SWOT Analysis
Starbucks has various strengths, including a strong brand image, the ability to manage global supply chains, and diversification through subsidiaries. However, the firm is striving to mitigate weaknesses such as its high pricing strategy, imitability of beverages, and generalized standards for most of its products (Abdel-Basset et al., 2018). With the onboard challenges, Starbucks can still exploit various opportunities including but not limited to the potential to expand in developing countries, a wide range of products to explore, and chances of expanding to new markets through strategic alliances and partnerships (Liu et al., 2022). The survival of Starbucks is being threatened by factors such as the independence of coffeehouse movements, stiff competition, the influence of crises, and increased product imitation.
Current Marketing Strategies
Currently, Starbucks mainly applies four strategies, namely targeting, positioning, segmentation, and differentiation. The firm market segmentation is conducted based on demographics and psychographics. In most cases, marketing experts targets young people within the age range of 18-24, and middle-upper income individuals (Nair et al., 2021). This unique selling positioning helps Starbucks to differentiate its products and gain a competitive edge over its rivals (Hair et al., 2017; Tsai et al., 2020). Starbucks concentrates on segmentation albeit can be improved by the 4Ps marketing mix.
Improving the Situation Using the 4Ps Marketing Mix
To market a product successfully, the 4Ps marketing mix is a key consideration that must be thoughtfully examined. As mentioned by Hair et al. (2017), the 4Ps is an acronym, representing a product, price, place, and promotion. From the product point of view, Starbucks should differentiate its products more, alongside making them unique to prevent imitation. Since high prices of products are a challenge outlined in the SWOT analysis, Starbucks should set a relatively lower price for the new product in proportions that resonate with the production costs.
Focusing on position or place of operation, Starbucks should locate its subsidiaries in places with high traffics, besides maximizing its operation in regions where the impacts of the ongoing crises are the least felt. These interventions include providing food to the starving population, sponsoring educational institutions, and more. In promoting its products, Starbucks should ensure its interventions in combating adverse impacts of the crises such as COVID-19 are highly felt in the surrounding community, as suggested by Lombardi et al. (2021). Starbucks should increase the use of social media ads to market its drinks.
References
Abdel-Basset, M., Mohamed, M., & Smarandache, F. (2018). An extension of Neutrosophic AHP–SWOT analysis for strategic planning and decision-making. Symmetry, 10(4), 116. Web.
Hair, J. F., Ortinau, D. J., & Harrison, D. E. (2017). Essentials of marketing research (5th edition). New York, NY: McGraw-Hill.
Liu, X., Tang, Y., & Wang, Y. (2022). Consumer satisfaction for Starbucks. Proceedings of the 2022 7th International Conference on Social Sciences and Economic Development (ICSSED 2022). Web.
Lombardi, C. V., Chidiac, N. T., & Record, B. C. (2021). Starbucks coffee Corporation’s marketing response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Innovative Marketing, 17(2), 177-188. Web.
Nair, R. K., Sinha, R., Crasto, S. G., Kian, K. W., Kee, D. M., Binti Abdullah, S. A., Ninti Zaidi, S. N., En, T. S., Jain, A. K., Valecha, P. M., & Ganatra, V. (2021). The effect of Starbucks marketing campaigns on consumer buying behaviour. Asia Pacific Journal of Management and Education, 4(1), 72-81. Web.
Tsai, P., Lin, G., Zheng, Y., Chen, Y., Chen, P., & Su, Z. (2020). Exploring the effect of Starbucks’ green marketing on consumers’ purchase decisions from consumers’ perspective. Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, 56, 102162. Web.