No I’m not talking about the re-training of its front-line employees on how to make the perfect coffee drink. I am talking about a video ditty I spied on YouTube. It’s a two-minute documentary of Young Han, a Starbucks barista, talking about his “Got Milk” photo shoot and his appreciation for the Starbucks Coffee Company.
It works great as a recruitment video. Not slick. Not scripted. Just genuine moments and reflections. Have a look…
As we’ve discussed, Starbucks is doing very little to tap into the Third Space communities people are forming online. (Big miss in my book.)
While Howard Schultz may never blog, Starbucks should STRONGLY CONSIDER encouraging its young and talented workforce to post videos of why they feel a connection to Starbucks. They could turn it into a contest similar to Deloitte & Touche’s brilliant Film Fest idea where Starbucks baristas would submit short videos showcasing “What Starbucks Means to Me.” The best 10 videos would be posted on the barren Starbucks YouTube page for all to see.
Each of these top 10 videos would serve as a great recruitment tool for Starbucks. And the creators of these videos could be rewarded in some way, perhaps stock options. A simple idea to execute with potentially big results of attracting a better front-line employee to deliver better customer experiences.
(This is yet another in a series of free ideas from Brand Autopsy and the readers of this blog that Starbucks would be smart to use.)
Great post, thanks for sharing!
Now let's hope Starbucks is smart enough to be listening to the boatload of suggestions marketers and bloggers are throwing out there online.
Posted by: Jon Burg | February 27, 2008 at 02:01 PM
Great idea, John! That's why you're the guru!
Posted by: Betsy | February 27, 2008 at 03:10 PM
WTF is the Third Space?
Posted by: David Churbuck | February 27, 2008 at 03:40 PM
Right on, John. Starbucks has the employee power to do something similiar to what the Obama campaign has done to create an incredibly strong community and lend personality to an otherwise faceless organization. It's time to end the vertical, top-down way of thinking and give the employees real ownership over customer and employee evangelism.
Posted by: Michele | February 27, 2008 at 03:58 PM
David ... this should clarify WTF is up Third Space. From an earlier post linked to within the above post:
"Clearly, Starbucks was ahead of the curve with tapping into satisfying the consumer need of a Third Place—a place besides home and work where people could form community. But consumers have evolved from needing a Third Place to needing a Third Space. This Third Space includes social media spaces like blogs, vlogs, podcasts, Twitter, and many more. These are spaces where meaningful online communities are forming.
Posted by: johnmoore (from Brand Autopsy) | February 27, 2008 at 04:36 PM
Great suggestion John!
Posted by: Tom Asacker | February 27, 2008 at 07:25 PM
Is the Starbucks employee culture really as warm-fuzzy, lovey-dovey as he portrays in this video? In other words, how does Starbucks tend to stack up on "best places to work" types of surveys?
Btw, I loved your idea about encouraging Starbucks employee evangelists to create more videos like this one.
However how does a huge company like Starbucks maintain consistent messaging? Or is it strictly controlled on a peer reviewed thumbs up/thumbs down kind of system? (Kind of like Digg)
Thanks for the great post that many companies can learn from for their own employee recruiting efforts.
Joshua Feinberg
Posted by: Computer Consultants Kit | February 27, 2008 at 08:16 PM
Joshua ... SBUX is a mainstay in the "Fortune 100 Best Companies to Work For" list. As a former eight-year SBUX employee, I can't say they are as "warm-fuzzy, lovey-dovey" as Young Han waxes. However, my experience tells me Starbucks treats its employees nicely.
Posted by: johnmoore (from Brand Autopsy) | February 27, 2008 at 08:47 PM
I remember watching that Youtube video when it came out. Its refreshing not seeing Dub Hay speak, but instead a fresh genuine partner. The problem getting into the online market with the idea of the 'Third Space' experience is that the internet is brutal. It isn't easy to push out controlled, honest and genuine connections.
Do I think every Senior Vice President of Starbucks and above should read Robert Scoble's 'Naked Conversations'? Sure. Will Starbucks ever into social media spaces like blogs, vlogs, podcasts, and Twitter? Highly Unlikely. I think right now, at this time Starbucks is focusing on how they can restore the store experience. What would you rather have, a blog telling you the customer service will get better or seeing it be done right now?
Posted by: Boring Market | February 28, 2008 at 04:51 AM
Great Suggestion. Here we teach leaders how to transform employees into brand advocates. Starbucks has been doing just that since its origin. I could not agree more.
Posted by: Jennifer Ledet | March 07, 2008 at 04:37 PM
What Starbucks needs is a new idea like the frapuccino but on the food side...
Problem: no hood, no kitchen. They are stuck in their concept as McDo is stuck in their "can't have it your own way" concept.
Solution: do as Panera does, build your own central kitchen to deliver fresh healthy food to each store. Hire a foodie to come up with a better solution than microwaves.
Posted by: philippe | March 11, 2008 at 04:21 PM
What Starbucks needs is a killer app (like the frap) in the food section.
Pbl: no kitchen, no hood...
Solution: a-la-Panera central kitchen delivering fresh, organic, healthy food to the stores. And a foodie to come up with a better way to display, heat, serve food.
Posted by: philippe | March 11, 2008 at 04:28 PM
The Starbucks experience is not unique anymore and is now replicated in various establishments throughout the industry. Starbucks must now deliver in product not experience and an optimized Youtube presence will not do this. Frankly, I do not think anyone really cares how much employees love Starbucks. Unlike professional services, after a certain point, it does not really matter how much people love they job or company.
The problem is not third space, it is pants space and the 12 ponds per year regular customer pack on. If Starbucks could offer some healthy, lighter choices, the daily customer would be return.
Posted by: Areyousure? | March 19, 2008 at 06:08 PM
Starsux stock is tanking for three reasons
1) Their over-roasted gut-wrenching coffee is undrinkable and people are wising up to that fact. It's not even close to good coffee. Note to Starbucks - Try Kona.
2) People are also starting to realize that their $20/day 3500 calorie "coffee drink" habit needs to go in the gas tank instead of onto their fat asses - and -
3) Starsux are way over-saturated and have destroyed their brand. Like every other fad 'bubble brand' before them - Krispy Kreme for example - the greed gets in the way of common sense. "Oh yeah... we're gonna open another 12,000 locations next year... 6000 of them in the toilets at gas stations alone..HAHAHAAAHAAAHAHAHAHAA"
Greedy Dumfuck I am. They're gonna get what they deserve.
Posted by: Moo | March 19, 2008 at 11:22 PM