Well, at least in Vancouver, the 2 most predominant cafes would be Starbucks Coffee and Blenz Coffee. Starbucks has been around for the longest time, and Blenz is fairly new. Nonetheless, Blenz locations are popping up all over the place and attracts people with its own allures. But who is better?

I’m not a coffee drinker, so I honestly cannot make this distinction between the two of them. And when you consider that you can get a coffee for a fraction of the cost at a deli of a grocery store or a smaller corner coffee shop, the price difference is probably a very minimal factor for deciding who’s better than who. They’re already quite expensive as it is. BUT. There is one thing I know that is a significant advantage for Blenz Coffee over Starbucks Coffee.

Blenz offers free wireless internet to everybody(limited to the Vancouver downtown locations, as far as I know), while Starbucks partnered up with a private ISP and collects money for wireless internet usage. Why does this give an advantage to Blenz? Well. It’s obvious - why would I want the cost and the hassle of having to pay and sign up for a wireless internet usage account when I want to use my laptop while i sit at Starbucks, when I can go to Blenz, and hook up to it just like I would at home with my own Linksys WRTG54 Router?

And you may ask - is that really significant in the business performance between the two? Well, in my opinion, yes it is very significant.

• Laptop users are increasing more and more. If you want to find out why, read this post.
• Cafes often provide as a good networking place to meet new people (and pick up women, sometimes), and having a laptop there can help build a better image of oneself if you work in the field. I’ve met some people at cafes right at the spot, and some of them have exchanged contact information with me after I showed them on my laptop what exactly I am capable of doing.
• Many businessmen prefer to meet at cafes with laptops. Take it from me. When I meet new clients, it’s often at a cafe, not at their offices, as it’s more convenient and relaxing for both parties to just show up at a landmark location and chat. Having free internet is often crucial for presentations and explanations of technology/methods. So, where do I go when I need to meet a client? Blenz. Because they have free wireless internet. I haven’t had a meeting in Starbucks for quite some time now.
• Even the 1 or 2 extra users that have flocked into the Blenz can make the entire store look busier, which can drive more visitors. At this point, starbucks is still the dominating name when it comes to coffee. But at this rate, pretty soon it may change!

So there are my reasons on why I think Blenz will ultimately do better than Starbucks (at least in the urban core zones like Downtown Vancouver). It is also the reason why I, as a customer, prefer Blenz over Starbucks.

This small extra edge in their marketing will make a big difference. Starbucks chose to use the internet factor as a money-makign opportunity for the extra few bucks. In the meantime, Blenz chose to use the internet access factor as a gift to their customers in order to entice more visitors! I’d say the latter was a much better marketing move. This sort of reminds me of the post I made about my grievances with Microsoft, which you can find here.

This entry was posted on Tuesday, January 23rd, 2007 at 10:10 pm and is filed under Hot Issues, Marketing and Media. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.