Marketing Mix of Mcdonalds

Marketing Mix Marketing mix must focus on the product, pricing, promotion, and placement of item in order to make it successful. Marketing strategies must feature customer orientation, input, and accessibility in the fight to the top of the market. McDonald's is no different. An example of this is illustrated with a comparison of McDonalds and Wendy's. At first glance, they may appear to have roughly the same marketing mix and target markets. Both are fast food and provide similar products. However, looking closer, one can recognize that McDonald's primary target market is children ages 3-11 and their parents. McDonald's understood that the parent was making the purchasing decision, most likely based on price. What McDonald's marketing executives did was ingenious. They put a $. 50 toy in with the hamburger, french fries, and drink and gave it a special name, the â€Å"Happy Meal†. Then McDonald's marketed the Happy Meal to the kids. If you have you ever asked your child where to buy a Happy Meal, they will tell you that there is only one place you can buy one, and that is at Fun McFactsWhen Was Your McDonald's Favorite Introduced? 1955 – Hamburgers, cheeseburgers, fries, shakes, soft drinks, coffee and milk 1963 -Filet-O-Fish 968 -Big Mac and Hot Apple Pie 1973 -Quarter Pounder and Egg McMuffin 1974 -McDonaldland Cookies 1977 -Breakfast Menu 1978 -Sundaes 1979 -Happy Meals 1983 -Chicken McNuggets 1986 -Biscuit Sandwiches 1987 -Salads 1998 -McFlurry Desserts 1999 -Breakfast Bagels 2000 -Chicken McGrill and Crispy Chicken 2001 -Big N' Tasty 2003 -Premium Salads, Newman's Own ® salad dressings and McGriddles 2004 -2004 Chicken Selects ® Premium Breast Strips McDonald's. McDonald's has Ronald McDonald, playgrounds or PlayPlaces, â€Å"Happy Meals,† and fun advertisements with brightly colored â€Å"Fry Guys† or the â€Å"Cheese Burgerler†. Contrastingly, Wendy's targets a more adult market and the restaurants represent a more mature atmosphere with carpet floors and Dave Thomas advertisements. Wendy's does have children's meals that offer a toy, but overall the atmosphere attracts a different demographic group. McDonald's restaurants have a variety of strategies that apply to product, placement, promotion, and price that makes them one of the most successful, well-recognized organizations in the world. Product Strategies McDonald's marketing strategies should be looked at historically in order to see the larger picture of the firm's success. There have been so many strategies since the inception of the firm that it is difficult to account for them all, the two most memorable are the development of the â€Å"Golden Arches† and â€Å"Ronald McDonald†. These two icons have given customers a mental image of what to look for when they want quality food for a low price fast. The firm revolutionized the fast food industry and positioned itself as the market leader with low-priced, quality food and provided an entertaining atmosphere for the children. These things were what that the market wanted at the time and the firm answered in spades. The perceived secret of McDonald's success is the willingness to innovate, even while striving to achieve consistency in the operation of its many outlets. For example, its breakfast menu, salads, Chicken McNuggets, and the McLean Deluxe sandwich were all examples of how the company tried to appeal to a wider range of consumers. The long history of innovation and experimentation resulted in new profit centers like Chicken McNuggets and the breakfast menu. Innovation and experimentation also produced some disappointments like the McLean Deluxe, but inevitably experimentation in limited outlets provides McDonald's a way to retain its key strengths-quality and consistency-while continuing to evolve. The use of franchising, again, provides various perspectives that, in turn, lead to innovation for products and solutions. Franchisees agree to operate their restaurants in the â€Å"McDonald's way† but there remains room for innovation. Many ideas for new menu items come from franchisees responding to customer demand. Developing new products is crucial to any business even those that successfully relied on a limited menu for many years. As consumer tastes change, menu innovation injects enthusiasm allowing the firm to explore markets previously overlooked or ignored. The â€Å"Egg McMuffin†, for example, was introduced in 1971. This item enabled McDonald's to accommodate consumers of the breakfast market. Filet-o-Fish, Drive-thrus, and Playlands were all products or concepts developed by franchisees. McDonald's tries a few new concepts simultaneous in different parts of the country to find the most promising new menu item. Those with the most potential could be rolled out further, while the ineffective ideas could be left to die quickly. This strategy may be expensive, but the potential to unleash new areas of growth in a maturing market seems to be right in line with what McDonald's has always done. In addition to the local flavors that have been created in the US, McDonald's international restaurants have been conforming to local, regional, and ethnic tastes, too. In a recent McDonald's case study this was explained further: â€Å"For example, ‘Maharaja McBurger' is a vegetarian burger marketed in India. The special requirements for ‘Kosher' foods are followed in Israel. Similarly, McDonald's offers ‘Halal' food in Muslim countries such as Saudi Arabia, UAE, Kuwait, Indonesia, Malaysia, Pakistan, and Bangladesh. During promotions, McDonald's also introduces several other products. For example, its ‘Prosperity Burger' is popular in China, Taiwan, Hong Kong, and Singapore at the time of the Chinese New Year celebrations. In order to respond to the growing phenomenon of health consciousness, McDonald's has moved in favor of lean ground beef, 100% vegetable oil, 1% low-fat milk, low sodium, and low fat This product strategy shows that McDonald's is interested in becoming part of the culture and is looking for ways to appeal to the market internationally. McDonald's menu is based on five main ingredients: beef, chicken, bread, potatoes and milk. Their main products are hamburgers, chicken sandwiches, fries, and beverages. In addition, they serve a variety of breakfast items and desserts. Every McDonald's is uniform; you know exactly what you will get no matter what store you go in to. Although McDonald's has thousands of restaurants around the world, it standardizes menus and operating procedures in these restaurants to insure consistency throughout. To maintain consistency in the current menu while the firm tests new products to expand the product line, McDonald's relies on test marketing new menu items in pilot locations. New products are rigorously market tested so that the franchisee will have a reasonable idea of its potential before it is dded to the menu. The introduction of new products, which have already been researched and tested, considerably reduces the risk for the franchisee. The franchisees additionally benefit from the extensive national market research programs that assess consumer attitudes and perceptions. What products do they want to buy and at what price? How are they performing compared to their competitors? This approach allows the firm to id entify which items are likely to prove popular with consumers while ensuring that the company can deliver new products with consistent quality nationwide. McDonald's already has a history of doing this so it will not require major changes to its operations strategy-at least initially. If the product line-up gets too large, then the task of maintaining quality becomes exponentially harder. The trick is to consider how to eliminate some of the existing menu items when you introduce new ones, while making sure the staff is fully trained in how to execute these products successfully. McDonald's serves the world some of its favorite foods – Fries, Big Mac, Quarter Pounder, Chicken McNuggets, and the Egg McMuffin. To this end, McDonald's had done well with a limited product range. Declining per unit sales and competitors gaining ground, may indicate that McDonald's menu needs a face-lift. One way to do that is by inserting a couple of new, highly promoted menu items. This would refresh the product menu and provide new, satisfying experience for dinner consumers. McDonald's has the opportunity to apply its core competencies of rigorous adherence to quality standards and continual promotion of experimentation in new venues. Imagine McDonald's opening a new casual dining restaurant under a different name, like Mac's, and sliding away from the fast food industry. The firm could franchise that concept nationwide and target the market of consumers who have grown past fast food. McDonald's, or Mac's, meticulous approach to operations would ensure that consumers everywhere would experience the same dining experience at each restaurant. This consistency presents a wonderful advantage for consumers who don't want to be surprised with a bad meal. Consumers would expect the same as they do currently with McDonald's-the Big Mac in Minneapolis is the same as the one in Beijing . Placement Strategies McDonald's focuses on store placement and are always looking for the best locations. This strategy created some weakness in the last 10 years because it seemed that too many stores were put in some areas, cannibalizing sales from the other McDonald's. The company has also made convenience a focus, not only through how fast it serves customers, but also in the location of its outlets. Freestanding restaurants are positioned so that you are never more than a few minutes away by foot in the city or by car in the suburbs. In addition, McDonald's is tucking restaurants into schools, stores, and more . Because McDonald's has pretty well saturated the U. S. arket, it's only real opportunities for growth lie abroad, where the competition is not so cutthroat or by introducing new restaurant concepts under brands other than McDonald's. The organization's overall objective is to increase market share. In this instance, the focus is purely on localization with different strategies for different countries. Pricing could not possibly be standardized across the globe without aliena ting many countries with poorer economies, thus defeating the initial objective. McDonald's set an appropriate price for their product by looking at its competitors in each country. McDonald's is attempting to localize marketing communications due to the realization that it couldn't possibly appeal to all countries at the same time. The firm sees the necessity to â€Å"brand globally, act locally†. For example, in China it was recognized that advertising on television would be a waste of money because commercials between programs are generally ignored. Instead, McDonald's uses newspapers and magazines to promote its image. Similarly, in East Asia, McDonald's targets children in order to gain optimum results. Of course, the ultimate message (brand) is the same; the medium is what is strategically modified. Pricing Strategies McDonald's strategy is to offer quality food quickly to customers at a good value. The pricing structure for McDonald's over years has supported this message. The company strives to differentiate itself from other fast food restaurants by offering a variety of menu items that appeal to a variety of people from those who just want great hamburgers, to those who just want a quick healthy meal. McDonald's differentiates itself by offering a dollar menu, combination meals, and a free toy with Happy Meals McDonald's, over the years, has also ran many promotions to increase traffic or product sales. For instance, the most recent roll out has been the 2004 Chicken Selects premium Breast Strips. Right now, you can go to your local McDonald's and â€Å"try them free. † With this new product is offered a variation of the â€Å"usual† sauces for the Chicken Nuggest – a Chipotle Barbeque sauce is most commonly advertised. Another promotion was the â€Å"Campaign 55† where diners could buy a featured sandwich, like the Big Mac in April, for 55 cents when purchased with fries and a drink. This campaign wasn't as successful as the fast food giant found would have hoped. Many other promotions with food, toys, collectibles, videos, and other prizes have been used by McDonald's restaurants over the past 50-plus years. These promotions, some better than others, have helped to keep McDonald's growing and gaining in the fast food world. Value has been an area in which McDonald's has strengthened over time, not only with customers, but within their distribution, channel management, and logistics strategies as well Distribution, Channel Management, and Logistics. A company the size of McDonald's requires the value chain to be increasingly important. Not only does McDonald's want to add value for the customers, but also the firm looks for ways to improve the operations that makes McDonald's a more efficient business. Promotion Strategies McDonald's knows that some customers go to its stores to take a quick break from their day's activities and not because McDonald's made the food ten seconds faster than their competitors could. Therefore, McDonald's marketing executives then put together the phrase, â€Å"Have you had your break today? † They continued to develop this idea with â€Å"You deserve a break today,† and now are in the â€Å"I'm Lovin' It! mantra. â€Å"I'm Lovin' It! † doesn't seem to have as much punch as the earlier catch phrase, which still seems to be the favorite. McDonald's sees the use of these catch phrases and the use of the Golden Arches as a very successful way of differentiating the restaurants from other fast food competitors. McDonald's has taken price competition out of the picture because the customer feels they have gotten quality, convenience, service, and value – and McDonald's still makes you feel like you are getting a break in your hectic day. Creating catch phrases are only one kind of promotion, and McDonald's uses many kinds of promotions to keep the restaurants at the top of the industry. With the rise of health consciousness it has become more difficult McDonald's to compete because their reputation brands them as cheap food served fast . The firm's response to obesity claims against the organization and other unfavorable public sediment is to add healthier items to their menu and promote and offer health-conscious alternatives to the â€Å"would you like fries with that† legacy. In addition, McDonald's has modernized their advertisements, pamphlets, and website to include nutritional information and addressing diet restrictions. Breaking the unhealthy association is difficult on its own, but with media and movies such as â€Å"Supersize Me† adding to the fray, McDonald's has had to look for alternative strategies to keep consumers happy. Another promotional strategy McDonald's uses is the huge investment in sponsorship. This is also a central part of the image building process. Sponsorship of the 1998 football World Cup, the Premier League and the European Championships increases awareness of McDonald's brand . However, McDonald's still follows Ray Kroc's community beliefs today, supporting the Tidy Britain Group and the Groundwork Trust, as well as local community activities. McDonald's has become a known community partner with Ronald McDonald Houses across the nation for the use of families whose children are hospitalized and getting treatment far from home. This organization has created an image of partnership and community investment with these and other kinds of philanthropic activities . Rob Leavitt, ITSMA e-zine editor, reported in the June 2004 edition that Larry Light, McDonald's Chief Marketing Officer, railed against those claiming brands must have only one identity that appeals to increasingly fragmented audiences. Leavitt also reported, â€Å"Identifying one brand positioning, communicating it in a repetitive manner, is old-fashioned, out-of-date, out-of-touch brand communication,† he said. A brand is multidimensional. No one communication, no one message can tell a whole brand story. † According to Light, marketers that continue to follow a simplistic mass marketing approach are committing â€Å"brand suicide†. Determining which way to market McDonald's and its products is a very important decision that can either cause products to fail or take flight. These same decisions must be made in regards to the ma rketing of the company as a whole. Strategy is the name of this game.

History on Peugeot Automobile Nigeria Essay

Cash-strapped Peugeot Automobile Nigeria, has said that it will soon commence importation of used cars into the country in a move to shore up its revenue profile. The company’s Managing Director, Dr. Haroun Aliyu, said at a news conference held at the ongoing Kaduna International Trade Fair that since Nigeria has a large market for second hand vehicles, there was nothing wrong if PAN imported and certified such vehicles for the use of Nigerians. Justifying the company’s new direction, the PAN boss said that the vehicles to be imported would be certified by the manufacturers, who would also make available the detailed history of the vehicles to prospective buyers, even as he argued that, even in Europe, people patronise used vehicles more than the brand new ones. â€Å"If ownership of Tokunbo cars is the problem of Nigerians, we have plans to bring what we call certified second hand vehicles. It is good as it is done globally and not the road-side Tokunbo market that we have where you do not have the history of the vehicle. â€Å"The certified second hand cars, which we are working on to see how we will launch it in Nigeria is for us to bring in cars that are used, but are recertified by the manufacturers, with a label. â€Å"If you buy a car with a label from any of the networks, it is as good as buying a new car because you have access to all the information as well as all the history of the vehicle and you can be supported by the brand,† he said. He also lamented that government had not been encouraging local automobile manufacturers.

Linguistic Laureate Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Linguistic Laureate - Research Paper Example Born on September 25, 1897 in New Albany, Mississippi, named after Old Colonel - his great grandfather - the legendary American writer, nicknamed as Billy, was fond of story-telling since his childhood. According to one of his cousins, when Billy used to tell something, doubts were always present about whether it was true or something he had made up on his own (Oates 13). However, as many reviewers reckon, Faulkner’s life did not experience a pleasant start. He used to repel away from his peers at school since they did not like his ‘different’ style of dressing; a factor which might have later turned into him dropping out of school. As his age progressed to twenty, some significant characteristic dilemmas pronounced Faulkner’s personality - ranging from being socially eccentric, to a school dropout, to being a drunkard. To sum it up, the soon-to-become a legendary novelist had, then, no superior traits presumed to be in a person who inspires a vast number o f readers and followers. However, despite the ridicule and disdain, Faulkner rose above expectations and ensued to envelop with his magical writing approach, nearly every aspect of how the everyday human life was in the American South. Having been born in the Magnolia State, Faulkner had immense love for the Southern roots. His ties with Mississippi ran deep; his great grandfather, known more prominently as the Old Colonel, was a famous lawyer, novelist and rail road investor. Throughout his lifetime, Faulkner never went astray of his town, spending the majority of his life span in Mississippi and writing about his soil and the people there. With his growing age, the Old Colonel’s imagination and vision of the South started emerging in him (Shmoop Editorial Team). On the other hand, Faulkner’s fictional inscription skills are believed to have originated primarily from close company with the African-American nanny, Caroline Barr. Known to Faulkner and his siblings as Ma mmy Callie, Caroline Barr – the Oxford based nanny – was born into slavery and used to tell numerous stories regarding her sorrowful experiences to Faulkner; the roots wherefrom the Faulkner’s yet-to-be-created fictional world initiates. No wonder Faulkner had profound empathy for his nanny, apparent from the dedication of his 1942 novel Go Down, Moses to her (Shmoop Editorial Team). Faulkner remembered her as a person who gave his family loyalty, faithfulness and compassion without any cost and who gave to his childhood immense love and affection (Parini 19). Alongside creativity and fictional storytelling, Faulkner also ignited in himself a brawny passion for reading literature. Contrary to being an imaginative, always-pondering boy at home, Faulkner was not as good at school. Being mediocre in studies, getting regularly teased by his colleagues, distinguishing his passion for art and writing rather than guns and football made his stay at school difficult. Lik ewise, against his parents’ wishes, he dropped out from high school after the eleventh grade and went on to opt for a bookkeeper’s job. Only his first rhyme and verse lessons by Phil Stone, an aspiring poet in high school, were to prove fruitful of all what he carried with him out of the high school. Agreeing to what Cleanth Brooks writes, although William started his career as a poet but fate had planned something better for him. Hence, Faulkner soon realized that his major and most fruitful strength lay in his prose (Brooks 1). Falkner’s first ever short story that was published in a major magazine in April 1930 was â€Å"A Rose for Emily† - a story that revolves around Emily, a lady with a mysterious, veiled character which is the consequence of the town’

Measurement of human processes (Project Management) Assignment

Measurement of human processes (Project Management) - Assignment Example Therefore, the development of a good visual system is of tremendous benefit to the project manager. A paper system in binders is a poor way of keeping people informed. This drags the organization behind in progress tracking and reporting (Kerzer, 74). Poor scheduling or resource management (mismanagement) by the project manager often leads increasing your chances of project failure. This is because managing any project is managing a schedule, but a schedule is typically a collection of resources that are being managed on a schedule. There is poor scheduling on elicitation techniques, use cases, user screen design specifications, reports, business rules, functional, and the non-functional requirements (76). Weak requirements definitions which lead to planning inadequacy, this is brought about by the project manager failing to identify his or her target. One way of identifying project requirements is by describing how the end results look like in measurable terms. Requiring of a soft w are that is easy to use is an objective measure of our testing. Poor requirements lead to poor development and design. A software program ends up doing the wrong things for the users resulting in massive re-tests and rework. According to Kerzer (78) he asserts that inadequate planning, risks, resources, and assumptions by the project manager often leads to a failed project. ... This may be attributed to the fact that you may not be trained in the utilization of that software or technology. Ineffective quality controls which make you to deliver what the client does not want. The poor balances and check systems results in these ineffective quality controls. In addition, most of the projects have a system of correcting problems but do not have a system of corrective action Managing multiple projects at the same time or multi-tasking resources goes against, less is more, and focus is power. Multitasking introduces schedule risk and complexity which impacts negatively on all projects involved. Supply chain failures which emanates from contracted work. Managing of contractors is an inherent risk because they may not be having the level of skills required for the job. Contractors also have that tendency to multitask so as to stay busy thus introducing complexity and schedule risk. Scope creep or poor analysis of impacts has an effect on the schedule, budget, and r esources. It means there is an increase in the on what is delivered without a corresponding increase in resources to the project timeline. This can actually be alleviated by performing good impact analysis and clarification of real requirements. Another failure of project is attributed to lack of qualified resources and personnel. This makes you to question your resources thus giving the wrong task to the wrong person (Anderson, 1). Discussion 2 I have the following characteristics; visionary, decisive, a good motivator, technically competent, and support team members. Those that I need to work on are being a good motivator, encouraging new ideas, and standing up to top management when necessary.

Industrial Revolution Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Industrial Revolution - Essay Example All this sudden change upgraded the living status of the British men, leading them to acquire an aristocratic kind of lifestyle. There was also an emergence of social classes in the society namely: wealthy class, middle class and poor class. As per (Goloboy ,15),â€Å"Most obviously, the industrial revolution transformed the nature of work. Increasingly, Americans worked for wages rather than within a family farm economy†. â€Å"The ‘industrial revolution’ was one of the three or four most important transformations in human history, and Britain was the first society to experience it†(Hoppit,2010).The industrialization began with cotton production which multiplied the productivity of cotton threads 10 times more than previous rate. The industrial revolution also increased the production of iron to a staggering level, which helped in the invention of electricity, trains, telephones, and radio... There was also an incredible amount of yield in agricultural sid e as the crops like turnips, clover and alfafa boomed. The industrial revolution also increased the population ratio as the food supply was immense along with financial system enrichment on government side â€Å"The industrial revolution was a process of household – based resource relocation that increased both the supply of marketed commodities and labor and the demand for market supplied goods† (Vries ,249-253).Interestingly, there was also a decline in the death rate of people as dangerous disease like plague and small pox started declining. Apart from bringing prosperity to American and Europe, industrial revolution also had its big share of drawbacks .The main issue was the emergence of industrial class, pollution, unemployment and child labor. 4 â€Å"Many people argued about the effects of the industrial revolution. Opponents point to the ugly over crowded towns, the ruin of vast areas of the country side, the quest for profit, and the employment of women and c hildren in dangerous jobs† (Ross, 34).There was mass emergence of large cities with a complex transportation system which led to higher amount of pollution in the environment. The industrial revolution declined quality of living of human beings from a natural angle and also depleted the natural resources to a great extent. In this 21st century, the globe has undergone a massive industrialization and in one way on technologically basis, we are far from excellence. Still, there are lots of countries which are in developing stage and in under developing stage. Development is good, but when it destroys our very natural environment, health and well being and humanity, then it can become our very own enemy. Now the super powers like America, England and Germany, have exceeded the limits of Industrialization and technological revolution and have depleted much natural resources of the planet. According to (Shapley), â€Å"The United States must be held accountable for its emissions, double the per capita level in Europe, and should follow the EU lead by committing to reducing its total greenhouse gas

Effective Communication Case Study Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Effective Communication Case Study - Essay Example An estimated 22000 people have been killed to date due to inhalation of the gas and thousands have to undergo continuous treatments just to breathe in air and survive. Throughout the crisis the most significant feature to be observed had been the lack of communication between the government officials, the plant management in India, the higher management in America and the local people working and living in the surrounding region. Aside from the public that was directly involved in the operations of the plant, there were also stockholders to be notified, the public relations staff which had no clue as to what was going on and finally the press. These two groups of publics must have proper communication channels but this was not the case in Bhopal as was evident when the crisis struck. The internal public in this case were basically the senior management which was based in the United States, the local workers and their managers, the government officials (as they were holding 49.1% of the total shares along with the private investors and had been responsible for the layout and design of the plant) and finally the residents and people living in the ne ighboring community. These people had a direct impact due to the leakage and were the ones who were directly involved in all the communication which took place in the aftermath. The external public involved was the press which found out about the event and the private stockholders who had little effect over them. This group remained unscathed throughout the whole ordeal. After the event took place the communication was evident to be of poor standard. The press was the deliverer of most of the news as the communication systems of Bhopal itself were completely inept. The U.S. has to rely on the coverage of the press as its main source of info as they had no system of communication prior to the event. The internal public

Communicating a Strategic Plan Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Communicating a Strategic Plan - Research Paper Example Since there are several functional areas that need to be synchronized for cohesive functioning as per the updated strategic plan, communication across entire organization becomes extremely important and necessary. Usually, a strategic plan needs to be updated and communicated from the top person of the organization such as Managing Director or Chief Executive Officer of the company to bring entire organization in a single common platform so that each functional area clearly understands how and in what way to proceed for the overall goal achievements. It is extremely important that all departments and sections of the organization perform and function in a most cohesive and synchronized way and that is possible only when the top person of the organization keeps on not only updating the strategic plan but also communicating to them its importance and likely impact on the