Fast food is a type of food that is prepared and served quickly. It’s usually cheaper than other types of food. Fast food is popular in the United States. McDonald’s is one of the biggest fast-food chains in the world.
Most people know McDonald’s because of its burgers and fries. But McDonald’s sells other things too, like chicken, salads, breakfast items, and desserts. You can get a happy meal which comes with a toy.
McDonald’s started in 1940 as a barbecue restaurant in San Bernardino, California. The founders were brothers Richard and Maurice McDonald. In 1948, they introduced the Speedee Service System, which was a new way of making food quickly. This is why McDonald’s is called a fast-food restaurant.
In 1955, Ray Kroc joined McDonald’s as a franchise agent. He bought the company from the brothers in 1961. Kroc expanded McDonald’s all over the United States and then into other countries. There are now more than 36,000 McDonald’s restaurants in more than 100 countries.
People go to McDonald’s because it’s fast and convenient. You can get in and out quickly. And it’s affordable. McDonald’s offers value meals which are combo meals that cost less than buying the items separately.
McDonald’s spends a lot of money on marketing. They use TV commercials, radio ads, print ads, and sponsorships. McDonald’s is the sponsor of many sporting events, like the Olympics.
McDonald’s has to be careful with its marketing. It doesn’t want to market to children too much because that could make parents angry. And it doesn’t want to be seen as unhealthy because of all the fast food myths out there. So McDonald’s has started selling healthier items like salads and fruit smoothies.
Even though McDonald’s is a very successful company, it has had some problems over the years. In the 1970s, there were reports that some of the meat in their hamburgers was not real beef. In the 1980s, some people said that McDonald’s was responsible for making children fat. In the 1990s, there were reports of food safety problems at McDonald’s restaurants in Japan.
Despite these problems, McDonald’s is still one of the most popular fast-food chains in the world. Millions of people eat at McDonald’s every day. And it shows no signs of slowing down.
McDonald’s and other quick-food companies have historically utilized discounting and new product offerings to attract consumers, as well as make new store designs. Another approach is focusing on the through drive service.
Service speed is a key focus for the company; they are attempting to boost it by using timers, training staff in a timely manner, and separating the drive-through kitchen from the main restaurant. To enhance drive-through efficiency by 10%, McDonald’s tried to provide customers with different types of sandwiches.
For example, they started to serve breakfast all day long. Also, McDonald’s is trying to focus on healthy food by providing salads and fruits.
To understand how effective these tactics are, we need to look at the marketing mix of McDonald’s. Product, price, promotion and place are the key elements of marketing mix (Perreault & McCarthy, 2011). In terms of product, McDonald’s offers a wide variety of products such as burgers, chicken sandwiches, salads, wraps, smoothies and so on.
The company also introduces some new products from time to time in order to attract customers. For example, in 2017, McDonald’s introduced two new sandwiches – the Buttermilk Crispy Chicken Sandwich and the Signature Crafted Recipes Sandwich (McDonald’s, 2017). As for price, McDonald’s keeps its prices affordable so that more people can afford to buy its products. The company also offers discounts and promotions from time to time in order to attract customers.
For instance, McDonald’s is currently offering a free breakfast sandwich with the purchase of any McCafe coffee (McDonald’s, 2018). In terms of promotion, McDonald’s uses various marketing channels such as TV commercials, radio ads, print ads and social media to promote its products. Finally, in terms of place, McDonald’s has a wide network of stores all over the world so that people can easily access its products.
The competitive nature of the market. Customers will forget about McDonald’s products if they are not frequently reminded of the advantages to be gained from doing so. There are a lot of marketers out there attempting to attract the same consumers or customers as McDonald’s, therefore it might be quite hazardous for them to relax their efforts.
It is for this reason that the McDonald’s Corporation has to employ very agressive marketing strategies to ensure that it remains at the forefront of people’s minds. Such agressive marketing includes product placement in movies and TV shows, celebrity endorsements, advergames and so on. In addition to this, McDonald’s also needs to make sure that their prices are attractive and their products taste good.
The main aim of this report is to investigate McDonald’s current marketing mix and make some recommendations as to how they could improve it. The four main sections of this report will cover the following topics:
– An overview of the company including history, current situation and SWOT analysis
– An evaluation of the current marketing mix employed by McDonald’s
– An exploration of possible target markets for McDonald’s
– Recommendations for the future marketing mix of McDonald’s
McDonald’s is the world’s largest fast food restaurant chain, serving around 68 million customers daily in 119 countries across 35,000 outlets (McDonald’s, 2016a). The company was founded in 1940 by brothers Dick and Mac McDonald in San Bernardino, California (ibid). The company has come a long way since then, growing rapidly to become the global giant it is today. McDonald’s reported revenues of $25.4 billion in 2015, an increase of 5% from the previous year (McDonald’s, 2016b).
The company’s success can be attributed to a number of factors, including the brand’s strong global presence, its menu offerings and its aggressive marketing strategies. In terms of global presence, McDonald’s is the second most valuable brand in the world with a brand value of $79.93 billion (Interbrand, 2016). This figure is up from $58.83 billion in 2014, an increase of 36% (ibid). The company’s strong brand presence is one of its key competitive advantages and has helped it to become the market leader in the fast food industry.
In terms of menu offerings, McDonald’s has something for everyone. The company offers a wide range of products including burgers, chicken, salads, breakfast items and desserts. McDonald’s is also constantly innovating and introducing new products to keep customers coming back for more. For example, the company recently introduced the McLobster in Canada and the McPick 2 menu in the United States (McDonald’s, 2016c; McDonald’s, 2016d).