What Starbucks got right with Race Together

In March 2015 Starbucks tried something completely different. They launched their now infamous Race Together campaign, which was meant to start conversations related to an issue that has finally reached the top of everyone’s mind: that Black Lives Matter.

There were myriad mistakes made in this original campaign. Much criticism was levied against Starbucks for their weak guidance on conversation starters. The topics ranged from how frequently you interacted with people from another race to where you are most likely to meet up. It was hardly a rich dialogue about implicit bias or racial justice. Worse still, the leader of the effort was then-Chairman of Starbucks, Howard Schultz, a white billionaire. Empathetic, sure. But certainly not someone who actually had to overcome racial injustice. 

The internet had a field day. The campaign was deemed a massive failure.

Without defending Schultz, I think he was on to something. Schultz knows that people go to coffee shops for many reasons: to get a cup of coffee, sure, but also to relax, study, meet up with friends, join random conversations and meet new people. 

The idea behind Starbucks is to create a “third place”--not home, not work--where you can go. The company’s mission (one of my favorites) is “to inspire and nurture the human spirit — one person, one cup and one neighborhood at a time.” It’s a brand designed to bring people together.

Bringing people together in a memorable way is the natural choice for customer facing brands in an economy that relies on experience and relationships. 

It’s time for companies to begin fostering more customer-to-customer conversations. Gone are the days when customer opinions are a direct threat to the sale: Yelp and Amazon Reviews have all but assured that.

Consumers buy more when something has been recommended by a real person. When the person making a recommendation has no stake in the outcome, their suggestions are even more credible. Yet companies too often shy away from trusting and encouraging these conversations between customers. In doing so, they are also ignoring the opportunity to spark other meaningful conversations. 

To effectively nurture customer-to-customer interactions, brands have to be careful. The Starbucks case clearly illustrated that. But brands should not take the wrong message from the Starbucks experience. 

Brands should open themselves to being catalysts for community interaction. Doing this well requires clarity around purpose and, in some cases, new technology.

Here are 4 ways companies can nurture customer-to-customer interactions:

1. Commit to every conversation. You don’t have to like the subject or the recommendation, but you have to believe that your customers know what’s best for themselves, and that they can navigate the social traffic.
2. Spark authentic conversations. Do not aim to guide conversations too much but publicly ask customers questions that the company or other customers actually want to know the answer to. 
3. Seek feedback. In checkout lines, for example, try asking for more than “How’s your day?” and “Did you find what you need?” Ask what they like about the products or the store. Inevitably, someone else in line will chime in!
4. Leverage technology. Rather than beg your customers to fill out a survey with a code at the bottom of their receipt, utilize recent innovations to create inspiring experiences in the moment.

What Starbucks got right was encouraging conversation among its customers.

Had it been 2020 when Starbucks launched Race Together and done it more effectively, it could have set a national precedent.