It seems that Americans are making better food choices.
It’s obvious by the latest round of commercials and social media campaigns I see.
Kentucky Fried Chicken
One of KFC’s recent commercials suggests we’re buying less fried chicken and stopping at the grocery store and buying more rotisserie chicken.
A Bloomberg Businessweek article said KFC is no longer the fried chicken leader…Chick-Fil-A gained the top spot and that’s with fewer stores across the country.
KFC made less money and it looks like that money may be split between your local supermarket and Chick-Fil-A.
Now store-bought rotisserie chicken is a slightly better choice (cook it at home and you can control sodium) and the growing number of health concious Americans are demanging better options and taking charge of their health.
McDonald’s
McDonald’s is really trying to undo sliding sales for the past few years with its “Our Food. You Ask Campaign.” You can ask them anything about the food they serve. I don’t know if I want to know. I personally haven’t eaten anything off the grill at McDonald’s in a long time.
Hug-A-Millennial
The change we see in the fast food industry is largely due in part to Millennials. Yes, that’s right Millennials. Millennials are being extremely picky about what they eat and that’s turning out to be a good thing. It’s forcing change in an industry that was very reluctant to the idea of change and that’s good for all of our waistlines.
Millennials are demanding fresher, healthier foods and KFC is taking note. Why else would store bought rotisserie chickens show up in their commercials if they weren’t feeling the push back from consumers?
This is a good thing. What we’re seeing is how consumer demand is impacting how businesses do business. Those unwilling to change won’t be around very long.
Consumers want healthier food on the go and it has to be good. Long lists of ingredients are met with disdain. Food that taste more like the sodium preservative than the food itself is left behind.
So what can business owners learn from this fast food showdown?
Listen to your customers. If you’re getting push back, look for ways to make changes or create something new and do it fast. Sometimes the customer knows exactly what they want and businesses who want to stay in business find a way to make that happen.
Pay attention to trends. Remember when social media was considered a fad? Remember when the web was new and people questioned if real business could take place online? It’s important to be aware of trends and then to know which ones to act on. I don’t think this trend of healthier food choices is going away especially as Gen Xers age and want to do so with as few meds as possible.
Broadcast Your New Offering. If you were savvy enough to see the trend and acted on it…congratulations. Now spread the news. Let your customers know that you heard them. Tell a real good story about how this change coincides with their lifestyles. If you were late getting to the party…no worries. Still announce your new offering and let your customers know that you heard them.
Do these things and your customers will show their appreciation by continued patronage and telling their friends and family.
