Fun Features Restaurant - Strategic Marketing Plan, Opportunities and Challenges - Case Study Example

Strategic Marketing Plan Student’s Name Institution Affiliation Table of Content Strategic Marketing Plan 1 Executive Summary 3 Company Description 3 Mission Statement 4 SMART Objectives 4 Situational Analysis-SWOT Analysis 5 Core Competencies 5 Hierarchy of Strategies and Prospector Strategy 6 Micro and Macro level Analysis 6 Micro Level Analysis 6 Macro Level Analysis 7 Political 7 Economic 7 Social 7 Technological 8 Environmental 8 Legal 8 Competitive Analysis 8 Segmentation and Targeting 9 Differentiation and Positioning 9 Product, Price, Place and Promotion Policies 10 Conclusion 11 References 12 Executive Summary This is a marketing plan for a full-service restaurant-‘Fun Features Restaurant’ in Parramatta, New South Wales. The restaurant will focus on providing a community garden, themed dining areas, and complimentary services in addition to dining settings. It mission is to offer a rewarding dining experience in a relaxing, casual, and comfortable setting. It hopes to attain a growth of 10% in each of the first three years of operation. The market for the restaurant presents overwhelming opportunities and challenges that the restaurant has to meet successfully. Complimentary services such as taxi, valet, and babysitting services will be made easily available to attract and retain customers. The restaurant will focus on growth through diversifying its food products and services or market development. In the restaurant industry, the bargaining power of customers is high whereas that of the suppliers is low or weak. There is a very high threat of new entrants because the starts up costs of a restaurant are low and there are low entry barriers. There degree of rivalry in the industry is also high. This indicates the need for a good business strategy in order for the new restaurant to remain competitive. Offering diverse products and services will also the new restaurant to remain competitive in the industry. Company Description The restaurant will offer both local and international foods, cuisines, and drinks and also seek local entertainment and offer individuals a chance to display their talents in specially advertised evenings. The marketing approaches will allow the restaurant to attain a market size of the projected 6,000-targeted customers with a projected sales growth prospect of 10% in the next 3 years. The capturing of a large market shares in the restaurant industry whilst tactically carrying the business to become the market leader in the restaurant sector in the area will reflect success and achievement of the restaurant objectives (Parsa, Self & Sydnor-Busso et al., 2011). The restaurant will focus on providing a community garden, themed dining areas, and complimentary services in addition to excellence dining services hence offering a unique restaurant experience. Mission Statement We are committed to offering only the best in local food as well as entertainment with an enthusiastic and knowledgeable wait-staff. Our desire is to offer a rewarding dining experience in a relaxing, casual, and comfortable setting. We endeavor to better the quality of life of every local resident through offering a welcoming environment, which encourages all those in the community to come and share time together. The ‘Fun Features Restaurant’ will provide an opportunity for the local businesses to grow while simultaneously keeping the restaurant expenses lower because of the experience that the local suppliers will bring. SMART Objectives During the next three years, ‘Fun Features Restaurant will: Provide only the best in local food as well as entertainment with an enthusiastic and knowledgeable wait-staff Offer a rewarding dining experience in a casual, comfortable and relaxing setting Offer the finest choices in seafood and meat brought in from local suppliers already established and respected in the community To attain sales of more than $1 million in the first year To attain growth of 10% in each of the first three years of operation Profitable in year 3 Obtain financing to expand its food product lines Obtain financing to expand its operations to three other cities Develop a conservation program, which will help the local people. Situational Analysis-SWOT Analysis The marketing environment for Fun Features restaurant presents overwhelming opportunities. There are also challenges that the restaurant has to meet successfully. Core Competencies Complimentary services such as taxi, valet, and babysitting services will be made easily available to attract and retain customers. The themed dining area will consist of a general dining area for families that have children, a formal dining room with more of a romantic setting set for adults/couples only as well as a sports lounge or bar. For the community garden, the business will partner will a local farm and the land adjacent the restaurant will be reserved to build entertainment facilities such as swimming pools. The restaurant will be focus on excellent dining experience and relaxation. The current world is a stressful and busy one and people require a comfortable place where they can loosen up and unwind and just enjoy each other company (Harrington, Ottenbacher, & Kendall, 2011). Most of the restaurants’ in Parramatta, only serve food and hence ‘Fun Features Restaurant’ will offer a unique experience. Consumers in the upper-to-upper middle will be attracted to the classic and fine dining atmosphere. Special evening of live piano music and ballroom dancing will help to maintain customer loyalty. The younger working class adults will enjoy the social setting and sports lounger, which will enable them to meet their peers. There will also be live entertainment including karaoke, comedy nights, local bands-this will raise the interests and cater to a blend of diverse lifestyles, which will offer them to return repeatedly. Hierarchy of Strategies and Prospector Strategy The restaurant will be a prospector-it will focus on growth through diversifying its food products and services or market development. The restaurant competitive strategies entail providing a different value added services and diversified products in order to obtain a sustainable advantage over the already established restaurants (Dale & Oliver, 2005). Most of the start-ups are usually prospectors because of lack of adequate resources and competition mainly arises from development of a unique service or product (Armstrong & Kotler, 2009). The prospector strategy is appropriate as the restaurant industry is highly unstable and customer preferences keep on changing. The restaurant will use high sales promotion and advertising techniques. It will encourage flexibility and creativity to implement this strategy and will constantly experiment with possible responses to emerging environment trends. It will create uncertainty and chance to which the competitors will respond. Micro and Macro level Analysis Micro Level Analysis The bargaining power of suppliers is weak as there are many restaurants in the area and the suppliers thus have to charge a reasonable price because restaurants can easily switch suppliers. The bargaining power of customers is high in the industry as the switching costs for the customers is relatively low however with the value added services in ‘Fun Features Restaurant’ the bargaining power will be medium. The threat of new entrants on the market is quite high as there are low entry barriers and the start up costs is low. The threat of substitute products is also high as different restaurants usually offer specific kinds of food. To decrease the threat, the restaurant will seek to offer diversified food items. This will enable the restaurant to maintain a competitive advantage over the competitors (Arens, Weingold & Arens, 2008). The degree of rivalry among the existing restaurants is also high and the restaurant will seek to develop and maintain competitive advantage to beat competition through offering special discounts and product differentiation. From the porter five forces analysis, this is a very competitive industry, which requires a good strategy for remaining competitive. Macro Level Analysis Political The restaurant has to comply with various political requirements, for instance the national minimum wage regulation, which will affect the costs. There are also regulations on packaging and labeling. It will operate in a safe environment as the country has political stability. Economic In spite of the economic recession in 2008, the average consumers usually eat out constantly because of the low cost and convenience. The convenience of eating out will greatly benefit the restaurant as it means more customers. The purchasing power of consumers is also good as the economy is stable. Social When it comes to the social environment, increased awareness of consumers on healthy eating habits and hence the restaurant will have to offer healthier food choices in the menus. This will include offering foods with low calories content and salad and displaying their nutritional content. Technological Because of the increase in customer familiarity with new technologies, restaurants are using very channels, for instance social media such as Facebook to engage their consumers. In addition, there are also installing various technology applications such as Wi-Fi and other forms of internet connections in order to attract more customers. Digital displays have also allowed restaurants to change their menus effectively in line with the time of the day. Restaurants are also benefiting from reduced labor costs as well as increased service speed because of the self-service ordering points. Environmental The government and environmental lobbyists are putting pressure on businesses to become greener. There is also increase environmental awareness amongst customers and hence firms are taking advantage to position themselves as “green” in order to capture customer loyalty. Legal The restaurant will have to comply with various political requirements; the Trade Practices Act 1974 requires that restaurants “print and distribute menus for different days; show two or more prices on the same menu; and undertake changes to blackboard menus.” This will impose extra costs and additional complexity. The restaurant will also be required to submit tax. Competitive Analysis The Parramatta area has numerous restaurant choices for the customers. Most of them are in the form of quick service, casual, and are not too fancy. The main competitor restaurants will be Criniti and El Phoenician as these fine dining establishments usually offer more than just food, which makes it very similar to the Fine features restaurant. Segmentation and Targeting The target market for this new restaurant is based on a combination of psychographic and behavioral segmentation. The age range for the primary consumer that the restaurant will seek is persons between 21 to 65 years, who are married or single (with or without children), working, and upper class to middle. Also, those interested in quality foods and drinks together with leisure activities in a serene setting. Differentiation and Positioning The new restaurant will differentiate itself from competition through more community involvement as well as offering more than just restaurant services. Onsite babysitting and valet services will be availed during busy times. The wait staff will be professionally trained and the customers orders will be directly communicate to the kitchen through hand-held PDAs to ensure the timeliness and accuracy for preparing the meals. The restaurant will also be suitable for the people who do not want to travel to the often-congested city center. Partnerships will be established with the local businesses in order to bring in trusted local expertise to the business and a feeling from the restaurant owners that they are assisting the local community through local community. In order to keep in line with the local theme, locally grown products will be used in the restaurant to the greatest economic extent possible. According to the National Restaurant Association, using local products is becoming increasingly popular amongst customers that are looking for dining experiences. The National Restaurant Association (2009) discovered that 70% of adult customers said that they are more apt to visit a restaurant, which offers food items that are locally produced. Market Research Market research will be appropriate before and after opening the restaurant. Both primary and secondary sources will be used to collect information on the restaurant industry. Door to door interviews will be conducted to collect first hand information whereas secondary sources such as newspapers and professional trade magazines will be used to seek data that is published on the restaurant industry. The interviewees and respondents will answer questions relating to eating out habits, food preferences, health consciousness, cultural tastes, preferred entertainment activities. Product, Price, Place and Promotion Policies The new restaurant will offer diversified and high quality food products including Chinese, Turkish, Spanish, Italian and many other types of cuisines, which are very popular in the area. Over the next three years, the restaurant will expand its food product lines and entertainment services. The products will be priced in line with competition (Walker, 2008). Value pricing will be practiced so that the consumers will be comfortable purchasing the food products however, the prices will be a bit lower than those of the competitors will. The restaurant will be located in a strategic place near a movie theatre where many people visit and will be centrally placed such that all customers in urban and remote areas can easily access the restaurant. The restaurant management will communicate with the customers about its products and services in various ways-word of mouth, through the local newspaper and local radio, and various signs. Conclusion Fun Features Restaurant’ is a full service restaurant that will be located in Parramatta, New South Wales. It will offer both local and international foods in a serene setting with a community garden, themed dining areas, and complimentary services. It seeks to attain sales of over $ I million in the first year of operation and a 10% growth every year. There are numerous opportunities for the restaurant and challenges, which the restaurant has to deal with effectively. It will focus on growth by diversifying its food products and services and market development. The restaurant industry is highly unstable, customer preferences keep on changing, and hence the prospector strategy will enable it to achieve a competitive advantage. The restaurant industry is very competitive and this necessitates a good strategy for remaining competitive. The political and social environments are favorable and stable. The restaurant has to include health food options in the menu to capture a large customer base. Various technological inventions such as digital displays, self-service ordering points, and social media platforms will also have a positive impact on the management of the restaurant. The restaurant also has to ensure “green” or environmental awareness in its operation and comply with various legal requirements. The restaurant will target individuals aged 21-65 years both married and single, upper class to middle, and the working class. It will different itself from competitors through more community involvement and offering diversified food products and services. Both primary and secondary sources of data will be used in market research. It will offer diversified food products in a strategic location, which is centrally placed to capture customers from both urban and remote areas. The restaurant will promote its products through word f mouth, local radio, and newspapers.   References Aaker, D. (2011). Brand relevance: making competitors irrelevant. Jossey-Bass Arens, W., Weingold, M., & Arens, C. (2008). Contemporary advertising. 12ed. New York: McGraw Hill Higher Education. Armstrong, G., & Kotler, P. (2009). Principles of marketing. 13ed. Alexandria, VA: Prentice Hall. Dale, G. & Oliver, H. (2005). BTEC national travel and tourism. Oxford: Heinemann Educational Publishers Harrington, R., Ottenbacher, M., & Kendall, K. (2011). Moderating Effects of Customer Attributes. Journal of Foodservice Business Research, 14(3), 272-289 National Restaurant Association. (2009). Food and Healthy Living: Strategy for Winning Stomach Share, 2009 Restaurant Industry Forecast. Washington, DC: National Restaurant Association. Parsa, H., Self, J., & Sydnor-Busso, S., & Yoon, H. (2011). Why Restaurants Fail? Part II - The Impact of Affiliation, Location, and Size on Restaurant Failures: Results from a Survival Analysis. Journal of Foodservice Business Research, 14(4), 360-379 Walker, J. (2008). The restaurant: from concept to operation. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons. Read More