McDonald’s Fighting To Be ‘Relevant’ To Customers, CEO Concedes
McDonald’s is losing customers, as the world’s biggest hamburger chain struggles to attract diners with its higher-priced sandwiches and new offerings like Mighty Wings.
“We’ve lost some of our customer relevance,” CEO Don Thompson conceded Thursday on a call with analysts.
The Oak Brook, Ill.-based company reported disappointing sales for its fourth quarter, as fewer customers visited its established restaurants. Guest counts at those locations fell nearly 2 percent globally and 1.6 percent in the U.S. in 2013, according to a regulatory filing. And McDonald’s expects some challenges to persist this year.
To win back traffic, Thompson said the chain will focus on speedier service, better value offerings and raising “awareness around McDonald’s as a kitchen and a restaurant” that prepares high-quality food. It’s expanding prep tables and plans to beef up staff during peak hours for better execution. It is also bringing in a new U.S. marketing chief, Deborah Wahl, formerly with homebuilder PulteGroup and automakers Chrysler and Ford.
Nothing against McDonald's - if can definitely hit the spot at times - but they need to realize their biggest problem is that you can go elsewhere for better burgers, fries, and ice cream. They can add all the new options & health items and blame the economy all they want, but they need to take a serious look at the quality of their core items.
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