Introduction
This paper is a research proposal aimed at demonstrating the importance of branding to organisations and consumers. The analysis is focused on the food and beverage industry using Starbucks as a case study. Based on the expansive nature of its operations and the extensive scope of branding in marketing communications, data will be collected from secondary research.
Importance of Branding for Organisations and Consumers
Branding is a key part of marketing because it represents a company’s perceived value in the minds of its customers. Relative to this statement, Müller (2018) defines branding as a company’s decision to develop a name, symbol or design that consumers associate with. Organisations often use branding strategies to increase sales, create awareness about a product or improve customer loyalty (Gürhan-Canli, Sarial-Abi and Hayran, 2018).
Branding also allows consumers and companies to have a common set of expectations to be met by both parties (Srivastava and Thomas, 2015). To investigate its importance to companies and consumers, Maslow’s hierarchy of needs will be used as the main theoretical foundation for the review because it explains people’s motivations and ideals (Stoyanov, 2017).
Therefore, the role of branding in informing Starbuck’s success will be analysed within the context of understanding the main motivations influencing consumer purchasing behaviours, as presented in Maslow’s hierarchy of needs theory.
Justification for Sector and Brand
Starbucks is one of America’s most recognisable brands in the food and beverage industry. Founded in the early 1970s, the company has grown from a small franchise to be one of the most formidable brands in the industry (Starbuck Coffee Company, 2020). Furthermore, even as substitute brands continue to enter the market, the restaurant maintains a good record of quality and brand positioning (Starbuck Coffee Company, 2020).
Therefore, it would be interesting to understand the extent to which branding has contributed to this success. Alternatively, the competitive nature of the food and beverage industry makes it suitable for the proposed research because it creates an impetus for understanding the role of branding in maintaining market success in the competitive industry.
Coupled with Starbuck’s strong performance, the food and beverage industry provides a reliable basis for investigating how companies can maintain a strong brand image in the minds of their customers (Fitzpatrick, 2017; Jackson, 2018). Therefore, it will be crucial to understand the role that brand placement has played in promoting Starbuck’s success.
How Marketing Communication (Marcom) Tools Enhance Brand Equity
Brand communication is an integral part of any effective marketing plan because it determines the effectiveness of marketing content. Managers use various media platforms to shape the perception and image that consumers develop through brand interactions (Molyneux, 2019). To this end, Gürhan-Canli, Sarial-Abi and Hayran (2018) say that brand communication is an effective management tool for defining the image a customer develops about a brand at every point of engagement.
The most commonly used marketing communication tools in the food and beverage industry include sales promotion, advertising, direct mail marketing, Internet marketing and personal sales (Andrews and Shimp, 2017; Molyneux, 2019). In the proposed study, the effectiveness of these brand communication strategies will be reviewed in the context of how Starbucks maintains its dominant position in the food and beverage industry. Lastly, a list of indicative references to be used in the report appears in the bibliography section.
Reference List
Andrews, J. C. and Shimp, T. A. (2017) Advertising, promotion, and other aspects of integrated marketing communications. 10th edn. Mason, OH: Cengage Learning.
Fitzpatrick, H. (2017) Marketing management for non-marketing managers: improving returns on marketing investments. London: John Wiley & Sons.
Gürhan-Canli, Z., Sarial-Abi, G. and Hayran, C. (2018) ‘Consumers and brands across the globe: research synthesis and new directions’, Journal of International Marketing, 26(1), pp. 96-117.
Jackson, M. (2018) Starbucks market plan. London: GRIN Verlag.
Molyneux, L. (2019) ‘A personalized self-image: gender and branding practices among journalists’, Social Media and Society, 5(3), pp. 1-10.
Müller, M. (2018) ‘‘Brandspeak’: metaphors and the rhetorical construction of internal branding’, Organization, 25(1), pp. 42-68.
Srivastava, R. K. and Thomas, G. M. (eds) (2015) The future of branding. London: SAGE Publications India.
Starbuck Coffee Company. (2020) Company information. Web.
Stoyanov, S. (2017) A theory of human motivation. New York, NY: CRC Press.