Starbucks has a well-earned rep as an outstanding marketer that really does get social media. Which is why it didn’t surprise me it was an early adopter on Foursquare. What did surprise me: When I went to take advantage of Starbucks’ recently ended Foursquare promotion, neither the barista nor the manager had any idea what I was talking about.
So much for cashing in on my mayorship with a discounted caramel frappuccino. Really, Starbucks? How difficult is it to send an e-mail to your managers outlining the campaign details? Missteps aside, I have a lot of respect for the marketing minds at Starbucks. The company has consistently been first to jump on new technologies and platforms and incorporate them into its marketing strategy.
Take, for instance, the continued success of My Starbucks Idea, last year’s unbranded stores in Seattle, and, more recently, the Klout Influencer outreach program. In my opinion, they define the early adopter brand. Unfortunately, inherent in that mentality is the likelihood that the corporate strategists may be, and probably are, more tech savvy than the common employee, especially for a brand with so many brick-and-mortar outlets littered about the country. That said, assuming Starbucks did take the standard actions to communicate the details to its employees, the information may not have been properly understood or conveyed.
In the not too distant future your smart phone will know your preferences for checking in and will both broadcast and receive what you choose. Companies like Foursquare will be irrelevant and only remembered as a trivial pursuit question as being one of the first location based services. The big search engines and perhaps the mobile carriers will drive this effort with funding coming from “advertisement based services” much like paid search is today. Companies like Starbucks will be able to sign up for the level of “advertising” they want to commit to and then they can rely upon a service level agreement to insure the content is delivered.
The smarter vendors will create add-on services to “educate” employees and managers of the current promotions being offering in that specific location. Creating a true “Location Based Services” offering. Of course, customers will also be on the receiving end of this generated content. If done right the consumer will be able to opt-in (or out) of services they prefer.