After my previous posting about Starbucks' magical copy, I must have been in a cup-reading type of mood ...Truth be told, nowadays my wife and I actually more frequently get our daily java fix (she shuts down if she doesn't have her Vanilla Coffee Cooler, no whipped cream) from the newly opened Caribou Coffee. For those of you who don't know them (and you may not since they are only in a handful states), Caribou is number two in the gourmet coffeehouse biz. Think of them as Starbucks' quirky, socially conscious (cool positioning) cousin from the northwoods of Minnesota.
To be blunt they are second but it is a distant second to the clear market leader. But it's also a strong second. They have built a brand every bit as powerful as their erudite older cousin. Caribou's coffeehouses are like little lodges complete with faux fireplace, raw woodwork, and probably faux bearskin ottomans.
To do an apples to apples comparison with my previous post, how does their cup copy compare to the 'Bucks juggernaut?
You are holding our pride and joyNot bad. And actually those simple phrases sum up their position in the market in an eloquent and concise fashion. They care about the coffee experience that Starbucks has sold us on. Pay a few bucks more and you enjoy a incomparable drinking experience. They acknowledge your involvement in this experience by referencing your enjoyment in tandem with their joy in creating it. The whole feel of their brand is targeted at coffee connoisseurs who may be after a more relaxed, lived in environment. Outdoorsy and soothing. Kick back by the fire and enjoy.
Hand-selected beans. Hand-crafted beverage.
It's in your hands now. Enjoy.
On a side note, their aforementioned social consciousness is easily felt with several signs proclaiming their support of social and agricultural responsibility in coffee production. Again, good differentiation but to be shrewd for a moment when they proclaim this so fervently it begs the question 'What does Starbucks do socially?' Probably a lot, perhaps even more given their size but they don't communicate it as prominently as Caribou and thus it escapes being a core component of their brand identity. To paraphrase James Carville, don't expect the public to know something unless you're willing to tell them.
The Point? There's something to be said for being a strong and respectable number two. In the end, you may even be number one in other measures that outweigh market leadership. Think Apple. Think Caribou. Think different. Happy Memorial Day!
P.S. I'll lay off the coffee posts for a while.
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