Young and eager to eat.

Ipsos’ Enhanced Media Metrics Australia (emma) study shows that out of all the popular gambling channels available to consumers, the one with the highest correlation with QSR-consumers is the casino visitor, higher than placing a bet at the TAB, an online bet, a go on the pokies, playing lotto or buying a scratchie.

The casino visitor has a younger age profile than some of the other activities which explains in part why 68% have eaten at a quick service restaurant in the past month. Additionally, casino’s are only in metro areas where the prevalence of QSR’s are higher.

At the other end of the spectrum, only 44% of lotto players or scratchie buyers have been to a QSR in the past month, their profile has a skew to the 45+ age range which helps to explain the lower penetration amongst this audience.

More information on emma available at emma.com.au.
 

Price, convenience, taste and health a big factor to consumer purchase.

Ipsos’ Enhanced Media Metrics Australia (emma) study shows the vast majority of QSR consumers purchase exclusively brands whose brand attributes are based on price and convenience above other factors such as taste or healthy options.

There is some significant cross over, 74% of ‘healthy’ brand consumers such as Boost Juice etc. also consume ‘price and convenience’ brands like KFC and McDonalds. There is also some strong correlation between ‘taste’ and ‘healthy’ brands, 54% of taste brand consumers also purchasing ‘healthy’ brands too.

Additionally, when asked which QSR brand they visited most, 67% opt for ‘price and convenience’ brands as their go-to for fast food ahead of both ‘taste’ brands such as Nandos or ‘healthy’ options like Sumo Salad.

More information on emma available at emma.com.au. 

QSR's performing well in QLD.

Ipsos’ Enhanced Media Metrics Australia (emma) study shows Queenslanders leading the way when we look at QSR consumption with 48% of the state population having eaten at a QSR in the past month, which is higher than any other State or Territory. All major QSR brands including Subway, KFC, Hungry Jacks, Red Rooster and Pizza Hut perform significantly better in QLD compared to the national average.

Heavy QSR consumption is very consistent in four of the five most populous states sitting at 12% of the populations of NSW, Victoria, Queensland and WA, with SA trailing a slightly behind at 9%. The main outliers are Tasmania and NT at 7% and 16% respectively. The fact that QSR locations are not as ubiquitous in Tasmania could explain the lower percentage there, whilst in NT both cafés and licensed restaurants are very popular.

More information on emma available at emma.com.au. 

Every marketer wants to know what makes the young consumers tick. EMMA (Enhanced Media Metrics Australia) report on QSR usage answers that question, literally, as it show us what their attitudes to food and nutrition are.

When it comes to the 14-29s, there are some clear distinctions compared to the wider Australian population. Getting the right nutrition and preparing traditional meals is less of a priority for the youngsters - food is seen as a necessity to fill up. Youngsters are also less fussy about eating the highest quality ingredients and not as confident cooks compared to the average Australian. Not surprisingly, the 14 -29 year olds are far more likely to choose the convenience of a Quick Service restaurant compared to any other age group.
 

McDonald’s manages it, other chains lag.

Last week we reported on Ipsos MediaCT latest Enhanced Media Metrics Australia report. One of the most interesting findings to come from the report is the disconnect between branch awareness, and brand purchase.

emma surveyed people on what QSR chains they would consider eating at, and then what QSR’s they actually ate at. The results are startling.

Perhaps unsurprisingly, McDonald’s comes out on top, with roughly equal consideration vs conversion rates i.e. the number of people considering purchasing a meal at the burger chain equates to the number who eventually go on to do so. The brand also has relatively strong consumption rates, with nearly 42% of Australians (14+) eating there.

As the survey also went on to rank peoples motivations for eating at a QSR as being based on price, convenience and taste, it could be that the sheer number of McDonald’s stores is working in their favour, though no doubt these results will be giving many QSRs food for thought.

Retail Food Group signalling its intent with significant ramp up of outlets.

Last week we gave some key takeaways from Retail Food Group’s (RFG) half yearly results (link to article).

This week, J.P Morgan have published their analysis of the franchise group’s results, and what stands out is their aggressive move to open more gourmet pizza outlets.

As the chart shows, while their traditional outlets have shown net reductions in stores over the half year, their Pizza Capers and Crust chains have roared ahead.

As the report explains “In FY13, RFG announced that it had decided to accelerate the outlet growth for its gourmet pizza division from 270 outlets now to 355 by the end of FY14 and 415 by the end of 3Q FY15.
In line with this, 49 new Crust and Pizza Capers outlets have been commissioned exceeding 1H14 initial expectations for 30. ~40 outlets are expected to be commissioned in 2H14. 33 of the 49 new outlets have already been franchised.

RFG is facilitating this increase in three ways:

· Incentivising or financially aiding approved franchise applicants

· Stimulating Multi-Site Owner franchisees

· Direct investment into store fitout by the company with the view to selling these to a franchisee”.

How their competitors respond to this faster than expected expansion will be interesting to watch as the year progresses, but one thing seems sure, the pizza market looks set to heat up!

Is digital marketing the way to go these days?

According to a recent survey conducted by marketing implementation agency Fuse, traditional marketing using letterbox flyers and local press ads still stand as the key tools of communication for local markets.

Although digital marketing has become increasingly popular amongst various franchisees, 28 per cent of the respondents still prefer traditional marketing as the most effective marketing channel.

Press ads ranked second with 21 per cent, followed by a tie with local sponsorship and POS (in store point of sale) with 18 per cent.

Lastly, EDM execution took the fourth rank being the least preferred marketing channel, with a total of 15 per cent. It is worth mentioning that the low preference for EDMs could be influenced by the fact that not all brands offer the opportunity for franchisees to run EDMs therefore it is possible that some of the franchisees surveyed never tried this digital channel in their local area.

Fuse surveyed franchisees from 7 different national QSR brands.

SA and WA are the highest consumers amongst the states.

BIS Shrapnel took a closer look at the percentage of consumers of chicken-barbecued. Based on their findings, across all fast food consumers, 27% consumed chicken-barbecued. 

They have also noted that 36% of consumers of barbecued chicken were unemployed, and was a popular choice for ages 30-39 and 50-59. 

According to BIS Shrapnel, the table on the right relates to the percentage of the population that consume yoghurt at a particular place and time of day.

Please Note: This is not market share derived from volume or value. 

51% eats sushi during lunch.

The table on the right according to BIS Shrapnel, relates to the percentage of the population that consume sushi at a particular place and time of day.

Please note this is not market share derived from volume or value.

According to BIS Shrapnel, across the total population of Fast Food/Snack consumers, 40% consumed Fish – fried/grilled. Significant differences are noted in age and work status. Those aged 50-60+ are significantly more likely to consume Fish – fried/grilled than those aged between 18-24 and 30-49. This translates to work status as retirees are significantly more likely to consume Fish – fried/grilled than people who are full time students or who work full time.

The chart on the right outlines the percentage of Fast Food/Snack consumers that have consumed Fish fried/grilled.

According to BIS Shrapnel, on average, across all Fast Food consumers, 22% consumed Wraps.

The chart outlines the percentage of Fast Food/Snack consumers that consume Wraps. No statistically significant differences existed.