Brand Autopsy

Here’s a little something Paul Williams and I used to talk about during our Starbucks days—measuring your comparable job performance. As Starbucks marketers, we were always challenged to design marketing activities to increase year-over-year sales. (Easier said than done considering Starbucks was recording nearly double-digit comps during our time there.) One day, back-in-the-day, Paul and…

[Fourth in a series of posts on Starbucks Tribal Knowledge] Starbucks will not deny they are everywhere. But they are everywhere because customers want them to be everywhere. Otherwise, they wouldn’t be there. (Starbucks is smart like that.) Starbucks works under the premise of being everywhere customers want them to be. According to internal research…

[Third in a series of posts on Starbucks Tribal Knowledge] “If we greet customers, exchange a few words with them and then custom-make a drink exactly to their taste, they will be eager to come back.” Howard Schultz, Starbucks Chairman & Visionary Developing a loyal customer base at Starbucks is not overly complicated. As Howard…

[Second in a series of posts on Starbucks Tribal Knowledge] To put it simply, remarkable businesses make the common uncommon. Apple made the common computer uncommon. Toyota Prius made the common car uncommon. In-N-Out Burger made the common fast food hamburger uncommon. Method made the common hand soap uncommon. Whole Foods Market made the common…

[First in a series of posts on Starbucks Tribal Knowledge] Starbucks never sought to create a brand. The company was too busy being a business than trying to be a brand. Starbucks was too busy building a viable and profitable business to think about something as seemingly trivial as branding. Starbucks was too busy sourcing…