Way too many McDonalds restaurants dilute their own market.
Way too many food items dilutes what they used to do very well.
They eliminate the old famous good taste with “healthy” ingredients.
The unions and government regulations drive up costs/prices.
Employees with poor skills turns off customers.
Plus the fact that for just about every menu item the competition is better. Compare a McDonalds burger to Wendy’s, Steak-n-Shake, Five Guys, Hardee’s or anywhere else.
My two cents - There are way too many items on the menu. Keep it simple might be a good guiding principle even for a fast food business.
Around Oklahoma though - the McD’s coffee is sometimes good, but why go to McD for breakfast or lunch when you have a Braums nearby? I could almost believe the real reason Obama is in OK right now is to sneak off to eat a hamburger and get a malt at a Braums.
I grew in a rural area of Alabama that had four significant towns, and in 1977 when I left....there were two total McDonalds there in the region. Today, if you draw a 20-mile circle around my old house....there’s roughly eight McDonalds.
As a teen, it was a special deal to go over to McDonalds and in that last year there....I probably ate there six times in one year.
I think people got to some point around a decade ago where burgers were becoming dull, and started shopping around. In the past twelve months...I’ve been in McDonalds a total of twice. There’s nothing that really draws me there...except a quick burger, period.
I’ve noticed more and more coupons going out, the people that do use these....are cutting into the profits of the individual franchise operation. The corporate guys think the coupons are helping....it’s actually the opposite case.
The more items you offer, the longer the customer is going to spend looking over the menu (I can't read any fast food restaurant menus these days anyway, they jumble the offerings and try to bundle everything, I just want to know what is offered and how much). The more time the customer spends looking at the menu (inside or outside in the drive thru) the longer he or she is going to tie up the line.
The more items you offer, the more likely someone with low skills is going to get something wrong (misheard the order, loaded the wrong thing in the bag, doesn't know how to make it, uncommon or special promotion items...).
strip it down and go for volume. That's what Five Guys does (and they aren't cheap). Chick Fil A has a relatively simple menu too.
Sounds right to me... It's an unpleasant place to eat...