A long way from awareness to commitment

By David Martin and Peter Martin

Quality is key. Across the leading brands, the factor that is most likely to be stated as an important reason for choosing a brand is food quality (by some distance), followed by food choice, “my previous experience” and value for money.

Peach Factory’s new BrandTrack research casts a spotlight on current consumer attitudes to going out and in particular to branded chains. While recognition and usage of brands is growing, that isn’t necessarily translating into brand loyalty.

The public is continuing to go out to eat and branded chains are grabbing much of that business. But new research shows that the game is far from over. Branded chains still have a lot of work to do to convert their efforts into solid customer loyalty.

There’s room for competition too: with consumers generally feeling disappointed by the quality of restaurants in their local area and younger chains seen to be challenging hard on the excitement and satisfaction fronts.

The results come from Peach Factory’s new BrandTrack survey of over 5,000 consumers across the country. This first survey was conducted by Harris Interactive during April, and will be repeated again in September. BrandTrack is designed to provide detailed profiles of over 50 leading players in the branded eating out market, from quick-service and coffee chains through to pubs and casual dining, but also offers a rich insight into broader eating out behaviour and attitudes.

One key conclusion is that it is a long way from awareness to winning commitment. Previous Peach research has shown that Britain has become increasingly brand-literate. What this research shows is the, perhaps surprisingly, modest level of customer advocacy across a great many of the leading brands.

For more information on Peach BrandTrack and to see how your brands rate contact Peter Martin on 01704 550383 or at peter@peach-factory.com

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