Starbucks Energizes its Customer Base Close to Home

Starbucks has been an active participant in the groundswell for quite some time now. Die hard customers can interact with Starbucks via Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Tumblr, as well as on the Starbucks website. But there is a very large customer base that you wouldn't initially think to separate out from the general crowd of Starbucks addicts...its own partners (what Starbucks calls its employees)!

I have worked at Starbucks for the past 4 years and can openly admit that being a barista is not the easiest job. BUT, Starbucks is an amazing company to work for and does a lot to support its employees. Starbucks is so dedicated to listening to the part of the groundswell that is their partners, that they even have Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, and Snapchat social media channels dedicated specifically to partners! So why does Starbucks care about what its partners have to say about the company? Because Starbucks partners are probably the most enthusiastic group of people I've ever met. 

Me with my store manager, Sheri, and fellow shift manager, Courntey celebrating National Croissant Day!

In Li and Bernoff's book, Groundswell, the authors describe energizing as "finding enthusiastic customers and turning them into word-of mouth machines." Starbucks does exactly this with their partners...Let's take a look at a recent example. 

2015 Partner White Cup Contest

Starbucks held the 2015 White Cup Contest amongst partners to create the best design on a plain white cup. The winning designs would be made into reusable cups and sold at Starbucks stores across the country! To enter the contest, partners had to design a cup and post it on Instagram with the hashtag #PartnerCupContest. 

In allowing partners to enter their designs via social media, Starbucks was doing what Li and Bernoff call "energizing the base," which is a group of your most important customers. The authors also explain that when a company energizes the base, "It expects you to listen." So the company not only viewed all of these partner's posts, but they also responded by selecting winners AND selling those designs in their stores!

Needless to say, this contest went viral, with partners blowing up Instagram. The brilliance of having partners post on Instagram is that their friends will also be able to see the posts- this does 3 things: 

1. It's the perfect reminder that Starbucks is a cool company.
2. It is free advertising for new cups.
3. It makes you want to go to Starbucks and buy a coffee.

Just look at how much conversation this post is generating!

This is a great example of what Li and Bernoff call self-spreading: "if a product is worth using, its word of mouth generates more word of mouth in a cascade that's literally exponential." The word of mouth that is created by this contest reinforces people's positive feelings towards Starbucks, which creates new customers and keeps them coming back!

Needless to say, Starbucks is truly a supportive company that encourages a symbiotic relationship with its employees. This relationship energizes employees, and keeps them feeling enthusiastic about their job. In return, Starbucks gets free advertising and a strong team of employees. I am proud to be a Starbucks Partner!

P.S. Curious about the results? Check out the winners and runners up here!