Company(Analysis(of(Teavana:(how(is(social(media(conducted ...



Company Analysis of Teavana: how is social media conducted and how could Teavana social media campaigns be improved? Ellen Eldridge December 3, 2013

Introduction

Teavana started as a mom and pop operation in Buckhead, Ga., in 1997 when

Andrew Mack and his wife Nancy put their life savings into the company originally

called Elephant Tea Co, according to an article in the Atlanta Journal--Constitution by

Greg Bluestein1.

After traveling overseas, Andrew Mack came back to Atlanta

feverishly trying to capture that sense of culture and ritual.

The Macks wanted to

sell the "ritual of tea" more than they wanted to sell customers a beverage, and this

factored in to changing the company's name to Teavana in the early 2000s

(Bluestein, 2012).

According to Feldman (2011), since 2006, Teavana watched its sales grow

73% to $125 million, registered for an IPO and went public in July 2011.

By the end

of 2013, Teavana accepted a $620 million offer from Starbucks, the company

presently in control of the brand Teavana.

Target Market

According to a Teavana Case Study (2008), Teavana's target market is mainly

30 to 55--year--old women who frequent malls.

The company founder also felt

strongly about not using traditional advertising (Teavana Case Study, 2008;

Bluestein, 2012).

Through relying heavily on in--store tasting and d?cor, the brand

trusts word of mouth to reach the growing tea market in the United States.

Now

that Starbucks owns Teavana, many of the same target markets will cross over, but

Teavana's separate identity is seen through its separate corporate and social media

websites.

The tea bars that have started opening imply a trend toward reaching

1 (all links in this report last accessed December 3, 2013)

more people and growing the tea culture among caffeine drinkers.

I glean this

insight from the fact that Starbucks bought Teavana as well as from the research.

Current Social Media Platforms

Corporate Website

The Teavana home page is very eye--catching and visually appealing, as the

brand has always desired to maintain a rich experience, bringing the culture to

customers and not focusing merely on a product.

Above the fold, the home page

shows a sliding gallery with four main images.

As of December 3, 2013, the home

page shows a build a tea gift banner where customers can click to find more

information on designing the perfect holiday gift, the most popular gift ideas link

shown below, the 2013 recognition by Oprah Winfrey (Oprah's Favorite Things),

and the last gallery image/link announces a free sample promotion where every

order placed includes a free sample of another tea.

I wasn't sure the colorful types of tea along the top were hyperlinks until I

tried them, but they do link to descriptions of each type of tea along with featured

products--within two clicks from the website and a customer can

place an order.

I love the next level headings too and find that the Teavana

corporate website contains just about anything I could think a visitor would want.

Someone who comes looking to learn about tea will quickly be drawn to the "New to

Tea" tab, which links to a blog post with article titles listed along the right column

that visitors may be more interested in (like "About Teavana" and "Tea Gift Center"

for those who may have just been looking for a gift for a friend or family member).

The sub--heading from the home page for "Tea Gifts" is also easy to navigate

and very user--friendly.

The options to "shop by experience," "shop by price," as well

as a Tea of the Month club and "gifts with meaning" section instantly let visitors

know where to head.

Someone who wanted to learn about tea for personal

consumption or someone looking for a gift could spend quite a bit of time checking

out the options.

The online store makes purchase decisions low--pressure as well.

Below the fold on the corporate website is where the links to social media

and smaller links to articles and information exist.

The first link in the social media

row is for the company newsletter, which I signed up for in September when I chose

this company for analysis.

The positioning of the newsletter link and the fact that all

the social media links are below the fold and gray makes me think the social aspect

is one the company wants to downplay.

This idea goes along with information in the

2008 Teavana Case Study referenced in the target market section of this report--

that Mack wanted to control his company and avoid outside advertising.

Social

media is by no means ignored, but Teavana's placement betrays the company's first

interest to sell a tea culture and experience to its customers.

Blog

The Teavana blog is called "Heaven of Tea Blog" and is located at

blog..

I didn't see a link directly from the main corporate website

to the Heaven of Tea Blog, and the link back to the main Teavana website from the

Blog is a tiny link on the lower left hand column under the list of recent posts.

The

blog genuinely feels like it exists for the customer or information--seeker's benefit.

The Blog home page has a darker purple--red background behind the same

logo.

The blog section below has a white background, but in going from the

corporate site to the blog, a deeper color makes a darker impression.

The color

scheme on the blog is different as well.

Where the main site has an almost pastel

feel to it, the blog seems bolder and doesn't blend as aesthetically.

Content--wise, the blog can't be beat, though, and the admins post a new

article about once a week, including a category for videos (the last of which was

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