The Kentucky Fried Chicken website, displays the companys very popular chicken products. The ad shows the chicken product is sold at only $9.99. The product is composed of six cooked pieces. The menu also includes three biscuit pieces. Lastly, advertisement shows mashed potatoes. Further, the ad viewers are given another menu alternative. The ad shows an delicious hot shot bites menu. The menu has hot chili ingredients, creating the hot taste.
The ad displays fill the customers food needs. The ad shows the quenching benefits of the accompanying beverage. The cash-strapped customers can pick the cheaper menu, at only $3.99. In terms of the Claim, the Kentucky Fried Chicken website advertisement increases the demand for the companys products and services (Jain 55).
Data 1
The realistic picture of the chicken products offers the benefits of acquiring the product. The advertisement displays a well cooked chicken. The ad viewers see a delectable chicken. The ad displays realistic images of the actual food menu. Just like seeing the real chicken menu, the realistic ad picture entices the ad viewers to buy the chicken. The same picture creates a strong craving for the chicken products. In terms of warranty, the realistic picture of the chicken product increases the demand for the Kentucky Fried Chicken products (Richards 35).
Data 2
The advertised product prices encourage the ad viewers to buy the products. For the rich and famous, the $9.99 is very affordable. The ad effectively uses the persuasive effect of the $0.01 discount strategy. The customers do not see the product as a $10.00 product. Likewise, most customers do not bother to retrieve the $0.01 change. For the budget-conscious customer, the person can pick the lower priced hot chicken menu. Similar to the customer who can afford to pay more, the budget-conscious customer can experience the same fast food restaurant experience. Both the budget customer and the rich customer can savor the delectable taste of the companys products. In terms of warranty, the price shown in the advertisement profitably attracts the price-conscious customers (Richards 35).
Data 3
The ads indication of the number of pieces contained in each chicken order entices the customers. The ad contains the magical six piece information. The information creates a heavy meal image. Consequently, the ads display of six chicken pieces impresses on the customers that the money paid equates to eating more delicious stomach-filling chicken pieces. In terms of warranty, the number of chicken pieces creates a picture that the customer gets ones moneys worth of chicken products (Richards 35).
Summarizing the above discussion, the visual Kentucky Fried Chicken ad information paints hundreds of persuasive words. The true to life image of the chicken product boosts the demand for the products. The advertised menu prices increase the current and future customers purchasing activities. The menus discounted price magnetizes price-conscious clients. The quantity of chicken shown in the advertisement imprints a value for money image. Overwhelming, the Claim stating the Kentucky Fried Chicken website advertisement augments the current preference for the companys food products is correct.
The marketing environment consists of the internal and external forces which influence the development of the company in relation to its strategy and success within the market. It is possible to determine the internal and external environments where internal environment is related to the companys organization and inner issues and external environment consists of the micro-environment and macro-environment.
It is possible to discuss the particular features of the micro-environment and macro-environment with references to the fast food industry in Australia, analyzing the aspects of KFC (Kentucky Fried Chicken) companys progress. The fast food industry develops quickly in Australia, and fast food restaurants have the largest share in the market in spite of decreasing the publics interest in fast food products.
It is necessary to concentrate on exploring the characteristic features of the micro-environment and macro-environment in relation to the fast food industry, using the example of KFC because this company is among the leaders within the market.
The Impact of KFC on the Factors of the Micro-Environment within Australia
The micro-environment depends on the factors which are correlated with the organization of the industry. The factors which affect the companys development within the industry are customers, clients, partners, and competitors (Elliott, Rundle-Thiele, & Waller 2011). Although the micro-environment is not controlled by the company, the organization can affect the factors with references to developing the effective relations and strategies to influence the definite aspects of the micro-environment.
To success within the industry, it is important to satisfy the customers demands with the help of orienting to the target audience (Armstrong et al. 2009). The level of satisfaction of clients and customers also depends on the effectiveness of the companys relations with partners which can be the organizations financiers, suppliers, and retailers.
Competitors are the most challengeable factor for the definite companys progress with the market. To succussed in the rivalry, it is necessary to analyse the competitors strategies, the market trends, and customers preferences.
The success of KFC within the market is affected by such factors as customers, partnership, and competition. Nevertheless, KFC can also influence all these factors. The customers who are interested in the companys products are individuals and families. KFC restaurants are located at the places which are often visited by the public, and the target audience of the products is diverse.
To influence the customers buying ability and to increase their interest in the production, the company added some more dishes (the variety of burgers) to the traditional menu consisted of fried chicken and changed the suppliers to have the products of the highest quality (KFC: Kentucky Fried Chicken 2012).
The company can also influence the cooperation with partners developing the strategies for satisfying the both sides (Colagiuri & Caterson 2008). KFC pays much attention to the quality of the services provided, and the company is inclined to change the suppliers, retailers, advertisers, and logistics firms which do not respond to the companys requirements.
In the industry, KFC competes with such companies as McDonalds, Hungry Jacks, Healthy Habits, Oporto, and Henny Penny, In spite of the fact KFC is discussed today as the leading company within the fast food industry in Australia, its main competitor is McDonalds. To gain the leading position within the market, the company can influence the competitors indirectly, increasing the quality of the products, expanding the menu, and changing the price strategy.
It is necessary to pay attention to such aspects as the worldwide reputation of McDonalds, the orientation of Oporto on the chicken products, and Healthy Habits following the popular trend to propose the food appropriate for the healthy diet (McDonald 2011).
The Macro-Environmental Trends Influential for KFC
The macro-environment is based not on the particular aspects of the definite industry, but on large societal forces which are influential for all the markets (Elliott, Rundle-Thiele, & Waller 2011). These factors are political, economic, socio-cultural, technological, and legal forces which are used to conduct the PESTL analysis for any company.
It is important to concentrate on each force to present the full context for the market. Political forces are influential for marketing with references to regulating the principles of providing services, trading, and business developing (Armstrong et al. 2009). The political factor is correlated with the legal factor, and it is also important in relation to the issues of the quality control and regulating system.
The Australian government controls the companies following the act on food quality issues and regulates the principles of the fair competition within the market. KFC should follow the regulations developed to organize the cooperative relations between companies, consumers, and partners and to control the norms of the competition within the industry (Krug n.d.). KFC is affected by political and legal forces as any other company which operates within the fast food industry.
It is possible to identify three macro-environmental trends which can significantly affect KFC over the next twelve months in Australia. These trends are associated with the economic, socio-cultural, and technological forces. The economic environment is very changeable because it is influenced by the alternations in the political and social spheres. Moreover, the development of the international economy is also influential.
During last three years the economy of Australia was recovering from the consequences of the global economic crisis. Today, the situation is changed and the period of slowdown ended. However, economists predict the next crisis in year. The development of KFC can be affected negatively with references to price strategy which depends on the customers buying ability and competitors policies. The level of profits can decrease significantly.
Moreover, it is necessary to pay attention to the factor of the governments support of businesses in the situation of the economic crisis. According to the global economic development, in twelve months KFC can be influenced by the changes in the countrys economic sphere, as a result of global tendencies.
The next important factor is connected with the socio-cultural force. Socio-cultural factors reflect the consumers attitudes toward the product according to the developing tendencies in the society (Kotler et al. 2003). It is important to note that such factors as gender and age are not significant for KFC marketing because of the large target audience.
However, the changes in the publics food preferences can affect the companys progress considerably. It is possible to speak about increasing the impact of such social tendencies as the orientation to the healthy food. Operating within the fast food industry, KFC limits its possibility to respond to the latest socio-cultural tendencies.
Technological changes can affect the process of producing definite goods or they can be used to improve the provision of services and contacting with customers (Kotler et al. 2003). The changes in the technological process can also affect the particular features of KFC marketing strategy.
Following the changes in the customers preferences, it is possible to add some alternations to the menu and provide some changes in the technological process to increase the quality characteristics of the products and services. From this point, it is possible to predict the usage of new cooking equipment and technological innovations to improve the process of producing. These trends can bring positive effects on the companys productivity.
Possible Ways of KFCs Responding to the Macro-Environmental Trends
The risk of the next economic crisis is discussed with references to all the industries in spite of their specifics. KFC can respond to the negative changes in the economic environment, attracting more customers with the help of flexible pricing policy and providing more variables.
Today, KFC is one of the most successful companies which operate within the fast food industry. The company has the good reputation based on the high quality of products, and the target audience increases continuously. That is why, it is possible to state that some changes in the companys marketing strategy directed toward lowering the costs can be effective to respond to the economic changes.
Tendencies associated with the socio-cultural forces can be addressed with references to using the changes in the technological sphere. To respond to the customers increasing interest in the healthy food which is promoted with the help of the media and social programs, it is possible to add the dishes to the menu which meet the requirements of the healthy diet and use the innovative technologies to improve the technological process of cooking to compete within the market successfully.
Conclusion
The internal and external forces which influence the marketing processes also affect companies from the point of the macro-environment and micro-environment. KFC is one of the leading companies which provide their services within the fast food industry in Australia. The successful development of the company depends on the effective marketing strategies used to compete in the industry with such companies as McDonalds, Hungry Jacks, Healthy Habits, Oporto, and Henny Penny.
Thus, the priorities of KFCs marketers are to affect the relations with customers and succeed in the industrys competition. Moreover, the trends associated with economic, socio-cultural, and technological forces can be discussed as influential for the companys development in twelve months.
Reference List
Armstrong, G, Harker, M, Kotler, P, & Brennan, R 2009, Marketing: an introduction, Pearson Education, Australia.
Colagiuri, S & Caterson, I 2008, KFC sponsorship of cricket , Medical Journal of Australia, vol. 189 no. 7, pp. 415-416.
Elliott, G, Rundle-Thiele, S, & Waller, D 2011, Marketing, John Wiley & Sons, Australia.
KFC is a fast-food restaurant. Over the years in which it has been operating the restaurant has been able to satisfy the needs of its customers especially with the variety of chicken combinations which it offers (Duiker 2009, 348). Recently, KFC has launched the Buckets for the Cure Campaign aimed at raising money to fight breast cancer by creating awareness of the disease to the public. Since this campaign concerns health issues, I believe that the advert for KFC should be changed to display a theme that is more conscious of health. This is because the original advert is already facing a lot of criticism from the medial and the public as well.
Criticisms of the Campaign
KFC and its partner for the Buckets for the Cure Campaign Susan G. Komen have faced a lot of criticism from the media and the public. They view campaign to be an avenue for the restaurant to make money instead of creating awareness for breast cancer. Furthermore, they criticize the campaign through its slogan on its advertisement each bucket makes a difference since it infers that the more one buys the more they save lives. The critics do not view it in this way since they think that consumption of excessive chicken leads to obesity, a condition that is fatal and may in the long run lead to breast cancer. As stated earlier the advert needs to change together with the slogan for the campaign.
Techniques for Change
The existing technique for the current advert was scale. This was exhibited by the large bucket full of chicken. To reflect a health-conscious advert the technique of ideal people should be used. A picture of a slim lady holding a piece of chicken should be perfect for the advert. This will persuade the customers that the correct consumption of their chicken will not lead to obesity. At the same time it will be in line with their ongoing campaign which aims at creating awareness for breast cancer.
Target Audience
The target audience for the advert will be those individuals who have got health problems. This is because they are the most sensitive individuals in the society in terms of health. They have the highest risk of being affected while consuming KFC products. Once it has been proven that they consume KFC products and yet they are healthy then KFC and their campaign against breast cancer will gain a lot of support from the entire public. Support from the public is essential for the success of the campaign.
Placement
The placement of the advert will also have to change. This will be conducted on the storyline of movies and television programs which can be viewed by all family members. The placement could also be in news programs. The choice of these options is based on the fact that we want this information to reach out to every individual in the society regardless of their age, sex or race. This mode of placement will achieve this objective easily.
Change of Other Items
The only item that needs to be changed in the advert is the picture of the bucket full of chicken. I think that this picture has a theme of consuming a lot of chicken which is actually not healthy. In fact I believe that this very picture brought about a lot of criticism for the Buckets for the cure campaign in the first place. In its place I suggest a picture of a slim lady holding a piece of chicken smiling. This picture will have a health theme being aired out supporting the campaign against breast cancer. The slogan for the campaign will remain the same.
Ethos
The ethos in the original advertisement was the image of the bucket full of chicken. This picture had an initial impression of quantity and quality of KFC chicken. However, with the breast cancer campaign the picture should be changed to a slim lady holding a piece of chicken. This will convey the theme of health consciousness. Image is very important for the success of the campaign since customers will believe that the product will not cause obesity which might lead to cancer.
Logos
The initial advert was logos-driven. This was conveyed by the bucket full of chicken and the slogan. As stated earlier, the bucket should be replaced with a lady holding a piece of chicken but the slogan should remain the same. This is because it has a statistical appeal of every bucket counts. Therefore the more one purchases the more he or she helps.
Pathos
The initial advertisement pathos was contained in the slogan of the advertisement. This slogan was each bucket makes a difference. This slogan had an emotional impact on the customers since they felt to have been involved in the campaign with every purchase that they made. I think that the pathos was well reflected thus the slogan should be maintained. This is because it makes the customer want to be involved in the campaign by purchasing KFC products.
Conclusion
It is necessary to change the current KFC advert. This will solve the criticisms the campaign is facing. These criticisms are affecting the campaign for breast cancer awareness and the reputation of the company. This can be achieved by changing the image of the advertisement, the target audience and the placement of the product. In doing so the campaign is going to be successful and KFC will also maintain its customers and maintain its reputation which it has struggled over the years to build.
Reference
Duiker, William J. (2009). Contemporary World History. Kentucky: Cengage Learning.
KFC (Kentucky Fried Chicken) is a chain of fast food restaurants. It is based in Kentucky USA (KFC 6). The company specifically sells chicken pieces, salads, wraps and sandwiches. On the other hand, it deals with roasted and grilled chicken products. In addition, it offers desserts and side dishes. As a matter of fact, the company sells pork products in markets outside North America.
Discussion
Business level strategies
KFC has been opening new restaurants every now and then to widen its presence in the market (Fermino 11). This has seen the company become the worlds largest chicken restaurant chain. On the other hand, its the worlds third largest food chain. Most of the companys growth has been driven by international operations. This growth can be attributed to fast food franchising that the company has embraced.
Evaluation of business level strategy
The companys strategy is derived from extensive consumer research. This has seen it come up with enticing products that suit various consumer needs (Shanahan 9).
As a matter of fact, the company has various products to ensure that diverse and distinct customers interests are taken care of. KFC has also embraced globalization as a growth strategy. This has been done by adopting their products and business practices to the local context (Lewis 21).
As far as the companys performance is concerned, these business strategies have been successful. This can be explained from, the fact that most of its franchises have continued to post favorable financial results (KFC 27).
Customers are nowadays more informed about products and they will always demand the best. By using consumer research as a market strategy, the company has been able to understand various customer needs. In the process, it has been able to serve them well. Implementation of these strategies has been done effectively to ensure that they meet their expectations (Scot 13).
Competitive Advantage
Success can only be achieved with proper formulation and implementation of business strategies (Lamb 5). The company has been accumulating its business resources and organizational capabilities to build a sustainable and formidable competitive advantage. As far as globalization is concerned, the company has ensured that it builds local leadership to manage its diverse franchised businesses.
Capacity to sustain competitive advantage
The fast food business as a whole is very competitive and needs good strategies for long term sustainability (Ozersky 7). Competition has forced KFC to be more strategic and innovative to ensure that its business is not threatened (KFC 12)). On the other hand, the company has the capacity to sustain any competitive threats. KFC has more than 2500 restaurants with each of them generating more than one million dollars in revenues (KFC 17). This therefore means that it has the necessary resources to sustain any competition.
In addition, it has been involved in extensive marketing to ensure that customers are more informed of its products (Bulleit 23). The company has also used the internet and related technologies to effect its operations. This has seen it carry out its operations in a more cost effective way.
Globalization has also brought about competition as markets are more accessible that before (Hamel 19). KFC has always attracted the best talent to help it revolutionize its business and products.
KFC is also involved in extensive market research to come up with good strategies. This has enabled it to counter any strategic moves aimed at destabilizing its business. On the other hand, the company has a flexible menu that suits different markets. For instance, in Australia it has fillers in different varieties. These fillers are mostly sold over the summer (KFC 15).
Aspects of strategic management
Strategic management theory
Strategic management is supposed to help companies come up with new ideas and replace outdated ones (Malcolm 32). This should be done by proper utilization of resources to enhance the companys performance in the market. As a matter of fact, companies should come up with a good score card to evaluate their performance as far as business strategies are concerned (Stewart 29).
Internal / external analysis & business level strategy priorities
Companies are expected to evaluate their competitors in the market and come up with good strategies to counter all potential and existing competitors (Malcolm 38). This should be both in the short run and long run. Business strategies are supposed to be reassessed for enhanced sustainability. From our case, KFC has adhered to all aspects of strategic management by coming up with good strategies for growth.
Good strategic management should ensure that there is proper strategy formulation and implementation (Senge 5). KFC has been coming up with good strategies to enhance its market presence. To ensure that they are successful, the company has been availing all the necessary resources and support for proper implementation. For instance, franchising has always been reviewed to ensure that it is more sustainable.
Most of the companys strategies have been suitable. For instance it has been enhancing its menu to ensure that all distinct customers tastes are satisfied. The company has mostly used an industry organizational approach to strategic management (Jarillo 11). It has done this by laying more emphasis on resource allocation, competitive rivalry and economies of scale.
Conclusion
The company has continued to attract customers to its restaurants because of diversity. It is estimated that it serves more than 12 million customers in a single day. The company has operations in more than 109 countries in the world. KFC is famous because of its original recipe that customers have continued to identify with. The company will continue having good growth prospects with effective strategies in place.
The following work is devoted to investigation of the value chain of KFC company by analyzing its main peculiarities of functioning. The issue of value chain now obtains especial importance as companies try to win the rivalry and attract attention of a great number of customers. The term was introduced by Michael Porter and started its development. Nowadays, under the term value chain a set of activities which a company performs in order to introduce a certain good to a market or a customer is meant (Manktelow, n.d).
Usually, using the term value chain a person wants to describe the process of advertising, manufacturing and peculiarities of delivery and image of a product. That is why, it is very important to analyze the companys value chain in order to obtain complete information about it.
Main activities the KFC company and their analysis.
First of all, it is possible to say that to work efficiently a company needs well aligned system which will be able to supply it with good products. That is why, KFC company tries to find the best suppliers of chicken meat. However, taking into account the price of delivery, the company works with local suppliers in order to reduce the above mentioned price. Such politics of a company helps to achieve several purposes, except the lowering of delivery price. First of all, local manufacturers of chicken meat will be interested in the opening of new departments of the company as they will be able to work with it. Additionally, cooperation with local manufacturers can be taken as the guaranty of a good quality of products as they will not spoil in the course of delivery.
Some information about outbound logistics should also be given. KFC finished product are kept at its local departments. Great number of different kinds of food are kept in a freezer. Workers of a company just have to take them and prepare, using equipment which is placed in the kitchen However, the recipes should be obtained from headquarters in return of royalty payments. Additionally, staff trainings are also provided by headquarters and the price for products is established by them. In this way a company guaranties tight connection with its branches.
Stuff training in KFC
One of the main activities of the company is connected with education of its workers. The company has very diplomatic policy connected with stuff and proclaims that everyone can find a job there. That is why, a newcomer should be trained for him/her to be able to perform the main duties. The main skills, which a person should be taught, are determined by the officials of a company and the whole training program should be coordinated with them. Additionally, these programs are free. That is why, there are always many people who want to work there and the company does not suffer from the lack of workforce.
Technologies used by the company
Being a developed company with complicated infrastructure, KFC obviously needs some certain software in order to organize its work and make it more efficient. There are two different systems which are used in the work of KFC company. The first one is electronic cash register system which is used by the company to control sales operations and provide daily reports connected with financial side of the functioning of KFC. The second system is called Inventory Control System which main aim is to help to franchise and formulate the strategy of a company (Fosser, Leister & Moe, 2008). It is installed in the headquarters of the company and helps it to coordinate the work of all its branches
Additionally, the company obviously uses Enterprise Resource planning (ERP) system in its work. The given system helps to increase efficiency of the company significantly by providing new ways of calculation of data and working with different information obtained in the course of the functioning of the whole organization. There are several spheres where the work of ERP can be applied. These spheres are financial management, technical support, inventory management, asset management, forecasting, workforce management, time and expense management, procurement (Sahu, n.d.). Application of the main tools of ERP promotes significant increase of efficiency of the whole company.
Appraisal Support System
The company also watches attentively the level of performance of its workers. That is why, reports from different departments are collected and analyzed (Information Systems, Organizations, and Strategy, n.d.). This part of functioning of a company is aimed at distinguishing who deserves some reward and who should be punished. Such pattern helps to guarantee efficient work of the stuff.
KFC Corporative Strategy
It should also be said that ERP system is used to coordinate actions of different departments which are situated all over the world. The given tool allows to collect data all over the world and process it in order to produce universal corporate strategy according to which all departments of the company will function.
Conclusion
Having analysed the value chain of KFC company, it is possible to make a certain conclusion. First of all, it should be said that existing organization of the company helps it to achieve a certain competitive advantage. The thing is that all mechanisms, which guarantee successful functioning of KFC company, are thought through and well organised. The company has its own local suppliers which suggest products of high quality and which could be delivered without some extra spending.
Additionally, it is possible to say that all products obtained from suppliers are kept in local offices and could be prepared by specially trained stuff. This fact can also be taken as the great advantage of the company. The products suggested to customers will be of better quality and, moreover, easiness of their preparation can also serve as the evidence of the companys perfect organisation (Building Competitive Advantage, n.d). Being a modern company, KFC also uses different technologies in its work. Two different systems help to organise its work better. The first one deals with financial side of the company while the second one collects and processes information which is obtained from different departments.
It is also possible to say that great attention given by the company to its stuff and different kinds of training results in the increase of the level of its popularity. Being satisfied with the quality of services provided by KFC restaurants, people come there again and again. That is why, it is possible that KFC has certain competitive advantage. Being aimed at providing high quality products and services to its customers, KFC obviously will continue its development in this very direction. Moreover, it is also evident that further implementation of new technologies to the work of the organisation will be promoted and, that is why, it is possible to predict new ways in which the company will develop.
The Kentucky Fried Chicken Corporation (KFC), which was founded in 1952 in the US and now belongs to the Yum! Brands, Inc., is an international company that owns and franchises chicken restaurants and offers a variety of products like sandwiches, biscuits, sides, sauces, drinks, and others (Bloomberg, 2016). In 2013, about 60% of countries all over the world had KFC restaurants, and Yum! plans to proceed to expand (Wong, 2013, para 2).
KFC has a number of competitors in the international arena (including McDonalds), but its products are unique due to the emphasis on high-quality, non-quick (naturally growing) chicken and special recipes, which results in a competitive advantage (KFC, 2016c; Shuailing & Zhi, 2015).
The quality of KFCs (2016a, 2016b, 2016c) products and services is explicitly guaranteed by the publicly stated policies and assurances of the company. The present paper is devoted to the analysis of KFC quality management and control practices. It uses the companys policies and specific examples of quality issues to attempt to define the key tools that KFC uses for its quality management practice development and suggests recommendations for their future improvement.
Theoretical Framework
It should be pointed out that there is no reference to a particular quality management tool in the KFC reports and policies, which could be explained by the large size of the company. It may be suggested that various units of the company are allowed certain freedom in defining their tools. However, in 1995, a study conducted by Apte and Reynolds (1995) revealed that the company chooses practices rather than models, tests them, and employs them to manage and control the quality of its service.
It can be assumed that KFCs quality management is primarily based on the best practices kind of improvement, which results in the discontinuous development of company-specific tools that are tailored to its needs. As will be shown below, the currently existing processes seem to support this idea. However, the present research also shows that the consideration of KFC practices from the point of view of Six Sigma DMAIC allows gaining insights into the logic of the existing practices and, possibly, opens the opportunity for a more continuous improvement processes.
DMAIC is a part of the Six Sigma phenomenon, which involves Defining the area of interest (typically an issue), Measuring it, Analyzing it to determine the key cause, Improving it with the help of the information gained in the previous phase, and Controlling the process of improvement and the maintenance of results. The latter phase guarantees the continuity of development. DMAIC is a multifunctional method that can be employed for product development, process improvement, and problem-solving (De Mast & Lokkerbol, 2012). In this paper, it is suggested due to its applicability to the unique set of quality management practices of KFC.
Methodology
The methodology of this project is based on the analysis of KFCs quality-related policies and reports, which are available on its websites, and literature review. The latter includes scholarly and news articles that contain relevant information. The study is purely qualitative, and it analyses specific examples of quality issues and their resolution with the help of the KFC quality management framework.
There is an obvious limitation to this methodology: it is incapable of defining the actual practices of KFC since it is possible that the studied policies are not directly adhered to in practice. However, for this work, it will be assumed that the best practices that are described in KFC policies are implemented in real life in the majority of cases. Apart from that, the presented study cannot guarantee that it has gained the access to all the data on KFC quality management since it does not include the internal documents of the company. As a result, its conclusions will be suggested rather than asserted.
Results and Findings
KFC (2016b) appears to have defined two key areas of quality improvement and control: the quality of supply and that of restaurants performance (which includes the restaurants of franchisees). KFC (2016b) uses a number of programs to measure and monitor (control) these two areas. The suppliers are measured by their reputation and quality standards that are not extensively covered in public policy statements. The control is carried out by the Department of Veterinary Service and the KFC (2016b) Quality Assurance Department. The specific procedures of control and measurement include the STAR audit that is performed annually.
The restaurant quality measurement tools include the CHAMPS and HAACCP systems: the first one measures the Cleanliness, Hospitality, Accuracy, Maintenance, Product Quality, and Speed of Service, and the second is a Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point Programme (para. 9-12). Basically, HAACCP is used for measurement as well as control, but CHAMPS is a measurement system. The control of the performance quality in this respect is carried out with the help of CHAMPSCHECK, which is a mystery customer-type program.
Also, there is the Voice of the Customer Program that KFC (2016a) uses to measure customer satisfaction. Finally, KFC (2016a) sets specific quality control practices for franchisees called Franchise 360 scorecard, which is a variant of CHAMPS that is slightly more extensive. Also, there are food safety audits that are similar to HACCP, but they are only applicable to franchisees.
To sum up, the Define, Measure, and Control aspects of the KFCs (2016a, 2016b) quality management are well-covered in their quality assurance policy. They are visibly customer-oriented and aimed at keeping the KFCs (2016c) promise of highest-quality, safe food. Apart from that, the quality of franchise restaurants appears to be under harsher control, which is logical since the reputation of KFC is directly connected to their reputation.
DMAIC also includes the Analyse and Improve stages, which can be illustrated with the help of the following examples of the quality issues that KFC has encountered in the past. One of the challenges that were successfully addressed is the personal hygiene, which currently includes specific hand-washing best practice procedures. The latter include the use of antibacterial soap, special equipment (hands-free tap, paper towels) and particular hand movements and methods.
Hand washing is supposed to take 30 seconds, which is sufficient for hygiene maintenance but, at the same time, is not excessive and does not result in the waste of time. This example describes a best practice that is required of every KFC (2016b) worker and that has managed to address the issue of workplace hygiene. It appears to demonstrate the viability of the KFC quality control framework, which implies that the choice of the company is likely to be capable of providing it with the practices that are suitable for it and tailored to its needs.
Another issue that appears to have been resolved consists in the raw materials quality problems that KFC was experiencing because of its suppliers throughout the year 2013 in China (Wong, 2013). The issue included the exposure to contaminated chicken (Shuailing & Zhi, 2015). The problem had been addressed (Shuailing & Zhi, 2015; Wong, 2013), but the results are questionable. In particular, Shuailing and Zhi (2015), as well as Wong (2013), express concern about the possibility of recurring incidents, especially since KFC operates in a number of countries where issues with food safety are experienced.
Shuailing and Zhi (2015) believe that the current KFCs supplier quality control has weaknesses that resulted in the problem (p. 142), which implies that certain changes in the system might be in order. Wong (2013), on the other hand, highlights the importance of increased control over the non-domestic operations, especially those in developing countries that are known to have issues with food safety. This view also justifies KFCs approach to franchise quality control.
The ideas of Shuailing and Zhi (2015) and Wong (2013) appear to be helpful and suggest that changes should be made in KFCs current quality control procedures. It is also noteworthy that the necessity for change seems to be required due to the developments in the companys operations: as KFC proceeds to expand to new markets, it needs to adapt to their specifics. Therefore, this example indicates that the current KFC quality management procedures may be imperfect and might require a quality improvement of their own.
Table 1 in Appendix A summarizes this analysis and demonstrates how the DMAIC framework can be applied to KFC quality management and control practices.
Summary, Conclusion, and Recommendation
The presented research allows making the following conclusions. While KFC does not appear to name the quality control tool that it is employing, the typical process of the tools development might suggest that the company uses the best practice improvement method. Some of the companys practices are aimed at performance measurement and control, which allows applying the DMAIC framework to KFCs processes.
The analysis and improvement stages have not been directly found during this research, which can be explained by the unavailability of the companys internal documents, but the existing improvements in the KFC quality management might indicate their existence. As a result, the present paper demonstrates that KFC quality control practices can be displayed with the help of the Six Sigma DMAIC framework, which provides insights into their logic.
The quality control practices of KFC are extensive and tailored to its needs, which implies that the company may have found its own mix of acknowledged and innovative tools, which might include DMAIC or its elements together with the best practices improvement method. However, the present study has found more evidence to the discontinuous, breakthrough improvement of best practices than the continuous improvement of DMAIC.
The control that is being exerted by the company does not appear to spur its continuous development; rather, it is aimed at strict adherence to particular practices. It may be suggested that KFC is more interested in a conservative policy, and the example of the successful resolution of the hygiene issue indicates that its framework does yield results. However, the problem of meat and food quality also suggests that the framework itself might require improvement. Therefore, the DMAIC approach, which already fits KFCs understanding of quality management, might be recommended as a solution or a set of guidelines for KFCs quality management improvement.
Shuailing, L. I., & Zhi, Y. U. (2015). KFC Development in Chinese MarketBased on the Social Responsibility and Ethics. International Business and Management, 10(3), 142-146. Web.
The present paper is devoted to the overview and evaluation of KFC business processes. The paper defines the term business process, detects two major KFC processes, provides their description that is based on KFC promises and documented outcomes, and makes suggestions about their advantages and disadvantages. It is concluded that there is some room for development in the processes, but they both exhibit great potential, which is likely to be used for their improvement.
Business Process
The term business process has multiple definitions, not all of which can be regarded as perfectly substitutable. In summary, in terms of a business, a process is a group of related activities or a series of steps that allows achieving a business objective, which typically consists of creating a result of value for clients, primarily the product or service in question (Rosing, Scheel, and Scheer 130-131).
However, other sources of customer satisfaction and other business objectives can be considered as the final destination of business processes. For example, KFCs corporate social responsibility-related activities (diversity management, animal welfare) can be regarded as a business process of its own ( Theres More to US par. 1-9). In other words, most of a companys activities can be classified as business processes or their part. However, to limit our analysis, we will focus on two key business processes for KFC.
KFC and its Business Processes
KFC (Kentucky Fried Chicken) is a subsidiary of Yum! brands, Inc. KFC was founded in 1952 by Colonel Harland Sanders as a freshly made chicken meal restaurant; currently, it operates and franchises its restaurants internationally ( Company Overview par. 1). The number of restaurants that KFC operates amounts to 17,000 ( Be Your Own Colonel par. 1). In 2013, KFC was present 60% of the worlds countries (Wong par. 2). It may be assumed that the key processes for KFC include their service and product as well as franchising.
Service and Product
The product production process involves several stages that begin with the concept development and end with production or continuous improvement (Annacchino 461-465). The concept of home-made meals with chicken has changed over time, but KFC still has several unique foods to offer, including the Original Recipe (r) and Extra Crispy (TM) ( What Made Us Great par. 1). The specific processes are not disclosed, but KFC pledges to adhere to sanitary norms (Shuailing and Zhi 143). In general, KFC claims to have a customer-centric approach and philosophy, which presupposes high quality and safety products as well as friendly, fast, and quality service (Shuailing and Zhi 143-144).
KFC restaurants serve a variety of foods including sandwiches, sides, desserts, drinks, sauces, fill-ups, buttermilk biscuits, and other products; big-box meals, popcorn nuggets, and kids meals; and chicken products, including chicken hot wings, chicken sandwiches, and fried chicken products ( Company Overview par. 1). Chicken foods are the main product offered in restaurants. However, food safety issues emerged in Chinese KFC restaurants during 2013, and even though the company swears to have dealt with them, they have caused major problems and a decrease in KFCs reputation (Wong par. 3-4).
One of the reasons for the issues appears to consist of suppliers who have been providing contaminated or low-quality poultry (Shuailing and Zhi 145). In particular, the suppliers provided KFC with fast chicken that gets hormones injections to mature rapidly. At the same time, KFC claims to have no contaminated or fast chicken on their menu ( Theres More to US par. 2-6). In other words, there is a serious drawback in the KFC service and product business process.
Franchising
KFC has a specifically developed franchising process. In particular, the company pays special attention to candidate assessment. The candidates are supposed to provide the information on their multi-unit restaurant operation experience, finances, and financial reputation as well as the personal one ( KFC Franchising par. 2-4). Also, KFC finds it necessary to assess the candidates motivation and commitment.
All the information is provided by the candidate in the application and during interviews; also, it is reviewed by the company via background checks. The relationships between the franchise owners and the company are regulated via the Franchise Agreement, and the monitoring of the performance is carried out with the help of several procedures. The Franchise 360 scorecard is aimed at assessing the quality of food, service, and some other crucial aspects (like cleanness).
The third-party Food Safety Audits are carried out to ensure the quality and safety of food. Finally, customers can assess franchisees performance with the help of the Voice of the Customer Program. Franchising is possible within the US and internationally. Among other aspects that KFC specifically comments on concerning the franchising process is the intent of the company to increase the number of minorities among franchise owners ( KFC Franchising par. 4).
Evaluation and Conclusion
In general, the service and product and the franchising processes of KFC can be regarded as consistent, comprehensive, and customer-oriented. KFCs website demonstrates the desire to provide quality and safe products that will be served with a smile in a KFC restaurant regardless of whether it is a franchise unit or not. Franchising candidates are picked thoroughly, and their performance is controlled with the help of numerous tools that should assist in the improvement of franchise restaurants. Also, KFC highlights its endeavor for a responsible business, which can be illustrated by their willingness to involve minorities in their business. To sum up, there is a notable potential in both processes, and their developers aim for continuous improvement of KFC restaurant quality.
Unfortunately, from the analysis above it is apparent that the service and product process of KFC has a major weakness. While its general philosophy and endeavor for customer-oriented processes are supposed to rule out low-quality products, the lack of control over suppliers leads to this adverse outcome. Sailing and Zhi suggest that it is the responsibility of KFC to check and verify the quality of supply since it is KFC reputation that is endangered.
It might be reasonable to check suppliers as rigorously as franchisee candidates (or even more rigorously). Also, it is not ruled out that the issues related to the quality of food might be the result of franchisees poor control oversupply. The requirements for the quality of the service and products provided by the franchisees, however, suggest that KFC is supposed to be ensuring sufficient control over the food safety and other aspects of the restaurants service.
Unfortunately, policies and philosophies are not always correlated with the outcomes, and it can be suggested that the implementation parts of the service and product and franchising processes of KFC are lacking control. Therefore, it should be pointed out that there is some room for improvement in both processes that are concerned with better quality control. Undoubtedly, the existing practices and the will for improvement that is embedded in KFC philosophy should facilitate this change.
Works Cited
Annacchino, Marc A. The Pursuit Of New Product Development. Amsterdam: Butterworth-Heinemann, 2011. Print.
Be Your Own Colonel. KFC. KFC, 2016. Web.
Company Overview. Bloomberg. Bloomberg L.P., 2016. Web.
Rosing, Mark von, Henrik von Scheel, and August-Wilhelm Scheer. The Complete Business Process Handbook. Burlington: Morgan Kaufmann, 2014. Print.
Shuailing, Li, and Yu Zhi. KFC Development in Chinese MarketBased on the Social Responsibility and Ethics. International Business and Management 10.3 (2015): 142-146. Print.
In 1968s, the first KFC (Kentucky Fried Chicken) restaurant was born in Guildford, Sydney NSW, Australia. In that Time, people’s fashion were totally groovy with tight high waist jeans and cool shirts. hairstyles were flower crowns with very long hair for the lady’s!
In the history, KFC began 67 years ago in the year of 1952s in Corbin, Kentucky, United States of America with Colonel Harland Sanders concept being YUM! The company with a secret herbs list and spices scratched on the back of the door being put into his chicken until now KFC still following his successful recipes.
Now every day, Over 2 Million times per week service to KFC customers across the country at more than 650 restaurants with jobs created to more than 34,000 Australians.
What is KFC Services Vision and Mission ?
Service Vision is the Businesses Process of planned service that the company are offering, including delivery systems and procedures to achieve requirements. Service Vision Statement need the answer, Where do I see my business going?. So KFCs service vision stand for priding themselves on using quality chicken and local ingredients such as herbs and spices from trusted companies.
Service Mission means a strong commitment to achieving their business goals and need the answer why does my business exist?. So KFC mission is to sell food in a fast, friendly environment that appeals to a well priced product for people’s consciousness, health-minded customers
KFC Strategy
KFC strategy focuses on what KFC do (importantly, what can KFC do or not do), What KFC want to become in the future and how KFC plan to get there. Focusing on consistent experiences and provide quality chicken and recipes across all restaurants at an equal level of excellence and standard Provide customers/consumers quality of food at value for money, Together with quick services, cleanliness and convenience of service
KFC plan to become the leading fast food restaurant in the world so expansion is high in there plans with restaurants opening in new residential areas consistently over the years
KFC Process and Design
Larger KFC branches occupy a large space of land meaning they’re able to cater for a large amount of people with parking bays suited for all customers Immediately, When consumers walk into KFC, all consumers are able to see easily the menus all shown on screen above the counter cleary and highly visible making ordering with the staff in front of you the quickest and easiest way to order and pay.
Consumers have multiple way to receive their services as they’re able to drive in to order and sit to enjoy the meals as take away, Customers are then able to enjoy their meals at home, Outside in a park, In there car or even workplace. Standardized ordering system and fast preparation of food in a few minutes to ensure consistent experience.
Engaging and attracting customers in service organization
“Customers will never love a company until the employees love it first.” – Simon Sinek (Jonathan Herrick, 2019)
Staffs are the greatest asset and the soul of KFC. They are the one who will directly delivery the food, customer service and company messages to the customers. The staffs play a significant role in the overall quality service and customer satisfaction rating. To boost the productivity and service satisfaction, the manager should communicate effectively the mission and vision of the company to the employees in order to make them feel engaged and perform better to achieve the goals. Besides, KFC needs to have better employee training and development policy in place for their frontline staff to engage better with customers, such as train them how to work effectively in a team, or little things like keep smiling and present themself well at work. Otherwise, if an employee is not trained or looked after, then they’re not going to provide a great customer experience.
KFC has many different social media channels however they do not use them effectively to engage with their customers. They have great graphics and visual designs in spite of their slow responses on Social Media. This can possibly ruin KFC’s online reputation and image. They need to engage directly with their customers by answering responsively to customer requirements and feedback. This is not only help KFC build emotional connection with their customers but also make them feel valued and appreciated. Besides, listening to the customers and feedback on social media is an beneficial strategy to define the audience and predict what they want, so KFC can adjust and increase customer loyalty by improving failure points, launching different special offers and seasonal menu items that interest the customers.
Recently, KFC has launched a new KFC App with many features that allows customers to easily customize their meals; quickly save and order online, delivery, receive newest promotion, discounts and earns exclusive offers. They add more value to the customers using the App (KFC, 2019).
KFC highly promote Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) on their digital platforms and have a public commitment to their employee and customers on providing an ethic workplace, offering more choice transparency and nutritional improvement, and sustainable practices in their business (KFC, 2019). They also should inspire and engage their customers more by sharing company’s vision and mission such as delivering consistent quality food, excellent customer service and offering job opportunities across the country on different digital channels.
The Leadership
1. The importance of leadership in organizations
The leader acts as an important part of the community. According to Berghofer (ND) “fortunes, customs, laws, governance, religion all derive from dominant leadership”. He also states that there are many leaders who reach the top of power. Leaders could be the babies at school or the elders at the most powerful councils. In addition, he claims that the quality of a society is a result from its leadership. In service organization, good leadership will benefits the business in a number of ways such as: connecting staff, having high reputation in the community, maintaining relationships with customers.
2. KFC LEADERSHIP STYLE
According to Steph (2015), there are many KFC stores around the World and each of them use a different leadership style. Namely: autocratic, democratic and laissez faire. However, Autocratic seems to be the most popular (Ghumsha & Mozaa, 2017). In their paper, Ghumsha & Mozza highlight that the power of staff is limited to ‘only to change a drink on orders’- answered by the manager. In this style of leadership, followers do not have the opportunities to make or discuss the decision. Furthermore, There are not much of gender equality in KFC leadership as well. Specularly, there is none female manager in KFC during Ghumsha & Mozza research.
3. ETHICAL ISSUE IN LEADERSHIP
Due to many ethical violations has been detected in business around the world, ethical issues in organizations has become a burning issue recently, especially ethical leadership. According to Brown & Trevino (2006) ethical leadership is one of the most important factors in the environment of organization. (cited in Ardichvili, Mitchell & Jondle 2009).
Especially in the Food industry business like KFC, Ethical issue is very important. As a result of having a good leader will lead to healthy, safe working environment. Thus, the customers will be pleased with good quality of food. For example, a bad leader may orders KFC staff to use the old, not fresh ingredients to make the food. Therefore, this affects the quality of food.
Service guarantees, service failure and service recovery
Service Guarantee
KFC have service guarantees like money guarantee return to customer when KFC product doesn’t match with prescription. This service guarantee doesn’t have in KFC policy, but it applies in real time. In my own experience, I went to KFC to order a nuggets and chips with tomatoes sauce and cheese but in busy time they give me different order. I come back in reception and they return my money back for their apologize to customer for their faults. Secondly, KFC have on their service is exchange or return money when KFC product are unsafe to consume or customer not happy with KFC product for example that customer pay a money to get a good food so when they not happy with product like soggy chicken because they cook so long before or not enough time to make it crispy so in that case customer can come to order place ask staff to replace product or money back .
Service Failure
KFC have a service failure are staff worker often are younger aged and lack of real- world experience this often leads to customers opinions employees to be lower. For KFC process, their process is come inside to order or drive thru with streamlined service. Streamlined service it mean overall steps cut down to the bare minimum one individual breading and frying the chicken in the front and staff taking order and preparing the meal the streamlined service results in the quickest possible delivery but quality often seems to lack with undercooked and accident occurring such as burns and cuts due to time pressures. Last service failure is inside order, sometimes KFC meet a slow service when it is in busy time like lunch and dinner. It’s a pressure time for staff so staff may get a wrong order and ignoring customer. moreover, I want to give few service recoveries for KFC to improve their service, take care of customer.
Service recovery
First step to improve their service is training staff. Training staff should be online, interactive and mandatory testing should be conducted. Make it easy for staff to refer back to and mandatory testing could be carried out semi-annually. After that manager of a store should be more careful when they supervisor of staff when they are working. They need to give free food and coupon can be used them as recovery strategies. Share insights on KFC’s values and ethics with the employees is equally important because KFC a franchisee must’ve subject to standardization of services .If not enough : manager should respond back and make conversation with customer have a better understanding of problems when managers have all information they are then to come with solutions it is beneficial to keep the customers in the loop in regards to the procedure an effective management would use the information and content gained due to the complaint to implement and alter strategies that might be either
Services Technology And Its Applications
KFC has been around for over 60 years and in that time technology has developed at a rapid rate, As we all know technology plays a vital role in our daily lives nowadays with everything being run on computer generated technology and smartphones.
The new trend in the restaurant business technology department is the use of smartphones in connection with the restaurant, Since a lot of of new workers are millennials they are very tech savvy and highly skilled in use of smartphone applications. KFC plans to implement a few new things to help train the staff as well as things to help better customer service.
Firstly KFC have created a voice activated training test so far in Australia and some in the United States. The training test includes a program that has Amazon Echo Show basically a video recording where you are able to speak and ask questions with the digital program, This comes in very handy for the trainee when they are learning there new tasks for instance let’s say they need to know how to wrap a twister the trainee would simply ask and a demonstration on how to wrap it would be shown on the screen.
Secondly let look at social media, More than ever social media is the key to communication and KFC have started using Yammer mostly in Australia and some in the United States a way to communicate from branch to branch but it doesn’t stop there, Using yammer you are also able to communicate to the entire market. With Yammer you can communicate with store by providing data to one another about speed of processing which creates some competition and a bit of fun to the environment which can lead to boosting team morale for the branch. You can even communicate by checking the stores stock and ask to borrow another branches stock quickly and easily.
The system had grown rapidly in recent years up over 20,000 members in the last two years
Lastly KFC are looking into QR codes a way to use your smartphone to scan to a machine that can then read the code to play a video if the employee is unsure about how to do something. Also even for customers when they place an order the employer can then read the code once scanned creating a fast and efficient operating system.
Technology in the kitchen is vital computers are the quickest and most effective way to do something implementing these things can only better the overall speed and efficiency of the company.
REFERENCES
Ardichvili, A, Mitchell, J & Jondle, D 2009, ’Characteristics of Ethical Business Cultures’, Journal of Business Ethics, vol. 85, no. 4, pp. 445-451.
Berghofer, D, Ethical leadership, Institute for ethical leadership, viewed 03 November 2013,
Ghumsha, N & Mozaa, B, Leadership style in KFC, KFC, viewed 03 November 2013,
KFC, 2019. Corporate Social Responsibility. Retrieved from https://www.kfc.com.au/corporate-social-responsibility https://www.kfc.com.au/about-us
KFC, 2019. KFC App. Retrieved from https://www.kfc.com.au/kfc-app
Jonathan Herrick, 2019. 8 Simon Sinek Quotes That Will Change The Way You Do Business. Retrieved from https://www.hatchbuck.com/blog/simon-sinek-quotes-will-change-your-business/
Organizations and companies all around the world use public relations to build beneficial relationships with members of the public to ensure a mutual co-existing between the two groups. Public relations includes a communication process that most companies, firms, organizations, and at times individuals employ to develop a strategic relationship that has mutual benefits between them. The core objectives of public relations are usually to uphold a positive status of the brand with clients, customers, the public, investors, employees, and stakeholders. Public relations works differently with advertising in that it does not involve buying ads or writing stories rather, agencies at public relations promote organizations and their brands through using editorial content that can appear on news channels, magazines, television programs, and blogs. The present essay analyzing one of the public relation cases that happened recently and discus how it affected the public.
Background and Situation
The Kentucky Fried Chicken is American based. It has over 20,000 locations around the world scattered in around 136 nations of the world. KFC was founded during the great depression when the founder Colonel Harland started selling fried chicken from the roadside near his home. With time, the first ever KFC restaurant was opened in 1952 with the place specializing in fried chicken although there were other products being sold as well. The brand was one of the initial companies in the USA to establish other restaurants outside the country to nations like Canada, Jamaica, Mexico, and the United Kingdom. Due to the overwhelming situation with the brand, Colonel Sanders sold the company to investors being led by John Y. Brown who still has ownership to the restaurant to date (Fekete, 2003, p. 45).
An advertisement in the United Kingdom national press as given out by one of the marketers of KFC revealed that the brand was currently at that time, chicken restaurant that has no chicken. The company went through a crisis in February 2018 where it had challenge with its supply chain forcing it to close hundreds of restaurants in the United Kingdom. After having problems with supply of chicken, the company was forced to switch delivery companies, an action that led to chicken shortage (Mcgarth, 2018). During the peak of the crisis, the poultry shortage forced the brand to close down close to 646 restaurants out of the total 900 situated in the United Kingdom. There are steps that are necessary in being effective when it comes to preventing conflicts from extending, these steps will be further discussed.
The crisis could have caused the company to lose revenues, brand damage, and get negative reviews from disgruntled customers were it not for the well-executed public relations plan that repaired the damage caused with greater speed. News about the poultry shortage of the company reached the public with hours of the initial problem. Customers became aware of the problem the company was facing and what exactly went wrong that had made the company to find itself in that scenario. The public became aware of the problem, what was being done to fix it, and what had caused it without any form of dishonesty from the management (Griffin, 2006, p. 163).
Goal objectives
As for goal objectives, everything is intended to be fact and all true information being shared with the media and world. As well as the goal to address the crisis that the company was facing promptly by not hiding the whereabouts about any complications or conflicts. To face it head on to where no one can ask any questions in addition to make it public information so that customers could know the set back the company was going through. In the end to come up with a strategy to overcome the crisis and be back to good terms and overall resolve the issue at hand.
Programming (Planning and Execution)
The media was interested in the crisis the company was going through therefore the company gave out a response labelling the crisis a “triumph.” Experts on public relations and reputation gave out a statement saying KFC’S response to the challenge it was going through was a master class in the crisis communication it had found itself into. The company recognized the mistake it had done by switching Delivery Company for poultry, and used that challenge to turn it into an advantage by using humor to describe it. Overall to be considered effective public relations, research, planning, use of communication, and measurement is necessary (Wilcox et al., 2013, p. 90). When word came around about a chicken fast food chain ran out of chicken, it definitely spread fast, but the approach from the strategy team was a picture of a bucket with the term “FCK” on it that took a humorous approach and led viewers to be more understanding of the situation and giving reasons as to why instead of brushing it off. Agenda setting that was coined by Max MCCombs and Don Shaw was used since they began to headline off not having chicken and being a public discussion allowed them to frame and shape the story and set the agenda of this crisis (Wilcox et al., 2013, p. 144)
Both the supporting communications and the advertising teams of the company were honest and geniuses. The accepted the mistake they had done and described using simple language and injecting humor. In the initial moments when the supply chain broke down, there was little knowledge on when the company would get back on its feet and at this point it could have been easier for the director of the company to hesitate concerning allowing the public to know of the crisis but this was not the case. The company thought it was best to recognize and address the common issues that were being faced by loyal customers and then from there generate a narrative as facts started unfolding.
The company responded with honesty to the public and the media thus its speed of response was determined as the core to correctly managing the crisis successfully. Due to the truth and integrity shown by the company loyal customers of KFC waited patiently until the crisis was solved. The company created fliers and pamphlets that would indicate the availability of chicken for customers so that it would be easier for them to know when there is fried chicken and when it is not available. Due to that, it was easier for the company to operate as it kept records of poultry availability and as a result customer availability as well. The supply shortage affected a large number of restaurants in the UK and not just KFC but when hungry clients took to social media to complain; only KFC came clean to address the issue at hand to make it known to everyone. For that reason, customers became even more loyal to the company thus making it emerge out of the crisis successfully (French & Crabbe, 2010, p. 30).
KFC did a tremendous job transforming a challenging crisis into an advantage and earn more out of it. One thing the company could have done it could have employed a temporary supply company for poultry even more than one to cover up for the time it was experiencing a shortage so that all the 600+ restaurants could remain functional. The problem could have come with switching delivery companies but the moment the company could have started realizing shortages, a smart choice could have been to contract a second and third delivery company. Something else the company could have done is it could try switching or integrating its products and sell some different product apart from the fried chicken so that all the closed restaurants could remain open and functional (Datamonitor 2009). Qualitative research also took place through the usage of staying valid with their facts that makes them seem trustworthy and reliable in addition to projecting to the entire location where the shortages took place to get richer insights through a more thought out process to receive a tremendous quality of results. The conflict management life cycle was used to illustrate the problem through the empty bucket and used proactive stage as to planning out prevention before it gets out of control, strategic through professional action of having media team come up with something to explain, reactive through use of crisis communication, and recovery phase through the reputation and restoring it through supply of chicken again.
Conclusion
Public relations have the capability of reducing a crisis on their terms and strategy companies use that to create good relationships with the public and when activated properly it can save a company from drowning or earn more profits. KFC learnt that the only way it could come out of its crisis victorious was by involving the public and coming clean to them. This strategy worked thus making the KFC public relation case one of the most common successful cases of PR in 2018. I would probably use the contingency continuum by going straight to the pure accommodation part of the scale and having the company concurs with its customers, changes the approaches through making compensation, and even makes a full open expression of remorse for our mistake.
References
Datamonitor Plc (2009). KFC Case Study: Addressing Recessionary Challenges by focusing on health and value.
Fekete, S. S. & Keith, L. (2003). Companies are people too, discover, develop, and grow your organization (2nd ed.). Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons.
French, P. & Crabbe, M. (2010). Fat China: How expanding Waistlines are changing a nation (Vol. 1, No. 5). New York, NY: Anthem Press.
Griffin, R. W. (2006). Student achievement series: Principles of management. Boston, MA: Houghton Mifflin Company.
Mcgrath, J. (2018). How KFC turned crisis to triumph. Raconteur. Retrieved by https://www.raconteur.net/business-innovation/kfc-turned-crisis-triumph
Wilcox, D. L., Cameron, G. T., Reber, B. H., & Shin, J. (2013). Think public relations. Boston: Pearson.
KFC also called Kentucky fried chicken, famous for fried chicken, headquarter located in Louisville, California. It is world’s largest restaurant after McDonald and located in 136 countries of the world. The chain subsidises of YUM BRANDS, a company which owns the Taco bell and Pizza hut. KFC was founded by Colonel Harland Sanders, starting from roadside restaurant of fried chicken and opened a first franchise in Utah in 1952. Colonel used “original recipe” with 11 herbs and spices which he doesn’t want to reveal in front of other people and ask them that he is using salt and pepper instead. This original recipe is a flour used to bread the chicken before frying.
COMPANY TARGETS
Their target marketers are customers. i.e. vegetarian and non-vegetarian. Kentucky fried chicken is approaching all people whether they eat chicken or not. For non-vegetarian people, KFC is the best option to have their meal but in opposition to that they are offering veggie burgers to the vegetarian people which is cheaper among all the restaurants of the cities. By introducing new snack deals to the customers, they are targeting every people whether they are kids or young. The deals give them a chance to enhance the versatility of their restaurant and their food deals. Kentucky fried chicken provides spicy and non-spicy meals which push a lot of spices lovers in to the restaurant. The consumer behaviour is also an ideal part as a company’s target. The politeness and the standards of approaching the customers are different among all the restaurants. They are very effective in providing good services to the customers.
MARKETING STRATEGIES OF KFC
Kentucky fried chicken competes with various franchises in which the main is Pizza hut. The marketing plan makes a way easier to promote brand name and product quality in opposition with the competitors. Both the restaurants are competing each other by providing various cheaper deals with the meals to the consumers. The marketing plan of Kentucky fried chicken are based on Promotion, Plan, Price and Product.
IMC-Coordination of all forms of marketing communications into a unified program that maximizes impact on intended target audience
IMC TOOLS of KFC
Advertising
Newspapers
Some advantages of ads on newspapers are:
The newspapers allow the advertisement to reach a huge people in Special area. (Wakolbinger et al, 2009)
The ad size and design of ad and also the placement of ad have a big flexibility in publishing in a newspaper (burns et al, 2006)
The advertisement could be as long as desired by the organization.
The exposure to ad is not restricted: readers can go back to your message again and again if so desired (Kumar, 2011)
The speed of advertisement publishing is very high. If you decide for an ad today. It could be in customers’ hands in one or two days after that (Gallacher et al, 2001)
Radio:
Some of the advantages of radio advertisements are:
Radio is a universal medium and people listen to the radio at home or work or during travel. It can access a large number of people (Leong, 1998)
The enormous range of radio formats offers to effectively target to your desired segment of the population (Hackley. 2005)
Help to create your brand name by different campaigns Gallacher et al 2001)
The creative help is mostly freely available in the radio station
The price of ads could be negotiated, as there are very few people involved in this process (Wu et al 2003)
Promotion
Kentucky Fried Chicken promotes their brand name and quality of food they are serving with the help of online surveys from the customers and offering cheaper deals to the customers. They are focusing on telling each buyer to do the survey and get in return free small popcorn chicken worth $7 or one strawberry swirl cheesecake worth $2. This strategy results in to look forward their service and improve it with the help of customer’s reviews. Moreover, they offer MIAM (make it a meal) deals which is perfect for serving bigger families. With the help of online advertisements of their deals, they gather a plethora of customers to serve daily as their deals are more convenient than other restaurants.
Television
The television advertisement reaches to a large numbers of people on international national or regional level in a very short period of time (Cartere. 2009)
The new cable and Independent stations offer new chances to local audiences (0arterre 2009
Television as an image-building and visual medium offers the ability to deliver your message with sight sound and motion (Kumar 2011)
Internet:
Internet is broader than any other medium of advertisement. The advantages of online advertisements are
The usage of internet is growing day-by-day (Vurro, 2009)
The appreciation of online advertisement is 5.2 % higher as compared to other mediums of advertisement (Vurro, 2009)
The advertisement on internet is mostly for the young segment of population. (Chi et al. 2012)
Marketing Objectives
KFC is the leading food chain in the world, which is going to spread its business in various other countries. This food chain industry wants to provide such facilities to its clients with the provision of fresh and healthy food, which can meet their requirements and also take less time to serve them.
Segmentation, targeting, positioning in the Marketing strategy of KFC
KFC (Kentucky Fried chicken) uses demographic segmentation to serve the market as per the customer needs & wants. The consumers of KFC are the young as well as young adults.
It used to serve the same menu all around the world which means that it was using undifferentiated targeting strategy. However, in recent times, following McDonald’s example, KFC has started localizing its menu, giving it better acceptability in the market. Moreover it has transformed its positioning strategy from product based to value based in recent times.
KFC is strongly positioned in the minds of consumers for its Chicken menu. There are very few outlets which serve anything in vegetarian. But when it comes to non-vegetarian, KFC is just superb. Its chicken wings, and chicken bucket is a favorite with everyone. This excellent targeting technique is the reason that most non vegetarian lovers flock at KFC.
I think strategy of KFC will succeed in achieving objectives because they are following Shotgun strategy to target all age customer helps to focus on one segment where target audience of the business is too diverse.
As per our research we think that the advertising strategies which the KFC is using right now are not enough so, we will advertise on magazine too to attract more customers. we will also make a KFC application for the phone users which will attract the customers more towards KFC and in that app there will be promotional codes and discounts to the loyal customers of KFC and all customers will get chance to earn points through that application.
History
Under armour is a genuinely youthful organization. In 1995, the unique group’s commander for the University of Maryland’s football crew, Kevin Plank, saw that the cotton T-shirts that the group wore underneath their cushions and other rigging were splashed with sweat before the finish of a game or practice. After he graduated, he was resolved to build up a T-shirt that would remain light during outrageous warmth.
Online Advertising
After he built up a model, he gave the examples to a couple of his companions who had proceeded to play in the NFL. After he got some criticism, he returned to take a shot at his T-shirt and delivered a shirt that was made of microfiber that would retain dampness while keeping the competitors cool, light, and dry. He at that point continued to max out his Visas and start-up his business in his grandma’s business in Washington, DC. Following a time of creation, he made his first group deal to Georgia Tech. Word immediately spread about the new brand, and various NFL groups bought from Plank. Before long, the organization moved their central station to South Baltimore where they kept on building up their well-known lines of apparatus. Today, Under Armour makes the most inventive sportswear clothing and footwear. (Brown, 2013)
Television Brand Integration/Product Placement in Movies
Under armour does a lot of internet showcasing. On Under Armour’s Facebook page, you will discover notices about new items that have been discharged and even deals for those items. They additionally post forthcoming occasions that the organization is putting on, incorporating deals on the web and in stores. Under Armour’s site likewise does a lot of showcasing. At the point when you go to their site, you are in a split second eye to eye with strong hues and text styles. This pulls in the peruse and makes you need to explore all through the site. For instance, there is right now a free dispatching advancement going on. The standard advertisement for this is a neon-green shading with dark text style. Because of the striking hues, it was the main thing that grabbed my attention. In conclusion, Under armour does a lot of promoting on sports clothing destinations, for example, Dick’s Sporting Goods. At the point when you go to the ‘top brands’ area under ‘attire’, under armour is the second recorded. When you get to Under Armour’s page, you quickly observe pictures of individuals playing different games. This shows the brand covers everybody’s needs. (Brown, 2013)
Under armours does the greater part of their incorporation and item positions in sports-related TV shows and films. In the wake of doing some burrowing, I found that Under Armour does a lot of coordination with the prevalent TV show Friday Night Lights. In a scene disclosed in 2009, there was an Under Armour agent selling gear. He was depicted like a decent, accommodating man. By the agent being pleasant, individuals would get the feeling that all Under Armour salesmen are on the whole like that. This would get individuals into their stores and purchase their items.
Sports Teams
Under armour does a lot of showcasing with sports groups. They even have a site where mentors can jump on and structure their group’s uniform! By permitting secondary school groups, proficient groups, and even club sports groups to utilize their items, it gives the brand a constructive notoriety and shows individuals that the brand can be trusted. Under armour have exceptionally particular advertisements on TV. More often than not they are intense, yet persuasive and interesting. They generally highlight some popular competitor and at times don’t make reference to the name of the competitor. By doing this, individuals are spurred to get out and remain dynamic. The following is a video for one of Under Armour’s running/preparing shoes. They support sports groups, place their items in TV shows, and make items for everybody. So next time you are hoping to purchase increasingly athletic attire, consider Under armour.
References
Cartere, J. Y. (2009) 7V, fod Markenng and Childhood Obesity. New York: Nova Science Publisher
Kumar. S. (2011) Advertiseents. [Available online at] http://advertisementsinalimedia.blogspot com/2011/05/advantages-of-advertisements.html
Brown, C. (2013, June 11). Insight 10: Under Armour’s Integrated Marketing Communication. Retrieved from https://chrisbrown30.wordpress.com/2013/06/11/insight-10-under-armours-integrated-marketing-communication/.