That McDonald’s motto “I’m Lovin’ It” didn’t have much influence on the June 30 Consumer Reports’ survey where 36,700 subscribers made a total of 98,000 visits to 53 fast-food chains. It seems that McDonald’s scored as the worst fast food burger place in the nation; followed closely by Burger King.
In the name of competition, fast food establishments are judged on their food, their customer service, and customer experiences. Customers want innovative meals, and they want great value with cheap prices. Consumers called establishments like McDonald’s, Burger King, KFC, and Taco Bell “uninspiring.”
So of the “uninspiring food,” the only “so-so service,” or cheap prices which is the most important to consumers? Fifty-four percent respondents stated low prices were the reasons they chose particular fast food restaurants, but only 19 percent said they thought they received excellent value. Then came the super star of the fast food establishments with an amazing menu of what consumers seem to want.
In-N-Out Burger, which started out in 1948 as a “mom and pop” burger place in Baldwin Park, California ranked highest among all burger places. There were even some cult like reactions, for instance from a customer where a new In-N-Out Burger opened, thanked “Lord Jesus” for bringing the store to his neighborhood. Another woman choked back tears as she welcomed the new store. When one of the stores opened in Texas, traffic was backed up for miles. Its grand opening was even worthy of a YouTube video.
So what makes In-N-Out Burger so different? You’re right if you just smirked a bit and mumbled somehow they must be catering to what consumers say they want. You’re right if you are thinking service, value, and speed. If people are willing to wait overnight for a grand opening, what is a fast food place doing that’s different from all of their other competition?
At In-N-Out Burger, everything is made to order. Nothing is frozen. All the beef patties are ground from whole chuck, and the stores use in-house butchers. The french fries are cut in the stores and fried in vegetable oil. The hamburger buns are baked on premises. And along with their quality of food and service, value and speed, their prices start at $1.95.
So the outcome; a better solution to those rush evenings when there’s no time to cook, and it even may be just a tiny bit healthier, but most important of all, at least from this writer’s point of view, the organization has succeeded in giving customers the kind of service and product they want.
photo credit: LaurenKates
