Starbucks brand-building: Diluting coffee with music?

Link: Following up on a previous post, I noticed a letter from a reader of Fast Company magazine commenting on the recent article about the Starbucks plan to reinvent its brand. The article detailed a plan to grow the Starbucks brand beyond coffee and coffehouses into new areas, including digital music. According to the article, Starbucks plans to place digital music stations in some of its coffeehouses, allowing patrons to (legally) create customized CDs that include songs selected by the patron while drinking a Venti Cafe Mocha.

In the letter, the reader highlights an issue that should be one of the biggest concerns of anyone thinking of taking a succesful brand into new territory: What effect will the proposed plan have on the existing status of the brand? As for the Starbucks plan, the reader thinks its a bad move, noting that many customers

“go to Starbucks to enjoy great coffee in a quiet place where …[they] can relax with friendly people and great service. The last thing …[they] want is to fight through a crowd and listen to loud music.”

A quiet place? CD-burning stations might not fit in with this image, unless of course headphones are included (which I think would be a necessity). The reader concludes “These distractions from what made …[Starbucks] great are a “grande” mistake.” Ouch! I think its a foregone conclusion that the new-and-improved Starbucks brand won’t be viewed by the reader as favorably as the trusty old brand.

What’s a brand owner to do? Don’t sacrifice brand-building opportunities to maintain the vision that others have for your brand. But, when the “others” are your customers, you must listen. Tread carefully. Listen to your brand lovers (ask for their input!) and grow the brand cautiously. You won’t eliminate all grumbling about the change, but you will likely minimize it.

Perhaps Starbucks could target certain coffeehouses for the change, leaving others alone, based on patron profile. Starbucks locations on or near college campuses are probably a safe bet for the CD-burning stations, while those next to professional office buildings may well be left alone.