Room For Cream
Thursday morning I stopped by my local Starbucks to pick up coffee on my way to work. I expected the usual rush hour crowd and 15-minute wait all for a cup with my name spelled wrong, but much to my surprise, I left with something more.
Two grande blonde roasts in hand, I sleepily trudged over to the creamer station. As I started divvying up half & half, I noticed an old man standing beside me waiting patiently. I smiled politely as I handed him the pitcher. He took it graciously and proceeded to dump half his coffee into the trash. He turned to me and said,
Photo by Starbucks
“They always fill these things so far up. You know, I’ve been coming here every morning for 17 years and they still don’t give me enough room for cream.”
Most people would see this coming from a crotchety old man whose innate stubbornness prevents any sort of satisfaction with contemporary brands like Starbucks. But to me, he’s their ideal customer. When it comes to loyalty, the most obstinate consumers have the best relationship with brands. Why? Because they’re creatures of habit.
Personally, I love to try new things but I always seem to come back to what I’m most comfortable with. There are a lot of choices for coffee every morning, but every morning, the old man chooses Starbucks. Stirring in his creamer, the old man seemed quite content and as I left, I wondered what makes the familiar so much more appealing than the unknown.
Then it hit me. Brand loyalty is about one thing: personal preference. Sure, the baristas fill the cup to the brim, but it doesn’t change how to coffee tastes. That’s exactly the reason people choose Starbucks every morning, because they can expect the same quality product with each visit.
In the end, It doesn’t really matter if the old man has to dump out the excess. It’s become a part of his morning routine and that’s just fine by him, it seems. So long as the coffee’s hot and tastes the way he's liked for 17 years, he'll keep coming back for more.