Marketing Plan for Wendy’s for 2009 Ahead

Wendy’s International, Inc. will be the leading fast food restaurant with a rapidly developing consumer brand and growing customer base.  The signature line of innovative, premium, buns and hamburger patties of Wendy’s is significantly amazing.  Wendy’s also serves high-quality, yet oddly square-shaped hamburgers. The square shape allows the corners to stick out from the bun. The combination of this shape and the size of the patties make the presence of the beef more apparent than that of the round, thin hamburgers of other chains.

On the other hand, Wendy’s International Inc. will reinvent the burger experience for individuals, families, and take out customers with discretionary income by selling high quality, innovative products at a reasonable price, designing tasteful, convenient locations, and providing industry-benchmark customer service.  Primarily, the goal of this paper is to provide a marketing plan for Wendy’s to enhance its competitiveness in 2009 and to gain competitive advantage.

Wendy’s International Inc. is close to entering their 35 years of operation.  The restaurant has been well received, and marketing is now critical to its continued success and future profitability.  The store offers an extensive offering of high-quality burgers.  The basic market need is to offer individuals, families, and take out customers fresh, creative, attractive, burgers, chicken, salad and desserts.  Wendy’s uses homemade pasta, fresh vegetables, and premium chicken, meats and cheeses.

Wendy’s competitor’s includes KFC, McDonalds and other fast food chains offering the same products within the market. Since the growth of these industries is dominating the market, Wendy is in need of a new marketing approach that will be able to sustain its competitive advantage.

Wendy’s International, Inc. possess good information about the market and knows a great deal about the common attributes of our most prized and loyal customers.  Wendy’s International, Inc. will leverage this information to better understand who is served, their specific needs, and how Wendy’s can better communicate with them (see Appendix 1).

Potential Customers

The profile for Wendy’s customer consists of the following demographic, and behavior factors:

Demographics:

• Male and female.
• Ages 25-50, this is the segment that makes up 55% of the Manchester market.
• Young professionals who work close to the location.
• Yuppies.
• Have attended college and/or graduate school.
• An income over $40,000.
• Eat out several times a week.
• Tend to patronize higher quality restaurants.
• Are cognizant about their health.

Behavior Factors:

• Enjoy a high quality meal without the mess of making it themselves.
• When ordering, health concerns in regard to foods are taken into account.
• There is value attributed to the appearance or presentation of food.

Wendy’s is providing its customers with a wide selection of high-quality burgers, chicken, pasta and salads that are exclusive and pleasant in presentation, offer a wide selection of health conscious choices, and utilize top-shelf ingredients. Wendy’s seeks to fulfill the following benefits that are important to their customers.

Selection. A wide choice of fried chickens, burgers, pasta and salad options.

Accessibility. The patron can gain access to the restaurant with minimal waits and can choose the option of dine in or take out.

Customer service. The patron will be impressed with the level of attention that they receive.

Competitive pricing. All products/services will be competitively priced relative to comparable high-end fast-food restaurants.

Wendy’s continues to diversify its restaurant interests, investing $12 million in the Pasta Pomodoro business for a 25% stake in that Italian fast-casual restaurant business. In the second quarter, it acquired Baja Fresh, a fast-casual Mexican restaurant chain. Systemwide, Wendy’s operates more than 8,200 restaurants and had revenues of $8.3 billion in fiscal 2001.

After October sales at Wendy’s were lower than expected, the company revised its earnings per share growth goal for the year to 15% to 16%. The company’s previous goal for 2002 E.P.S. growth was 15% to 18%. Wendy’s shares traded in mid-November at $28.03, off slightly from $29.23 at the start of the year. In the nine months ended Sept. 29, Wendy’s posted net income of $168,058,000, equal to $1.52 per share on the common stock, up from $147,069,000, or $1.29 per share, in the first nine months of fiscal 2001. Revenues increased to $2,018,576,000 from $1,775,540,000.

Another variable that is contributing to market growth is an increase in the number of hours our demographic is working. Over the last five years the number of hours spent at work of our archetype customer has significantly increased.  As the number of work hours increases, there is a high correlation of people that eat out at restaurants.  This is intuitively explained by the fact that with a limited number of hours available each day, people have less time to prepare their meals and eating out is one way to maximize their time.

The following SWOT analysis captures the key strengths and weaknesses within the company, and describes the opportunities and threats facing Wendy’s International, Inc.

Strong relationships with vendors that offer high-quality ingredients and fast/frequent delivery schedules. Excellent staff who are highly trained and very customer attentive. Great retail space that is bright, hip, clean, and located in an upscale mall, suburban neighborhood, or urban retail district. High customer loyalty among repeat customers. High-quality food offerings that exceed competitors offerings in quality, presentation, and price.

Wendy’s name lacks brand equity particularly in the area of Manchester. A large marketing budget to develop brand awareness in the area. The struggle to continually appear to be cutting edge.

Growing market in Manchester with a significant percentage of the target market still not aware that Wendy’s exists. Increasing sales opportunities in take out business. The ability to spread overhead over multiple revenue centers. Wendy’s will be able to spread the management overhead costs among the multiple stores, decreasing the fixed costs per store.

Competition from local restaurants that respond to Wendy’s superior offerings. Fast-food restaurant chains found in other markets coming to Manchester. A slump in the economy reducing customer’s disposable income spent on eating out.

Wendy’s has created hamburger, pastas and salads that are differentiated and superior to competitors.  Customers can taste the quality and freshness of the product in every bite. The following are characteristics of the product:

1. Wendy’s dough for the pasta and burger are in high-quality.
2. Cheeses are all imported.
3. Vegetables are organic and fresh with three shipments a week.
4. Meats are all top-shelf varieties, organic when possible.

At Wendy’s, food is not a product; the experience of dining is a service.  Wendy’s prides them on providing service that is on par with fine dining.  This is accomplished through an extensive training program and only hiring experienced employees.

Wendy’s advertising budget in the area of Manchester is very limited, so the advertising program is simple.  In this regard, part of the marketing strategy is to enable Wendy’s to enhance their marketing communication and advertisements. Herein, Wendy’s are planning to do direct mail, TV advertising, banner ads, and inserts, with inserts in the Register Guard likely to be the most successful of the campaigns.

In the given case, the strategy of the company in launching and promoting the products might be able to attract the attention of the consumer like their strategy in buying it with a lower price than other competitors.  Because of the strategic pricing of the product the consumer might be able to decide in availing the product rather than buying other products.  Because of these, consumer behaviour are affected especially their loyalty to the brand.  And because of the commercial advertisements seen in the television, the consumer will clearly have in mind the efficacy of the product as said by its endorser.

Wendy’s mission is to deliver superior quality products and services for the customers and communities through leadership, innovation and partnerships.  We exist to attract and maintain customers.  When we adhere to this maxim, everything else will fall into place.  Our services will exceed the expectations of our customers.

Marketing Objectives:

1. Maintain positive, steady, growth each month.
2. Generate at least $40,000 in sales per month in Manchester region.
3. Experience an increase in new customers who are turned into long-term customers.
4. Realize a growth strategy of one store per year.

Financial Objectives:

1. A double-digit growth rate for each future year which will start in 2009.
2. Reduce the overhead per store through disciplined growth.
3. Continue to decrease the variable costs associated with food production.

The market can be segmented into three target populations: individuals: people that dine in by themselves. Families: a group of people, either friends or a group of nuclear relatives dining together. Take out: people that prefer to eat Wendy’s food in their home or at a different location than the actual restaurant.

The Wendy’s customers are hungry individuals between the ages of 25 and 50, making up 53% of Manchester.  Age is not the most defined demographic of this customer base; all age groups enjoy burgers, pasta and salads.  The most defined characteristic of the target market is income.  Wendy’s stores have been very successful in high rent, mixed-use urban areas.  These areas have a large day and night population consisting of business people and families who have household disposable incomes over $40,000.

Combining several key demographic factors, Wendy’s arrives at a profile of the primary customer as follows:

• Sophisticated families who live nearby.
• Young professionals who work close to the location.
• Shoppers who patronize the high rent stores.

Wendy’s will position itself as a reasonably priced, upscale, fast-food restaurant.  Consumers who appreciate high-quality food will recognize the value and unique offerings of Wendy’s hamburgers, pastas and salads.  Patrons will be both single as well as families, ages 25-50.

Wendy’s positioning will leverage their competitive edge:

• Product. The product will have the freshest ingredients including hamburgers, pasta, imported cheeses, organic vegetables, and top-shelf meats.  The product will also be developed to enhance presentation, everything will be aesthetically pleasing.
• Service. Customer service will be the priority.  All employees will ensure that the customers are having the most pleasant dining experience.  All employees will go through an extensive training program and only experienced people will be hired.

Wendy’s marketing mix is comprised of these following approaches to pricing, distribution, advertising and promotion, and customer service.

Pricing. Wendy’s pricing scheme is that the product cost is 45% of the total retail price.

Distribution. Wendy’s food will be distributed through a take out model where customers can call in their order and come to the restaurant to pick it up, come into the restaurant, place the take out order and wait for it to be completed, or come in and dine at the restaurant.

Advertising and Promotion. The most successful advertising will be banner ads, TV ads and inserts in the Register Guard as well as a PR campaign of informational articles and reviews also within the Register Guard.

Customer Service. Obsessive customer attention is the mantra.  Wendy’s philosophy is that whatever needs to be done to make the customer happy must occur, even at the expense of short-term profits.  In the long term, this investment will pay off with a fiercely loyal customer base who is extremely vocal to their friends with referrals.

This section will offer a financial overview of Wendy’s International, Inc. as it relates to the marketing activities.  Wendy’s will address Break-even Analysis, sales forecasts, expense forecasts, and how those link to the marketing strategy.

The first two months will be used to get the restaurant up and running.  By month three things will get busier.  Sales will gradually increase with profitability being reached by the beginning of year two.

Marketing expenses are to be budgeted so that they are ramped up for months two through four and then lower and plateau from month five to month 10. Restaurants typically have increased business in the fall.  This generally occurs because during the summer, when the weather is nice and it does not get dark until late, people tend to eat out less.  From months 10-12, the marketing costs will increase again (see Appendix 4).

In a market plan, one of the most important aspects to determine are the difficulties and risks of the new marketing plan and the generation of contingency planning to ensure that the organisational objective will be achieved. In line with this marketing plan for Wendy’s the difficulties and risks involves the following, problems generating visibility, overly aggressive and debilitating actions by competitors, and an entry into the Manchester market of an already existing, franchised fast-food restaurant. The worst case risks may include determining that the business cannot support itself on an ongoing basis, having to liquidate equipment or intellectual property to cover liabilities. In order to solve this contingency planning should be considered in which these issues should be given emphasis.

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