Starbuck's and IMC

Starbucks' key of success is the ability to change the perception consumers had about drinking coffee. With more than 6, 500 outlets across the world and the intention of increasing in the near future, the company has transformed coffee into a lifestyle accessory with as much elegance as the latest fashion. However, their way to success was not so easy and if we go back in 1971, we will find that coffee didn't look like it was a great business. There were no signs of getting better, either. Coffee consumption in the United States had peaked in the 1960s, but by 1971 it was on the decline. Most Americans drank something called "coffee" that came ground up very finely in vacuum-sealed tins. Nevertheless, there was a tiny Seattle based chain with an innovative idea of how to do business, and in a few years the small chain changed the vision about the process of drinking coffee not only in United States but worldwide. Starbucks has evolved into a great success due to their implementation of Integrated Marketing Communications.

One of the primary motivations why Starbucks and many more companies move towards IMC is the reduction in costs through this approach. The rise in some media costs, most notably television through 1990s, the proliferation of media opportunities and the splintering of audiences has led to a review of the communications strategies used by organizations and a reformulation of their promotional and media mixes. By reducing their reliance on above-the-line media and by attempting to move towards the use of media-neutral mixes to deliver consistent messages that cut through the increasing clutter, Starbucks has moved towards some form of integrated marketing communication activity.

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Agreeing a definition of IMC is proving elusive but one of the more popular, simple and intrinsically satisfying views of IMC is that the messages conveyed by each of the promotional tools should be harmonized in order that audiences perceive a consistent