In 1964, Glen Bell introduced Taco Bell to Californians. At the time, many Americans were not familiar with the concept of tacos, but it was Glen’s innovative idea to bring a little of the Mexican cultural to America. Over the years, Taco Bell has opened locations all over the nation and globally too. However, with its financial success, the franchise mogul has also been known for its inexpensive prices and poor quality ingredients. Many Americans have called the fast food chain “Taco Hell”.
However, Taco Bell quickly realized more people are becoming health conscious and are demanding better quality food. Ten years ago, Taco Bell hired a registered dietitian to help enhance the menu with innovative options and better ingredients. The organization has positioned its brand targeted towards the younger generation, to include college students. In the recent years, it is has started modify its marketing strategy to include healthier food option such as the fresco selection, salads and gluten free options. The revamp of the menu and offering better ingredients has helped improve sales in 2013 by 5%.
The organization identified its competitors in the fast food industry. The franchise realizes it is not a refined restaurant with an upscale audience, therefore closely monitors other fast food chains in the industry. As Kotler & Keller (2012) describes, the best place to start a branding position is to determine the category membership. Taco Bell’s category membership is the alternatives in the industry such as McDonalds, Burger King, and other fast food chains.
What is Taco Bell’s original position strategy?
Taco Bell’s point of parity (POP) is the value and convenience it provides in quick service, drive through and inexpensive menu items. Kotler et al.,(2012) explains that in order for Taco Bell to achieve a particular POP, a sufficient number of consumer must believe the products sold is “good enough” (pg. 252). In this situation, the organization has a loyal customer base that is willing to spend money at the restaurants. The core customer base is teenagers and 20-something males.
Therefore, the restaurants gender and life stage are typically men with low conservative budget. With that said, the American positioning is different then the brand position in a foreign country. For example, the first Taco Bell to open in 2003 in China is a full-service restaurant, while the menu is still offering ‘Mexican’ ingredients, it does not offer refried beans, has less spice and less rice. In this case, the demographic segmentation and marketing strategy changed when Yum (corporate owner of Taco Bell) marketed franchise in a new culture. The target audience in China was the middle class who crave higher quality and not the speedy food the American market demanded.
Revised Marketing Strategy
Yet, many food critics may argue the quality of the food at Taco Bell, the restaurants takes pride in its effort in modifying the menu and marketing strategy in the recent years. The fast food chain has joined its competitors in offering a healthier options and providing the consumer. Not only has the quality of its ingredients changed, the franchise has started to market
