engagement, offer target advertising, allow brands to easily gather feedback, and provide a competitive advantage. Starbucks does a lot of things well but there is room to improve that could increase its customer loyalty and satisfaction.

Starbucks Website: Starbucks.com

Starbucks Instagram: Instagram 

Starbucks Facebook: Facebook