Joffrey’s Coffee & Tea Co. Social Media Marketing Case Study Presented by Adam Singer ( TheFutureBuzz.com )

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I work here…

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As Director of Digital Strategy

I blog here…

I also write music

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A little about Joffrey’s…

Fair Trade Importer of premium coffees and teas from exotic locations

Roasted fresh in Tampa, Fla.

Sold at retail locations across the southeast

Also provides product to many high quality businesses such as:

… and of course product also is available at Joffreys.com

How to build their brand through social media?

Target a niche audience…

Q: What do the following have in common?

A: they’re all in beta

Web 2.0: perpetual beta

and…

Java is code…

… and coffee

Did you figure it out yet?

Joffrey’s Java Beta Test

We created a page where bloggers could sign up to “beta test” java (the coffee variety)

Once a blogger clicked “sign up now” they were taken to this page:

On the backend, we approved bloggers.

Bloggers then received an email saying they had been approved, just like in a real software beta.

Bloggers clicked the email link to complete participation and were taken to this page:

Bloggers filled out their address and a quick survey about their coffee preferences…

We then shipped them a sample pouch of “Jamaican Me Crazy” blend of java to test.

And gave them a link on the beta site back to their blog.

(Also a quick thanks to Damien Huze @ Wake Interactive for bringing my idea to life)

http://WakeInteractive.com

But, how to get beta testers?

I simply sent out some quick emails and Tweets to a few friends, posted a press release to the wire and it spread from there...

And around 50 more links/postings, prior to even sending out samples

It resonated because: We offered a tangible freebie (coffee) We gave bloggers linkage We wrapped the promotion with messaging that was “sticky” It was never a requirement you had to link to Joffrey’s or write about the test to participate…

Once the testers starting sampling, the real magic started… Here’s just a few of the reviews

Reach of the test?

1,500+ blogs participating

Thousands of mentions for the campaign throughout the Web

Hundreds of comments, responses and feedback from bloggers and the Web community

Editorial coverage on more than 150 blogs in total

254+ legitimate links to the beta site and to Joffreys.com

Strong referral traffic to Joffreys.com in 5 months surrounding test, trend up in sales

Results of coffee survey…

Coffee Trends in the Blogosphere: Average age of Java Beta Tester: approximately 31.5 years old Coffee preferences: 93% prefer regular, 7% prefer decaf 59% prefer traditional coffee, 41% prefer flavored coffee Cups of coffee per day: 1-2 = 45% 2-4 = 35% 4+ = 20% Sweetener and cream preferences: Cream + sweetener = 50% Black = 25% Cream only = 19% Sweetener only = 6%

Coffee Trends in the Blogosphere:

Average age of Java Beta Tester: approximately 31.5 years old

Coffee preferences:

93% prefer regular, 7% prefer decaf

59% prefer traditional coffee, 41% prefer flavored coffee

Cups of coffee per day:

1-2 = 45%

2-4 = 35%

4+ = 20%

Sweetener and cream preferences:

Cream + sweetener = 50%

Black = 25%

Cream only = 19%

Sweetener only = 6%

The test also received coverage by traditional media

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During the beta test, participants were asked to fill out a survey.

An open ended question asked bloggers…

If you could create a coffee flavor, what would it be?

Most common answers were some incantation of a bold, extra caffeinated blend.

Also, more than half of bloggers have 2 cups of coffee a day or more.

We shared all the data with Joffrey’s Roastmaster , who came up with a blend of coffee to spec.

It was crowdsourced java, created by bloggers, for bloggers. But, what to name it?

One clever blogger submitted the following response:

“ Coffee 2.0” Marketing.FM Eric Friedman

The promotional materials should look like a software upgrade, since this is version 2.0:

We shipped 1,000 US beta testers a sample pouch along with the installation flier.

It was only fair the people who inspired the blend would get to try it before the rest of the world.

Just a small sampling of the buzz generated:

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Links: Java Beta Test Case Study Coffee 2.0 Case Study Coffee 2.0 Product Page