Meal Time Success = Handheld Food for Immediate Consumption

Today it just might be time to evaluate the cost of your loyalty program according to Steven Johnson Grocerant Guru® at Tacoma WA based Foodservice Solutions®.  With food cost deflation at hand and consumers still recovering from the great recession there is a battle for share of stomach underway. Both Portability and Price are key drivers of customer traffic in path to purchase according to Foodservice Solution® team.  

Back in the day Technomic edified Foodservice Solutions® 5 P’s of Food Marketing  the undercurrents of change and success within the food industry were forever changed.  That changed can traced back directly too Foodservice Solutions® 5 P’s of Ready-2-Eat and Heat-N-Eat fresh prepared food marketing. 

Increasingly the role of price and portability are being used with greater emphasis than ever before according to Foodservice Solutions® team. The clear result can be found in customer migration from legacy chain foodservice retailer to new non-traditional food retailers the ilk of Ikea.  

The FIVE P’s of Food Marketing were first introduced back in 1994. Since then they have been implemented, and integrated by foodservice companies including Full Service Restaurants, Chain Drug Stores, Grocery Stores, QSR’s, and C-Store clients.  The 5 P’s are: 

After repeated successful retail food industry adoption of Foodservice Solutions® 5 P’s of Fresh Food Marketing, Technomic conducted qualitative and quantitative research then compiled the following infographic highlighting the importance and consumer relevance that portability play’s today.  The Technomic infographic is entitled Pertinence of Portability:

McDonald’s 2 for $2.50, Burger Kings 5 for $4 or Wendy’s 4 for $4 are targeting the 50% of consumers over the age of 18 that are single.  These are meals and priced to be pantry busters.  The simple fact is a single person cannot cook a hamburger at home for a $1.00.  Why would anyone cook from scratch and spend more money while earning less than they did before the great recession? 

Food commodity deflation continues as a back drop, fast food retailers see an opportunity to drive solid customer counts increases in 2017 regaining customers lost to grocery stores and C-stores the past 8 years. You have all heard the old adage time is money.  Handheld food for immediate consumption is driving top line growth and bottom line profits while garnering market share in 2016 because time is money. 

Visit: www.FoodserviceSolutions.us  if you are 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 or you can learn more at Facebook.com/Steven Johnson, Linkedin.com/in/grocerant/ or twitter.com/grocerant

Fine Food Fast Wawa’s Mobile Ordering

It took a while but adding Google Chromecast to my smart TV clearly expanded my viewing and listening options.  Technology is integrating our daily lives and continues to evolve and Wawa’s smart mobile ordering app save you time while edifying Wawa’s brand with consumers according to Steven Johnson, Grocerant Guru® at Tacoma, empowers customers to order their favorite hoagies from home, the office or while stuck in traffic.  

The Wawa app, allows you to bypass long lines at during the drive to work, at lunch time or on the way home.  The Wawa app includes mobile ordering.  Yes there is always a catch in the case of you will need to sign up for Wawa Rewards or  you’ll need to get a Wawa gift card.  Here’s how it works:

To order, click on the icon, which will bring up a menu. You can choose from beverages, breakfast, lunch and dinner, fresh baked goods and under-500-calorie options.

Select your item and choose your customizations. On a hoagie, you can select what size, whether you want white or wheat bread, types of cheese, spreads, toppings and whether you want it toasted.

Make sure your phone's location services are on, and select the right Wawa store before submitting your order. It's easy to cancel or modify an order once it's submitted.

Don't worry: Your Wawa order won't get cold waiting for you. To make sure your order is fresh, your order won't be filled until you are close to Wawa.

Stroll into Wawa and go to the cashier. You'll present a virtual order slip that pops up on the app to the cashier and pay with the app, cash or any credit card. I advise paying with the app to earn freebies and discounts.  Is your company looking a customer ahead Wawa is.  Success does leave clues. 

Visit: www.FoodserviceSolutions.us  if you are interested in learning how Foodservice Solutions 5P’s of Food Marketing can edify your retail food brand while creating a platform for consumer convenient meal participation, differentiation and individualization or you can learn more at Facebook.com/Steven Johnson, Linkedin.com/in/grocerant/ or twitter.com/grocerant

Foodservice and Technology Inseparable

When it comes to retail foodservice today technology is seemingly as important a fresh food with flavor according to Foodservice Solutions® Grocerant Guru® Steven Johnson.  How customers order their food, where they order from are evolving how we define service in foodservice today. 

In a new study conducted by Oracle Hospitality titled “The Hotel 2025 and Restaurant 2025 reports conducted in February 2017 proved to be very insightful. Here are some of the insights:

Recognition and Personalization Will be a Driver for Future Technologies

• 33 percent of restaurant and 72 percent of hotel operators say that guest recognition via facial biometrics will be in use within the next five years.
• 31 percent of restaurant guests and 41 percent of hotel guests will be more likely to visit an establishment with greater frequency if they are recognized by a server or associate without having to give their name or show a loyalty card.
• Both restaurant (49 percent) and hotel (62 percent) guests agree that having this recognition would improve their experience.
• 28 percent of restaurant customers would visit more often and 45 percent said it would improve their experience if service was faster because they were recognized.
• 42 percent of restaurant guests find suggestions based on health invasive and 68 percent find suggestions based on digital footprint invasive.
• 47 percent of hotel guests agree that using artificial intelligence to suggest items based on past purchases would improve their experience.
• 72 percent of hotel operators agree that AI-based systems that leverage guest preferences and buying history to make targeted dining recommendations will be mainstream by 2025.

Consumers are Warming to Voice-Activated Experiences

• 36 percent of restaurant guests say ordering through a virtual assistant would improve experience and 17 percent would visit more often, along with 50 percent and 33 percent of hotel guests respectively.
• 59 percent of hotel guests believe controlling their room via a voice-activated device would enhance the guest experience and operators agree. Hotel operators polled indicated that managing room control and ambiance management (78 percent) via voice activation would be widespread by 2025. Hotel operators also believed that ordering room or hotel services (70 percent) via voice activation would be adopted by 2025.
• Operators are keen on gathering customer feedback by voice; 61 percent of restaurant operators and 68 percent of hotels said this will be in use in the next 5 years.

Virtual Reality will Enhance the Booking and on-Property Experience in Hotels

• Consumers also indicated that virtual reality tours of hotel properties (66 percent) and virtual reality lounges for entertainment (44 percent) would improve the guest experience.
• Hotel operators also believe virtual reality technology will be widespread by 2025 with a variety of use cases: staff training (68 percent), guest entertainment on property (64 percent), and previewing meeting rooms (63 percent).

Robots Won’t be Replacing Hospitality Staff Anytime Soon

• 50 percent of restaurant guests said being served by a robot would not improve the guest experience and 40 percent would visit less.
• 37 percent of hotel guests said being served by a robot would not improve the guest experience and 22 percent would visit less.
• 64 percent of restaurant and 58 percent of hotel operators say that the use of robots for cleaning is appealing.

Operators Begin To Consider Investment in Wearable Technology

• 51 percent of restaurants and 63 percent of hotels say staff activity monitoring via wearable device will be in use in the next 5 years.
• 59 percent of restaurants and 78 percent of hotels say that staff checking into work and onto workstations via wearable device will be in use in the next 5 years.

Do your marketing tactics look more like yesterday that tomorrow?  Visit www.FoodserviceSolutions.us 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.