Starbucks has been on my mind lately.
I'm doing more traveling than ever, so you can't help but pass at least five of them on your way to your airline departure gate.
And, I'm reading a great new book called "How Starbucks Saved My Life". I won't go into the details of it just now, but its a great read. Look for it next time you're looking for something to pass the time.
But here's another great piece about Starbucks, and it has everything to do with you and your new business:
"Who sells more coffee - the mom and pop cafe down the block? Or
Starbucks?" That was asked at a recent marketing conference. Over 200 voices chorused "Starbucks!"
The answer to the question may have been obvious. But the reason Starbucks is so successful is a "secret" every marketer should know.
"The temptation is to focus on the product with your advertising," said the speaker. "If your product is a currency trading service, for example, your temptation might be to talk about the currency market. But that's wrong."
He went on to say that you don't want to give your customers what they need. Instead, you should give them what they want. "If you're selling a currency trading service," he said, "you're not in the investment advisory business. You're in the business of making people money."
That's why Starbucks is so successful. They're not selling coffee.
Think about it: The difference between a cup of Starbucks coffee and a cup of coffee from the mom and pop cafe across the street is negligible. What sets Starbucks apart is a stellar concept: the Starbucks experience.
The mom and pop cafe only gives you coffee. There's no concept involved. And people don't really NEED another cup of coffee.
But they do WANT friends, a sense of community, even the feeling that they're hip.
So millions of people are happy to pay $4 and up for Starbucks coffee. At Starbucks, they can mingle with cool artists, smart techies, and urbane hipsters in a laidback setting while sipping on the world's finest organic coffees and teas.
"Is Starbucks scamming us?" No. And neither should you feel like you're scamming someone with 'smoke and mirrors' if you are wrapping your product in a concept."
The product is incidental. It's the concept you wrap it in that sells it.
So, how can you wrap your product a little differently to give it that Starbucks look and (more importantly) feel.
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