Starbucks Marketing Audit

Marketing Audit: Starbucks Coffee Shops, Environmental Aspect Section

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The 3 elements for Starbucks Coffee are:

I need each element and each question in the element answered (using at least 5 references) This is about Starbucks Coffee Shops and their Environmental Aspect section of a marketing audit. Conclusion.

1) Culture---how have attitudes towards business in general, the industry, and the organization changed? Have attitudes toward environmental protection had either a positive or negative impact on the organization or brand? What other cultural phenomena had an impact? What adjustments have been made? Have they succeeded? What additional adjustments are being contemplated? Why?

2) Customers----how do customers view the organization or brand? How do they view the competition? Has the purchasing process changed? Is there a clear understanding of customer wants and needs? Are there different market segments? Are there emerging market segments? What adjustments have been made? Have they succeeded? What other changes are being contemplated? Why?

3) Competition---who are the companies or brands with which the organizationor brand competes? What are their sales and market share trends? How do their approaches to the market differ from the organizations, and from each other? Are there any specific strengths that are major threats? What adjustments have been made? Have they succeeded? What other changes are being contemplated? Why?

About Starbucks

Starbucks is a large multinational chain of coffee shops with corporate headquarters in Seattle, Washington. The company was in part named after Starbuck, a character in Moby Dick, and its insignia is a stylized cartoon siren. It is more popular among youth. Besides coffee it also serves other drinks, both hot and cold, and pastries. The company has 130,000 employees worldwide at 11,377 stores in 37 countries and plans to grow to 30,000 stores globally. It has about 80 corporate stores in Michigan. Starbucks is opening stores at a rate of five a day and saw its sales rise 20% last year to $6.4 billion. Profits rose nearly 8% to $494 million last year (2005)

(www.en.wikipedia.org)

Environmental Analysis

1) Culture---how have attitudes towards business in general, the industry, and the organization changed? Have attitudes toward environmental protection had either a positive or negative impact on the organization or brand? What other cultural phenomena had an impact? What adjustments have been made? Have they succeeded? What additional adjustments are being contemplated? Why?

Culture has prominent influence on the organization. The factors like lifestyle changes, age distribution of population, life expectancies, attitude towards materialism, capitalism, free enterprise, individualism, role of family, role of government, collectivism, role of church and religion, consumerism, environmentalism have got tremendous impact on Star Bucks.

Starbucks is one of the most successful organizations of the world due to the its strategy which is in harmony with the prevailing culture. It has adapted to the culture of globalization and pop culture.

It has featured in various cinemas and TV shows.

According to the wikipedia "Starbucks has had many references in pop culture, many of them spoofing the chain's ubiquity."

It has also launched the hearmusic.com to combine music, youth and the star bucks.

Starbucks customers soon will be able to download music from the company's playlist onto their MP3 players, buy a book with their venti latte or buy a DVD of Starbucks' latest movie project.

The new entertainment offerings, all being tested or developed, are designed to add to the Starbucks experience that comes with every cup of coffee and keeps its 40 million weekly customers connected.

http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060516/BUSINESS06/605160384/1019

Thus Star Bucks is dynamic its approach to adapt the cultural change. But it has got its share of critics too. Several online activism groups maintain websites criticizing the company's fair-trade policies, labor relations, and environmental impact, and holding it as a prime example of what they see as U.S. cultural and economic imperialism. Branches of Starbucks have been attacked by protestors, such as those against the WTO (see also WTO Ministerial Conference of 1999 protest activity).

(Wikipedia)

It has also been criticized for quotes on cups

In 2005, the company began to print quotations on its paper coffee cups. One of these drew criticism from fundamentalist Christian groups including Concerned Women for America who seek to "bring Biblical principles into all levels of public policy".

Thus Starbucks has to treat the environment with respect to leave little waste for the environment to consume, have efficient processes, low energy costs, high degree of recycling, high product quality, high social standing and high levels of customer satisfaction. It becomes a Win-Win Strategy for the Starbucks enabling it to improve its environmental or cultural record while reducing costs and/or increasing competitiveness and productivity.

The corporations, which serve their employees, enjoy high degree of employee loyalty that goes beyond the employee-employer relationship. Employees are obviously most productive when they do the work in a clean & safe environment, are respected for their work, are suitable rewarded and the remuneration are fulfilling, are empowered and have a say and have freedom to maintain a balance between their social and work life. It's the motivation to work towards the organizational goals that keeps them going. It can only happen if they feel Ð''The organisation cares'. Employees also know that their personal and professional needs are more likely to be taken into account in an organization that is dedicated to meeting its social responsibilities.

Thus Corporations function best when they operate in a community free of violence and theft, which is prosperous, has ample availability of skilled labor, good level of education and responsive economic environment. The more enlightened the community, better are