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UMe Tea Project Slide Frames

Ume Tea

Role: Student Researcher @ Marketing for the technology-based Enterprise

Focus: Market Analysis, Marketing Strategy

Duration: 6 weeks

Tools: Google Sheets, Notion, Canva

Read Time: 5-7 Minutes

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Bridging the Gap: Understanding Market Spaces





Challenge: UME Tea struggled with low retention and unclear product value among college-aged consumers.





Over six weeks, we identified key barriers to conversion and developed research-backed strategies to improve retention by targeting UME Tea’s strongest customer segments. This project resulted in clear marketing recommendations, guided by customer behavior insights.




Gathering Data

We conducted a focus group with 10 participants to explore why customers choose to buy or not buy from the brand, and to uncover what aspects of the experience are working well or need improvement.

In addition, a survey with 26 participants was distributed to identify the target audience, quantify key purchase drivers, and assess brand performance relative to competitors, helping to highlight any problem areas.


Customers segmentation based on frequency of visitation and purchase


Segmentation 1

11.54%

Always goes to UME

Segmentation 2

7.69%

Often goes to UME

Segmentation 3

38.46%

Sometimes goes to UME

Segmentation 4

42.31%

Rarely goes to UME


After careful analysis, we chose to focus on Segment 3, which offered the most actionable insights. Shifting these customers to Segment 2 promised greater impact than moving Segment 4 to 3, as increasing visit frequency aligned more closely with our business goals.

User Persona

UME User Persona

Diving into why the target audience within the segmentation buys

Depicts the "important" versus "most important" values based on customer wants and needs.

  1. Customer Service: Wait time and ease of order

  2. Drink Quality: Taste of teas, smoothies, toppings, etc.

  3. Menu Variety: Options of flavors provided

  4. Value: Quality of product compared to price

  5. Aesthetics: Comfortability and Cleanliness of the environment

why cutomer buys

Why you may win or lose college student Christine as a customers

This chart illustrates customer ranking of Ume's attributes to the target performance range based on competitive product and competitive gap analysis.

We asked participants to rate how satisfied they were with UME Tea’s performance in the area of importance, using a likert scale. Based on competitive product and competitive gap analysis.

why win/lose a customer

Competitive Product Analysis

This comparison chart evaluates how three competitors Ume Tea, iTea, and T% perform across five attributes ranked by customer importance. A rank of 1 indicates best performance, while 3 reflects the weakest.

Competitive Product Analysis

Customer priorities center on Value, Quality, and Menu Variety.

Ume Tea performs well in Customer Service and Aesthetic, though these are lower-priority areas. iTea aligns best with these top-ranked attributes, indicating strong market alignment. T% shows balanced performance but could improve its visual appeal.

Ume Tea’s gap in high-priority categories suggests an opportunity for strategic realignment.

Gap Analysis

Customer Satisfaction vs. Importance Gaps (UME Tea vs. Competitors)

customer ratings

We analyzed customer satisfaction ratings across three tea brands, UME Tea, iTea, and T%, alongside the gap between perceived importance and actual satisfaction. This gap reveals areas where customer expectations are not being met.

ume customer ratings
iTea customer ratings
T% customer ratings

Our gap analysis revealed that UME Tea had the largest satisfaction gap (-2.1), signaling a major mismatch between customer expectations and delivery. Competitors like T% and iTea showed greater consistency, suggesting stronger alignment with customer needs.

SWOT Analysis

Strengths:

  • Visually appealing and memorable store design that resonates with a younger audience

  • Engaging plushie promotions that support brand identity and drive foot traffic

  • Streamlined ordering process, enhancing convenience and user experience

Weaknesses:

  • Inconsistent drink quality, leading to mixed customer satisfaction

  • Perceived lack of value, especially compared to competitors

  • Limited menu variety, which may reduce repeat visits

Opportunities:

  • High potential for social media growth via platforms like TikTok and Instagram

  • Novel ‘surprise’ element offers a unique value proposition

  • Minimal direct competition in the North Davis area creates room for growth

Threats:

  • Strong competition from established brands like iTea, Teaspoon, and T%

  • Rising consumer expectations, particularly around quality and customization

Pain Points

Price

60%

of customers are concerned about the price vs. value stating “UME’s drinks are too expensive for their worth compared to other places such as iTea or T%.”

Promotion

80%

of the customers said they have never seen a promotion from UME (social media, ads, flyers, etc.). Most customers said they only knew of UME from word of mouth.

Product

40%

of customers are not satisfied with the drink quality stating “drinks are very average and taste watered down.” “There is nothing that stands out about UME’s drinks.”

Place

80%

of the customers said they enjoy the aesthetics of the store, as well as the mystery gifts with certain drinks. These were the main reasons on why customers would go back.

Marketing Challenges

Illustrates attributes evaluated for leverage, opportunity, and risk, benchmarked against targeted performance ranges derived from customer insights and comparative rankings with Ume's local competitors.

  • Ume’s aesthetics out-performs its competitors

  • Quality is slightly below others

  • Value is below its competitors

  • Menu Variety is a little below others

  • Customer Service is slightly above others

performance vs attributes diagram

Marketing weaknesses based on the Buyer’s Journey

Awareness:

  • Too many options available for buyer to choose from (nearby competitors: iTea, T%, Raretea, Sharetea, etc.)

  • All boba shops have relatively similar drink menus

    • Question to ask: Which boba shop provides the most value without having to spend too much money?

Consideration:

  • All shops mostly offer same variety

  • Nothing really stands out at UME

    • Question to ask: What makes UME different from other competitors?

Purchase:

  • Feeling satisfied when spending hard earned money at UME

    • Question to ask: Are there any sales or promotion that motivate customers to buy from UME?

Retention:

  • Making sure UME is always reliable and consistent with their quality (fast customer service, staff listens to customers’ needs, drinks are delicious, etc.)

    • Question to ask: Do customers feel satisfied every time I spend my hard earned money at UME?

Loyalty:

  • Want a go-to boba shop that can make my experience perfect every time

    • Question to ask: Do customers get an incentive/reward if I continue to spend my money at UME?

Key Achievements

Strategic Insights and Learning

Gained valuable insights into consumer behavior, market trends, or competitive dynamics through the research and analysis conducted for the case study.