McDonald’s Mobile App is the Restaurant Industry Standard

 

Success does leave clues and in the minds-eye of the team at Tacoma, WA based Foodservice Solutions® and it’s Grocerant Guru® Steven Johnson “McDonald’s digital app is the industry standard today and its getting even better.”  

Remember the best sell book by Jim Collins, Good to Great?  Well that’s what the team at Foodservice Solutions® is thinking about when they are thinking about restaurant digital applications. In order to advance it’s "Accelerating the Arches" strategy, McDonald's Corp. launched new growth targets which are intended to maximize the company's marketing, continue their commitment to core menu items, and expand on the company's delivery, digital and drive-thru efforts.

In case you did not know, since 2019, the quick-service restaurant (QSR) chain stated it has generated 30% comparable sales growth through "Accelerating the Arches." 

For its marketing focus, McDonald's plans to continue to build relevance amongst customers through emotional connections and creative campaigns, such as the "Raise Your Arches" campaign, which was originally developed for the United Kingdom, but was quickly picked up by more than 35 markets around the world.

Building on its historic strength with burgers and other core menu items like chicken nuggets and fries, the company plans to deploy the "Best Burger" initiative to nearly all markets by 2026 and to expand chicken-based items like the McCrispy as a universal offering by the end of 2025. 

Additionally, McDonald's plans to increase the active user base for its loyalty program to 250 million, 90-day active users and deliver $45 billion in annual systemwide sales to loyalty members by 2027. The quick-service restaurant chain also plans to expand its U.S. pilot of "Ready On Arrival" across its top six markets by 2025. This initiative enables crew members to begin assembling a customer's mobile order prior to their arrival at the restaurant to expedite service.

According to the company, McDonald's currently has the industry's largest delivery program globally but will continue to scale this capability, expecting 30% of delivery orders to originate in its mobile app by 2027.

Alongside improving the layout and expanding the capacity of existing and new drive-thrus, McDonald's also plans to accelerate the pace of its restaurant openings, targeting a goal of 50,000 restaurants by the end of 2027. 

Finally, the company intends to continue to invest in new technology strategies. It has entered into a strategic partnership with Google Cloud to connect the latest cloud technology and apply generative artificial intelligence solutions across its restaurants worldwide in order to improve upon its automation solutions. In 2024, McDonald's will also begin to deploy universal software that all customer and restaurant digital platforms will run on, providing more consistency and stability for both staff and customers.

Are you trapped doing what you have always done and doing the same way?  Interested in learning how Foodservice Solutions Five P’s of Food Marketing can edify your retail food brand while creating a platform for consumer convenient meal participation, differentiation and individualization?  Email us at: Steve@FoodserviceSolutions.us

flavrs an Interactive Participatory App that Empowers Consumers to Watch, Shop and Eat

 

Do you sell food?  Are you inviting consumers to you brand?  Are you making it easy for consumers to understand just how your meal is prepared? There is a new smart phone app called flavrs. Tacoma, WA based Foodservice Solutions® Grocerant Guru®, Steven Johnson thinks you should know about this app.

The flavrs App is a first-of-its-kind shoppable video experience and the only social platform that merges premium food content with commerce, so foodies can watch, shop and eat. Partnering with renowned chefs and food creators, the stand-alone platform for food allows users to replicate the video recipe tutorials they watch at home by purchasing groceries through a custom integration with Instacart.

Now flavrs is launching in beta with $7 million in seed funding. The funding was led by Andreessen Horowitz, with participation from Wellington Access Ventures, Cercano Management, Progression Fund and firstminute Capital, along with culinary experts such as Eric Ripert (chef and co-owner of New York's 3 Michelin-Starred Le Bernardin) and Tom Colicchio. The first-of-its-kind platform is also partnering with renowned chefs and creators like Andrew "Babish" Rea; Jamie Milner, from Everything Delish; and Davon Moseley, from Royale Eats.

This is a new single central digital ecosystem is being launched by a diverse team of ex-YouTube, Facebook, Google and Twitter executives who have been working with content and creators for more than 10 years.

Co-founders Alejandro Oropeza (CEO) and François Chu (CTO) connected through their shared passion for food, and a genuine desire to elevate chefs and creators while improving the shopping experience for food lovers worldwide. Oropeza, a trained chef and former global head of creator marketing at YouTube, wanted to unleash the untapped potential of chefs and creators in the food space, and partnered with Chu, who brings his extensive experience in commerce as a former engineer at Google Shopping and product manager at Plaid to develop a platform for food creators and viewers alike.

Connie Chan, general partner at Menlo Park, Calif.-based Andreessen Horowitz, stated, "flavrs is building a new experience from the ground up – marrying the best food content with smart recipe data, shopping, meal planning and other food-specific functionalities – enabling it to become a stand-alone platform for food. flavrs goes beyond discovery and motivation by helping you take action,".

Technology Adds Relevance for Gen Z and Millennials

If you are Trying to Build

A Larger Share of Stomach

Since flavrs is now available on the App Store and will be quickly adding users to its beta waitlist. Aspiring flavrs creators can sign up at flavrs.com/creators. I would recommend all food retailers take a close look at it.

Don’t over reach. Are you ready for some fresh ideations? Do your food marketing ideations look more like yesterday than tomorrow? Interested in learning how Foodservice Solutions® can edify your retail food brand while creating a platform for consumer convenient meal participation, differentiation and individualization?  Email us at: Steve@FoodserviceSolutions.us or visit us on our social media sites by clicking the following links: Facebook,  LinkedIn, or Twitter

Domino’s Promoting “Stranger Things” Now

 

Driving new electricity into the Domino’s brand is something the marketing team excels at Domino’s excels at according to Steven Johnson, Grocerant Guru® at Tacoma, WA based Foodservice Solutions®.

According to Johnson, “Brand relevance is in part driven with innovation in new food products in combination with new avenues of distribution all of which are the platform for the new electricity.” 

Johnson stated “that in my minds-eye the new electricity must be very efficient for the supply and includes such things as fresh foods, smaller footprint, developing brands, fresh flowers, grocerant positioning, fresh food messaging, autonomous delivery, cashier-less retail, plates, glasses, cash-less payments, digital hand-held marketing.

All retailers to survive the next generation of retail must embrace the artificial intelligence revolution while simultaneously embracing fresh food that is portable according to Johnson.  

Domino's new ‘mind ordering app’ just might be the new hot thing this July. Domino's Pizza Inc., the largest pizza company in the world, is giving "Stranger Things" fans a special deal, just in time for the July 1 premiere of season four, volume two on Netflix. Fans who try Domino's new mind ordering app for fun can receive a 20% off coupon to use on their next online menu-price order.

Kate Trumbull, Domino's senior vice president of brand and product innovation, stated, "With season four, volume two of 'Stranger Things' quickly approaching, we know fans around the U.S. are going to gather around the TV for viewing parties," says. "Pizza is the perfect complement to binge watching your favorite show, and we're encouraging fans to try Domino's mind ordering app for fun, as they can receive a 20% off coupon to use on their next online menu-priced order. After all, who doesn't love watching a great show while enjoying some delicious pizza?"

So, just what is Domino's mind ordering app? It is an immersive experience which places "test subjects" inside Hawkins National Lab in Hawkins, Indiana – transporting them to the center of "Stranger Things" in 1986. Users can choose to "Try for Fun" or "Place a Real Order" within the app, explore the lab, uncover Easter eggs and use their telekinetic powers to gain control of certain objects. Those who "Try for Fun," without placing a real order, can access a coupon for 20% off the menu price of their next order from dominos.com. 

Ok, to receive a one-time use 20% off coupon for a menu-priced order on dominos.com, follow these steps:

·         Download Domino's new mind ordering app.

·         Choose the "Try for Fun" mode.

·         Focus your mind on the pizza box and follow the prompts.

·         When you return from the Void and Upside Down, find the computer screen and tap it for the 20% off coupon.

·         You'll be taken to dominos.com on your mobile device, where the 20% off coupon will automatically be applied to your cart.

·         Order and enjoy

Domino's mind ordering app is available for download from the App Store or on Google Play.

Foodservice Solutions® team is here to help you drive top line sales and bottom-line profits. Are you looking a customer ahead? Does your messaging look more like yesterday that tomorrow?  Visit GrocerantGuru.com for more information or contact: Steve@FoodserviceSolutions.us Remember success does leave clues and we just may the clue you need to propel your continued success.

Grocerant niche Holiday Meal Sales Planning Starts Now

 

Steven Johnson, Grocerant Guru® at Tacoma, WA based Foodservice Solutions® recent presentation “Falling Forward” outline when and how restaurants, convenience stores, grocery stores, and new non-traditional food retailers should think about building Ready-2-Eat and Heat-N-Eat sales through the fall and holiday season.

With football games, basketball games, Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas on the way and with new limitations on large event gatherings and justified concerns over sharing food in public spaces. Johnson, stated grocerant niche Ready-2-Eat and Heat-N-Eat fresh prepared meals and meal components that can complement the ‘event’ or family gathering will be in greater demand this year than ever before.  Here is some of what we know Digital ordering and delivery has grown 300% faster than dine-in traffic since 2014

 

1.       Our new 2021 Grocerant ScoreCards found 82.3% of consumers don’t know what’s for dinner at Noon, and 61.1 don’t know what’ s for dinner at 4PM %.

2.       83.1% all dinners have at least 1 grocerant niche Ready-2-Eat and Heat-N-Eat meal component and 68.4% have two meal components.

3.       When asked if they wanted to cook dinner from scratch or assemble dinner from fresh meal components 90.4 % of Gen Z chose assemble from Fresh Prepared Meal Components and Millennials 82.7% chose meal components.

4.       Seventy-three percent of retail prepared food purchases are taken to go

5.       Prepared food purchases are frequently a planned purchase among 59% of shoppers, while 41% of shoppers said they buy prepared foods on impulse. Dinner has the highest amount of prepared food buys with 79% of respondents making purchases for that meal, while lunch comes in at 77% and breakfast at 62%.

6.       55% of consumers would like to try autonomous EV delivery

That said, how and where are you preparing to sell food this fall? Most consumers lack the skill-set to prepared everything from wings, pizza, fried chicken, or holiday sides with the regional or family flavors ‘grandma’ was so good at preparing and no one else in the family learned how to cook.   

In a Battle for Share of Stomach

Are You Building Top-line Sales and Bottom-line Profits?

Friends, family, and colleagues still want to celebrate as they did before, but do not have the time to spend cooking a special meal not to mention once again the skill-set to do it. Gen Z and Millennials in search of food discovery are driving adoption of new avenues of distribution so that they can recreate convenient meal participation, differentiation and individualization they have become accustom to with spending the time doing it. To that end we would like to introduce you to Freshop.  

So,Freshop is a eCommerce platform, where you can showcase your brands craveable meals, and meal components as a solution, while you re-engage your kitchen services team and meet the new customer demands created by the pandemic.

1. Holiday Meals
   Create customized meals specific to the holiday season and the size of the gathering. Offer full meals or your signature sides to enhance any table during your customers’ holiday celebrations.
    
2. Bundled Meals
   Include a limited daily menu of complete meals on your website so customers can add them to a regular shopping order. This brings convenience to the customer by eliminating an extra stop for takeout orders at a secondary location.
    
3. Catering for Business Events and Parties
   It’s a great time to take that tri-fold brochure and add those signature items to your website. Creating an updated menu of your catering items on your site allows your customers to plan ahead for their event on their terms and time schedule by creating a separate event and party shopping list.
    
4. Cakes
   The party must (and will) go on. It may be smaller, but offering cakes continues activity in the bakery area while providing your customers with a personalized focal point for their party.

We that even less than a year ago for most of you, adding catering, cakes, and prepared meal options to your website would have been considered an aspirational luxury. It has now become an incredible opportunity to increase online sales and differentiate one’s business while providing better service for customers. It can also prepare your store for what is to come in the post-pandemic era for the grocery business.

Freshop has built the ability to add and manage these products into its online grocery shopping platform. We ask you once again where are you selling your meals and meal components?

Don’t over reach. Are you ready for some fresh ideations? Do your food marketing ideations look more like yesterday than tomorrow? Interested in learning how Foodservice Solutions® can edify your retail food brand while creating a platform for consumer convenient meal participation, differentiation and individualization?  Email us at: Steve@FoodserviceSolutions.us or visit us on our social media sites by clicking the following links: Facebook,  LinkedIn, or Twitter

At Urban Plates Price, Value, Service, Equals a Subscription

 

Driving customer frequency is more important today than ever.  Building a brand with a loyal following requires that your brands price, value, service equilibrium reflects what customer want according to Steven Johnson, Grocerant Guru® at Tacoma, WA based Foodservice Solutions®.

At the intersection of dinner, technology, and any restaurant brand today there is a fight for share of stomach according to Johnson.  Urban Plates recently officially launched its subscription membership program, Plate Pass. The first of its kind in the restaurant industry, Plate Pass is a monthly subscription that makes every menu item $10 (or less) for a fee of just $10 a month. Thus, the more meals you buy the more you can save. 

Adding relevance for most customers the Urban Plates subscription is available exclusively on the Urban Plates app (download for iPhone and Android) for dine-in and takeout orders, Plate Pass offers the entire breadth of the Urban Plates menu, which includes over 30 individual entrées (average cost $13.50) across four sections (plates, salads, sandwiches, and bowls) for $10 or less.

Note: The Plate Pass memberships are valid for one month from the date of purchase and automatically renew unless canceled.

Urban Plates conducted a pilot program.   Subscription members saw an average savings of $42 per month using Plate Pass. To mark the official launch of the program and make the savings that much greater, Urban Plates is pricing its $10 Everyday Menu items at $9 exclusively for Plate Pass members. All of this is part of the brand’s mission to make craveable, wholesome, and healthy food accessible to all.

Urban Plates co-founder and CEO Saad Nadhir, stated, “Everyone wins with Plate Pass," … "Members get any of our entrees for $10 or less and save an average of $42 per month for a low $10 monthly fee. The quality, variety, and great taste of Urban Plates is now accessible to all.  How are you garnering consumer buy-in to your brand?

Don’t over reach. Are you ready for some fresh ideations? Do your food marketing ideations look more like yesterday than tomorrow? Interested in learning how Foodservice Solutions® can edify your retail food brand while creating a platform for consumer convenient meal participation, differentiation and individualization?  Email us at: Steve@FoodserviceSolutions.us or visit us on our social media sites by clicking the following links: Facebook,  LinkedIn, or Twitter

Panera Fresher Faster Food Curbside

Regular readers of this blog know we have been talking a lot again about time, time starved parents, and fresh food fast.  Well, you guessed it that is at the heart of the grocerant niche.  According to Steven Johnson, Grocerant Guru® at Tacoma, WA based Foodservice Solutions® integrating technology to improve new points of distribution so fresh food fast becomes even faster; should be top of mind for all food retailers.

So, when Panera announced it plans to edify curbside pick-up experience with the launch of Panera Curbside, a geofence-enabled service that allows guests to safely and easily get their favorite Panera meals served straight to their car our team knew we had to share a success clue.

So, for customers who opt-in to Panera Curbside, the bakery-cafe will be notified automatically when the guest arrives creating an easy, frictionless way to get your freshly-prepared Panera favorites.

With seasonal favorites like Strawberry Poppyseed Salad and Summer Corn Chowder back on the menu, guests have a great reason to try a curbside version of their usual Panera Date. Order for Panera Curbside, pull up, and we will quickly bring your freshly prepared favorites out to you.

Niren Chaudhary, Panera CEO looking a customer ahead stated,  "In the new world as it emerges, we are focused on how we can best serve our customers and meet them where they are. Our latest technology and Wi-Fi capabilities, combined with enhanced protective measures at bakery-cafes, make Panera Curbside a frictionless way to continue to enjoy the Panera experience you know and love."

It's easy to order Panera Curbside from the Panera app or online:

·         Step 1: Choose your meal and order for Panera Curbside

·         Step 2: Tell us in the ''Special Instructions'' the make, model and color of the vehicle you'll arrive in. 

·         Step 3: Park in the parking lot and for those who opt-in, we'll bring your order out to your car upon arrival without any action needed. Those who don't opt-in to the service just need to tap ''I'm here'' in the MyPanera app or order confirmation email upon arrival. 

If you're on-the-go or just not quite ready to come in, Panera Curbside is an easy way to get a wholesome meal everyone will love. Panera continues to take extraordinary steps to continue to serve our communities, with additional safety precautions being taken in order to open up select restaurants with a "to-go" only model, including:

·         Enhanced cleaning and handwashing procedures in all bakery-cafes 

·         Ongoing plexiglass barrier installations in Panera cafes + drive-thru's 

·         Masks distributed to and worn by all associates 

·         Hand sanitizer available in all cafes at each entryway 

·         Social distancing measures clearly articulated in each cafe with signage / floor decals 

·         Thermometers at all cafes to enable thorough pre-shift wellness checks 

·         Social distance enabled between our ordering kiosks and adding anti-microbial screens 

·         Contactless curbside pickup and delivery options for customers

Foodservice Solutions® team is here to help you drive top line sales and bottom-line profits. Are you looking a customer ahead? Visit GrocerantGuru.com for more information or contact: Steve@FoodserviceSolutions.us Remember success does leave clues and we just may the clue you need to propel your continued success.