Outback Steakhouse - Competitive Strategy

During a recession many restaurants who are classified as “casual dining” lose business, because people prefer to safe a little extra money if they have it in cause the economy gets

The Intensity of Rivalry among Competitors in an Industry (High): Equally balanced competitors exist within the industry such as BCF and KMD; these firms also face competition from retailers and wholesalers. The growth of the industry is relatively agile in both financial and technological aspects. The intensity or rivalry is further accentuated by relatively high storage and fixed rental costs, extensive product differentiation and minimal switching costs.

3. Describe at least 3 nonprice competition strategies a company could use to convince customers that its product is better than other similar products. Why would those strategies matter to customers? (1-6 sentences. 3.0 points)

Competitive Rivalry: Competitive rivalry is relatively high as seen in previous competitor analysis. There are many competitors in the local market and on the shelf within the mainstream markets.

Since 1993, Chipotle has made it their mission to use high quality farm produced products to serve quality “food with integrity” (). In accordance to their 2015 annual report, Chipotle had a net income of $475 million, along with revenues of about $4.5 billion (). Within twenty-three years since the company began, Chipotle now has restaurants all over the world, including “Canada, the United Kingdom, France, Germany, and over 1500 others in the United States” (). “During 2014, Chipotle even opened nearly 200 new locations bringing the 2013 total of 1500 up to 1700 total worldwide locations” ().

Restaurants are considered a luxury product, not necessarily a necessity. This industry thrives when the economy is growing and people have disposable income, however a decline in the economy would undoubtedly cause much stress and worry among restaurant

The main risk with focusing on the experiential segment is that it could alienate current non-experiential customers. This is why Red Lobster should maintain its approachable atmosphere, current price point, and classic Red Lobster promotions such as Lobster fest and Endless Shrimp. Maintaining the core values of Red Lobster, will trying to go after the new segment, will help to mitigate the risk of losing current core customers. It is also important to note that in taking on this new position, Red Lobster is simply emphasizing traits it already possess to encourage Experientials to become loyal customers, not changing its entire

The entrance of a new competitor into a market can cause a business to change its marketing strategy. For example, a small electronics store that was the only game in town might have to change its image in the marketplace when a large chain store opens nearby. While the smaller store might not be able to compete in price, it can use advertising to position itself as the friendly, service-oriented local alternative.

Focusing on more of a diverse food menu alone can generate more foot traffic . People may avoid The Dive due to the lack of food options since we are more well known as a drinking spot. We are legally recognized as a “Drinking Place” and/or a “Limited-Service Restaurant” (Industry 722410 or 722211). We can offer more choices to eat such as sandwiches and full dishes. Fully switching to lunch, dinner, and late night specific menus will help increase popularity. We will keep the same pub-style options for the current regular customers, but offer lunch and dinner choices for the new clients.

The idea is simple: offer quality food, an entertaining atmosphere, and an escape from the outer world. Fitting your restaurant to your customer's life-styles is the key to casual dining success. Today's restaurant patrons expect great food and top quality service from the restaurants they visit. In addition to this, they long for an experience, a type of transportation from the hustle and bustle of the real world.

Existing Competitors. Rivalry among competitors within an industry use price discounting, new products, marketing, and other techniques to be competitive. Profitability of an industry suffers from high rivalry. The intensity with which companies compete and the basis on which they compete determine to which degree rivalry brings down an industry’s profitability (Porter, 2008). Pure competition is considered by economists as a competition with a high

To provide quality product, extensive menu of delicious foods, ensure customer awareness and loyalty and also have good publicity.

Competitive rivalry exists between companies with the same or similar products/services and similar markets. Factors to be considered include:

The industry in which the company operates can be characterized as monopolistic competition. This is because, since there are no barriers to entry in this industry, threats of entry by potential entrants has made the industry some-what competitive. But the brand loyalty gained by the firms through massive advertising has rendered the firms within

Answer to Question 1. MITRE is following the committed expert strategy. Its recruiting focus is targeted. MITRE does not resort to broad recruiting channels because it’s costly and doesn’t attract the right kind of candidates. MITRE mostly uses internal sources to hire new people. The company’s current employees do most of the recruitment and, in return, they get bonuses and opportunities to improve their team by suggesting candidates that they find suitable.