Chick–fil–A is known for its production of chicken products in the fast food industry. They have a strong Christian foundation that the founder bases the company’s underlying core values on. It has more than 1,700 restaurants in 39 states and posted sales of more than 4.6 billion dollars in 2012. Chick-fil-As’ headquarters are located in the heart of Atlanta, Georgia where the company began back in 1946 as the Dwarf Grill owned and operated by Truett Cathy. Chick-fil-A’s consecutive years of positive sales growth has set itself apart by revolutionizing delicious chicken products.
Chick-fil-A’s mission statement is similar to most fast food restaurant’s missions.
“Be America’s best quick service restaurant” (www.chick-fil-a.com)
As a company, Chick-fil-A has become the 2nd largest quick service restaurant in the country and is one of the largest privately held restaurant chains in the world. Chick-fil-A’s mission statement alone does not reveal the companies disposition and values that has driven its loyal customer base and success. The company’s mission statement combined with its purpose statement reveals the company’s values which are instilled into every employee of Chick-fil-A.
"To glorify God by being a faithful steward of all that is entrusted to us. To have a positive influence on all who come in contact with Chick-fil-A.” (www.chick-fil-a.com)
The company’s mission statement and purpose statement is what differentiates Chick-fil-A from the rest of the quick service food chains in America. The company’s strong focus on the customer and customer service has set Chick-fil-A apart from its competitors. The real question that one must ask is how has Chick-fil-A become so successful and well known, or what is their secret to success? Chick-fil-A has a competitive advantage through a few simple rules that founder, Truett Cathy, has followed since the opening of the first Chick-fil-A restaurant in 1967. Listen to the customer Focus on getting better before trying to get bigger Put emphasis on quality.
As mentioned above, the company’s commitment to customer service is what distinguishes Chick-fil-A from its competitors. “Courtesy is cheap, but it pays great dividends” (Owner & Founder Truett Cathy). Chick-fil-A has focused on perfecting their chicken products and has always put emphasis on quality. Their consistent strategy of all-breast meat entrees is an example of high performance and conformance quality. The focus on the customer and quality has lived strong for over 40 years, dating back to how the final recipe of the first chicken sandwich was created. Truett Cathy is known for developing the first boneless chicken breast sandwich. The recipe for the famous chicken breast sandwich was created by a series of different experiments and trials, using his small customer base from the Dwarf Grill for feedback. After numerous attempts to perfect the chicken sandwich, a 20 ingredient recipe was created and has become the backbone for chick-fil-A today. The simple rules of customer service and quality that Chick-fil-A adheres to are the main differentiating factors that set Chick-fil-A apart from the competition. In addition to the main factors that differentiate Chick-fil-A from the competition, their position in community, such as sponsorships and charities has played a large role in making Chick-fil-A a successful franchise. The company’s mindset of giving back to the community and serving others has made a strong impact to the company’s value driven marketing strategy. Chick-fil-A’s focus is on three areas, Youth & Education, Local Communities, and Leadership & Family Enrichment. Giving has become part of Chick-fil-A’s company culture.” Over the past three years, Chick-fil-A, Inc. and its franchised Restaurant Operators have given more than $68 million in contributions to over 700 educational and charitable organizations and have provided millions of dollars in food donations all across America.” (www.chick-fil-A.com). The company created a foundation called WinShape to help kids in need through different means such as attempting to find them homes, allowing them the opportunity to attend camps and providing them with scholarships. Chick-fil-A is also a sponsor of a college bowl game, the Chick-fil-A Bowl Challenge and the Chick-fil-A Kick Off Game. Chick-fil-A’s giving culture has created outstanding employee and franchise relations, allowing the company to capitalize on a talented and loyal employee group. In 1995, Chick-fil-A decided they needed a campaign that would help raise awareness and compete against the big burger chains, while preserving their unique philosophies and culture. (www.chick-fil-a.com). A Dallas based company called The Richards Group created the “Eat Mor Chikin” campaign as a three dimensional billboard concept with a black-and-white cow sitting atop the back of another cow painting the words “Eat Mor Chikin” on the billboard. Within a year, the Eat Mor Chikin campaign was turned into a fully integrated campaign that included in-store-point-of-purchase materials and a radio commercial. Since then, the famous black-and-white cows have become the focal point of Chick-fil-A’s brand and image. “Since the campaign debuted in 1995, Chick-fil-A sales have increased more than six-fold, from just over 500 million in 1995 to more than 4 billion in 2011” (www.chick-fil-a.com) . The Chick-fil-A’s “Eat Mor Chikin” ads entertain consumers with their desperate, self-preserving antics in an effort to convert beef eaters into chicken fans. (www.chick-fil-a.com). The Eat Mor Chikin campaign is seen as an example of creativity and effectiveness in advertising and has become an icon for integrated marketing. Chick-fil-A’s brand strategy from a 4P perspective has successfully integrated marketing programs to create, communicate and deliver value for consumers. Chick-fil-A’s has created products that capture the concept of simple, quick and delicious. Some of their products include chicken sandwiches, salads, chicken strips, wraps, side items, breakfast and desserts served separately and in combo meals. They also serve kids meals and provide healthy alternatives to fries and soda. As previously mentioned, their entire products use quality boneless chicken breast. Prices range from a small order of fries for about $1.30 to a chicken sandwich for about $2.75. Most of their combo meals range from $5.00 to as much as $7.50. Chick-fil-A’s attraction is not price but the taste of their chicken sandwiches. Chick-fil-A’s pricing strategy steers clear of discounting and limited-time offers which leads me to believe they utilize the strategy of perceived value pricing. Chick-fil-A has a strong presence in the southern region of the United States and has been slowly expanding into the northeast and west coast regions. They serve the communities through freestanding building with drive through lanes and mall based locations. Also, Chick-fil-A offers licensed faculties for college campuses, airports, healthcare facilities and corporate service venues. The majority of Chick-fil-A’s promoting and advertising is in the form of TV ads. The use of their signature “Eat Mor Chikin” cows are used where cows try to convince consumers to eat more chicken. The company also promotes through sponsoring local events and food donations which help create the emotional connection to the company. The TV ad that I will analysis from the Chick-fil-A website is “The Betrayal”. The TV ad utilizes the famous black and white cow to send an overall message to those burger lovers to eat more chicken or as the cow says it, Eat Mor Chikin. The advertising objectives are to create awareness that chicken is an alternative to burgers, increase sales growth and to increase their loyal customer base. The simple, yet emotional connection formed through the TV ad, sends a direct message to burger eaters, linking burgers to cows. It sends a message that chicken is a safer, healthy alternative to burgers. It attempts to form an emotional connection by linking burgers directly to cows and to convert burger eaters to eat more chicken. Some of the key supporting facts for the selling proposition are: the use of cows in advertising chicken products, and a direct/ frontal attach to burger lovers and the emotional sense of “betrayal” to cows by eating burgers. The target audience is young professionals (white collar), Christian individuals and burger lovers. The use of a corporate setting during lunch sends the message that chicken is an alternative to burgers as an option for lunch. Advertisers will measure the success of the ad by the following: increased market share, increased overall sales with primary focus during the hours of lunch, and the number of new customers. Chick-fil-A has established an extremely strong brand awareness and recognition in the quick service restaurant industry. Their focus on customer service and quality has driven the brand to excel in the marketplace. The company’s product innovation and advertising creativity has made Chick-fil-A a pioneer in integrated marketing. Chick-fil-A’s value-driven marketing strategy combined with its large presence in the community has made the brand a successful marketer. A key aspect that makes Chick-fil-A a successful marketer is the company has consistently held true to its core values and maintains its focus on their target audience. Chick-fil-A is considered a marketing icon due to their core innovative product concepts, sponsorships, charity /sponsorship involvement, and advertising expertise.

REFERENCES 1. Kotler, P., & Keller, K. L. (2009). Marketing Management (14th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall.

2. http://www.forbes.com/sites/philjohnson/2012/08/10/chick-fil-a-introduces-the-next-new-trend/ 3. http://www.marketingweek.co.uk/opinion/brand-management-the-chick-fil-a-way/4003159.article 4. http://www.managementparadise.com/forums/marketing-management/210659-marketing-strategy-chick-fil-inc.html
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