The Psychological Power of Starbucks' Most Popular Drink

In partnership with

Hi there - Jen here :)

I have a confession to make - I’m a huge Starbucks fan.

I know in some of your eyes that might make me basic or tacky or “very American,” but it’s the truth.

I grew up watching Friends and Frasier and both shows made the idea of going to a “coffee shop” seem like an exotic outing that was only available to people who lived in the Big City.

(Look, it was the early 2000s and I’m from the suburbs, okay?)

Starbucks was the first place I had that “coffee shop experience,” and I loved it from the start.

To this day, whenever I go back to the US from the UK to visit family, Starbucks is where me and mom sit down and catch up over a skinny cappuccino (her favorite) and a soy mocha (mine).

Think what you want, but sitting in a Starbucks with my laptop on a rainy day is one of my happy places.

As I grew up, pursed life as a classical violist, and moved to big cities like New York, Boston, Sydney, and London, my taste in coffee evolved as my horizons broadened.

But Starbucks still holds a special place in my heart.

And now that I live in the UK, Starbucks is the place where I can enjoy a classic, tasty piece of pure American autumn bliss once a year.

That’s right, I’m talking about the Pumpkin Spice Latte.

A cultural phenomenon that began more than 10 years ago, the PSL’s sales power is so strong that you can see easily spot on Starbucks’ sales chart when it’s launched:

🧠 Today we’re diving into how psychological principles like Scarcity, Cognitive Fluency, and Rituals help create Starbucks’ annual Pumpkin Spice sales spike (and how you can use their approach to grow your business).

Today you’ll learn:

• The Psychological Trifecta Behind Pumpkin Spice Mania

• How to Create Your Own Pumpkin Spice-Style Product

👉 Before we get started, TOMORROW I’m leading a Pro Member workshop called “25% More Profit: The 7 Laws of Psychological Pricing” where I’ll show you how to drive more conversions and profit just from making a few psychological changes to how you design and present your prices.

It’s $100 to join (or become a Pro Member to get it for free).

I’m only opening up 5 GUEST PASS seats in this Pro Member workshop, so click here to grab your tickets while you can.

—

👉 I’m also offering a FREE WORKSHOP October 18th called “From Click to Conversion: The Psychology of an Effective Sales Funnel.”

I will send replay videos out to everyone who registers for the workshop, so if you can’t make this day/time you can still watch (as long as you sign up).

Learn more & sign up for free (seats are limited so grab yours now)

The Psychological Trifecta Behind Pumpkin Spice Mania

What makes this humble latte such an event? It’s down to psychological principles like Scarcity, Rituals, and Cognitive Fluency.

1. Scarcity

This principle says that we place a higher value on items that are hard to get our hands on — scarcity drives desire, a sense of urgency, and a fear of missing out.

Professor Robert Cialdini, author of Influence, described scarcity this way:

“When our freedom to have something is limited, the item becomes less available, and we experience an increased desire for it. However, we rarely recognize that psychological reactance has caused us to want the item more; all we know is that we want it.”

Starbucks releases the PSL only once a year for a limited time, and the brand makes sure customers are counting down the days until its arrival.

People know they have a short window to order the PSL and there are limited quantities. That creates a sense of urgency to get yours before its gone for another year.

2. Rituals

Rituals are repetitive behaviors that have a symbolic purpose, both to the person performing the ritual and to those observing it.

A 2013 study called “Rituals Enhance Consumption” found that when there's a ritual associated with a product, people enjoy it more and are willing to pay up to 74% more for it.

The PSL (Pumpkin Spice Latte) is more than just a hot drink. It’s become a cultural phenomenon and a tool for people to celebrate the arrival of autumn.

It might seem like “just a latte” but for many people it acts as a ritual to signal their love for the season - much like the Starbucks red cup functions as a ritual and signal that the holidays have arrived.

3. Cognitive Fluency

Cognitive Fluency describes how easy it is to understand and remember something.

While the original appeal might’ve been the novelty of the “Pumpkin Spice” flavor (which describes the spices traditionally used in pumpkin pie like nutmeg, cinnamon, and ginger - not the flavor of pumpkin), these days it’s the familiarity of Pumpkin Spice that people love.

With more and more products adopting the pumpkin spice flavor as a signal of fall, the “flavor expectation” is easy for people to understand and remember.

“Flavor expectation” in food marketing is a big psychological barrier to new product adoption.

When I was working on restaurant experience with big, global fast food brands in the US and EU, we knew new products were massive drivers of store traffic and sales.

That meant landing a clear “flavor expectation” in new product marketing was critical in getting them to sell.

People hate risk, so when they have a clear understanding of how something will taste, they’re more likely to buy it.

How to Create Your Own Pumpkin Spice-Style Product

If you’re looking to make a Pumpkin Spice-like impact with a new product, start by asking yourself a few questions:

• Scarcity: How available is this product? Is it overly available? If we decide to make a seasonal or limited-quantity product, how do we communicate this scarcity to our customers?

• Rituals: How can we tie our product in with a ritual - whether through a season like the PSL, or a behavior like the Tim Tam Slam? Is there a way for us to amplify the rituals our customers already use in our marketing, like Oreo’s twist, lick, and dunk?

• Cognitive Fluency: How well do people understand and remember what we do? Is there a way to simplify (or amplify) our messaging, products, or customer experience in a way that makes our brand clear and simple to understand?

Read, Watch, Listen

• “The Curse of the Michelin Star: Restaurants awarded the top honour are more likely to close, research finds,” The Economist [Read]

• “The Rick Rubin Interview” Legendary record producer Rick Rubin (Jay-Z, RHCP, Adele, and many many more) sits down with Rick Beato in this fascinating interview about the creative process [Watch]

• Listen to the latest episode of the Choice Hacking podcast [Listen]

Until next time,
Jen