We’ve said it before. All publicity is good publicity…assuming you haven’t done something horrifically wrong of course. And it’s clear that the Starbucks controversy over their once famous, now infamous red cup is a great example. For days, the news cycle and internet has been a buzz either praising or condemning the lack of holiday spirit in Starbucks holiday cup.
Regardless of your religious point of view, or your stand on holidays versus Christmas, or your preference for Starbucks versus the neighborhood coffee shop, it seems lots of people have an opinion this year. We at FullTilt Marketing think there are a few things to be learned from coffee this week.
- Social Media Has Changed Everything: Yes indeed, the opportunity for every consumer to be a vocal online voice very quickly gives rises to consumer engagement on issues that can become hot buttons. Appropriate responses and real engagement are critical when interacting with both your fans and detractors.
- Engaged Consumers Make For Rabid Fans: When your fans love you, they defend you. This is easy enough to see by all the fans rabidly defending Starbucks with both funny and serious images and posts.
- Design Trends Change: Santa might always wear a red suit and have a beard, but Christmas/Holiday design trends change. Just think of your Christmas cards over the years. Whether its color or images, design evolution dictates art of the moment. We are entering a state of minimalism and retro and ombre is cool. Girls with long hair have been showing us this on Instagram for a year. So despite the cups lacking of snowflakes and reindeer, it appears that Starbucks was on trend. I guess another option could have been red plaid which is apparently going to be big this year, but we’re not in charge of the cup.
- Never Underestimate the Power of Free Enterprise: Again regardless of your religious or coffee preference, kudos to Dunkin’ Donuts for acting quickly and seizing the moment to capture a few of the Starbucks detractors with their version of the holiday cup.
We’d love to hear what you think about the Red Cup Controversy.
Written by Melinda Goodman
Managing Partner
Melinda@FullTiltMarketing.net
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