Hardees: Brand Portfolio Project Advertising - Case Study Example

Hardee’s: Brand Portfolio Project Advertising Company History Hardee’s was started in 1960 by Wilber Hardee,who opened the first restaurant in Greenville, North Carolina (Hardee’s). The Hardee’s restaurant served customers with ‘charco-broiled’ hamburgers and offered fast service to customers; as well (Hardee’s).The Hardee’s restaurant had a uniform design. This special design included ceramic tile, aluminum and glass in the structure of the restaurant. However, the feature that made the Hardee’s restaurant unique was the water purifying system that filtered grease and kept the water impurity free. This was one of the few broilers of this type that operated in the United States of America at that time (Michman and Mazze 42). The Hardee’s restaurant formed its own manufacturing and distribution group. The group was known as the Fast Food Merchandisers. After five months of operation, the Hardee’s restaurant had his first franchisee. The Hardee’s restaurant was initially known for its biscuits in the 1970s. The restaurant was acquired in 1997 by Carl’s Jr. This is because Hardee’s had overdone expansion, lacked product innovation and lacked aggressive public relations. Hardee’s had failed to strategically position its restaurants and products, and differentiate itself from its competitors (Michman and Mazze 42). In 2003, Hardee’s concentrated on producing Angus beef thick burgers. This gave the Hardee’s restaurant a competitive edge, and the restaurant became a leader in quick service, in terms of quality and taste. Currently, the Hardee’s burger chain has become common and a favorite to many both in the Mid Western and South Eastern United States. The Hardee’s restaurant, currently, leads in the creation of delicious foods and fast food experience. Also makes edgy and memorable advertisements (Hardee's). The restaurant remains committed to first-class product offering for every brand that the restaurant markets. The restaurant also seeks to effectively manage its operations through continuous improvements (CKE Restaurants). High levels of restaurant cleanliness, guest services and convenience are observed keenly, within the restaurant (CKE Restaurants). Company Mission Statement The Hardee’s restaurant has a mission of offering distinctive and craveable, first-class quality foodstuffs that meet its thorough values (Farfan). The Hardee’s restaurant also has a mission of achieving operational excellence, guest service and product innovation to attract and retain guests (Farfan). Therefore, the Hardee’s restaurant aims at serving great food to make customers come back for more (Hardee's). Employees of the Hardee’s restaurant work hard to exceed customers’ expectations. Company Objectives and Strategies The Hardee’s restaurant seeks to offer a clean and wholesome environment for consumers (CKE Franchise 1). The restaurant also aims at creating awareness about the Hardee’s and Carl’s Jr. Further, the Hardee’s restaurant seeks to create customer loyalty. Hardee’s also aims at positioning itself and its products as the only restaurant that thick burgers with one third to thirds pound of beef per burger. The Hardee’s restaurant seeks to build its brand to be recognized in the fast food industry, across the world. The restaurant focuses on worldwide expansion. The Hardee’s restaurant has an objective of making a positive impact on the community so as to get opportunity in the cities (CKE Restaurants). Greater sustainability is the core objective, pertaining to corporate responsibility of the Hardee’s restaurant. Among the strategies that the Hardee’s restaurant uses to achieve its objectives is working through franchise to promote sales. According to the restaurant’s management, franchisees must ascertain their financial capability of successfully capitalizing a Hardee’s restaurant venture (CKE Franchise 1). Secondly, the Hardee’s restaurant targets a large consumer segment by offering a clean and wholesome environment (Michman and Mazze 46). The restaurant also offers breakfast at low cost to achieve its marketing objectives (Michman and Mazze 122). In its bid to create awareness about the Hardee’s and Carl’s products, the Hardee’s restaurant promotes its brand and products through social sites such as Facebook, YouTube, brand website and email list (Hull Par 2). To achieve the objective of worldwide expansion, the restaurant engages in multiple acquisitions so that its presence can be felt throughout the world. The Hardee’s restaurant also targets markets that are situated in small towns (Greco and Michman 180). In the creation of brand awareness and customer loyalty the restaurant positions the Hardee’s products as the only place to go for big beef. This means that the Hardee’s restaurant has to drop off about forty items from its menu and offer more thick burgers ranging from one third to two thirds pound of beef per burger to avoid the value menu wars of McDonald’s and Burger King (Pride, Hughes and Kapoor 534). Target Audience The Hardee’s restaurant seeks to market large thick burgers with substantial amount of beef in them. As result the Hardee’s restaurant targets young, hungry people. These people fall between the age of eighteen and thirty four years and they are always ready to take risks that they deem prudent. Secondly, since these young people are innovative, edgy and masculine, they are always hungry for big juice burgers (Aurora Par 7). This means that they are the ideal target market for the Hardee’s restaurant. It should also be note that these young people are technology savvy, and as a result, they are the people who use the internet most, thence generating the most social and website traffic. This makes online marketing for the Hardee’s restaurant easier and convenient. Consumer Decision Making The fast food industry is characterized by rapid decision making. Consumers within the fast food industry make their decisions based on the perceived quality and value that they will get from the product. Secondly, pricing of the product also influences the decisions of consumers. In this industry, consumers tend to purchase products that are cheap. The nature of advertisement also determines how consumers within the fast food industry make their decisions. This is because competition is high, and those restaurants that have superior advertisements for their brands, targeting the right audience benefit. The Hardee’s restaurant has various advantages over its competitors in the fast food industry that may enable it maintain its market share. For instance, the adverts that the Hardee’s restaurant has placed on the media pertaining to its beef thick burgers are superior enough to attract a large audience. In addition, these adverts are available online. This means that most of the young people that the Hardee’s restaurant targets access the adverts and their decisions are largely influenced. Also, the management and service offering approach of the Hardee’s restaurant make the restaurant stand out as a unique point where burger lovers ought to go every time. Situational analysis The food service industry is expected to grow in the recent future. For instance, it is expected that more than half a trillion transactions will be carried out throughout the world food service industry. Cafes and restraints contribute half of the transactions; thence, they represent a leading marketing segment of the fast food industry value. Though, the fast food industry was adversely affected by the economic turn down, there are positive developments. Food demand is also expected to go up. Fast food restaurants should use customer satisfaction as the main element of attracting and retaining customers. Therefore, issues like cleanliness, value of money should be given priority. Hardee’s introduced Black Angus burgers and other products that had been abandoned earlier. The Hardee’s chain has grown to more than 1,850. Positioning As much as the restaurant does not have a clearly identifiable cost leadership position, Hardee’s has to compete with superior restaurants such as McDonalds in the fast food industry. Also, the Hardee’s restaurant does not have an adequate differentiation strategy. Therefore, to position itself strategically, the Hardee’s restaurant strives to be the premium burger specialist, among fast food restaurants. The restaurant seeks to strategically position itself through cleanliness and offering premium quality products. In addition, the Hardee’s restaurant offers high customer service and participates in community enhancement. The restraint’s adverts are superior in nature because they are eye catching and highly persuasive. Therefore, given these strategies, the Hardee’s restaurant is guaranteed of a unique position within the fast food industry. The strategy and core positioning of the Hardee’s brand focuses on building high sales, which support franchise profitability through high quality products, service marketing and best menus, innovative systems and exceptional branding recognition (IFA Par 5). Segmentation Strategies and Competition The Hardee’s restaurant faces stiff competition from world giants such as McDonalds, and targeting a particular segment and commanding a full market share within the fast food industry is tricky. However, the Hardee’s restaurant has made efforts to reach young people within the population. This gives the restaurant a competitive edge because majority of the population is made of the young and the middle aged. Therefore, getting a substantial share of the market from that population is extremely significant. In addition, these young people are Information Technology savvy, meaning that they can be reached through many channels. The Hardee’s restaurant targets these young people by offering them unique products such as big, thick burgers. These products are not offered by the Hardee’s restaurant’s competitors. Financial Highlights There is a positive trend in terms of growth for Hardee’s because the restaurant continues to open more restaurants across the world. The main aim of the company is to increase sales. For instance, this year, the restaurant’s franchise units increased to 1,240 from 1,227 units in 2012. The restaurants sales were $ 653.3 million. The restaurant’s credit rating is low because these businesses have a low projected risk of delinquency and a moderate to low risk of failure. CKE had plans to launch an IPO in 2012 to sell about 13.3 million shares at $14 to $16 each on the New York Stock Exchange, but this plan failed because of increased costs (Bloomberg). As of 23 May, 2011, total revenue was $400,634. Advertising Budget History In 2010, the budget for advertisement for both Carl’s Jr and Hardee’s was $63.6 million in domestic media. In 2009, the advertisement budget was $50.3 million. Also, during the first eight months of 2011, the advertisement budget for the restaurant was $39.5 million. This effort made sales of Hardee’s to rise by 2.5%. Communication Strategy The Hardee’s restaurant seeks to persuade and convince young people purchase the restaurant’s products. The restaurant aims to achieve this goal by focusing communication unique selling attributes. First, the Hardee’s restaurant offers unique products to young people. These unique products include beef thick burgers. In addition customer service is superior while the restaurant ensures a clean wholesome environment for customers. The restaurant also takes part in community development projects. By creating catchy adverts, the Hardee’s restaurant promotes brand awareness. Media Strategy The Hardee’s restaurant intensively uses social networks. As a result of these, the Hardee’s restaurant has Facebook, YouTube and Twitter pages where customers provide their feedback, ideas and suggestions about the restaurant’s products. Further, the restaurant’s website offers customers and visitors a unique opportunity to share their views and even make orders. The adverts that the Hardee’s restaurant places on television and online are so unique that they attract the attention of many young people. Therefore, the restaurant makes use of commercials on television and radio as a media strategy of reaching out to its target customers. For instance, the restaurant uses humor in adverts to promote its fresh baked buns. Hardee’s uses advertising video for its commercials. These video shots play phrases such as ‘great buns’, ‘freshness’, among others (Restaurant News). Creative Tactics and Creative Execution The Hardee’s restaurant uses captivating messages in its advertisement slogans to attract target customers. Creative advertising that is both humorous and provocative has enabled the restaurant to attract the attention of many young people who have resolved into buying products from the Hardee’s restaurant. For instance, slogans such as ‘open wide for the Angus thick burgers, unbuckle your belt for the Angus thick burgers, use both hands for the Angus thick burgers, satisfaction is an understatement and every bite, a love bite’ have been used to attract young people towards Hardee’s products. Use of social sites such as Facebook, Twitter and YouTube has enabled the restaurant to min many young people. As noted earlier, majority of the population is comprised of young people and majority of these young people use social networks intensively. Integrated Marketing Communications The Hardee’s restaurant uses advertising through radio and television in promoting its products. The restaurant also makes use of print media and billboards. In addition, the Hardee’s restaurant takes part in community service and sponsorships to communicate its commitment to providing customers with a unique fast food experience. The restaurant also offers promotions within its outlets to promote sales. There are also online promotions, where customers who have visited the restaurant’s sites repeatedly are rewarded. This move is aimed at creating customer loyalty. Partnerships with other organizations have enabled the Hardee’s restaurant to carry out a successful marketing of its products. Recommendations The Hardee’s restaurant should seek to create awareness about its products. This can be done by the introduction of Happy Store Rewards. Customers who are users of social networks such as Facebook, YouTube and Twitter, and those who always check in at Hardee’s and Carl’s Jr sites should be given loyalty rewards (Hull). Secondly, the restaurant should focus on expansion through acquisition so as to have a larger geographical coverage. The Hardee’s restaurant should introduce healthy eating as it targets customers. This is because consumers in the fast food industry are aware of dangers unhealthy eating habits such as heart diseases. Brand differentiation is among the key aspects that the Hardee’s restaurant should seek to achieve so as to have its products stand out and beat its competitors. To differentiate products, the Hardee’s restaurant can ensure that it serves customers with value added products. While advertising, the restaurant should ensure that the adverts are provocative and humorous to attract the young people. Finally, the Hardee’s restaurant should create good relations within the community to attract young people. It should also treat its employees better. By letting the customer to be of first priority, rather than third priority, the Hardee’s restaurant can be able to differentiate itself from its competitors. Works Cited Aurora. "Hardee’s Angus ThickBurgers Campaign makes Waves." 13 September 2013. Web. 13 December 2013. Bloomberg. "Hardee’s Owner’s CEO Says 2012 IPO Unlikely as Costs Rise ." 21 September 2012. Web. 15 December 2013. CKE Franchise. "Hardee's Food Systems Inc." 2013. Web. 13 December 2013. CKE Restaurants. "History." 2010. Web. 13 December 2013. Farfan, Barbara. "Hardee’s Restaurants Mission Statement - Vision for a Fast Food Difference." 2013. Web. 13 December 2013. Greco, Alan James and Ronald D Michman. Retailing Triumphs and Blunders: Victims of Competition in the New Age of Marketing Management. Westport: Greenwood Publishing Group, 1996. Print. Hardee's. "Our Culture ." 2013. Web. 13 December 2013. Hardee's. "The Hardee's Story." 2013. Web. 13 December 2013. Hull, Kelsey. "Hardee's Social Media Campaign." 22 November 2011. Web. 13 December 2013. IFA. "Hardee's Franchise Information." 2013. Web. 13 December 2013. Michman, Ronald D and Edward M Mazze. The Food Industry Wars: Marketing Triumphs and Blunders. Westport: Quorum Press, 1998. Print. Pride, William M, Robert James Hughes and Jack R Kapoor. Business. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Publishing Company, 2008. Print. Restaurant News. "Video: Carl's Jr., Hardee's tout Fresh Baked Buns." 5 December 2013. Web. 15 December 2013. Read More