YouGov.com has emerged as a leading survey authority on American Life. And its latest Restaurant Brand Rankings report leaves no doubt as to what Americans want from their Fast Food Fix…
Not entirely what we expected – But an eye-opener, nonetheless!
Why they do it…
YouGov America sets the bar high for its annual survey of restaurant ‘performance’. The preamble to its report sets the scene:
“Restaurants occupy a unique place in Americans’ daily lives. But in an increasingly competitive dining landscape, understanding which brands stand out has never been more important. […] This report explores how restaurant brands are performing in the United States, ranking the leaders.”
But: “Beyond the rankings, we take a closer look at the consumers behind the industry, including a detailed profile of weekly fast food diners: Who they are, what motivates their choices, and how their preferences differ by gender. […] We also examine one of the most enduring questions in American dining: which brands consumers believe do certain foods best.”
And with the cost of dine-out or takeout meals continuing to soar, it’s vital for those who would let others do the cooking to know where their next best-meal deal is coming from.
The Burger Game…
We were not surprised to see McDonald’s lead the overall preference rankings. They pretty much invented the mega-franchise concept and were first to take it global. That also indicates that Amer-icans believe McD’s does burgers best. Though you’ll find definite preferences regionally for home-town favourites such as Shake Shack, In ‘N Out and other legendary brands.
Wendy’s and Burger King came in third and fourth, respectively, overall. We were surprised to see Wendy’s edge out BK, though.
And Dairy Queen, the grand dame of national soft serve stands ‘which also sells burgers’, just man-aged to make it into the Top 10, at number 9.
The Chicken Challenge
No surprise to see cult classic Chick-Fil-A in second place, overall. They invented the now-standard Crispy Chicken Sandwich, which others have copied slavishly since the Millennium. But they copied it because it was as close to perfection as a chicken sandwich could get.
What did surprise us was that KFC came in way down at number 7, overall. Until southern star CFA and its classic fried chicken sandwich emerged as a new standard, KFC had roosted comfortably atop the chicken ratings, unchallenged for decades.
The Pizza Pack
Pizza is perennially ranked as not only America’s, but the world’s favourite dish – fast or slow, casual or formal. But the lone Pizza joint to show up in the Top 10 was Domino’s.
Frankly, based on other surveys we’ve seen recently, we expected to Pizza Hut be there, if there really was room for only one pizza brand in the Top 10…
One reason for the relative scarcity of pizza joints in the top rankings is probably the sheer range of brands in the market. Pizza so beloved by consumers that there’s enough demand enough to keep a relatively large number of brands afloat. But that leads to a fragmented market where only the big-gest nationals have a chance of scoring high.
Other cuisines check in…
The other food traditions you’d expect to find in the Top 10 each checked in with single represent-atives. The order in which they appear in the list tells us something about their relative appeal.
Taco Bell’s Tex-Mex (No. 5) edged out Subway’s ‘healthier Hoagies’ (no. 6) in popularity behind burg-ers and chicken. As we mentioned earlier, Dairy Queen stood up for the ice cream sector at No. 9. And Arby’s just squeaked in a number 10, even though the Roast Beef specialist really constitutes a un-ique, one-member category. On that basis, it’s a notable achievement that the brand made the Top 10 at all!
My take
If the YouGov survey had simply produced the Fast Food rankings as we all might have expected to see them, it would have been an anti-climax, at best. But when such a poll highlights results that differ from our expectations – more accurately, our assumptions – it provides a prime teachable moment!
~ Maggie J.