The world's largest restaurant company known for its "golden arches" isn't golden right now. For three consecutive months McDonalds has posted declines in global sales. It's believed that the problems McDonald's has had are due to the changing tastes of American consumers. McDonald's hasn't offered products with fresher ingredients and adventurous flavors. So what does this mean for the Golden Arches? CEO Don Thompson says "We're moving forward thoughtfully and with a sense of urgency." I have a feeling that McDonalds will be able to turn things around. They have come up with a three step plan to make things better. The first step is to improve operational execution. McDonald's is working on reducing wait times. One way they are trying to make this happen is by speeding up the payment process with digital options. McDonald's has announced that it will be working with Apple Pay to help make the process faster. They have also made things in the kitchen more accessible so that the kitchen moves quicker. I believe that Apple Pay will be very beneficial for McDonald's now that we have come into a time period where almost everyone is walking around with an iPhone in their back pocket.
The second step is to make the food stand out. McDonald's is focusing on advertising what they know has worked. McDonald's is pushing new and limited-time products which they believe will help them grow."We're placing great emphasis on the balance between our core classics and the number of new products that are being introduced," Thompson said in July. "And this is to ensure that they can be delivered at the speed and convenience that customers expect from McDonald's." They are also trying to come up with healthier alternatives for McDonald's costumers.
The third and final step is to boost branding efforts. Along with Apple Pay, McDonald's is testing things like customized burgers and loyalty programs in different parts of the world. The company is working to understand what the consumers want the most. Their goal is to bring back the McDonald's brand. What do you think? Will McDonald's be golden anytime soon?
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ReplyDeleteAriana-
ReplyDeleteIt kind of comes as a shock to me that, as you said, for three consecutive months, McDonalds has posted declines in global sales. I thought that part of the reason fast food places like McDonalds were doing so well was because the food was much cheaper and allowed people to be able to buy more for less. However, I wonder that if they bring in fresher ingredients and healthier alternatives it will become more expensive, thus leading even more potential customers away? I think the rest of the three step process is a good idea and may bring back more customers but it will be interesting to see if those numbers just continue to decline.