McDonald's: Evolution of the Food Industry
History
McDonald's has had a global impact on the food industry. McDonald's developed a revolutionary idea known today as fast-food. This impact began in 1930 when Maurice and Richard McDonald left New Hampshire seeking to make a fortune in Hollywood, started up a drive-in restaurant in San Bernardino. Unlike so many other food-service operations at the time, McDonald's came up with new ideas that turned the usual slow paced dinner into a finely tuned engine.
McDonald's offered only a nine-item menu with burgers, French fries, shakes, and pies. They also eliminated seating, and used paper and plastic utensils instead of glass and porcelain. Like Henry Fords assembly line, McDonald's incorporated this idea into their food service, letting them serve hamburgers in less then sixty seconds. The menu was extensively cheaper then competitors which due to the above changes.
Although the McDonald's business was doing well, it wasn't until 1954 when Ray Kroc saw the operation that it started to develop into the McDonald's of today. Ray Kroc was a fifty-two year old milk-shake machine salesman at the time and decided to check out McDonalds due to their odd order of eight milk shake mixers for one restaurant. Most of Kroc's customers purchased only one milk shake mixer, and a max of two. Kroc was curious to see what kind of operation needed the capacity to churn so many milk shakes. What Kroc saw that day in 1954 when he pulled up to McDonald's was like nothing he had ever seen. Kroc is quoted as saying "This had to be the most amazing merchandising operation I'd ever seen." Although the McDonald brothers were content with their restaurant, Kroc saw the future and where this idea ...
... middle of paper ...
...'s now knows how important cleanliness is to customers in deciding where to eat.
Another interesting look into the future of McDonalds is the ability to bring your laptop into the restaurant and surf the internet while you eat. This new technology brought by McDonald's is in hope of attracting new customers and building customer loyalty. The target of this move is aimed at the younger generation, and the business person on the go. McDonald's has already built a few of these innovative restaurants in early 2003.
McDonald's has also opened a few of the innovative restaurants called McCafe. These new café type shops will not resemble that of any other normal McDonalds. The customers will get to choose from premium coffees, muffins, pastries, bagels, and McMuffins. McDonalds believes that the McCafe will do well because of the popularity of McDonald's breakfast.
A lot of people think that Ray Kroc created McDonalds. I will tell you that this is not true; he started out as a milkshake mixer salesman. One day he got a huge order for eight milkshake mixers from a small restaurant in California, he was really curious why they needed so much. He went to investigate and found Dick and Mac McDonald with their small business. According to www.mcdonalds.com they said “Ray Kroc told the McDonalds brothers that they should spread their business all over the U.S., in 19...
The “Made for you” concept menu was also introduced in 1998. It was introduced to revamp kitchens and promote sandwiches made especially for the consumer. This was to keep food fresher. It is a computer based production system. McDonald’s developed the software itself. The new system will also replace the “batch” method where food is often made before the consumer enters the restaurant.
A world without the Big Mac, Happy Meals, Chicken McNuggets, and the phrase “I’m lovin’ it,” is almost inconceivable. People around the globe have become accustomed to the high gleaming golden arches that make up the famous emblem for McDonald’s. McDonald’s has grasped the concept that culture flows from power. In this case, the American culture flows through the veins of this fast-food giant and the more that is supplied, the greater the demand. It is no secret that McDonald’s has become one of the world’s largest fast-food retailers. It has become a well known icon that has played a huge part in globalization, with chains located in many different countries… transforming the meaning of fast-food all around the world.
McDonalds also uses diversification in its global marketing. McDonalds recognizes that different countries have different values, customs, and tastes. Therefore, McDonalds satisfies these diverse global tastes by diversifying the menu according to each country’s unique preferences. This added diversification tactic, allows McDonalds to stay competitive in a global market. Examples of McDonalds globally diversified menu would be that McDonalds offers an exclusive beefless menu to its customers who live in India. This is because eating beef in India is sacrilegious. To meet the tastes of customers in India, McDonalds created new offerings such as the “Pizza McPuff” and the “McVeggie.” McDonalds considers the cultural tastes in every country it opens its doors
OPPORTUNITIES: McDonalds has many opportunities to change its look, menu, and customer service. McDonald’s started building newer building incorporating the arch, along with more modern furnishings. The menu has changed by adding more breakfast items and introducing the McCafe in certain areas.
The menu at McDonald's typically consists of hamburgers, chicken sandwiches, salads, drinks, shakes, and a recent influx of healthier alternatives. McDonald's also is widely known for their breakfast menu, which consists of sandwiches, pancakes, French toast, hash browns, and breakfast drinks. Since McDonald's appeals to such a wide audience, it must constantly re-evaluate its menu depending on feedback and market research. McDonald's expends considerable resources to update its menu and introduce new products in order to be more in tune with its target audience (The Times 100).
McDonald's is planning to capitalize on the public's willingness to pay $4 for a cup of coffee by hiring baristas and dropping espresso machines in 14,000 of their fast-food outlets. Meanwhile, Starbucks, with business lagging, is fighting back with an "if you can't beat 'em, join 'em" strategy, by offering heated breakfast sandwiches and adding drive-thru windows to some of their locations.
McDonald’s was the first company to try to export America’s fast food and changes in eating habits to other nations. McDonald’s has over
The McDonald's Corporation is the largest chain of fast food restaurants in the world. It is franchised in over 119 countries and serves an average of 68 million customers daily. The company started in 1940 as a barbecue restaurant operated by Richard and Maurice McDonald in the United States. They reorganized their business as a hamburger stand in 1948. In 1955, Businessman Ray Kroc joined the company as a franchise agent. He purchased the chain from the McDonald brothers and oversaw its global-wide growth (McDonald’s 2014).
Have you ever wondered how the business empire of McDonalds was started? With over ninety nine billion served, it was started in 1940 in San Bernardino, California. It was started off as just a Bar-B-Q that served just twenty items. Its first mascot was named “Speedee” They eventually realized that by setting up their kitchen like an assembly line that they could be much more productive and get their food done faster, with every employee doing a specified job; the restaurants production rate became much higher. A milkshake machine vendor came into their small restaurant one day, his name was Ray Kroc.
McDonald’s restaurant was founded by two brothers, Richard and Maurice (Dick and Mac) McDonald, in 1940. They initially opened the restaurant under the name McDonald’s Barbeque which was located in San Bernardino, California. The McDonald brothers had a vision of a drive-in restaurant that focused on quality food and good service. They served a simple menu consisting of 20-25, mainly barbeque, items. In 1948 after eight years of operations the McDonald 's brothers discovered that the majority of their revenue was coming from hamburgers. With this in mind, they decided to change the menu and set their focus mainly on hamburgers. They also changed the name of the restaurant to simply “McDonald’s” and adopted an assembly line approach in the production process. After continued
In today’s market, McDonalds faces numerous challenges such as fierce competition, a more health conscious customer, and the continual need for improved customer satisfaction and menu. McDonalds needs to go through some changes in order to remain ahead in the fast-food industry.
Product is fairly similar to competitors – the McDonalds menu is quite similar to many of its competitors such as Burger King and Wendy’s. This forces McDonald 's to have to lower its prices in order to continue to be competitive.
When society thinks about the local McDonald’s, they probably do not think “innovation’. That is because everyone has become accustomed to the many novelties that McDonald’s has introduced over the years. Some people do not even know that McDonalds was the leader in innovation being the first major international fast food restaurant, with the first drive-through window. What many people do not realize is that McDonald’s continues to drive innovation in fast food. Some times the innovation is well advertised, but other times they are designed so that customers will never even notice (Ritzer, 2004).
...dvertising. They took a new approach towards advertising. Instead of advertising on network TV they focused on outdoor advertising. They made the single largest purchase in the history of advertising when it purchased 20,000 billboards to reach consumers on the road and within minutes of a purchase decision. McDonalds used the concept of market fragmentation, which is the identification of smaller and smaller market segments. They not only expanded their variety of burgers, but also test-marketed fish-and-chips, fried chicken, pizza, and carryout groceries. Bibliography Fundamentals of Marketing (10th Edition) by William J. Stenton, Michael. J. Etzel, Bruce. J. Walker. (Pages: 41-42, 48, 56, 104, 115, 116, 130, 169, 171, 243, 265, 299, 458) http://www.mcdonalds.com/corporate/index.html http://www.fortunecity.com/meltingpot/dalston/714/myribbon.htm#intro