Marketing plan for Pizza King in Delaware

Marketing plan for Pizza King in Delaware

Executive Summary

Pizza King Restaurant (PK) engages in the provision of quality services to clients at a larger economic scale. Besides, it has the objective of developing into a world-class restaurant by attracting the clients and satisfying their needs. Since decades, PK has been investing in marketing so that its brand can be highly identified, but it has failed to reach its desired goal. The inability to attain its vision implies that this restaurant needs to change its past brand’s promotion strategies and embrace social media platforms for the same purpose. For this objective to be achieved, it will have to invest more in social media and develop an action plan that will welcome this Pizza chain into an effective digital marketing world. It is, therefore, time for the PK restaurant to gather relevant resources and establish a marketing plan that will require them to identify their target market, social media platforms, and digital channels.

 Restaurant’s background information

Pizza King (PK) is a restaurant that was primarily established to offer fast foods, such as pizza, to different clients. This restaurant is strategically located in Delaware, in the United States, where it satisfies the consumers’ needs from all races, religions, and countries by offering quality and economical services. Although PK relies on traditional marketing methods, it has been maximizing social media platforms, such as Twitter and Facebook to promote their products.

According to a study conducted, the pizza industry in the United States is growing at a higher rate, with a projection of up to 10.2% within the next five years. Besides, this industry has generated a revenue worth of $46 billion, which is contributed by top, independent, and small chains at $55, $26 billion, and $19 billion, respectively (PMQ Pizza Magazine reports, 2018). The Pizza industry is committed to offering continuous fast services, despite the dynamic market challenges from top chains, such as Papa Johns, Little Caesars, pizza hut, California pizza kitchen, and mellow mushroom. In the United States, many pizza chains have engaged in offering varieties of healthier and topping options that regularly attract many people that make this industry to be very competitive.

Goals and objectives

PK restaurant’s goal is to develop a sense of loyalty in their clients as they strain to penetrate the United States competitive market. Also, it has the objective of offering client experience that will make them the only best restaurant. Generally, it has a vision of dominating the market and become the customers’ choice by offering healthy and quality services.

SWOT Analysis

Strengths

PK’s first key strength entails offering quick services to customers. Initially, this restaurant engaged in the assessment of daily functional procedures, which enabled them to measure forms of quick services to the clients. Later, it focused on establishing techniques that contributed towards their implementation, such as enough employees and earlier bookings. This option has attracted customers since they do not have to queue to get services.

This pizza chain has tailored towards loyal customer programs that were achieved through analytical software, which analyzed the trends of buying activities (Yi, & Jeon, 2003). The practice allowed developing personalized recommendations and engaged in brand promotions through mails that evaluated consumers’ prices and service preferences. Besides, PK has introduced card-based approaches to attract consumers by rewards and discount promises to enhance continuous purchase.

Customer satisfaction is viewed as an effective success factor in the fast-food industry for profitable purposes. In this case, PK offers customer-centered services achieved through effective communication, wide menu options, honest feedback, and regular quality checking. This approach has made the restaurant have a firm base and be the choice of many people in the United States.

The restaurant has focused on reasonable prices by implementing four basic pricing approaches, that is penetration, economy, skimming, and premium in its service delivery (Ferguson, 2014). This approach was achieved after PK realized that it is dealing with people from different socio-economic backgrounds, such as nurses, students, and labor workers, which required it to fulfill their needs. Pizza King has, therefore been the only alternative among the individuals in Delaware as they offer reasonable prices, which has been an essential factor that pushes this restaurant to higher limits.

Weaknesses

Moreover, the financial constraint has been a hindrance for Pizza King to engage in further developments. This challenge has restricted the recruitment of more workers who would enhance customer satisfaction through faster service delivery. Also, the financial constraint has reduced the opportunity of this pizza chain to invest in effective marketing promotions to attract more clients. Besides, the lack of enough finance has limited the efforts of PK to develop more stores so that it can have a firm market base.

Limited marketing expertise has reduced the chance of PK restaurant to research on the best methods to promote their brand. This challenge has led to weak consumer relationships, which has reduced brand awareness and loyalty. Besides, it has weakened the development of market plan and packaging, which has limited returning customers. Financial constraints have reduced the growth of PK to become the consumers’ choice fully.

Opportunities

In the United States, the Pizza industry is flexible, which allows the incorporation of various drivers to realize growth. Pizza King has a chance to invest in the online ordering of fast foods and mobile applications to penetrate easily in the dynamic market. This practice will enable consumers to access the services at their own homes and comforts. Continuous technological operations, in turn, becomes the driving force in realizing competitive advantage.

Also, PK has an opportunity to adopt marketing campaigns to reach clients for the benefit of the business easily. Effective use of this approach is essential in fixing meetings with consumers. Besides, marketing campaigns allow the incorporation of more than one method accompanied by incentives for easier clients’ attraction. Marketing campaigns, therefore are opportunistic tools that Pizza King restaurant can focus on to overtake its competitors.

Threats

In any industry, competition is a familiar aspect, which makes many firms to struggle to obtain a share in the market. In the United States, PK restaurant is facing high competition from top pizza chains, such as Pizza Hut, Marco’s, and Domino’s Pizza (Crespo de Carvalho & Vera-Cruz, 2012). Since these restaurants have gained a higher competitive advantage compared to PK, they, in turn, absorb most of the clients. Such rivalry is a hindrance to this restaurant to grow further.

Price fluctuations

The commodity price is vital for business advancement, but it affects the whole process in two forms, which are underpricing and overpricing. First, during underpricing, PK restaurant usually has lower chances of covering costs to realize profits. Second, their commodities are hardly purchased during overpricing since they are beyond the consumers’ capability. In both conditions, this restaurant gets low profits in the absence of effective measures.

New entrants

Currently, the pizza industry in the United States does not have legal barriers to the penetration of new entrants into the market. This situation allows free entry of new restaurants with similar products that limits the appeal of the industry. Pizza King restaurant has been affected by new entrants since they end up dominating the market share, therefore contributes towards making low profits on the side of PK.

Competitive Review

Pizza King’s current position is evaluated using the competitor analysis, which also checks the major participants in the market. Despite their production and supply of similar products, the difference results from the use of digital marketing. In the United States, PK’s competitors have been at the top after investing in this approach to promote their products. The use of Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter has helped them to attract more clients.

Marketing strategy.

Pizza King’s market segment will be divided into two main groups, which are tourists and locals. Under the local segment, the restaurant will use different digital marketing tools to fulfill the needs of three groups; kids, young adolescent individuals, and adults. These groups will be offered the same product but using a different form of digital tools for the effective realization of the intended goal.

Target Marketing

This step follows after the market segment, where the main clients are tourists and locals. Effective social media platforms are identified, such as Twitter, to reach out to the chosen market. Besides, market targeting will be achieved through various categories. For instance, using Facebook, the target market can be obtained by location, workplace, age, interests, or gender.

Social media strategies

For competitive advantage, Pizza King restaurant needs to maximize the utilization of social media (Orlando, 2015). The intended objective can be achieved through the use of various strategies, such as prolonged interactions with clients to create a good relationship so that the product’s sense of urgency can be created. Also, there should be increased ratings and reviews on social media platforms that will improve the brand’s identity. Besides, all social media platforms should be attached with incentives that will lure the consumers into purchasing goods from this restaurant.

Influencer marketing

In the United States, the Pizza King restaurant will gain a competitive advantage using an influencer marketer. Bloggers will be effective in this approach since individuals prefer listening to them (Brown & Hayes, 2008). They will convey the brand’s messages to convince them to have a taste, a technique will build PK’s product identity that will bring profit.

Implementation Plan

Implementation of these strategies will start immediately in December 2019, so that it may effectively start in January 2020.  For the employees who will not be familiar with the strategies, they will be exposed to training in January 2019. Also, the management is required to provide the needed support and make a follow-up on the effectiveness of the digital marketing strategy. Finally, the old approach will be used concurrently with the new ones for optimum results.

References

Brown, D., & Hayes, N. (2008). Influencer marketing. Routledge.

Crespo de Carvalho, J., & Vera-Cruz, M. A. R. C. O. (2012). h3 gourmet: not so fast food.            Economia Global e Gestão, (2), 129-137.

Ferguson, J. L. (2014). Implementing price increases in turbulent economies: Pricing approaches   for reducing perceptions of price unfairness. Journal of Business Research, 67(1), 2732- 2737.

Orlando, D. (2015). Likable Social Media: How to Delight Your Customers, Create an      Irresistible Brand, and Be Generally Amazing on Facebook (& Other Social Networks).           Career Planning and Adult Development Journal, 31(1), 81.

PMQ Pizza Magazine reports (2018) https://www.restaurantdive.com/news/report-north-   American-pizza-market-to-grow-10-in-next-5-years/544523/

Yi, Y., & Jeon, H. (2003). Effects of loyalty programs on value perception, program loyalty, and   brand loyalty. Journal of the academy of marketing science, 31(3), 229-240.