Creating Appetite and Health Appeal
In This Newsletter
Breaking it Down: What does Health Mean?
Strategies and Approaches from some Market Leaders
Even if you are not keeping count, we are sure you would agree that the number of mentions of the words "better for you foods" in the trade press and news is on the rise. Eating for health and wellness has become a constant topic in news and pop culture over the past few years. But despite the increased awareness among consumers and professionals in the restaurant business, confusion reigns. In this edition of our newsletter we will highlight the food and restaurant companies that are gaining credit for addressing consumers' health and wellness issues and will give you inspiration to find the right strategy for your companyís health positioning.
Health Confusion
Savvy food professionals and restaurateurs understand the simple truths that underpin this confusion:
1. Health means different things to different people
2. Perception is most certainly not reality
You can see this in action anywhere you choose to look but a great example is a survey published recently by market research group NPD. The Port Washington, NY company tracked several important and encouraging shifts in consumer behavior. For the first time ever, participants in the annual survey ate more of the foods they deemed "better for you" but dieted less. That, at least on the surface, seems like a positive trend away from faddish or quick-fix diets that end in disappointment.
But, digging in to the detail of exactly what food and beverage choices the the survey respondents believed were ìbetter for youî showed a different reality. The top 3 foods and beverages cited were:
| Consumers who claimed they made "better for you" selections surprisingly chose menu items that fell into the following categories: | |
| Foods | Beverages |
| 1. Salty snacks | 1. Regular carbonated soft drinks |
| 2. Burgers | 2. Diet carbonated soft drinks |
| 3. Cold cut combo | 3. Bottled water |
Source: The NPD Group/Dieting Monitor
Clearly, what some consumers mean by "better for you" may not be sprouts and lentils. The truth is that guests make judgments based on some very irrational and qualitative cues. One example of this is the fast food burger chain, "In and Out," which is perceived by consumers as one of the healthiest burger QSR options. What's driving this belief? The simple menu (lean in options if not caloric value) that has not changed over 40 years and fresh cut potatoes fried in small batches, may not mean "low fat" but the concept and menu offering tap into a purity perception due to a lack of processed foods and a focus on real ingredients .
Breaking it Down: What does Health Mean?
Speak to a group of consumers of your product and you'll find that you have as many definitions of healthy eating as people you speak to. For some guests healthy means foods low in fat, sodium or carboydrates and for others its fresh ingredients. More confusingly even, consumers often associate terms that provide an indirect health halo (such as "organic" or "free range") with wellness.
Segmentation of Your Market
A great way to start to define a strategy to communicate health to your key consumers is to identify the different clusters of customers, depending on how rigid their attitude to healthy eating is. On this dimension we recommend visualizing customers grouped on a continuum from fixed to flexible. Here's a helpful grouping:
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Eat What I Want |
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Weight Manager |
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Functional Health Seeker |
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Only Organic or All Natural |
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Communicating Health
In deciding who your customer is, defining the brand and the best way to merchandise
and communicate your offer to guests, they key questions to ask are:
- What's your positioning? How can you best articulate health within your positioning? What cues will persuade and re-inforce your positioning?
- Ask yourself what you are already doing that you don't get credit for or communicate clearly enough
- What are the non-negotiables that your key customer segment demands?
- This is where other non-food cues come into play. Environmental messaging or positioning
cues convey care for the planet, which in turn conveys care for health and wellness.
Examples include:
- Composting food and serviceware
- Biofuel
- Freshness and vibrant color are highly associated with each other
- Guests at new Panda Express protoype restaurants are treated to a very visual display of the healthy aspects of the menu: A display wall of fresh vegetables
Putting You to the Test
California is one of the 11 states considering following New York's lead in demanding that restaurant chains print nutritional information on menus to address the confusion. In a recent survey the California Center for Public Health Advocacy asked 523 people to make four simple, smart food choices. We've reproduced the same questions for you to test your nutritional smarts.
1. Which of the following breakfast items at Denny's has the fewest calories?
A) Ham and Cheddar Omelet (no hashbrowns)
B) Country fried steak and eggs (no hashbrowns)
C) Three slices of French toast with syrup and margarine
D) Three pancakes with syrup and margarine
2. Which of the following items at Chili's has the least salt?
A) Cajun chicken sandwich
B) Classic combo steak and chicken fajitas
C) Guilltless chicken platter
D) Smoked turkey sandwich
3. Which of the following items at Romano's Macaroni Grill has the most fat?
A) Traditional lasagna
B) Chicken Caesar salad
C) Pasta classico with sausage and peppers
D) Barbecued chicken pizza
4. Which of the following items at McDonald's has the most calories?
A) Two Big Macs
B) Two Egg McMuffins
C) One 32-oz Chocolate Shake
D) Four regular hamburgers
Results
The group of consumers flunked the test, with more than 65% of them failing to answer
any of the four questions correctly. The same respondents were then asked if they
agree with the California Menu Labeling Bill and more than 70% were in agreement.
How did you do? Answers:
1: B Chicken fried steak and eggs
2: A Cajun chicken sandwich
3: B Chicken Caesar salad
4: C One 32-ounce Chocolate Shake
Strategies and Approaches from Some Market Leaders
PF Chang's China Bistro: Harnessing the essence of Asian food
PF Chang's menu is a true distillation of the most health-appealing traits
in authentic Asian food: a balanced vegetable and protein meal, wok-based cooking
and sauce preparations that are lower in sodium. The concept has inherent health
appeal but has gone the extra mile in bringing whole grains and brown rice into
prominence on the menu, along with natural meats and wild-caught fish and seafood.
The way the company displays nutritional information also wins kudos from health
mavens as it shows data by whole portions, not by artificially small 'serving size'
that the restaurant arbitrarily defines.
The "McSubway Phenomenon"
Research coming out of Cornell's Food and Brand Lab shows that health perceptions of customers have a direct impact on average dollar rings ñ and nowhere is this clearer than in the QSR arena. The team in the lab observed control groups of consumers eating at both McDonald's and Subway. Conditioned as consumers are to think of a Big Mac meal as pure indulgence, guests were on best behavior and rarely ordered desserts. Meanwhile guests at Subway perceived their meal choice as healthy and the incidence of chips and cookie orders was considerably higher.
Subway: Fresh equals health
Subway has differentiated itself from other large QSR players by positioning
its brand as a healthy choice among fast food options. From its launch tagline "Subway:
Good so you don't have to be" to its most famous ad campaign featuring Jared Fogle's
notable weight loss, the company has communicated clearly that it is part of the
solution. Subway's positioning has a direct impact on guest frequency and usage,
with consumers being more likely to underestimate the calorie content of a meal
from Subway as compared to one from McDonald's. Brian Wansink, the notable nutritionist
author of "Mindless Eating" has established a research program on "Calorie Compensation"
at Cornell's food and brand research lab. Findings show unequivocally that guests
that eat at 'health positioned' restaurants perceive their calorie intake as lower
than it is in reality (see sidebar).
Applebees & Weight Watchers: Harnessing another brand's health halo
Applebees took a route to introducing health that is fairly tried and true,
by partnering with Weight Watchers, with whom they signed a licensing agreement
in 2003. The global leader in weight management is somewhat diet-fad-resistant,
being more portion-control directed and focused on 'nutrition by numbers.' As a
consequence the brand has expanded steadily since launch in the 1960s. The company
now holds 50,000 meetings per week across the world and is active across the world.
The addition of the WW branded menu section bearing the logo and nutritional information
gives a real health halo to the menu. But the question is whether any of that halo
sticks to the Applebees brand too?
Uno's Chicago Grill: Surprising with a health-forward strategy
Despite Uno's high-fat specialty deep dish pizza the chain has embraced
nutrition needs with a zero transfat menu that offers grilled options and healthy
side dishes such as brown rice and wholegrain pastas. The company has also built
an impressive and user-friendly web presence, which allows guests to access information
on nutrition in any number of ways: searching for menu items by nutritional values
(show all items less than 500 calories, or by cholesterol, carbs, saturated fat
or fiber content) screened by allergen (eggs, shellfish or gluten) or by dietary
restriction for non-meat eaters. This open attitude to information extends into
the store environment too, most restaurant locations have Nutrition Information
Centers that offer up the same information as online.
Ruby Tuesday: A early-mover making its second foray
The chain that pioneered smaller portioning and printed all its nutritional
content on menus as early as 2004 continues to embrace healthy ingredients and promotes
its organic greens, hormone-free chicken, transfat-free fryer oil and house-made
to order innovative drinks. Ruby Tuesday's "Smart Choices" is its health-driven
menu category, which lists all calorie count, grams from fat, net carbs and fiber.
Stand-out menu item: Creole Catch: Flaky mild tilapia seasoned with Creole spices
and broiled to perfection: 312 calories; 16 grams from fat; 0 grams net carbs; 0
grams fiber
© 2008 The Culinary Edge |
info@theculinaryedge.com
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