Question

Activity #1 - Defining a Brand Image

You may prepare this activity in the following formats: Word Document, PDF, or PowerPoint.

Phase one:

Research one of your favourite brands. Define their Why-How-What. (Note: Do your research! For example, read the brand's website for their mission statement)

Phase two:

Search for 6 images that visually define the brand. Be sure to match the look and feel with your value proposition. (Note: Do not select and use images that represent their logo and products)

Phase Three:

Choose a digital channel that would be appropriate for the brand to use for marketing and provide justification on why that channel would be appropriate for communicating their value proposition. Then provide a suggestion of what type of content they could create for that channel.

Answer 1

Phase 1 : Company : Starbucks

Starbucks is one of the world's most popular coffee chains with a presence in almost every continent. Their mission, which they proudly proclaim in posters in all their stores, is to 'inspire and nurture the human spirit'. Their mission is to serve the best coffee they possibly can to their customers. This starts from the growing of good quality coffee, where they aim to use ethical sourcing practices, to the roasters who ensure the best of the coffee beans is brought out and finally to their service staff that serves that coffee. They planned to create stores that were more like a neighbourhood gathering place where you would go with family and friends. They even call their employees 'partners' as a way to showcase the high value they place on people.

The company has diversified to provide several types of excellent coffee and tea sourced from various parts of the world, and now includes fresh food and branded merchandise. They have always maintained a strong focus on being a responsible corporate entity that believes in and promotes rights for all living things, including the environment and planet and define their purpose as being more than just profit to include the pursuit of doing good.

They offer around 30 coffee types and highlight different sources/origins on their website to offer transparency in the entire supply chain. Throughout their website they reiterate the ethical sourcing policies they have implemented for all their products and raw materials - coffee, tea, merchandise. In ensuring this they have invested millions in supporting communities all over the world in an effort to make their products and lifecycles more sustainable and standardised. They claim to now have 99% of their coffee sourced only through these methods and also provide details on how they are pursuing the same for their tea sources. They have successfully blended their base products, coffee and tea, with ethics, sustainability and human development to create a product portfolion that is so much more than just a cup of coffee or tea.

Phase 2 :

On their ethical sourcing page and strengthening communities, they have pictures of locals working in their home countries to grow raw materials. They highlight people of different races, women and youth at work and people of different backgrounds working together. Their strong focus on strengthening people is very visible in these images as they highlight the people rather than the coffee/tea products they produce.

Their leading in sustainability page contains beautiful pictures of plantations, solar heating solutions,  in their different sourcing locations. These are designed to highlight the positive effect the company is trying to bring about in the environment.

Phase 3 : The beautiful yet relatively unknown locations they have access to as well as the different cultures and peoples they interact with, can be showcased best in stunning pictures like they have now on their website, to visually attract and interest people using a medium such as instagram. This channel is specifically designed for visually oriented people who like to get their information through pictures and videos. This makes the channel a perfect option for the firm to flood with photographs from their various remote locations offering present and prospective customers a unique look inside their operations and enticing consumers who are increasingly more socially and environmentally conscious. In keeping with their effort to be transparent every step of the way in their supply chain, a different location/supplier/vendor/plantation/packing or warehouse unit/distribution centre etc. could be showcased every week to ensure all are presented to the public and each gets its due.

All content referenced from Starbucks websites.