Do you run a coffee shop and you want to increase customer loyalty and product sales? If YES, here 50 creative coffee shop marketing ideas & branding strategies.
Starting a Coffee Shop – Market Feasibility and Research
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Demographics and Psychographics
When it comes to selling coffee, there is a wide range of people that consume coffee; there are no defined demography and psychographics that needs it. The location you choose to locate your coffee shop will go a long way to determine the demography of people that will patronize your coffee shop.
For example, if you locate your coffee shop in business district, most often than not, the caliber of people that are likely going to patronize your coffee shop are working class and top executives so also if you locate your coffee shop in a campus, the demography of those that are likely going to patronize your coffee shop will be more of students.
The Level of Competition in the Coffee Industry
The fact that starting a coffee shop business is easy to start, requires low start – up capital, requires no technical skills and it is a profitable venture makes it one of the businesses that loads of people would want to start hence the high level of competition in the industry.
There are different levels of competition in the coffee shop business and it exists between larger coffee shops like Starbucks, Costa Coffee and other big – time coffee shops. So also there are competitions between smaller coffee shops especially those who are involved in the operation of mobile coffee shop.
The truth is that, despite the level of competition in the coffee shop business, entrepreneurs who are running the business are still making their profits and some of them generate as 50 percent turnover rate especially those that are well positioned and over time have been able to secure loads of loyal customers.
Guerrilla Marketing Strategies for Our Coffee Shop
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Creating Brand Identity for Our Coffee Café
We are quite aware that our brand has to do with the way people perceive us to be which is why we are deliberate when it comes to communicating and promoting our brand. In promoting our brand and corporate identity, we will leverage on print and electronic media.
As a matter of fact, it is cost effective to use social media platforms to promote our brands, besides it is pretty much effective. Here are the ways we intend creating brand identity of our coffee cafe
- Designed a unique corporate logo
- Place adverts on both print and electronic media platforms
- Ensures that our workers wear our branded shirts at all times during working hours
- Place our flexi banners with our company’s logo and contacts in strategic positions
- Sponsor relevant TV programs, Radio programs and community based programs
- Maximize our company’s website to promote our business
- Leverage on the internet and social media platforms like; Instagram, Facebook ,Twitter, LinkedIn, Badoo, Snap Chat, Google+ and other platforms to promote our corporate brand
- Install our Bill Boards on strategic locations
- Distribute our fliers and handbills in targeted areas from time to time
Possible Competitive Strategies for Winning your Competitors in the Coffee Industry
When it comes to competing favorable in the coffee shop industry, you would have to be very creative to stay on top. The truth is that, if your customers have the opportunity to buy neatly brewed assorted coffees, and they also have the opportunity to drink their coffee in a relaxed environment; they would always prefer your coffee house to other coffee shops within same location.
Another competitive strategy is to ensure that your coffee beverages are served in different forms (cappuccino, espresso, iced coffee, decaffeinated coffee, alcoholic coffee (Irish Coffee and Brandy Coffee et al), filtered coffee, cold brew coffee, Turkish coffee, coffee with milk, coffee or espresso with whipped cream, and flavored coffee et al.
Action Marketing ideas for Our Coffee Shop
Cost Effective Ways We Intend to Advertise / Promote Our Coffee Shop without Using the Internet
- Place adverts on national TV stations, Radio Stations and Newspapers
- Sponsor relevant community programs
- Install our Bill Boards on strategic locations
- Open of Coffee bar in a grand style by serving free cup of coffee to all those who step into the bar
- Ensure that we have different types of coffees at all times
- Make use of attractive hand bills to create awareness and also to give direction to potential clients
- Position our signage / flexi banners at strategic places around the airport (subject to permission from the airport authority)
- Advertise our coffee shop on local traveling magazines and yellow pages.
- Distribute our fliers and handbills to targeted areas from time to time
- Ensures that our workers wear our branded shirts at all times during working hours.
Low Cost Ways We Intend to Advertise / Promote Our Coffee Shop on the Internet
We are quite aware that the internet is presently the biggest platform when it comes advertising / promoting any business and one good thing about adverting on the internet that is far cheaper than other conventional advertising platforms. This is why we will ensure that we explore all available means on the internet platform to advertise our coffee shop.
Here are they ways we intending leveraging on the internet to advertise / promote our coffee café:
- Leverage on social media platforms such as; Instagram, Facebook , LinkedIn, Badoo, Snap chat, YouTube, Twitter, Google + et al
- Make use of mobile apps to promote our coffee café
- Design an interactive corporate website and use the platform to promote our coffee café
- Place adverts on high traffic websites
- Engage in blogging and make use of the platform to promote our coffee café
- Leverage on email marketing strategy to advertise and promote our locally coffee café.
Creative Marketing Ideas Specific to Our Coffee Shop
We have been able to come up with creative marketing ideas that will help us gain leverage in the market place. Part of what we intend doing that will enable us win over customers to patronize our coffee café is to ensure that we give out free cups of coffees to as much people that will visit our coffee café on the day we will be officially opening our coffee café to the public.
Aside from giving out free cups of coffees on the day we are opening the business, we will also dedicate some days during the course of the year to give out free cups of coffees. This will give our potential customers the opportunity to have a taste of our coffee and have a feel of the ambience in our coffee shop.
One thing is certain, if they enjoy the taste of our coffee; they are more likely to come back and buy from us and in turn become our loyal customers and brand ambassadors.
In recent time, the internet has become one of the most potent tools when it comes to marketing any goods and services. Those who operate coffee cafés are not left out when it comes to developing creative ways of marketing their assorted coffees via the internet. One thing about internet marketing is that you can direct your marketing effort towards your target market with the help of internet filters and other relevant software applications.
Possible Ways to Increase Customer Retention for a Coffee Shop Business
No doubt one of the strategies that you would need in order to generate repeated sales from your customers and also to retain them is to ensure that the quality and taste of your coffee and your customer service delivery are always on point.
The truth is that if the taste and quality of your coffees and customer service delivery fluctuates, you are likely going to struggle to get your customers coming back; people usually go for coffee that taste pretty great. You can also make uses of promotional ideas such as loyalty schemes, direct marketing, door drops, and merchandising.
Lastly, ensure that you offer your customers incentives if you want to retain them and of course continue to generate repeated sales from them and also to attract new customers.
Creating Brand Awareness and Corporate Identity for a Coffee Shop
Coffee shop business just like any other business in the food and drinks industry requires media hype to get people to buy into the brand. Your brand has to do with the way people perceive you to be which is why you should be deliberate when it comes to communicating and promoting your brand.
In promoting your brand and corporate identity, you should leverage on both print and electronic media. As a matter of fact, it is cost effective to use social media platforms to promote your brands, besides it is pretty much effective.
Here are the platforms you can leverage on to create brand awareness of your coffee house and to promote your corporate identity in the market place;
- Place adverts on national TV stations, Radio Stations and Newspapers / Magazines
- Run your own special TV program
- Sponsor relevant community programs
- Leverage on the internet and social media platforms like; Instagram, Facebook , Badoo, YouTube, Twitter et al
- Install your Bill Boards on strategic locations
- Engage in road show from time to time
- Distribute your fliers and handbills to targeted areas from time to time
- Send out introductory letters to multinationals, embassies, and diaspora organizations and networks in and around your location
- Encourage the use of word of mouth especially from loyal customers
- Ensure that all your vehicles are branded with your company’s logo
- Ensure that all your employees wear your branded shirts during work hours
Creating a Suppliers/Distribution Network for your Coffee Shop
If you are running a coffee house, it is very important that you create channels for vendors to supply you coffee beans and other snacks making ingredients. It will save you time and perhaps cost especially if they own farms where the needed raw foods and ingredients are cultivated. In order not to be disappointed, it will be wise to have more than one vendor / suppliers.