By 2003, the investors of Burger King expected that the company would improve under the new management of TPG Capital since the revenues of the company were declining and this new management hoped to give it a face-lift. But unfortunately, the company took a downfall altogether. In 2008, the company advertised its “BK super seven incher” using subliminal marketing techniques but it drew anger from the customers. In order to change their image they launched another ad, with the mailman neglecting his duties to get Burger King’s “Double Crossain’wich” which received many criticism and they were sued by the USPS for its using its logo inappropriately.
Moreover, in the last 6 years Burger King has continuously reported losses. Since 2008, the company saw a decline in its sales and lost to Wendy’s as the number 2 fast food chain in the market.
In a fight to stay ahead of its competitors and boost it’s sales, Burger King has tried to copy the number one fast food chain in the market, McDonalds.
Burger King has copied a lot of McDonald menu items in the past few years including salads, fruit smoothies, chicken nuggets and wraps. To explain a little further, Burger King’s launch of “two savory 100% pure beef fire-grilled patties, freshly cut lettuce, crisp onions and signature King Sauce, all on a three-layer warm, toasted, sesame seed bun” is exactly the same as McDonald’s “two all-beef patties, special sauce, lettuce, cheese, pickles, onions – on a sesame seed bun.”
In the recent months, Burger King is identifying what makes McDonald’s a success and then followed the same path. Although, I must say that Burger King had some success along the way and McDonald’s lost a lot of customers. In 2013 sales report McDonald’s sales dropped by 0.2 percent while Burger Kings sales dropped by a staggering 0.9 percent.
Burger King’s strategies have failed and have costed the organization a lot money in the past. In order to stay in the business do you think that Burger King should just follow McDonald’s success path instead of differentiating itself from its competitors?
Do you think that Burger King should rebrand itself and not to be branded as a McDonalds copycat?
How do you think that Burger King can get itself out of the slumps and become profitable once again?
Do you think that the King will survive another decade? Two?
This post caught my attention because i was once a burger king fan. In the case of should it rebrand itself or be considered a McDonalds copycat, i believe what ever works best it should work on it. If they receive more sales when coping McDonalds then by all means i would continue coping. I believe Burger King as to step its game up pretty good, with more advertising and working on a new product that more people will enjoy. Do i see the King around another decade or two? I honestly would say no because with their sales dropping and not improving, eventually it will close down.
I honestly think the whole fast food industry is in trouble, not just burger king. For a company like Burger King to avoid any further trouble I think they’d be better off trying to follow a chipotle model; focus of quality of food rather than variety and uniqueness. It seems like people everywhere are starting to choose to spend a couple extra dollars for better food than save the money for convenience. For Burger King, they might be better off trying to take advantage of that.
I definitely agree with Mason. The entire fast food industry is in trouble. Society is becoming more health conscious and these industries are not in the plan. Burger King has always been second to McDonald’s, so with a decline in their sales obviously means an even larger decline in Burger King’s sales. I think they should work on improving their current products that reflect a healthy environment, and promote this to their current target market. By creating healthier options and ensuring consumers that these options are not just popped in a conventional oven, will allow them to extend their product life cycle. If this is not done, I do not think Burger King will last much longer because consumers are tired of convenient food that makes them fat.
Great post! I did not know that Wendy’s had already surpasses Burger King to be the number 2 fast food chain. That’s really interesting since I personally like Wendy’s over Burger King myself.
I knew that Burger King copies McDonald’s menu items and locations but I never realized how much it copies until I saw your side by side comparison.
I personally do not like Burger Kings copycat path. One business strategy is always to copy the leader. In this case if I want chicken Mcnuggets I will go to McDonalds not some copycat chain. I think that Burger King should pursue a differentiation strategy like Wendy’s has.
I doubt if Burger King will survive another couple of decades with how it is declining. Unless Burger King is able to effectively differentiate itself with new products and experiences which is still possible in my opinion.
I agree with Mason as well. Back in the day McDonald’s and Burger King use to be cheap and get a lot of bang for your buck. Now, a meal can cost up to $7-$10 and portion sizes have gotten more smaller. I believe a lot of people are turning away from these places and buying healthier food for almost the same cost. Hopefully we start seeing these restaurants close down and healthier fast-food places pop up.
I see that you are speaking about Burger King and how they are a follower in the fast food industry when compared to McDonalds. Similar to what other comments have stated, Burger King needs to become known for quality rather than just pushing a bunch of new items out on the menu. I think the first step is to rebrand and then start over fresh. When I think of Burger King the name and experiences I have had with their food and unclean restaurants steers me away to the next place to eat.
Burger King was never one of my favorite fast food restaurants, but when I wanted something quick, it always seemed to be a solid choice. I haven’t been back in several years; however, food quality wasn’t the entire reason I stopped going. I found their customer service to be awful, and it was something I experienced at different locations across different states. I’ve noticed the trend in BK copying McDonald’s by attempting to match prices such as when McDonald’s came out with the $5, 20 piece chicken nuggets; however, like another commenter mentioned, I think in order for BK to survive, they need to rebrand or they’ll continuously be a few steps behind competitors and continue to see a decline in sales.
I find this post funny, since just today I was writing a paper myself on how Burger King copies McDonalds in everything. My suggestion to McDonalds to shake BK off of your back: offer breakfast 24/7. I know there are issues with this, but if possible, then BK cant compete with the breakfast menu of McDonalds. McDonalds clearly has a superior breakfast menu, which is a great competitive advantage. Good post.