Spring Break
Have It Your Way:
Burger King CEO Russ Klein on BK's Renaissance
Wendy Guild Swearingen (HBS Working Knowledge) and Amy Millslagle (NB), Contributing Writers
Issue date: 5/10/04 Section: News
o Relevance. How the brand fits into the consumer's life.
o Differentiation. The brand's point of difference.
o Esteem. How well the brand is regarded.
o Knowledge. An intimate consumer understanding of the brand.
"Just one of them is not enough," he added.
Burger King has had many brand strategies in the past decade, and as many advertising agencies as it has CEOs, yet never found the right mix of products and message. For instance, BK tried to pay heed to obesity concerns, chasing after health-conscious consumers by offering salads and chicken baguette sandwiches, yet experienced no up-tick in sales.
However, their sales hit a spike when the $1.99 Whopper was offered (for a limited time). And then, when McDonalds and Wendy's climbed out of their sales slumps with hamburgers and fried chicken, they finally realized that people are probably not stopping at Burger King to buy health food.
Over the last six years Burger King has been in "constant decline" said Klein. What is his strategy for BK's comeback? "Burger King is in the middle of a broad-gauge turnaround," he said. The company will reset its sights on core customers and core menu items. This means that not only will the advertising and packaging change, but also operations will need to step lively to keep pace with increasingly customized orders.
The crux of the whole new branding campaign is the reintroduction of the sticky 1974 slogan, "Have It Your Way." The made-to-order specter has the guys and gals behind the grills a little jumpy, to say the least. They worry that it will affect speed of service and order accuracy. But it's not quite the issue you'd think, said Klein. "Half of all sandwiches ordered are customized anyway," he said. Sara Cherlin (ND) was pleased to hear the changes and remarked "I'm really glad to hear that fast food is getting back to its core - not trying to mess around with the all of the health food trends. Burger King was trying to be all things to all people, and I think their new marketing strategy will be much more successful - getting to their target audience."
o Differentiation. The brand's point of difference.
o Esteem. How well the brand is regarded.
o Knowledge. An intimate consumer understanding of the brand.
"Just one of them is not enough," he added.
Burger King has had many brand strategies in the past decade, and as many advertising agencies as it has CEOs, yet never found the right mix of products and message. For instance, BK tried to pay heed to obesity concerns, chasing after health-conscious consumers by offering salads and chicken baguette sandwiches, yet experienced no up-tick in sales.
However, their sales hit a spike when the $1.99 Whopper was offered (for a limited time). And then, when McDonalds and Wendy's climbed out of their sales slumps with hamburgers and fried chicken, they finally realized that people are probably not stopping at Burger King to buy health food.
Over the last six years Burger King has been in "constant decline" said Klein. What is his strategy for BK's comeback? "Burger King is in the middle of a broad-gauge turnaround," he said. The company will reset its sights on core customers and core menu items. This means that not only will the advertising and packaging change, but also operations will need to step lively to keep pace with increasingly customized orders.
The crux of the whole new branding campaign is the reintroduction of the sticky 1974 slogan, "Have It Your Way." The made-to-order specter has the guys and gals behind the grills a little jumpy, to say the least. They worry that it will affect speed of service and order accuracy. But it's not quite the issue you'd think, said Klein. "Half of all sandwiches ordered are customized anyway," he said. Sara Cherlin (ND) was pleased to hear the changes and remarked "I'm really glad to hear that fast food is getting back to its core - not trying to mess around with the all of the health food trends. Burger King was trying to be all things to all people, and I think their new marketing strategy will be much more successful - getting to their target audience."
