We recently did something here on the latest coffee chain trend: coffee that tastes like cookies.
These sounded a bit off to me. But now we have some evidence: Bottlenose, a company that tries to detect trends across social media platforms, recently did a report on fall-time coffee offerings.
Results? Among consumers, cookies are on the outs; coconut is on the rise.
The company’s 40-page report examined the world of coffee talk through social media platforms like Twitter and Instagram. There were more than 350 million conversations about coffee online since August, according to the report.
The report also found that people talk about coffee the most on Mondays — leading to a conclusion that drinking coffee, or at least talking about it, is tied to work. There’s a big dropoff by Thursday.
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Other findings? Starbucks fans like literary memes around authors and characters, ranging from Hemingway to Hogwarts. Humor and sarcasm sells. And there’s more overlap between Starbucks and McDonalds’ coffee drinkers than you might think.
But one of the takeaways was that the novelty of pumpkin drinks has officially worn off. For about a decade, Starbucks has been rolling out its seasonal Pumpkin Spice Latte. But now, so is everyone else. There’s pumpkin-flavored yogurt, milk, and beer.
Customers are no longer enamored with the drink, according to the study, and the Pumpkin Spice Latte did not even trend on social media this fall. They’re also not all that dazzled with the new drink, the Chestnut Praline Latte.
Instead?
Customers at Starbucks are increasingly seeking out coconut milk.
Starbucks disputed the idea that customers had grown tired of the Pumpkin Spice Latte — or that the social media following was stale.
“This year was one of Starbucks biggest years to date for PSL [Pumpkin Spice Latte] on Twitter/social media, with the beverage launching its own Twitter handle @TheRealPSL that has nearly 94 thousand followers since launching the handle in early August,” said spokeswoman Megan Adams in an e-mail. “As well, customers have responded extremely well to the new Chestnut Praline Latte both on media channels and by heading into stores to try the new seasonal beverage.”
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More coverage:
• My Morning Cup: Bean Box co-founder Matthew Berk
• Double Shot: More coffee-related features
Matt Viser can be reached at matt.viser@globe.com.