Image source @ Visual China
Text | Red Food Network, author | Zou Tong
In recent years, the catering industry has entered the stock era from the incremental era, and it is becoming more and more difficult to grow profits, and money is becoming more and more difficult to earn.
Many food and beverage brands have chosen to intensify competition in order to get out of the predicament. Therefore, we see that the entire catering industry is becoming more and more inward-looking: fighting price wars to grab traffic, crazy cross-border to find growth, getting together to go public to grab the market, and various actions are dazzling.
But does such an inner volume really make sense?
Meaningless inner rolls are exacerbating the internal friction of catering
Have you found that most of our competition is always unsatisfactory?
For example, in the price war, in order to rob consumers, everyone is staring at each other. Today you buy two get one free, tomorrow I will be 50% off the single product, afraid that the other party's price is lower than their own to rob the customer. As a result, the price war was fought, and everyone lost profits.
Another example is the product "competition" in the tea market, watching the opponent produce new products, each brand feels that they cannot fall behind, so they have made a variety of flavored drinks, but customers do not buy it.
For example, under the epidemic situation, various brands competed to open stores to expand, trying to seize the market, only to encounter the sequelae of bottom-reading, close a large number of stores, and lose funds.
Why is the result of such competition unsatisfactory?
Because we are in a serious inner volume. Inner volume is a low-level complex way of competition, and the more intense this competition, the more complex the method of competition, the less effective it is.
Take, for example, competition between restaurant dishes. Many restaurants have more and more dishes on the menu, more and more detailed, as long as other people's restaurants have, I also want to have, others do not have, I also want.
As a result, there are many varieties on the menu, and even "strange dishes" that most consumers have not heard of. The effect of this can be imagined, which not only increases the pressure on the back kitchen of the restaurant, but also reduces the quality of the dishes and increases the consumer's choice burden.
Why does such an inner volume tend to have the opposite effect? It is because everyone is caught in the inner volume, the competition will only focus on the opponent, in order to grab resources, everyone aims at each other to kill the red eye, but the products and services provided are more and more away from consumers.
I also engage in products by opponents; I also engage in supply chains; and I also engage in listings by opponents. The profits were not made, leaving only a field of chicken feathers.
For example, the dispute over new products in the tea market mentioned above has produced many "hades" drinks, such as oily spicy milk tea, spicy stir-fried celery lemon tea, brine egg snail powder milk tea, stinky tofu milk tea, peppery soup milk tea and so on. It not only attracts unlimited complaints from consumers, but also consumes a lot of manpower, material resources and financial resources of the brand.
In addition, just staring at the inner volume of the opponent also makes us lose the ability to innovate and copy each other. Just like in 2018, the founder of Nesher was angry at the founder of Xicha for plagiarism, and this matter was once on the hot search. In fact, this matter does not matter who is right and who is wrong, it can only be said that the vision of both sides is limited, and innovation is limited.
△Image source: Red Food Network Photo
The inner volume is a competition in the wrong direction of the roll, the more the volume is more the same, the more the volume is the more uncomfortable everyone is. Therefore, restaurant entrepreneurs must break the inner volume, change the direction of competition, take their eyes off the competitors, expand outward, and seek new growth solutions, that is, "outer volume".
In 2022, the "outer volume" may become the main theme of competition
Why does "outer volume" work? Because the outer volume avoids a narrow competitive vision. The reason why the competition of the inner volume leads to internal friction is because everyone puts their vision on the competitors and sticks to it. In contrast, out-of-volume allows us to broaden our horizons, seek the means and resources to re-grow in a competitive environment.
Taking Yuanqi Forest as an example, at the beginning, like many competitors, it wanted to be Coca-Cola second, but there was no breakthrough and growth in the competition. So they set their sights on the "opposite" of Coca-Cola.
Although Coke is delicious, it is easy to be fat and not good for the body. At this time, Yuanqi Forest had a new growth idea, that is, to make a drink with the main concept of health, and the 0 sugar series products sprung up as soon as they were launched, occupying a place in the market.
Therefore, in the competition to open the horizon, perhaps the answer came into being. In 2022, the outer volume will become the secret of the re-growth of food and beverage operators.
As the famous business consultant Liu Run mentioned in one of his articles: 2020 is a restart, 2021 is an inner volume, and 2022 is an outer volume. Restart refers to the industry to start again and rejuvenate; the inner volume is that the opponents of the peers are all crowded on the same canoe bridge, fighting to the death; the outer volume refers to doing business, not just a canoe bridge.
I think this argument applies to all industries, and the food and beverage industry is no exception.
In 2020, catering is gradually full of vitality and has signs of recovery; in 2021, all categories in the catering industry have recovered to a certain extent, but major brands have begun to fight each other; in 2022, many brands may wake up and begin to switch perspectives and look for new canoe bridges.
In 2022, the outer volume may become the main theme of competition, and catering players will gradually realize that if they roll inward, they will definitely consume themselves into blood, so as to free their eyes from the competition and switch perspectives to seek new growth.
How to "roll out" more effectively in catering operations?
So, if the restaurant business wants to be "rolled out", where should our vision be focused? My answer is: stare at consumers, stare at yourself, stare at the market.
Focus on consumers
When we set our sights on consumers, we will try our best to get closer to consumers, provide more intimate services for consumers, and always stand with consumers.
For example, the hot pot brand Spicy Qianhong in Nanchang, Jiangxi Province, when most brands are competing for the traffic of the core business district, it does the opposite, opens the store in the community closest to the consumer, and now has opened more than 200 stores, even if the flow of people in the core business circle is reduced under the epidemic, its business has not fluctuated too much.
Therefore, aiming at consumers and bringing brands and consumers closer not only increases the survival rate of Spicy Qianhong under the epidemic, but also increases the opportunity for long-term exchanges between it and consumers, thereby stabilizing business.
Brands want to be closer to consumers, in addition to opening stores to the community, there is another way, that is, private domain traffic. The essence of private domain traffic is to create a unique circle, brands and consumers interact with each other, so that the distance between each other is closer, which is one of the reasons why major restaurant companies are keen to do private domain.
Staring at consumers, trying to get close to it, making the exchange between the two sides simpler and closer, and then allowing the brand to move forward steadily in the torrent of competition.
In addition to finding ways to get close to consumers, when we keep an eye on consumers, we must also try our best to study them and make the most understanding of their brands and stores. Only by understanding them better can the service provided exceed expectations.
For example, Wang Yongqing, the richest man in Taiwan, sold rice at that time, and the competition was fierce, but only his family's rice was the most popular, because he thought of doing the best service. It is said that Wang Yongqing used the book to record a lot of customer information, including the size of the rice tank, how many people in the family, how much rice each person used, how often it was expected to be sent, and how much to send each time. Therefore, he can always know in advance than consumers whether his home is short of rice, how much is missing, send rice more timely, and the service is more than expected, so everyone likes his rice.
Another example is what we often call the digitalization of catering. Why is catering digital? In addition to organizational innovation and efficiency, digital technologies can also help us identify some of the potential needs of consumers and provide services and products that exceed expectations.
On the contrary, if we don't focus on consumers and ignore consumers, we will drift away from them.
For example, to annoy customers, but also to be repeatedly rectified by the relevant departments of the scan code ordering. If you stand in the consumer's point of view, it is easy to understand that consumers hate not to scan the code to order food, but that the restaurant store deprives them of their right to choose and privacy, which makes them angry.
Stare at yourself
If you don't look at yourself, the competition will blindly follow and cause trouble. For example, after the epidemic, some big brands have continuously expanded their stores in order to seize the market. Many small and medium-sized brands have seen the expansion of large brands and followed the trend of expansion, and most of them have not carefully considered a question: if there is a sudden crisis again or the market is not as good as imagined, do they have enough funds to resist risks?
Therefore, when the epidemic continues to burst into dots and the market is not as prosperous as imagined, the big brands close some unprofitable stores and stop losses in time, while those small and medium-sized brands that follow the trend of expansion are deeply involved in the crisis of the capital chain break.
Don't look at your own competition, follow the big brand to roll, the result is more and more injured. It is better to look at yourself more, focus on yourself, concentrate resources, and cultivate your core capabilities. This core competency can be our brand, our supply chain, and our products.
For example, 7 points of sweetness originated in Suzhou, when many beverage brands are pursuing large and complete products, 7 points of sweet realized that they did not have core advantages, it was difficult to break through the bottleneck of growth, so they locked their eyes on the mango subdivision category (poplar nectar), ready to concentrate on the advantages in this category to play a piece of the sky.
After adjusting the strategy, in 2018, there were only 7 points of sweetness in 100 stores, and after more than 4 years, the number of stores exceeded 1,000, becoming the leader of the Yangzhi Manna subdivision track.
△ Image source: 7 points sweet
For example, Gu Ming, the reason why it can open nearly 6,000 stores, lies in its core capability warehousing base and cold chain distribution system, which can ensure the stable supply of fruits, milk, etc. of almost all franchise stores, and the cost of operation and transportation can be reduced to an ultra-low level.
In addition, keeping an eye on yourself has the advantage of finding your own shortcomings in time and quickly making up for them.
For example, Meizhou Dongpo and Youth Commune, these two brands are closely focused on themselves, and under the epidemic situation, they found that their own sales channels are a major shortcoming, and they have tried to find ways to make it happen. Meizhou Commune leveraged the precise customer flow of supermarkets to open 6 or 7 mini stall stores, with daily sales of more than 8,000 yuan per stall; youth communes opened "market-style" retail stores on the first floor of their own restaurants, targeted sales of some retail products, bringing a lot of traffic to the restaurant.
Keep an eye on yourself, constantly reflect and temper yourself, make the core advantages better, and let your shortcomings disappear. In this way, in the face of a complex and changeable competitive environment, you can have a place and not fall into passivity.
Keep an eye on the market
Keeping an eye on the market requires that the brand strategy should change according to market changes, otherwise it will be eliminated by the market.
Take Japanese fast food and Chinese fast food as examples. In the past, Japanese fast food gained a place in the domestic market because of its unique product advantages. However, when consumers are accustomed to Eating Japanese Fast Food and gradually have new needs, most Japanese fast food still sticks to what has been seen, maintains the original product strategy, and eventually declines.
In contrast, Chinese fast food keeps up with market changes, constantly enriches the product range, and meets the changing needs of users, and major brands have achieved remarkable results in recent years. The two have very different attitudes in the face of market changes, creating a huge gap between the two sides today.
Keeping an eye on the market is effective because the market never deceives people, and what it is is is what it is.
In addition, observing the market, not only observing the market changes, but also observing the ceiling of the market in different regions. If you are a small and medium-sized brand, it is difficult to show your fists in first- and second-tier cities, you can go to the "small town market" to try, because there is a blue ocean, and small and medium-sized brands also have the strength to fight.
If you're a big brand and the domestic market has had little effect on your growth, try to set your sights on foreign markets. Michelle Ice City opened a store in Hanoi, Vietnam, in 2018, and after opening, it triggered a queue boom. According to relevant media reports, it has opened about 200 stores in Vietnam.
brief summary
The catering industry has entered the era of stock, and poor growth has become the main theme. In such a situation, in order to maintain profits, everyone will inevitably stare at their peers or opponents and seize "wealth" from each other. However, in this way, it will only aggravate the "inner volume" and will not bring about actual growth.
If you want to return to growth, you may wish to come out of the inner volume, from staring at opponents to staring at consumers, staring at the market, and staring at yourself, so that you may be able to find a solution that can really solve the problem of growth.