Can I Have Some More, Please?

Posted on | July 31, 2008 |

by Robert Passikoff President, Brand Keys

Starting in August Dunkin’ Donuts is officially tossing the health-football to the consumer by offering good-for-you menu options alongside those warm glazed donuts and dripping Boston creams. The menu debuts August 6th and includes a turkey sausage egg-white sandwich or a vegetable one. Both will be under 300 calories with 9 grams of fat or less. Mmmmm. Healthy and quality choices as an increasingly important driver of customer loyalty is a trend we have been tracking at Brand Keys; It’s no surprise to us that this is showing up in any category that involves food.

The trick is, of course, to do it right. As the leader in the coffee category in our Customer Loyalty Engagement Index (followed by McDonald’s, Starbucks, and Krispy Kreme), it’s Dunkin’s to lose. As with any driver of engagement, however, the devil is in the details: what exactly does the consumer mean by “health and quality” linked together? These are the nuances (in research parlance, the attributes, benefits and values) upon which the whole story pivots. And since we do this to make a living, we will keep that to ourselves.

Suffice it to say consumer expectations have never been higher in the history of the food category. We’ve always wanted that non-fat low-carb big-flavor cruller. The difference is now we expect it. I mean, if we can have electric cars that work and an iPod soundtrack to our lives, why not have warm donuts and small waistlines, too? In the meantime, we’ll be sending someone else in there to get our egg-white sandwich while I wait outside, visions of sugar twists dancing in our heads.

Comments

One Response to “Can I Have Some More, Please?”

Edward Hoffman
July 31st, 2008 @ 9:20 am

You hit the nail on the head when you said consumers “now expect it” when it comes to health and quality (however a restaurant operator defines these words). But I think the bigger demand from consumers is that the food must taste good (and be low-fat and low-carb, etc. etc.) Long gone are the days when consumers would sacrifice taste for “health” (remember no-fat ranch dressing or cheddar cheese?) And since “healthful” food has evolved beyond low-fat/no-food to “organic, natural, local,” consumers know good-for-you, flavorful food is possible.