You're Going to Make Mistakes

You're going to make mistakes, and that's okay. But what's not okay is failing to set up systems to tell you when you've made a mistake.

How Starbucks Should Have Introduced Instant Coffee

It wasn't a mistake for Starbucks to introduce instant coffee. They introduced it in a way that weakens their brand and contradicts the story they've been telling for years. They are saying that the instant coffee tastes just as good as their brewed coffee and challenging customers to a taste test.

You should never put your customers in a position where they could lose, so the taste test is a bad idea. Starbucks should offer customers the opportunity to compare the different coffees, but the containers should be labeled so that the customers know which coffee is instant and which is brewed.

The instant coffee should clearly be marketed as "almost as good" as the brewed coffee or "the next best thing" to the brewed coffee. It should be positioned as a drink for when you can't get the original Starbucks experience. Commercials could show people enjoying the instant coffee at the in-laws' house or the South Pole. It is a way to treat yourself when the original experience is not an option.

This would expand the brand, rather than undermine it, which is what the current approach is doing.

Luxury Lite: Starbucks Goes Instant

The Wall Street Journal has an article today on Starbucks' instant coffee. I recommend reading the article for the discussion of the whole experience of using a product, for example uncorking a bottle of wine. I think instant coffee from Starbucks is a terrible idea because it destroys the notion of the ritual of making coffee. I also recommend reading Seth Godin's book "All Marketers Are Liars", which explains the importance of having a story to tell about your product. Starbucks built a brand with one story, and now they are saying that story was wrong.