Ep 108: Erin Newkirk is the Chief Brand & Marketing Officer for Caribou Coffee

Today on Clicks 2 Bricks, we are joined by the chief brand and marketing officer of Caribou Coffee to discuss the brand’s innovative TikTok campaign. Tuning in, you’ll hear all about Caribou Coffee and what sets it apart from other coffee brands, how it fits into the Panera portfolio, and how the coffee industry has changed in terms of market dynamics. We delve into their new TikTok dating show, Dream Date and how they’re leveraging the use of influencers and ambassadors for marketing before discussing the digital foundation they have created and how AI feeds into it. Our guest tells us about their local marketing strategies, how they optimize local search performance, and her unpopular opinion about foot traffic and marketing. Finally, Erin tells us about her interesting career trajectory and some lessons she’s learned along the way. Thanks for listening in!

Key Points From This Episode:

• Welcoming Erin Newkirk to the show, and a surprising fact about her.
• What Caribou Coffee is all about and what makes them different from other coffee brands. 
• Our guest explains the regional boundaries for Caribou Coffee within the Panera portfolio. 
• How the market dynamics have shifted within the coffee category. 
• Erin tells us about their new TikTok dating show, Dream Date: A Sip at Love.
• What led them to make use of influencers and TikTok for marketing. 
• Erin talks about the technological side of Caribou Coffee and how they use AI. 
• How Caribou Coffee is working with their domestic franchisees on local marketing. 
• A breakdown of their local search performance and how they optimize it. 
• Erin shares an unpopular opinion about marketing that she has.
• Why consumer packaged goods is a really good place to start a marketing career. 
• How she compares CPG to multilocational marketing. 
• Who Erin wants to see on the show next. 

Links Mentioned in Today’s Episode:

Erin Newkirk

Erin Newkirk on LinkedIn

Erin Newkirk on X

Caribou Coffee

Caribou Coffee on LinkedIn

Caribou Coffee on TikTok

Hannah Burner

Clicks 2 Bricks 

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