Draft Position Paper

Taylor Adams, Emily Flinders, Lisa Janssen, Dani Taylor

When people hear the words “Burger Planet,” they think grease, addiction, and Corny the Clown. “I am ashamed to take my kids there,” says one woman. This image of greasy fast food can be overcome. We plan to implement three ideas to reach our audience of middle aged women, and help them feel good about eating at Burger Planet. These three features will achieve this goal and in turn, help increase annual revenue. To come up with these features, we studied the company and examined strengths and weaknesses. We also looked at what competitors were doing, and how successful they were in their pursuits.
First, we are offering healthier menu options. McDonald’s and Wendy’s both offer a variety of salads, and fruit slices or milk as a replacement for fries and a soda. We tested all the new menu options to see what ones were most popular with women. After our tests, we developed the following products.
Five different kinds of fruit: apples, bananas, pineapple, peaches, and grapes
Calories: 150
Price: $3.99
Comes in a plastic reusable container, and can substitute for fries with no extra cost.
Gourmet Salads: Raspberry vinaigrette spinach salad with gorgonzola cheese and walnuts, Spinach salad with hot bacon dressing and eggs, and Caesar Salad
Calories: 300, 150 without dressing
Price: $4.99
All food products can be made without the bun, making them low in carbohydrates, and South Beach and Atkins diet friendly. This appeals to our audience because these diets are popular for middle aged women. However if women are not on a diet but looking to eat better, we fulfill their needs as well.
As stated previously, Wendy’s and McDonald’s have also added salads to their menu options. Here is what their nutritional value is:
Wendy’s Salads:
Mandarin Chicken Salad-180 (with dressing, almonds, and crispy noodles: 550)
Chicken Caesar Salad-180 (with dressing and croutons: 370)
Chicken BLT Salad-470 (with dressing and croutons: 790)
Southwest Taco Salad-400 (with dressing, chips, and sour cream: 645)
We wanted to be able to rival our competitors. Therefore, all of our salads have a lower calorie count than any of Wendy’s salads, and there is the same amount of options.
After developing these items, we will put them on the menu, and then do a survey after a three month time period to test their effectiveness. We will conduct a survey of 100 women ages 30-40 to see if this change is effective. The survey will ask the following questions:
Have you purchased any of the new menu items?
If so, what ones?
How frequently do you buy them?
How frequently do you come to burger planet?
Do you feel the new choices are healthier?
After this survey, we will be able to determine the effectiveness of adding these new menu items. If proven effective, this will help to change the image of Burger Planet. Women don’t have to go there feeling guilty about what they eat, or ashamed to take their kids; women can go to Burger Planet and feel confident about the choice they have made. These healthy eating options will also be beneficial to children. They can eat healthier, and this will eliminate the need for Burger Planet to worry about the lawsuits that are being filed because children are obese from fast food.
Next, we have hired fitness guru Jayne Petersen to help with our campaign. She helped celebrity Opal Whitcomb lose 75 pounds that she has kept off. This is inspiring for the many women who have been through the ups and down of the diet roller coaster. She emphasizes a message of moderation and variation in dieting, and therefore fits great with our plan. She tells women that a greasy hamburger or soda is not bad every now and again. She relates well with the targeted demographic because she is a part of it.
She will be traveling with Corny the Clown to Burger Planets across the nation to promote the new healthy menu options. She will also be providing nutritional packets and advice to consumers. Our goal in doing this is not only to create revenue, but also to establish a feeling of connection between the community and Burger Planet. We want our consumers to feel like we value them, and we believe that going into the community is the best way to do this. Jayne will also work with the Burger Planet chefs to make tray liners that have nutritional advice.
Pairing Jayne Petersen with Corny the Clown helps to accomplish our third objective which is improving the image of Corny the Clown. Right now, people associate him with the words greasy and addicting. By going on tour with Jayne and promoting the healthy menu items, we hope to rebuild Corny’s reputation to represent the company in a positive way. Instead of being seen as a symbol of greasy fast food, we want Corny to represent positive change at Burger Planet, and the many options that consumers can enjoy. After implementing all of these changes, we will evaluate their success. Surveys at implementation, and several months after will show the effectiveness of our campaign.