The Starbucks Company’s Marketing Analysis

Introduction

Popularizing strong roasted coffee, Starbucks has established itself as the brightest representative of the “second wave” in the US coffee business. Starbucks’ marketing system is among the most well-developed ones in the world because its strategies are based on building an atmosphere of wholeness at every level. Even though Starbucks is thought to be successful due to its beverages, its popularity owns the internal, customer, and external environment at Starbucks.

Internal Environment

Organizational objectives are said to be the key factors affecting performance. Starbucks’ team works efficiently on identifying goals and trying to expand its influence. Fulfilling people’s needs in the coffee niche is the primary aim which encompasses a number of other objectives. Those are expanding influence in the U.S. and China, becoming a global brand, attracting investors, and others (Bussing, 2021). Based on the suggested goals, the company has elaborated its strategies – market and product development and penetration to other countries.

The lowest level of the company’s structure is a barista who directly works with guests, brews coffee and other drinks and monitors the hall’s cleanliness. The shift supervisor monitors security, solves organizational issues, and ensures that the entire shift goes flawlessly. Senior shift supervisors report to the deputy’s head and the head themselves, and those, in turn, report to the territorial heads. Such a structure is tempting for the younger generation as rapid career growth is possible.

Starbucks is constantly trying to motivate its employees. Thanks to various events that are held almost every week, a person realizes that they are part of something whole. There are other ways to motivate staff; these include all kinds of checks, such as the Shoppi audit (Bussing, 2021). It is held every month and consists of the fact that each coffee shop is visited by a secret guest who checks the level of service, cleanliness in the coffee shop and the qualifications of those who work there. Starbucks owns a successful chain of coffee stores, a major resource along with its real estate.

Starbucks has undergone significant changes in its organizational culture – these changes are based on the concerns and concerns of leaders such as Howard Schultz and Howard Behar. All these factors led to the increased performance of the company. In 2021 “net revenues of $8.1 billion grew 31% compared to the prior year,” and “GAAP operating margin of 18.2% increased from 9.0%” (“Starbucks reports record,” 2021, para. 17). These numbers show that Starbucks’ productivity is growing annually which makes it influential on the global market.

Customer Environment

Customers are major stakeholders in the company’s success because they remain loyal to the brand. Customer experience is what every coffee store Starbucks aims to develop more and more each year. Typically, clients buy coffee (cold is the most common choice) and grab some snacks like muffins or sandwiches. Starbucks offers drinks of any taste and value to various individuals, even if they are vegans or lactose intolerant. The majority of the customers use drive-thru services; however, in large cities, they would come in to enjoy a drink in the coffee shop itself.

Starbucks is loved by many because it offers unique loyalty programs and the best choice of beverages. For instance, the developers created an app for rewards so that customers could obtain a personalized experiences by placing an order via text or voice messages (Bussing, 2021). In addition, people buy Starbucks since it produces high-quality goods. On the other hand, some would not acquire its products because the prices are above average, putting a strain on one’s daily expenses.

External Environment

Political factors are of paramount importance for a global business, as they can have a huge impact on the profitability and overall efficiency of a particular business. Starbucks has already established itself as perhaps the most successful global coffee chain, with more than 27,000 stores serving customers in a number of countries, including China, Canada, India, Japan, South Korea and other European countries (Bussing, 2021). Moreover, the company works legally in each country by signing official documents so that their activity is legal. The company is well-regulated by the country’s laws it operates in, which ensures its reputation. Thus, it should be said that the industry policies and regulations in each country in which Starbucks operates should be carefully thought out.

The economy affects sales as well; for instance, when there is a crisis, the company is likely to lose sharers since people would treat coffee as a luxury. On the other hand, the economic growth would allow Starbucks to open more coffee shops and sign contracts with foreign partners to penetrate their markets. In terms of stability, Starbucks experiences financial growth due to its well-developed marketing strategies. When it comes to the social aspect, Starbucks aims to respond to people’s demands by adjusting its products to meet their needs. The other external factor relates to the competition: Starbucks has been fighting with its competitors – Dunkin’ Donuts and McDonald’s – for the first place of the coffee king for several years. However, there is not much threat at the moment since the company produces unique items and gains more advantages in customer service provision.

Conclusion

Based on this analysis, it can be concluded that at the moment Starbucks occupies a stable position in the market and has already won the trust of consumers, so the company’s main task is not to let its customers down. Internal, external, and customer environments are vital for the general company’s performance. Additionally, these factors help Starbucks to develop and gain profits as well as penetrate foreign markets with ease.

References

Bussing, M. A. (2021). Starbucks (2nd Ed.). ABC-CLIO.

Starbucks reports record Q4 and full-year fiscal 2021 results. (2021). Starbucks Investor Relations.