How Starbucks created its own language for ordering coffee

CNN quotes Charles Lindsey in an article discussing how Starbucks created its own language for ordering coffee. Lindsey notes the language Starbucks uses “was new and different and set them apart from the competition in a new, vibrant and fresh way.” While other brands can try to copy Starbucks’ language and model, Lindsey said, it is hard for them to find success because consumers now mentally attach the sizing and drink types to Starbucks. The language has become ingrained in consumers’ minds as a Starbucks staple. The marketing of the brand, which includes the unique language and the “authentic coffeehouse culture,” is a large driver of the chain’s success, Lindsey explains. “If you surveyed 1,000 consumers and asked, ‘What brand do you think of when I say cappuccino or latte?’ I think Starbucks would come to the minds of most US consumers,” Lindsey said.