Big Chains Going Small

At Marketing Vitals, we like to keep a close eye on trends in the restaurant industry. The winds of change can blow through quickly, and sometimes trends will catch fire or peter out without much warning.

One growing trend that we’ve been watching recently is the reluctance of large chain restaurants to label themselves as, well, large chain restaurants. The current trend is that these big chains are trying to position themselves differently in consumers’ minds.

Many are paring back their menus to the more basic staples that they became well known for. Others are relaxing rules on the interior décor and layout of each individual location. Some are working on localized menus that keep local favorites in place in various areas of the country. It’s all part of an effort to change the way consumers think about their restaurants. After years of focusing on keeping chains nearly identical, the reverse is suddenly in vogue.

But why are they doing all of this, especially when the profits that many of these chains enjoy continue to be in the multi-millions? The answer lies in the fact that American customers are increasingly likely to want to eat in small, individual a more intimate feeling atmosphere. restaurants. Or at least they like the idea of doing so.

That presents many large chains with something of an image problem. There’s been more of a focus in recent years on frequenting small, local businesses in general, and that extends to restaurants as well. After years of ensuring that restaurant design, decorations, and menus were nearly exactly the same, many chains are now taking the opposite approach.

Chains are now experimenting with ways to make their locations feel more like part of the neighborhood. A large amount of people still like eating at these chains, but the sense is that they’d rather eat somewhere with a more individual independent feel to it. A business that is locally owned. So now many chains are trying their best to brand themselves as the opposite of a big chain restaurant.

Navigating the world of consumer preferences and trends can be a daunting task. At Marketing Vitals, we help restaurants use the data they generate every day to stay on top of these trends to both market and run their business effectively.

Our data analytics software learns about your business and helps you to understand which marketing campaigns are working in each location – and which aren’t, and how you can get the best results from future efforts. And we consider any area of the restaurant that touches the guest as marketing – repositioning brands, menu variances, localized offers, interiors remodels. The restaurant industry isn’t a static environment and all of your locations aren’t the same. When consumers’ preferences and habits begin to change, it’s essential that businesses have the tools and insights necessary to adapt and thrive in new situations.

That’s what’s happening right now, as big chains try to shed the label of “big chain” and develop a more local, individual restaurant environment.

Contact us today if you’d like to learn more about our restaurant analytics software and how Marketing Vitals can help your restaurant stay in front of the latest trends in each of your markets.