Marketing Case Study Starbucks Holiday Cup 2017

Starbucks Holiday Cup 2017

Starbucks has been releasing a new version of its holiday cup each year for 20 years. It began in 1997, and most people don't know what the original designs looked like as the files were lost in an earthquake in 2001. Fortunately, a few employees saved some as mementos.

The first cup wasn't red:

Two years later, the color was changed to candy apple red, and it really resonated with customers, as it was more of a "joyous" color. 

First red cup released in 1999:

Every cup afterward was red and included some sort of winter themed design. Until 2015, when the cup was just red and with no decoration besides the Starbucks Siren logo:

Jeffery Fields, the vice president of  Design and Content for Starbucks explained that the plain red cups-devoid of the Christmas trees or ornaments of years past-were part of an effort to "usher in the holidays with a purity of design that welcomes all of our stories".

The response from some of Starbucks' fan base was that it was a "War on Christmas". Customers wanted to have some sort of reference to the holiday season. But on the other hand, when Starbucks has released festive cups with lots of holiday references, they are accused of promoting one holiday over another.

Starbucks released their 2017 Holiday Cup on November 1st. The theme this year is "Give Good". In a nod to the adult coloring craze that started a couple years ago, the chain says the design is meant to serve as a canvas for customers to color in. They described the design as "a pair of hands holding red cups of coffee, an ode to cups of years past, connected with swirling ribbons with lively holiday scenes and splashes of red and green".

2017 Holiday Cup:

The Value Proposition of Starbucks:

• Highest Quality Coffee in the world - by controlling the process
• Atmosphere - creating an "experience" around the consumption of coffee
• Service and Customer Intimacy - recognizing you and knowing your drink

My thoughts..

• This is a design that people can't really complain about, as it can be left as-is, or they can add their own personal touch. Either way is festive. 
• Attention is being drawn to Starbucks because of the uniqueness of their product packaging (cup).
• Fun for kids and grown ups! Who doesn't like coloring?
• Who cares? 

Starbucks

Week 2 Marketing Blog Post

Topic 1

Wicked Clothes is the company I chose to write about for this topic. It's a company that sells alternative style tshirts online. Their value proposition is that you're not really gonna find shirts like this anywhere else.

I've purchased two of their tshirts, and I LOVE them. So soft, fit well and the subject matter is so unique. After you purchase a shirt from Wicked Clothes, they email and ask you to share a pic of yourself in the shirt on social media. A lot of people do so, and I've found most people commenting are either tagging their friends to share with them or people are saying that they want to buy the shirts.

The idea of having real customers model the shirts they've purchased is great marketing and advertising in my opinion. Who better to tell the story of the brand than the people who are supporting it with their buying power?

I think the main challenge facing the brand is that they do not currently have brick and mortar stores for people to shop in and try on their clothing. In reading through Wicked Clothes' Instagram, another issue they have is keeping their clothing in stock, as it sells out quickly (especially in larger sizes).

If I were the brand manager, I'd be more responsive to social media comments and questions. Interacting with the customer means more than just asking for free advertising in the form of the amateur modeling photos of their fan base. I really enjoy Wicked's tshirts and I think their quality is fantastic, but their online presence could definitely be enhanced by regularly having conversations with customers.

Topic 2

"P&G rethinks advertising to make it more accessible" by Leonie Roderick addresses Proctor & Gamble's new shift in marketing to include more accommodations for their deaf and blind customers. In the last year, P&G has begun audio descriptions to ads which includes an audio narrative placed on top of content to give a description to the visually impaired audience. Although captioning has been available for many years, the company has just recently decided to alter advertising to help reach it's deaf customers and to give value to it's diverse consumer base.

The concern about creating these inclusive ads is cost and difficulty. Sam Latif, a special consultant of inclusive design for P&G, says that the cost and complexity of creating such ads are “not a challenge”. She suggests that brands that place themselves in the shoes of people with disabilities will be better equipped to market and advertise to all customers.

Roderick adds “One thing that has been well-received is the disability challenge. People from all levels can try and interact with products and advertising to see what it’s like when you’re blind or can’t hear. When you put people in that position, that’s how you create empathy and action – and you need both".

The value proposition in this new campaign is the fact that P&G will be able to reach more of their customers and fans of their products. People with vision or hearing disabilities will be able to receive better descriptions of company advertisements.

This article definitely made me consider the fact that marketing and advertising MUST be all-inclusive as far as the different abilities of your customers are concerned. Considering the challenges some consumers may face is extremely important if you want to make sure your product is available to everyone who may desire it.

About Me 1st Blog Post

Topic 1:

I'm an Accounting Technology major and the reason I am enrolled in Principles of Marketing is not only to satisfy a degree requirement, but also because I'm interested in learning marketing techniques to help our family business. My husband is a General Contractor, and in the interest of keeping the company financial information out of the hands of less than honest bookkeepers, we decided that me pursuing a degree in Accounting would be a huge help to our business.

Learning how to expand our customer base through marketing is what I'm hoping to get from this class. I'm not quite sure how or where to begin with getting our name and reputation as recognizable and noticeable as our logo. Hoping that I'll be able to get some great tips in this class.

My passions include anything to do with my children, husband and dogs. We're an extremely tight knit family, and my husband and I feel very blessed that both of our teenagers are still interested in hanging out with their parents! We enjoy road trips, hikes, bike rides, swimming and anything outdoors as well as movies and video games.

Topic 2:

In the article "Marketing Your Small Business on a Shoestring Budget", Karina Welch explores 4 different small budget options for reaching larger online audiences and potential consumers of your product or service.

The first option presented is Pay-Per-Click (PPC) where the cost to the advertiser is based on how many people click on your link. Can be helpful when budgets are very small, as you are able to set limits for spending.

Second, she suggested Paid Social Media. Facebook and Instagram were offered as great advertising venues for small businesses as the cost of ads and sponsored posts is minimal. In the author's opinion, "organic posts by brands reach a very small percentage of users, which means that promoting posts and running ads are the only ways to ensure brand visibility."

Niche Influencers are the 3rd option presented by Welch. Costs vary depending on the size of the Influencer's follower base, as the ones with massive amounts of followers can command more compensation for their influence than the ones with minimal amounts. She suggests creating a relationship with influencers you can realistically expect to partner with for advertising and marketing purposes.

Lastly, Remarketing was offered as an option to persuade customers to return to your website to purchase what you are selling that they may have previously been interested in. This is accomplished using remarketing lists for search ads (RLSAs).



The main point of the article that applies to marketing is that advertising doesn't have to be a huge expense to a small business owner. If your budget for advertisements is small, considering an online presence is recommended.

The Value Proposition is the specific website suggestions of the author as well as her opinions on how best to be successful at marketing your small business on a small budget.

The knowledge I take away from this writing is that I don't need to have a large amount of money saved up to be able to market our company thanks to digital advertising. Starting small with localized Facebook and Instagram ads and posts will potentially begin to drive customers to our website and become interested in the services we offer.