Tim’s Coffee Shoppe faces stiff competition from the local Starbucks outlet and Friend’s Market and Bistro. Starbucks is a global coffee franchise that has acquired loyalty among its customer, therefore, the brand benefits by having an advantage over Tim’s and Friend’s market and bistro. Also, Tim’s has limited options when choosing snacks as compared to friends and Starbucks. Consequently, it losses out on customers who are on their lunch breaks and would want to grab snacks at the same time. However, Starbucks scores high with a wide variety of snacks on the menu, therefore, earning customers, reliability and gives the clients options.
Tim’s coffee shop, however, has a competitive advantage over Starbucks and Friend’s Market and Bistro. First, Tim’s ranks high in terms of quality. The clients seem to prefer Tim’s coffee taste as compared to its competitors. Also, Tim’s has a competitive advantage over Starbucks and friends as it plays live music. live music creates an ambiance that the customers enjoy. Consequently, clients can sit have coffee while listening and enjoying their favorite tunes. Tim’s also benefits from its strategic location over the Friend’s market. The strategic location that attracts clients both students and other clients leaves it to compete with the Starbucks only.
Tim’s Marketing Strategy
Product
Tim’s Coffee Shoppe ranks high in terms of product as compared to its competitors. The shop has an advantage of producing good quality coffee that the client likes. However, the coffee shop has a weakness in the food quality production which places it at a disadvantage when compared to Starbucks and friend’s market. The product presented to the customer plays an important role in ensuring that there is customer satisfaction (Ehmke, Fulton, & Lusk, p. 1). For instance, some of the customers complained that their customer service was not good and some of the staff members were rude. To improve the product strategy, Tim’s should consider incorporating a wide range of snacks and products which the customer can have while taking coffee. Also, Tim’s need to train their staff on customer service to ensure good service delivery and customer satisfaction.
Price
The customer reviews show that the price of coffee at Tim’s Coffee shop is affordable and fair when compared to its competitors. The coffee market that Tim’s Coffee shop operates targets the campus communities, therefore, its main customers are students and sometimes the professors and other campus community. Tim’s need to incorporate e competitive pricing of their products. The coffee shop will have to slightly monitor the prices of their competitors and respond to any adjustment in the price change accordingly (Ehmke, Fulton, & Lusk, p. 2). The company can also include discount pricing or coupons or loyalties to frequent customers, therefore, maintaining them and at the same time appealing to new customers. Also, the shop needs to come up with a payment system that incorporates the use of debit cards as some of the clients complained about the payment system. Competitive pricing of the products will give the shop a fair platform with other coffee shops in the campus.
Place
Place describes the distribution of products and services within a market (Išoraitė, 2016, p. 32). For instance, for Tim’s coffee shop the distribution of food to their target customers. The shops target customers are people within the campus. The shop is at a strategic location near the campus and the subway, therefore, it benefits from serving the student population and also commuters who look to transit from one point to another. The customer reviews indicate that Tim’s shop is strategic and convenient for them to have quick lunch bites in between classes. Also, the shop located near the campus assists students to complete their assignments as they use the free Wi-Fi. However, the shop needs remodeling so that it can accommodate the large student population and also visitors who just want to sit for a short while and go. Currently, the students spend a lot of time in a coffee shop making it hard for other clients to find seats. Consequently, the shop needs to devise a way to increase the numbers of tables to increase its capacity.
Promotion
Promotion will play an essential role in increasing consumer awareness of the outlet’s products. Promotion also indirectly leads to an increase in sales and assist in building a brand loyalty (Išoraitė, 2016, p. 34). Tim’s will engage in a promotion program that will help influence the purchasing decision of the client. For instance, the company will use advertising as a promotion strategy. Tim’s will incorporate a graphically designed banner and place it at strategic points near the campus and the subway. The shop will also place infomercials on the radio and the local Tv stations showing the kind of foods in the café and the interior decoration to signify the ambiance of the outlet. The shop will also use the live band as a promotional strategy. The shop can organize for different bands to book a performance at the shop, therefore, attracting huge numbers of clients.
References
Ehmke, C., Fulton, J., & Lusk, J. (n.d.). Marketing’s Four P’s: First Steps for New Entrepreneurs. Retrieved May 16, 2018, from Purdue University Website: https://www.extension.purdue.edu/extmedia/ec/ec-730.pdf
Išoraitė, M. (2016). Marketing Mix Theoretical Aspects. International Journal of Research, 25 - 37. Retrieved May 16, 2018, from http://granthaalayah.com/Articles/Vol4Iss6/04_IJRG16_C06_07.pdf
