Manifesto : WHAT MUST STARBUCKS DO?

In February, I asked you to submit ideas for what Starbucks must do to reclaim its uniqueness ... to better connect with customers ... and to become the coffee company it once was. Your ideas, along with a few of mine, have been turned into a ChangeThis! Manifesto.

(Of course the motivation for this project came from Howard Schultz’s leaked email in which he expressed concern Starbucks is in danger of losing its soul, its uniqueness—its remarkability.)

Thanks to everyone who submitted their ideas. Not all submissions made it into the manifesto, but a good chunk of them did. Take pride everyone. You shared many great ideas that Starbucks would be wise to follow-up on.

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Read the manifesto by clicking below …

*** Or, just click here. ***

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If your appetite for mulling over Starbucks strategies is insatiable, you should review the series of posts Paul Williams and I did last month. We talked strategies, tactics, and shared some insider knowledge based upon our combined 19-years of marketing experience at Starbucks. Start here and work your way backward. Or, start here and work your way forward.

Comments

[Corey Smith]

I think that companies tend to get a little complacent. They think that because they have a following that they don't need to perform as they once did.

Once you stop trying to improve, you start to lose your connection with your customers and your customers will start to seek the venues that can provide them the emotional connection they want to have.

[greg]

Killer job, John. Simply killer. I'm sitting here shaking me head, though, because I wonder if it's a little like pissing into the wind. We'll see if anything comes of this. I have to wonder if Starbucks is open to outside influence -- even yours, despite your history with them -- or if they think they are supposed to have all the answers from within.

[Dave]

The ebook looks great!

[johnmoore (from Brand Autopsy)]

Thanks fellas ... the ebook did turn out nicely. I really like the design work ChangeThis! did. The playful cover rocks. And the ideas expressed in the pages from readers of this blog also ROCK. Thanks to everyone involved for making this manifesto happen.

[KMF Kamal]

I have a lot of respect for Starbucks, they did invent the concept of a "third place" between work and home and coffee as an experience after all.

Having said that, I think they need to update their image- now that all coffee bars are all about "brand experiences", there's not much differentiation in my humble opinion.

[Eben Carlson]

Starbucks didn't invent a third place, though they certainly did recognize it and popularize the idea, for which they were/are well compensated.

The interesting thing is that no one in Seattle goes to Starbucks. It's seen as way too commercial.

And while I don't agree with that to a Seattle degree, there are some cafes in Seattle that crush Starbucks on just about every count.

It used to be that you'd be sacrificing a little cleanliness or service (or light), but that's increasingly not the case. If you ever get the chance try Terafazzione in Pioneer Square or Vivace on Broadway--I don't even drink the stuff anymore and I can still taste how sweet they are without any sugar. True artisans. Tastes nothing like SB.

I believe I spoke with you about a similar topic regarding Whole Foods, John. If you don't have a silver bullet, you don't have a silver bullet. And that includes being a little bit fancy. A city like Seattle is littered with designers who could pull off twice the high touch of WF or Starbucks.

The future is in art.

Laugh now, but once the internet crashes prices for mass content (witness the music industry), price differentiation will become omnipresent if for no other reason than to organize the junk.

And once artists can make movies, books and music profitably for niches (read people with money) their earnings will rise astronomically. They'll control the Pradas, the Time Warners, etc. instead of the Phat Farms, Roc-a-Wears, etc.

Media dominance will be replaced by content creation dominance. All non creative and/or nostalgic content (the so-called long tail) will be basically free.

And, the artists be the only ones with differentiation--with a silver bullet. Everyone else just stamping out better material goods and providing more tailored experiences. Both totally replicable.