Starbucks « AaronWagner7000

Starbucks Holiday Advertising Win

December 20, 2011

I love this spot because of the feelings it conveys, the excellent concept, and the simplicity. Here are what I view to be its upsides:

1. It lets you picture your favorite flavor.
This spot shows only the Starbucks CUPS, except for the first one, which is filled with Peppermint Mocha. So although this specifically advertises Peppermint Mocha, the watcher is free to imagine what’s inside the rest of the cups. The brew in the others is whatever you want it to be. I picture one of the cups being filled with a Venti Blackeye and plenty of cream. It’s calling to me.

2. The singing characters convey a sense of (profitable) nostalgia.
This kind of nostalgia (the holiday kind) appeals to a very broad demographic. You know what I mean: the caroling, the roller skates, the nutcracker, the snowman who has come to life, etc. So the cuteness and wide-reaching holiday cheer also serve a savvy, profitable purpose. Admit it: Don’t these little cup people kind of make you want to grab a Starbucks right now?

3. The sense of cause-and-affect.
It’s interesting how this video seems to produce the feeling that when you go get a Starbucks, you’re passing your joy and good mood on to others.

4. Those who don’t like coffee can appreciate this video, too.
For example, I’ll bet Starbucks’ hot chocolate sales are going through the roof right now because of the scads of children who are begging their parents to take them to the place with the singing cups. (I just hope these children are briefed BEFOREHAND that Starbucks cups won’t really sing.)

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Posted by AaronWagner7000

Starbucks’ VIA commercial will be successful.

June 14, 2010

This one is from BBDO/NY. Not personally my favorite Starbucks commercial in the world, but it will probably sell a lot of Via. (If you’re not a Starbucks fan, Via is their instant coffee. It’s actually very good.)

This isn’t my favorite commercial because it doesn’t have that sophisticated “high-end” feel that many Starbucks lovers enjoy about the brand. But this one’s obviously not aimed at sophisticates.

In this spot, a hurried mom steps up to the plate with Starbucks Via when her forgetful husband failed to make the morning coffee. She then takes some Via packets to work with her and saves the day for many of her friends at the office. (For example, saving her friend from nasty office coffee! LOL.)

The downside:

The script is a bit copy-heavy. I.e., a little too crowded with words. Maybe just a little too much info to take in during the first watching.

The upside:

This commercial does a pretty good job of communicating Via’s main benefit: convenience. The hurried mom has no coffee made for her before work, so she just grabs a Via and goes. She then quickly and conveniently spreads the Via gospel at her workplace and uses the product to brighten up an otherwise mundane Monday morning. (And if a product can do that, it’s golden!)

Leave a Comment » | Uncategorized | Tagged: BBDO, BBDO/NY, Starbucks, Starbucks Via, Starbucks World's Best Mom, Via | Permalink
Posted by AaronWagner7000

Three Reasons Why Starbucks’ Komodo Dragon Ad Rocks

April 1, 2010

I’ll admit it: I LOVE Starbucks Coffee. But I don’t always love their advertising. So whenever I DO see a Starbucks ad I like, I try to shout it from the rooftops.

If you visit starbucks.com today (April 1, 2010,) you’ll see a nice flash advertisement with cool, catchy music. It’s advertising Starbucks’ bold coffee blends, and I think it’s great. Why?

1. Good, short, quick and snappy copy.
You’d think it would be common sense for all copywriters that you should always OMIT NEEDLESS WORDS (as Strunk and White’s “Elements of Style” suggested so many years ago.) But omitting needless words in advertising is often very hard to come by, unfortunately (and surprisingly!)

Starbuck’s is a fortunate exception. Their copy in this ad includes simple, strong and inspiring statements such as:

* Be bold.
* Assert yourself.
* Step up to the plate.
* Take a flying leap.

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2. Associating its bold coffee with the bold attitude of coffee drinkers
What this great flash ad really implies is, “Our bold coffee is ‘Assertive. Snappy. Spicy.’ And so are you! So you and our bold coffees go hand in hand!”

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3. Ends with a great call to action
Again, this is something that should be a no-brainer. But GOOD calls to action are getting more and more hard to come by. I love this ad’s CTA, however. It’s simple and it’s the logical thing to do after a coffee lover sees this ad:

“Explore all our bold coffees.”

Note that it doesn’t tell us to just “try” their coffees. We’re told to “explore” them! And we’re not supposed to only explore the Komodo Dragon blend. We’re told to try ALL their bold blends.

Good stuff, baby. Good stuff.

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