Recipe for Five Guys Burgers\' Success Business

RECIPE FOR FIVE GUYS BURGERS' SUCCESS

Business

The Recipe for Five Guys Burgers' Success

The Recipe for Five Guys Burgers' Success

The recipe of success for Five Guys Burgers is a combination of traditional or even homestyle marketing and business practices integrated into a 21st century digital landscape. One of the reasons Five Guys is a success is because it is a places that makes burgers. Americans love burgers. We love to have a variety of choices of burgers. We will make our own burgers and we will pay for someone else to make our burgers for us just the way we like. Aesthetically, the burgers at Five Guys look appealing. They serve huge burgers with a wide selection of free topics not including any special toppings that come with the burger. These few facts make it clear that Five Guys knows their consumers. Americans love burgers; they love big things, including big burgers. Americans love have a lot of choice over how their food is prepared and Americans love the word "free." This simple combination is already a good start for Five Guys before considering their specific philosophies and strategies for business, marketing, and success.

Five Guys keeps it simple. They sell burgers and fries. The menu is not complicated and does not change. There are no drive-thrus; consumers must come in and physically enter the facility to receive service. (Weise, 2011) The burgers are freshly prepared to order, the ingredients are fresh and the portions are large. These practices are simple, clear, and old-fashioned in America. There is a sort of nostalgic and simple quality about Five Guys that appeals to a large demographic of customers, including President Obama. (Inc., 2012) Five Guys keeps it simple, makes it easy for consumers and employees, and sincerely wants to produce a quality product to generate repeat business.

"The magic to our hamburgers is quality control," Murrell says. "We toast our buns on a grill -- a bun toaster is faster, cheaper, and toasts more evenly, but it doesn't give you that caramelized taste. Our beef is 80% lean, never frozen, and our plants are so clean, you could eat off the floor. The burgers are made to order. That's why we can't do drive-thru's -- it takes too long. We had a sign: "If you're in a hurry, there are a lot of really good hamburger places within a short distance from here." People thought I was nuts. But the customers appreciated it."

Five Guys has learned tough lessons about how to generate their success, but consistently FG keeps things simple and transparent. FG acknowledges that there are other places out there and American fast food is popular because it is fast. Upon entering, customers know exactly what they are in store for, and this transparency compliments their intelligence as well as their choice for consumption. Customers like to feel smart; companies that effectively make their consumers feel smart have very loyal consumers who, when satisfied enough, will do the advertising for the company via word of mouth.

As far as the employees of Five Guys, the CEO of Five Guys and his management teams understand and demonstrate that the employees are appreciated. The management speaks frankly, realistically, and with respect to the employees about their jobs, knowing that some of the tasks are not particularly appealing, yet they are necessary. Therefore, the management of Five Guys often implements system of monetary incentive to the employees with regard to things like cleanliness, quality, and service. (Inc., 2012) These incentives further instill internal motivation in the restaurant crews and providing them with senses of connection with and accountability each other & their workspace.

The original values of FG are similar to those maintained today -- ones of quality, simplicity, tradition, huge portions, and American comfort food. They are strong because of their reputation, which gets spread via word of mouth mostly. Word of mouth is still the most effective means by which to generate buzz, despite the proliferation of media technology, market analytics, and endless budgets for advertising research. (Gordon, 2006)

Three factors that contribute to FG's success are fixation with quality, the lack of complication in the consumer experience, and the quality with which they treat their staff. Good food made with fresh ingredients and made to order will always be in style. A simple consumer experience is refreshing, necessary, and somewhat rare in the 21st century. Realizing that the staff is one of the company's greatest assets seems intuitive, yet it is not a normative business practice. All of the reasons why FG's is a hit are directly related to external markets and even their follow competitors. 21st century America can sometimes feel or at least be publicized as a landmine of scams and artificial foods. Part of the reason why FG is so well received is because simplicity, honesty, respect, and freshness are not the norms. They were at one point in American history, but those values have been lost among scandals, white collar crimes, sweatshops, and scams. Americans use to have less choice for their consumption, so they had to put up with what was available.