Intelligence Gathering Using a TIME Analysis

Intelligence Gathering Using a TIME Analysis
Student’s Name
Institution Affiliation

Intelligence Gathering Using a TIME Analysis
Sonic is a local company in the United States competing in the fast food industry by offering the so call ‘eat in your car service’ that has seen it establish its niche. The sonic food menu includes chili dogs, onion rings, corn dogs, French fries, and hamburgers. In addition, there are a variety of drinks such as milkshakes, slushies, and soft drinks, as well as banana splits or sundaes being ice cream desserts. Furthermore, Sonic restaurant offers a unique service which allows the customers to drive into their drive-in locations and make a food order through a speaker then a carhop delivers the food. This service is designed to fit the company’s name of Sonic Drive-In.
Currently, of all industries that exist, the food industry is growing at a very high rate and having a high competition from the already established dominants and the many new companies being established. Unfortunately, the Sonic restaurant is in existence during this time and hence it has to put into place strong strategies to compete in the highly unpredictable market. Sonic food chain faces stiff competition from some giant companies in its field of operation such as, McDonald’s, Wendys Company, and Burger King which have local and international operations as opposed to its operations which are focused on local market only. The fast food industry can be easily assessed using the ‘Threat of New Entry’ as one of the Porters five forces.

Research has shown that the fast food industry has the strengths of the companies weakened by frequent entry into the industry. This is because there is no restriction to entry and exit. Additionally, the initial capital required to set up a fast food company is low, and the consumers do not incur any cost to switch from one company to the other. Further, the products offered by the companies cannot be differentiated hence the technology and skills used are not secured, and any company can acquire them easily. The industry has no many leaders who dominate the market due to few economies of scale available (Porter, 2008).
The Sonic restaurant has to survive in the midst of threats from new entries into the market. Therefore, to beat its competitors it has used technology as a strategy to maintain and attract new customers. One of the ways that fast food companies attract customers is by quick service and quality foods. To fasten its service, Sonic restaurant has put into place touch screens in the drive-in locations that just wow their clients making them come back for again. Also, the screen technology has reduced their service time from 11 minutes to less as compared to when using the speaker’s system. Due to the change in the world from analog to digital and everything revolving around technology, the company has decided established a marketing plan such as the advertising campaign which gives it an opportunity to create the image of Sonic Drive-In in its consumers positioning itself from its competitors. The company uses technology as an external variable to improve its services and attract more consumers. However, a product manager for Sonic restaurant should use the technology to include products that are traditionally modernized and healthy to the menu which focuses on the well-being of consumers (Gorchels, 2011).
Like the other restaurants, Sonic restaurant has its share of the market. Mostly, the market served by this organization is the market segment of people who are usually in a hurry and need quick service of fast food. This segment is mostly dominated by the middle-class youths, families, and kids. Market segmentation is determined by different factors that make each sector heterogeneous and give the organization manage to satisfy the group’s needs. Psychographics is a factor that makes up a segment of the market. For this segment to be identified a research is carried out to capture the data of the behaviors of the people their needs and opinions. For this segment data is collected on the lifestyles of the people, for instance in the case of our organization, the researcher would look for details on the status of the people and their careers. Additionally, information is collected on the interests of the people and their values especially concerning fast foods. The attitude of the group determines the success of the business and its future strategic planning (Smith, 1956).
The fast food market is now unpredictable following the high rate of new competitors’ entry and the change in consumer preferences in the current world. The Sonic restaurant has some trends facing the company following the world of technology today. One emerging issue facing this company is the issue of health as defined by the social media. Many people have come up to address the issue on calories found in fast foods, and the company has to find a way to make its menu include more vegetable and fruit salads and traditional foods that the society today considers to be healthy. Such a move will increase its range of customers and include more varieties attracting more consumers. Sonic uses carhops to deliver food to people in the cars, but due to change in technology, new applications on how to order and get food delivered through the mobile phones is a new challenge. Consumers just need to make a call and have their food delivery at their doorstep with this technology the business is likely to make more sales increasing their profit (Trienekens & Zuurbier, 2008).
The Sonic restaurant uses the market needs an approach to attract and keep its consumers in their service. The restaurant is working on the ways to improve its customer service speed by using carhops so as to reduce the time spent waiting for food. They understand that their consumers are in a hurry and do not need to get out of their cars but they can just get their order delivered to them as they pass. The company also has a wide range of drinks to accommodate its clients. The drive-ins ensure that the regulars get a space to park their cars as their orders are processed. In conclusion, the company uses technology to satisfy the consumer needs maintaining its position in the market (Bose, 2008).
Summary of the TIME analysis
Factor Summary
Technology Sonic Drive-In uses technology by putting into place a screen that helps people to order food by using touch screens at all the locations. The company uses technology in its marketing strategy of advertising in television commercials.
Industry The company faces strong competition from the leading food dominants such as McDonald, Burger King, and Wendys Company. There is low control power for the company due to the threat of entry by new companies because the industry has no entry barriers.
Market The sonic company faces risks in the market. For instance, the changes in the society affect the attitudes towards their choices. Education and researches on genetically modified foods and their effects to the society has made people start turning to traditional dishes rather than fast foods. Some consumers change their tastes often, and others are unpredictable making it hard to satisfy their needs.
Events These are regulations, environmental or economic factors that affect a company. Sonic restaurant has to deal with inflation of raw materials which make the raw materials costly depending on the inflation rates. Additionally, food allergen has been a political issue in food industry becoming very rampant it affects the company by destroying its image and having to compensate clients affected.
References
Gorchels, L. (2011). The Product Manager’s Handbook 4/E. McGraw Hill Professional.
Porter, M. E. (2008). Competitive strategy: Techniques for analyzing industries and competitors.
Simon and Schuster.
Smith, W. R. (1956). Product differentiation and market segmentation as alternative marketing
strategies. Journal of marketing, 21(1), 3-8.
Bose, R. (2008). Competitive intelligence process and tools for intelligence analysis. Industrial
Management & Data Systems, 108(4), 510-528.
Trienekens, J., & Zuurbier, P. (2008). Quality and safety standards in the food industry,developments and challenges. International Journal of Production Economics, 113(1),
107-122.