How Great QSR's Make Branding Choices

The dilemma faced by many Quick Service Restaurants is how to brand their menu offerings. While leading the Marketing function for Kraft Foods Foodservice, the largest foodservice supplier in Canada, in the late 1990's, I began to see the "Concentric Circle Branding Strategy" as a template for how great organizations make menu branding choices.

In the centre, we have the Core Menu - this defines much of the restaurant's concept, in addition to the pricing, food-type and internal environment. This is where great QSR's develop great owned-brands. "Big Mac", "Whopper", "Blizzard" are some examples - most Canadians can easily place these in their respective restaurant. These need to be deeply connected with the QSR brand, and never shared with other, non-owned brands, even the ingredients. They can (and should) talk about "100% beef", "real Canadian cheddar", "PEI Russet Potatoes" or "real milk chocolate", but not "Maple Leaf Canada", "Kraft", "McCain", or "Hershey" - these are great ingredients, but dilute ownership. Patrons can get these at other QSR's, or (gasp) the grocery store.

Where leverage of non-owned brands is a very viable, and recommended strategy, is in the "Ancillary Menu". As you move to further outside rings of the concentric circle, the owned-brand requirement becomes less, and can even become distracting. Here is where branding your carbonated beverages, your coffee (if it is not a core menu item), your condiments, etc. makes strategic sense. It brings trust and credibility to menu elements that do not define the concept, and allows the QSR to focus.

One very successful QSR who has bucked this strategy is Tim Horton's - they have adopted a very myopic corporate branding strategy (last time I was there, the bottled water and peach juice were TH-branded). Only in very limited areas do they allow manufacturer brands into their stores. This said, I believe they could benefit from less literal branding (I know what a Steak and Cheese Panini is, but could Tim's create more branding power by developing more owned branding nomenclature?). They were quite successful launching bagels, on the back of Philadelphia Cream Cheese (which once it had served its purpose, was removed and changed to a non-branded offering).

Net, whether you are a QSR, or a Foodservice supplier, look at the menu and determine what you need to own and what you should borrow. It will help you focus, build your brand and leverage others.