Over a decade of negative media attention directed at unhealthy casual food options has put fast food franchises in a unique position among limited service restaurants. On one hand, public sentiment puts pressure on fast food joints to serve more diverse, healthier food options. On the other hand, market responses to these health-focused options at fast food restaurants are lukewarm at best. Franchisees should explore both sides of this nuanced coin before shifting a store's marketing focus.
Feeding a lean market
Fast food franchises are often rewarded with good press for offering healthier options to the menu, but this attention rarely translates into revenue growth. A recent article in Time follows the failure of Burger King's "Satisfries" to resonate with customers. The French fry alternative that offered 30 percent less calories and 40 percent less fat has been removed from two-thirds of stores less than a year from its debut. Burger King's flop suggests that traditional perceptions and eating habits make it extremely difficult to re-introduce longtime junk food cornerstones like French fries as an opportunity for customers to manage their low-calorie diets.
However, studies also show that fast food customers show minimal interest when traditionally healthier food choices make it on the menu. McDonald's CEO Don Thompson revealed last year that salads only made up 2 to 3 percent of the company's entire revenues, says Bloomberg. In fact, multiple attempts by the fast food industry to add healthier options were met with mediocre sales and subsequently short shelf lives.
Branding means everything
An editorial published by KCET notes that fast food consumers regularly reject healthier food options because of the perception of healthy food being less satisfying. In addition, consumers are instinctively suspicious of changes made to fast food favorites, even if the adjustments result in a negligible change to the original product. The article suggests that fast food restaurants instead stay relatively quiet about health changes to their menu.
This trend also provides an instructive lesson in the power of branding. The fast food customer's resistance to purchasing a salad at McDonald's, despite the public outcry for healthier food at fast food restaurants, reflects the customer's brand experience. It is clear that fast food customers visit their favorite spots for fast and easy food, despite the calorie costs that come with the meal. Fast food is for many customers a lifestyle unto itself, and selecting baby carrots over French fries at the drive-in might actually conflict with their brand experience.
Rookie franchisees can take away several lessons from the industry's relationships with healthy food. First and foremost is the fact that a consumer's intentions can only be measured by their purchasing power. Companies that overestimated the actual demand for healthier food put themselves in a disadvantageous position. The second lesson for new franchisees is the immense potential for branding to generate sales and build up the local market.