Quick Service Restaurants (QSR) / Fast Food Industry Study
Jun 11 2015
Executive Summary
Methodology
• But, behaviors likely tell a different story:
• 10-minute web-based survey of N=1500 US adults age 18
• Subway, despite being the favorite, is frequented less
and over.
often than McDonald’s
• The survey was fielded between June 10 and June 11,
• Burger King is the fourth most frequented, but the
2015.
sixth most popular in terms of favorites.
Key Findings
• Health is confirmed as an important motivator for fast
• The majority of people (64%) are not yet familiar with
food diners:
food-delivery apps like GrubHub or Caviar:
• Water is the most desired beverage (even if behavior is
• But 30% are familiar with GrubHub—the most of any
not consistent)
of the apps tested
• Open-ended responses have a strong theme toward
• Interestingly, there may be opportunities to charge
healthy and fresh
more than initially expected for food-delivery.
• In unbranded promotional food image rankings, the
Consumer expectations are that the fee will be
‘Less than 6g of fat’ Subway promotion was most
between $2 and $5, probably more like $4 for delivery.
preferred
• And Subway, assuming it is perceived as the most
healthy, was indicated by more people as the favorite
restaurant
Restaurants deemed favorites are not necessarily the most visited.
Subway is the top favorite, with 19% saying it’s #1, but only 12% visit Subway on a weekly basis—
compare this to 17% for McDonald’s. Similarly, Chick-fil-A is the third favorite on the list, but only 6% go
there weekly.*
(Not shown, 4% say they do not eat fast food and declined to pick a favorite.)
Weekly
McDonald's
17%
Subway
12%
31%
Burger King
9%
32%
7%
6%
KFC
5%
Arby's
3%
Never
14%
30%
29%
34%
37%
23%
24%
21%
17%
35%
31%
21%
% Favorite
25%
38%
9%
Chick-fil-A
Yearly
41%
Taco Bell
Wendy's
Monthly
33%
19%
10%
25%
8%
25%
12%
14%
50%
39%
16%
32%
43%
6%
4%
*Note, frequency does not account for distribution of stores. Some may be less frequented (e.g. Chick-fil-A) because there are fewer stores.
Q1 - How often do you eat at each of the following restaurants?
Q2 - Which one of the following fast food restaurants, if any, is your favorite?
Pair Comparisons Rankings: Promotional Food Images
(Brands Not Shown)
Sandwiches <6g of Fat (Subway)
37%
Pretzel Bacon Cheeseburger (Wendy's)
51%
34%
Quesalupa (Taco Bell)
31%
Sirloin Third Pound Burger (McDonald's)
30%
Chicken & Rice Bowls (KFC)
22%
Meat sandwiches (Arby's)
21%
Spicy Chicken Deluxe Sandwich (Chick-fil-a)
14%
Chicken Fries (Burger King)
12%
Ranked 1, 2
12%
52%
15%
51%
18%
45%
25%
50%
28%
58%
53%
41%
Ranked 3, 4, 5, 6
21%
33%
47%
Subway promotion <6g
of fat is most appealing
Using the paired comparisons
exercise to identify the rank
order of the images, 37% had
the Subway food image ranked
in the top 2 of 8.
Wendy’s, while not a top 3
restaurant, had the second
most appealing promotional
food image with 34% ranking
highly the Pretzel Bacon
Cheeseburger.
Ranked 7, 8
Q4 - In the following pairs of ad images, please choose the one that looks more appealing to you.
*See appendix for specific ads
Perfection is defined by “service” and
“freshness”
When asked to describe the perfect fast food
experience, the two major themes had to do with:
Freshness, which could refer to healthy
ingredients or being hot; and
Service, which is a function of the speed of
service, friendliness of the staff, and cleanliness
of the store.
Many people also mentioned low price.
Q5 - How would you describe a
perfect fast food dining experience?
Perceptual mapping
Multidimensional scale modeling
was used to produce the 2D
market visualization on the right.
1. It shows that Food
Healthiness, Convenience /
location and Prices most
significantly shaped the
market perception, compared
to other tested attributes.
Competitive Topography
1. Subway received higher average ratings
than the rest of the tested brands
2. Subway was closely associated with food
healthiness and convenience/location
attributes
3. McDonald’s was highly rated and closely
associated with convenience/location and
good prices.
Competitive Topography
1. Overall Convenience/ location,
Cleanliness / appearance,
Service Quality / Speed, along with the
Food Quality / taste received highest
ratings
2. Food healthiness was rated
comparatively low in the Fast Food
McDonald’s
1. Received highest ratings by Convenience
/ Location, did pretty good on Prices and
had lowest scores for Food healthiness,
comparing to other attributes.
Subway
1. While Subway received high ratings on
most attributes, it was rated quite low on
Prices and Menu options variety.
Chick-Fil-A
1. Chick-Fil-A was rated highly by
Cleanliness and appearance, as well as
the Food quality / taste and Service
quality & speed. It was also somewhat
associated with Food healthiness while
received lower rating for Convenience of
locations
MaxDiff Exercise
Methodology
• MaxDiff is an approach for obtaining importance scores for multiple items. It is used as an
alternative to a standard ranking exercise when there are too many items to be easily ranked. The
MaxDiff exercise consists of multiple trials; in each trial, the respondent is presented with a subset of
the total items to be evaluated, and asked to indicate the most and least important items in that
subset. Respondents see multiple such trials, and the combinations of items shown is carefully
designed with the goal that each is shown an equal number of times and pairs of items are shown an
equal number of times.
Scoring
• Based on each respondent’s choices across the various trials, aggregate-level utility or importance
scores are derived for each attribute. Scores range from 0 to 100, with higher scores indicating
greater importance in the overall sample.
MaxDiff Scoring: Preference of Beverage
Water
8.98
Soda
8.87
Iced tea
8.73
Lemonade
8.49
Milkshakes
8.22
Smoothies
7.56
Fruit/vegetable juice
7.15
Root beer
6.23
Specialty coffee drinks
5.71
Diet soda
5.6
Hot tea
Beer
The MaxDiff scoring shows that
water is the most preferred
beverage, but barely edges out
soda.
6.83
Brewed coffee
Energy drinks
Water is preferred over
soda
4.87
There is a sharp drop off after hot
tea, where energy drinks and
alcoholic beverages were the least
preferred types.
3.47
3.27
Wine
3.02
Mixed alcoholic drinks
2.99
Q7 - Let's think about beverages you may be interested in ordering at fast food restaurants. Please rank the following groups of drinks with your most preferred at
the top and your least preferred at the bottom.
Two-thirds remain unfamiliar with food-delivery apps
Of those that have heard of a food-delivery app, GrubHub is the most well-known—83% of those that
know any app know GrubHub.
64%
30%
9%
GrubHub
Eat24
5%
3%
2%
Seamless
Caviar
Other
Q8 - Which of the following food-delivery apps are you familiar with?
None of the
above
Price Test Methodology: Van Westendorp
The price analysis on the next slide offers insights into pricing expectations as a first look at
pricing strategies. It is based upon 4 simple questions in the survey. Respondents are asked to
indicate the prices at which the product/service would be (1) considered a bargain, (2) so cheap
that quality would be questioned, (3) starting to get expensive, and (4) so expensive that they
wouldn’t consider purchasing.
Plotting the answers to these questions allows for interpretation of some key intersections:
• The Optimal Price point is where an equal number of people regard the price as being too
cheap as do too expensive – this price is the recommended price point for a competitive
offering.
• The Indifference Price point is similar to the Optimal, but where Cheap and Expensive
intersect – this price is regarded as the price that the market leader would have in a
competitive environment.
• The Marginally Too Cheap/Expensive price points mark the acceptable price range.
People expect to pay more than you’d think for food delivery
The expected price from our analysts prior to the survey was that people would pay $3 for food delivery,
but the Van Westendorp meter suggests $4 as the optimal price point.
While we don’t recommend setting the price at $4 without further research, this test does suggest that
the acceptable price could even be as high as $5 for the right offering.
Price Sensitivity Meter Values (1500
resp.)
results
Acceptable range
$2 - $5
Optimal price point
$4
Your price guess was
$3
Marginally too cheap
$2
Marginally too expensive
$5
Indifference point
$3.99
9: If you could order delivery of your favorite fast food from a food delivery app, at which point would you consider the delivery fee to be...
SAMPLE DEMOGRAPHICS
Ethnicity
Gender
White American
72%
African-American
10%
Hispanic/Latino-American
Male
49%
8%
Asian-American
Female
51%
Multi-racial
5%
2%
Indian-American
1%
Native American
1%
Other
2%
Age Range
Generation
21%
21%
18%
18%
12%
10%
0%
Under 18
Sample Size = 1500
18-24
25-34
35-44
45-54
55-64
65 or older
50+ (Baby
Boomers &
Older)
42%
18-34
(Millennials)
31%
35-49 (Gen
X)
27%
Region
Household Income
36%
$0 - $25,000
23%
$25,000 - $50,000
30%
25%
$50,000 - $75,000
23%
20%
19%
$75,000 - $100,000
13%
$100,000 - $200,000
$200,000 - $500,000
Northeast
Midwest
South
West
>$500,000
9%
1%
0%
Marital Status
Married
Children in HH
48%
5+ children
Single
29%
4 children
Divorced
Living with a significant other
19%
3%
1 child
It's complicated
9%
7%
2 children
Engaged
4%
9%
3 children
Widowed
2%
20%
2%
1%
no children
46%
Education
Professional degree
Grad school degree
Employment Status
6%
Full time
44%
9%
Part Time
4yr degree
16%
27%
Retired
2yr degree
11%
Student
Some college
No college
17%
6%
31%
17%
Unemployed
17%
APPENDIX: ADS SHOWN IN PAIRED COMPARISON RANKINGS
Fit and stylish Christian women who prioritize entertainment, value, convenience, and connecting
with those around them – always striving to be their best possible selves.
Demographics
• Females
• 4-year degree
Media usage
• Listens to Christian radio, soft rock/pop
music
• Watches TV 1-4 hours/day
• Redbox kiosk user
• Goes to movie theaters
• Plays games on cell phone
Health-minded
• Runner
• Vitamin consumer
Shopper
• Attends sale events
• Sam’s Club, Target
• Shoe shopper, all kinds
Tech savvy
• iPad owner
• On Pinterest, Instagram, Twitter
• Online banking
Psychographics
• Christian
• Optimistic
• Volunteer
Photo credit: “Drinking (Chick Fil A soda) and driving” by m01229, used under CC BY 2.0 / cropped from original
Chick-fil-A
Cultured, health-minded, easygoing individuals who still rely on tried-and-true sources
of information and entertainment.
Media consumption
• Watches PBS, CNN Headline News
• Listens to classical music
• Reads business/finance and classified
sections in newspaper
• Reads health and fitness publications
Other entertainment
• Running/track event spectator
Psychographics
• Interested in their health
• Not bossy
• Not possessive
Other
• A morning person
• Gardening hobbyist, garden at
residence
• Recycles glass
• Land line phone at home
Photo credit: “Ali at Oregon Zoo 9” by Parker Knight, used under CC BY 2.0 / cropped from original
Subway
Gamers who love zesty flavors, convenience, and value.
Life is an adventure, and they’re the heroes!
Media consumption
• PlayStation owner
Other dining
• Mexican restaurant customer
• Chili and taco products consumer
• Pepsi consumer
• Frozen waffles/pancakes/pizza consumer
Employment
• On active military duty
• Homemakers/unemployed
Other shopping
• Walmart shopper
(at least monthly)
• Zillow service user
• Dress shirt consumer
Psychographics
• Fearless
• Extraordinary
• Not demanding
or needy
Photo credit: “Taco Bell” by Antonio Morales García, used under CC BY-SA 2.0 / cropped from original
Taco Bell
Fast Food Industry Survey
Order details:
Responses: 1500/1500
Ordered: June 10 2015
Completed: June 11 2015
[See how survey takers saw this survey]
Target Market:
Country: United States
Language: English
Gender: Males and Females
Age Range: 18 - 65+ years old
Income: Any
Ethnicity/Race: Any
Education: Any
Employment: Any
Career: Any
Relationship: Any
Parental status: Any
Location: Any
1: How often do you eat at each of the following restaurants?
1600
1400
215
251
372
440
382
476
1200
648
378
526
1000
549
800
456
509
581
312
600
400
319
300
257
261
178
81
McDonald's
213
82
27
Wendy's
210
99
33
Taco Bell
491
349
263
256
200
746
217
92
37
Burger King
133
246
175
116
53
28
KFC
139
204
51
105
37
15
Subway
Arby's
65
25
Chick-fil-A
Never
Several times a year
About once a month
Several times a month
Once or twice a week
3 or more times a week
1: How often do you eat at each of the following restaurants?
1: McDonald's
400
378
350
300
300
Resp. (1500)
A1: 3 or more times a week
5.4% (81)
A2: Once or twice a week
11.8% (178)
A3: Several times a month
20.0% (300)
A4: About once a month
20.8% (312)
A5: Several times a year
25.2% (378)
A6: Never
16.7% (251)
312
251
250
200
178
150
100
Answer
81
50
0
3 or more times Once or twice a Several times a About once a Several times a
a week
week
month
month
year
Never
1: How often do you eat at each of the following restaurants?
2: Wendy's
600
549
500
400
372
300
257
213
200
82
100
27
0
3 or more times Once or twice a Several times a About once a Several times a
a week
week
month
month
year
Never
Answer
Resp. (1500)
A1: 3 or more times a week
1.8% (27)
A2: Once or twice a week
5.4% (82)
A3: Several times a month
14.2% (213)
A4: About once a month
17.1% (257)
A5: Several times a year
36.6% (549)
A6: Never
24.8% (372)
1: How often do you eat at each of the following restaurants?
Answer
Resp. (1499)
A1: 3 or more times a week
2.2% (33)
A2: Once or twice a week
6.6% (99)
A3: Several times a month
14.0% (210)
A4: About once a month
17.4% (261)
350
A5: Several times a year
30.4% (456)
300
A6: Never
29.3% (440)
3: Taco Bell
500
456
450
440
400
261
250
210
200
150
99
100
50
33
0
3 or more times Once or twice a Several times a About once a Several times a
a week
week
month
month
year
Never
1: How often do you eat at each of the following restaurants?
4: Burger King
600
509
500
382
400
300
263
217
200
92
100
37
0
3 or more times Once or twice a Several times a About once a Several times a
a week
week
month
month
year
Never
Answer
Resp. (1500)
A1: 3 or more times a week
2.4% (37)
A2: Once or twice a week
6.1% (92)
A3: Several times a month
14.4% (217)
A4: About once a month
17.5% (263)
A5: Several times a year
33.9% (509)
A6: Never
25.4% (382)
1: How often do you eat at each of the following restaurants?
5: Subway
600
526
500
400
319
300
256
215
200
133
100
51
0
3 or more times Once or twice a Several times a About once a Several times a
a week
week
month
month
year
Never
Answer
Resp. (1500)
A1: 3 or more times a week
3.4% (51)
A2: Once or twice a week
8.8% (133)
A3: Several times a month
17.0% (256)
A4: About once a month
21.2% (319)
A5: Several times a year
35.0% (526)
A6: Never
14.3% (215)
1: How often do you eat at each of the following restaurants?
6: Arby's
700
Answer
Resp. (1500)
A1: 3 or more times a week
1.0% (15)
A2: Once or twice a week
2.4% (37)
A3: Several times a month
7.0% (105)
A4: About once a month
13.6% (204)
A5: Several times a year
32.7% (491)
A6: Never
43.2% (648)
648
600
491
500
400
300
204
200
105
100
15
37
0
3 or more times Once or twice a Several times a About once a Several times a
a week
week
month
month
year
Never
1: How often do you eat at each of the following restaurants?
7: KFC
700
581
600
500
476
400
300
246
200
116
100
28
53
0
3 or more times Once or twice a Several times a About once a Several times a
a week
week
month
month
year
Never
Answer
Resp. (1500)
A1: 3 or more times a week
1.8% (28)
A2: Once or twice a week
3.5% (53)
A3: Several times a month
7.7% (116)
A4: About once a month
16.4% (246)
A5: Several times a year
38.7% (581)
A6: Never
31.7% (476)
1: How often do you eat at each of the following restaurants?
8: Chick-fil-A
800
746
700
600
500
400
349
300
200
175
139
100
65
25
0
3 or more times Once or twice a Several times a About once a Several times a
a week
week
month
month
year
Never
Answer
Resp. (1499)
A1: 3 or more times a week
1.6% (25)
A2: Once or twice a week
4.3% (65)
A3: Several times a month
9.2% (139)
A4: About once a month
11.6% (175)
A5: Several times a year
23.2% (349)
A6: Never
49.7% (746)
2: Which one of the following fast food restaurants, if any, is your favorite?
300
250
285
239
211
200
187
154
150
115
93
100
67
50
85
64
Answer
Resp. (1500)
A1: McDonald's
15.9% (239)
A2: Wendy's
12.4% (187)
A3: Taco Bell
10.2% (154)
A4: Burger King
7.6% (115)
A5: Subway
19.0% (285)
A6: Arby's
4.4% (67)
A7: KFC
6.2% (93)
A8: Chick-fil-A
14.0% (211)
A9: Other (please tell us)
5.6% (85)
A10: None of the above, I don't eat
fast food
4.2% (64)
0
4: In the following pairs of ad images, please choose the one that looks more appealing to you.
120
100
5.5
13.9
80
11.2
9
5.8
6.4
7.4
11
29
12
10.8
12.6
9.1
60
12
11.3
13.6
12.1
12.3
20
12.9
10.5
16.5
McDonald's
17
14.6
Wendy's
Taco Bell
15.4
12.8
13.8
13.6
12.8
13.9
15.7
14.4
17
15
13.1
16
11
12.4
11.5
8.2
6.8
16.9
14.6
13.8
16.3
16.4
12.7
12.8
13.8
13.7
12.9
17.8
12.2
14.2
40
12.5
8
6.4
5.5
21.1
Burger King
Subway
12.7
10.9
8
8.8
10.4
Arby's
KFC
5.7
Chick-fil-A
Eighth
Seventh
Sixth
Fifth
Fourth
Third
Second
First
4: In the following pairs of ad images, please choose the one that looks more appealing to you.
1: McDonald's
300
254
250
209
194
200
185
182
170
150
169
137
100
50
0
First
Second
Third
Fourth
Fifth
Sixth
Seventh
Eighth
Answer
Resp. (1500)
A1: First
16.9% (254)
A2: Second
12.9% (194)
A3: Third
12.3% (185)
A4: Fourth
12.1% (182)
A5: Fifth
11.3% (170)
A6: Sixth
9.1% (137)
A7: Seventh
11.2% (169)
A8: Eighth
13.9% (209)
4: In the following pairs of ad images, please choose the one that looks more appealing to you.
2: Wendy's
300
255
250
248
213
205
200
181
180
150
135
100
83
50
0
First
Second
Third
Fourth
Fifth
Sixth
Seventh
Eighth
Answer
Resp. (1500)
A1: First
17.0% (255)
A2: Second
16.5% (248)
A3: Third
14.2% (213)
A4: Fourth
13.6% (205)
A5: Fifth
12.0% (181)
A6: Sixth
12.0% (180)
A7: Seventh
9.0% (135)
A8: Eighth
5.5% (83)
4: In the following pairs of ad images, please choose the one that looks more appealing to you.
3: Taco Bell
300
245
250
216
208
207
200
189
165
158
150
112
100
50
0
First
Second
Third
Fourth
Fifth
Sixth
Seventh
Eighth
Answer
Resp. (1500)
A1: First
14.4% (216)
A2: Second
16.3% (245)
A3: Third
13.8% (208)
A4: Fourth
13.8% (207)
A5: Fifth
10.5% (158)
A6: Sixth
12.6% (189)
A7: Seventh
11.0% (165)
A8: Eighth
7.4% (112)
4: In the following pairs of ad images, please choose the one that looks more appealing to you.
4: Burger King
500
450
435
400
350
Answer
Resp. (1500)
A1: First
5.5% (83)
A2: Second
6.4% (96)
A3: Third
6.8% (103)
A4: Fourth
8.2% (124)
A5: Fifth
13.9% (209)
A6: Sixth
12.2% (183)
A7: Seventh
17.8% (267)
A8: Eighth
29.0% (435)
300
267
250
209
200
183
150
100
124
83
96
103
Second
Third
50
0
First
Fourth
Fifth
Sixth
Seventh
Eighth
4: In the following pairs of ad images, please choose the one that looks more appealing to you.
5: Subway
350
317
300
250
236
220
192
200
188
163
150
96
100
88
50
0
First
Second
Third
Fourth
Fifth
Sixth
Seventh
Eighth
Answer
Resp. (1500)
A1: First
21.1% (317)
A2: Second
15.7% (236)
A3: Third
14.6% (220)
A4: Fourth
12.8% (192)
A5: Fifth
12.5% (188)
A6: Sixth
10.8% (163)
A7: Seventh
6.4% (96)
A8: Eighth
5.8% (88)
4: In the following pairs of ad images, please choose the one that looks more appealing to you.
6: Arby's
300
250
241
226
207
200
150
194
192
187
133
120
100
50
0
First
Second
Third
Fourth
Fifth
Sixth
Seventh
Eighth
Answer
Resp. (1500)
A1: First
8.8% (133)
A2: Second
12.4% (187)
A3: Third
16.0% (241)
A4: Fourth
13.8% (207)
A5: Fifth
12.8% (192)
A6: Sixth
15.0% (226)
A7: Seventh
12.9% (194)
A8: Eighth
8.0% (120)
4: In the following pairs of ad images, please choose the one that looks more appealing to you.
7: KFC
250
219
206
200
192
173
197
191
166
156
Answer
Resp. (1500)
A1: First
10.4% (156)
A2: Second
11.5% (173)
A3: Third
11.0% (166)
A4: Fourth
12.8% (192)
A5: Fifth
13.1% (197)
A6: Sixth
12.7% (191)
A7: Seventh
14.6% (219)
A8: Eighth
13.7% (206)
150
100
50
0
First
Second
Third
Fourth
Fifth
Sixth
Seventh
Eighth
4: In the following pairs of ad images, please choose the one that looks more appealing to you.
8: Chick-fil-A
300
255
250
247
231
205
200
191
164
150
121
100
86
50
0
First
Second
Third
Fourth
Fifth
Sixth
Seventh
Eighth
Answer
Resp. (1500)
A1: First
5.7% (86)
A2: Second
8.0% (121)
A3: Third
10.9% (164)
A4: Fourth
12.7% (191)
A5: Fifth
13.6% (205)
A6: Sixth
15.4% (231)
A7: Seventh
17.0% (255)
A8: Eighth
16.4% (247)
5: How would you describe a perfect fast food dining experience?
7: Let's think about beverages you may be interested in ordering at fast food restaurants. Please rank the following groups
of drinks with your most preferred at the top and your least preferred at the bottom.
Water
Answer
8.98
Soda
(1500)
8.87
Iced tea
8.73
Lemonade
8.49
Milkshakes
8.22
Smoothies
7.56
Fruit/vegetable juice
7.15
Root beer
6.83
Brewed coffee
6.23
Specialty coffee drinks
Avr Prob.
A7:Water
8.98%
A1:Soda
8.87%
A10:Iced tea
8.73%
A4:Lemonade
8.49%
A12:Milkshakes
8.22%
A11:Smoothies
7.56%
A5:Fruit/vegetable juice
7.15%
A6:Root beer
6.83%
A3:Brewed coffee
6.23%
A16:Specialty coffee drinks
5.71%
A2:Diet soda
5.6%
A9:Hot tea
4.87%
5.71
Diet soda
5.6
Hot tea
4.87
Energy drinks
3.47
Beer
3.27
Wine
3.02
A8:Energy drinks
3.47%
Mixed alcoholic drinks
2.99
A13:Beer
3.27%
A14:Wine
3.02%
A15:Mixed alcoholic drinks
2.99%
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
8: Which of the following food-delivery apps are you familiar with?
1200
1000
Answer
Resp. (1500)
A1: GrubHub
30.3% (455)
A2: Seamless
5.2% (79)
A3: Caviar
3.2% (49)
A4: Eat24
8.6% (129)
A5: Other
2.0% (31)
A6: None of the above
63.6% (955)
955
800
600
455
400
200
129
79
49
31
0
GrubHub
Seamless
Caviar
Eat24
Other
None of the
above