This plan looks at a specific case and aims to resolve the negative coverage by implementing useful objectives and strategies.

1. STARBUCKS
COMMUNICATIONS
PLAN
MARCH 2020
Report by:
SIMRAN ARORA
SAKSHI GAONKAR
EMILY KEEN
YASHVI KHATRI
LINA ZHAO Photo: Starbucks cup photographed on Friday,
March 16, 2018. (Joshua Trujillo, Starbucks)
STARBUCKS COFFEE COMPANY
Prepared For: Jeff Roach
CCM718SBB Strategic
Communications Planning

2. STARBUCKS COFFEE COMPANY
Page 02
TABLE OF
CONTENT
Executive Summary..................3
Situation Analysis .......................4
Objectives & Strategies...........6
Messaging ........................................11
Masterlist of Tactics ..................12
Evaluation .......................................13
Budget................................................15
Photo: en.wikipedia.org.

3. STARBUCKS COFFEE COMPANY
Page 03
EXECUTIVE
SUMMARY
Photo: https://www.businessinsider.com/the-most-incredible-starbucks-drinks-you-can-get-
around-the-world-2018-3
Starbucks faced a setback in 2004 at the Silver Springs, Maryland location.
Nearly 100 people staged a “nurse-in,” holding picket signs, breastfeeding
babies and passing out fliers on the benefits of breastfeeding. This protest
was started because Lorig Charkoudian, a Starbucks customer was asked by
an employee to relocate to the washroom after other customers complained.
This led to the accusation of Starbucks discriminating against breastfeeding
mothers.
Starbucks Coffee, Tea, and Spice were founded in 1971. The Seattle based
corporation was started by Gerald Baldwin, Gordon Bowker, and Zev Siegl by
selling roasted coffee beans. Howard Schultz fell in love with the company and
pushed for the founders to create the role of Director of Retail Sales for him.
Schultz noticed that the US was lacking a “third place” location for people to
gather. By 1987 Starbucks was bought by Schultz, and he has expanded
Starbucks into what it is today. Starbucks has become a household name,
establishing themselves as the lead coffee provider worldwide.
Raising awareness and gaining public acceptance of breastfeeding
Help the remaining Starbucks locations to allow breastfeeding all over
the USA
Be the first food/beverage establishment to create an official policy,
paving the way for other companies to follow suit
This communication plan is to strategically respond to the situation by
focusing on the following:
The projected timeline of the communication strategies will run
between March 2020- March 2021. Some programs will be
integrated into the organization to be held annually. The budget to
implement this communication plan is $1,690,000.

4. STARBUCKS COFFEE COMPANY
Page 04
MARKETING
HIGHLIGHTS FOR
THE YEAR
SITUATION
ANALYSIS
Photo: https://www.royalcaribbean.com/cruise-dining/starbucks
PROBLEM:
Mothers are being dismissed and shamed for breastfeeding, even though 34
states have breastfeeding in public included in their laws. Though, some laws
are not specific to the technicalities of breastfeeding. The purpose of the plan
is to address specific criteria of breastfeeding mothers without incriminating
them. Some states criminally categorize breastfeeding as indecent exposure.
Starbucks currently does not have an official policy regarding breastfeeding
in place. Therefore, the public may view Starbucks as not inclusive to all
customers.
Background:
In 2004, Lorig Charkoudian was asked by a
Starbucks employee to relocate or to cover
up as she breastfed her 15-month-old
daughter in Maryland. This sparked a
decade long debate about breastfeeding in
public. Nursing mothers have often been
ridiculed for breastfeeding in public as
some people see it has indecent exposure.
Others view breastfeeding as a natural act.
Charkoudian decided to fight back by
staging a “nurse-in” protest at Starbucks
along with 30 other mothers. Charkoudian’s
determination pushed Starbucks to
implement a new breastfeeding policy
across the United States.

5. STARBUCKS COFFEE COMPANY
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SITUATION
ANALYSIS
Having a large support of people to
back the cause
Being the first company to make
efforts in bringing change to the
current situation of breastfeeding
Being a large organization, having a
large outreach to further the mission
of removing stigma around
breastfeeding in public (by utilizing
social media platforms)
Strengths:
Some legislations are not specific
about breastfeeding; therefore,
mothers may be incriminated for
the act
New policy means retraining all
employees, implementing the new
policy to stores countrywide. Could
be considered costly and time-
consuming
Weaknesses:
Raise awareness/ gain public
approval regarding breastfeeding
Introducing an area in Starbucks
locations to accommodate
mothers feeding their baby
Expanding the market by making
the store environment more
inclusive and making everyone
feel welcome
Opportunities:
Government not taking
action
Conservative customers
who disagree with public
breastfeeding
Breastfeeding legislation
in other states
Threats:

6. STARBUCKS COFFEE COMPANY
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OBJECTIVES &
STRATEGIES #1
Photo: https://www.chatelaine.com/food/trends/starbucks-plant-based-drinks-2020-review/
Construct ‘mom-friendly’ zones for mothers at 65% of
Starbucks locations by March 2021 and contribute to
awareness and acceptance of breastfeeding in public
arenas. The establishment of those zones will primarily
begin at states without formal breastfeeding policy.
Strategy: To make Starbucks coffee shops ‘mom-friendly’ to de-
stigmatize breastfeeding in public.
Install privacy screens
Place highchairs and booster seats for toddlers
Childproof the cafes, using corner guards for tables and electrical outlet
protector caps
Tactic #1:
Constructing ‘mom-friendly’ zones in approximately 5,100 stores across 34 states
in the US
Use newspaper display advertising to showcase the new zones to the public
Buy the airtime on radio channels to highlight SB’s strategy to increase public
acceptance of breastfeeding mothers
Send out a press release to media and get earned coverage in Tier 1 and Tier 2
print outlets
Tactic #2:
Promoting the ‘mom-friendly’ zones to the target audience

7. STARBUCKS COFFEE COMPANY
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OBJECTIVES &
STRATEGIES #1
Get breastfeeding activists and mommy bloggers to inaugurate the
zones
Invite media to cover the event and feature Starbucks’ stand on
breastfeeding
Make the event engaging for parents and children with kids’ themed
party
Tactic #3:
Organize an event in Starbucks stores to launch the zones
Collaboration with mommy bloggers and parenting influencers to cover
Starbucks’ new zones
Arrange mommy blogger visits and let them do Instagram takeovers and
live video
Organize meet and greets with mommy bloggers and their fans
Tactic #4:
Increase social media awareness about Starbucks’ strategy
Employee surveys to track customer feedback about the new
zones
Reception of advertisement on social media
Event attendance at the store launch
Social media impressions, engagement and mentions about
the online campaign, tracked through specific channel
analytics and Hootsuite
KEY PERFORMANCE INDICATORS:

8. STARBUCKS COFFEE COMPANY
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OBJECTIVES &
STRATEGIES#2
Start a Starbucks initiative to get legislative changes in
breastfeeding policy in the rest 27 states with the support
of activists, customers and other organizations by Jan 2021.
Strategy: Collaborate with activists to get legislative support and
execute a social media campaign to garner support
Sign a petition with the activists
Provide financial and marketing support
Set up a team of lawyers to represent the cause
Tactic #1:
To bring legislative changes to states without breastfeeding laws
Give a star coupon to moms who share their breastfeeding stories
Garner public support through user-generated content
Promote the campaign with the support of mommy and parent bloggers
The bloggers will be tagged as #starbloggers
Tactic #2:
Introduce social media campaign- #Starforbreastfeeding
Get McDonald’s and Burger King on board
Get other smaller brands on board for support the movement and social media
campaign
Tactic #3:
Collaborate with other organizations
Track changes in legislative changes in the formalization of the breastfeeding
policy
Observe social media impressions, engagement and mentions about the online
campaign, tracked through specific channel analytics and Hootsuite
Examine the amount of user-generated content and content generated by
bloggers
KEY PERFORMANCE INDICATORS:

9. STARBUCKS COFFEE COMPANY
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OBJECTIVES &
STRATEGIES #3
Photo: https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2019-10-
28/starbucks-crypto-consumer-app-targeted-for-first-half-of-2020
Development and implementation of a new breastfeeding
policy. Increase employee awareness about Starbucks
breastfeeding policy among 70% of employees across
5882 stores in the USA by September 2020.
Strategy: Formulating new employee policy to implement to all stores
nationwide, and integrate new learning tools for employee training.
Conducting 5 groups with 10 working parents especially mothers as
participants
To understand the different constituents that could be adopted in the
policy
To understand the approach towards breastfeeding
Tactic #1:
To organize focus groups
Arrange an advisory committee to
analyze the issues related to
breastfeeding
To help formulate guidelines for the new
breastfeeding policy
Tactic #2:
Setting up an advisory committee

10. STARBUCKS COFFEE COMPANY
Page 10
Online and in store training about nurse-in
Training for store managers with practical scenarios dealing with the
case-study
Including policy guidelines in entry-level training
Tactic #3:
To conduct internal training for employees
Evaluating and quantifying the information gathered from the
focus groups
Monitoring the attendance of online training
Examining the knowledge acquired by the employees through
training
KEY PERFORMANCE INDICATORS:
OBJECTIVES &
STRATEGIES #3
Photo: https://www.beveragedaily.com/Article/2018/08/28/Nestle-
gains-unparalleled-position-in-coffee-business-with-Starbucks-
alliance

11. STARBUCKS COFFEE COMPANY
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KEY
MESSAGING
Photo: https://www.businessinsider.com/biggest-chain-
in-america-is-subway-not-mcdonalds-starbucks-2018-6
As the leading coffee provider for Americans,
Starbucks is committed to providing a safe
environment for all breastfeeding mothers and
customers. Starbucks will equip all employees
with the correct training and education regarding
breastfeeding to best serve our customers.
Starbucks is prepared to be at the forefront of
raising awareness to end the stigma of
breastfeeding in public. Here at Starbucks, we
strive to give a safe environment to all our patrons
as they enjoy our selection of artisanal beverages
and goods.

12. STARBUCKS COFFEE COMPANY
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MASTERLIST
OF
TACTICS
Constructing mom-friendly’ zones in
approximately 5,100 stores across 34 states in
the US
Promoting the ‘mom-friendly’ zones to the
target audience
Organize an event in Starbucks stores to
launch the zones
Increase social media awareness about
Starbuck’ strategy
To bring legislative changes to states without
breastfeeding laws
Introduce social media campaign -
#Starforbreasting
Collaborate with other organizations
To organize focus groups
Setting up an advisory committee
To conduct internal training for
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
employees
Photo: https://yow.ca/en/starbucks

13. STARBUCKS COFFEE COMPANY
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EVALUATION
Photo: Alex Staniloff
Installation of privacy screens in 65% Starbucks locations
Mommy blogger posts
Tier 1 and Tier 2 publications
In-store promotion events such as open mic and family events
Legislative changes
Launch of social media campaign
Collaboration announcements
Social Media Monitoring:
Starbucks reception on social media will be monitored and reported at several stages of the
plan. We will conduct an evaluation before implementation to establish a benchmark of
where Starbucks stands in terms of social media. The presence will be evaluated for good,
bad, and neutral engagement on varying platforms. Then, we will evaluate Starbucks’ social
media image after every promotion tactic to see if the plan is being received positively.
Points of evaluation include:
In March 2021, we will conduct a final social media evaluation to definitively track the social
media progress of the plan, and compare the initial measures with the final ones to see if the
plan was effective.
Announcing the inclusion of voluntary privacy screens at
65% of our Starbucks locations
Use of Newspaper advertising
Buying radio airtime to promote public acceptance of
breastfeeding
Inviting media to cover in-store events
Launching social media campaign
Becoming formally involved in breastfeeding lobbying
Media Ratings Points (MRP) Monitoring:
Like our social media monitoring, we will create a MRP binder
to track the media presence of Starbucks. We will begin with
an initial “score” and track the development of Starbuck’s
media mentions as the plan progresses. There will be
multiple points of evaluation to determine which forms of
media relations is creating the most positive attention for
Starbucks. We will create a report after:
In March 2021, we will create a final MRP report of the
campaign, to visualize the progress of the plan and its effect
on media presence. With this final evaluation, we can
determine which tactics were the most effective at pulling
media attention.

14. EVALUATION
STARBUCKS COFFEE COMPANY
Page 14
Sales Analysis:
Prior to the implementation of our plan, we
will look at sales numbers of the quarter.
Then, we will revisit sales numbers after
every quarter, for one year. In total, we will
have four sales reports to track if the plan
has earned back the customer base it lost as
a result of the breastfeeding protests. An
increase in sales would indicate that the plan
has managed to bring in more customers.
Though this evaluation method cannot tell us
if we have reached the targeted mothers, it
can tell us if the company has earned back
the profits it lost.
Starbucks Membership Analysis:
Starbucks memberships allow us to gather data about our regular,
loyal customers. By creating data that tells us about the age
distribution, gender, and familial status of our membership, we can
compare the demographic analysis of customers before, and after
implementation of the plan. If we see an increase in the activity of
existing mothers in our target audience, and a surge of new
members of the same demographic, we can say that our plan has
worked. Additionally, we will take note of how many new members
we earn at every in-store event, to track the success of these
events.
Employee Questionnaires:
Employees will be given formal training to address any future breastfeeding-related
conflicts in-store. One method of evaluation would be the training quizzes that will
take place immediately after training. However, in order to evaluate the effectiveness
of a training campaign, we will conduct a quarterly employee questionnaire designed
to assess how comfortable employees are in addressing breastfeeding conflicts. We
will also conduct an annual assessment to ensure that employees are regularly
reminded of protocols installed through the plan.
In-Store and Online Questionnaires:
These are optional surveys we will make available in-store and online. These will
be available before implementation and up to two years post-implementation
(March 2022). This will give us an idea of how Starbucks is experienced/perceived
by customers. The questionnaire will gather data about the “family-friendliness” of
our locations, the demographics of the customer (age, children, marital status),
and the overall satisfaction ratings. This form of voluntary questionnaires will
provide us with experiential data to track the change of customer perception.

15. STARBUCKS COFFEE COMPANY
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BUDGET
Photo: Starbucks (Shutterstock)

16. STARBUCKS COFFEE COMPANY
Page 16
THANK YOU
Photo: https://news.microsoft.com/transform/starbucks-turns-to-technology-to-brew-up-a-more-
personal-connection-with-its-customers/