Marketing Plan For Chipotle: Enhancing Environmental Sustainability

Learning outcomes

Chipotle is a Mexican Grill that was founded by Steve Ells a chef graduate of the Culinary Institute of America in 1993 and went public in 2006. He opened it with a view of making money to start up a good restaurant. It has a series of shareholders who are the main investors in the company and a large target group (HITT, IRELAND, & HOSKISSON, 2013). Today, it has expanded to a chain of food outlets providing fresh food to their customers. The company in recent times has been facing criticisms on the issue of GMO food but stands strong that it only provides the best fresh foods to its customers. The company though faced with many challenges it still remains to be a commercial social concern target and with a lot of customers.

The chipotle company is growing very first to become the best food outlet grill in the world, creating a new set of market referred to us fresh market dining that has highly risen to beat the company’s competitors. Marketing is a process of carrying out business activities to promote product and service distribution via a well-planned strategy. SWOT gives an overview of strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats of a business unit. Chipotle marketing situation involves the SWOT description in that;

• Strengths – the company is formed on strong foundation of knowledge, resources, research and positive customer output. The founder of the company is a qualified chef making it easy even for the rest of the staff members to be well versed with food knowledge. Shareholders are the main resource providers with an aim of making profits since the company has cleared its name and delivers with an aim of being the best hence making profits (GABRIEL, 2014). Research carried out by informed company researchers has been important to protect the company’s good will by helping to analyze information from both stakeholders and management to help understand their prospects. This is important to help make the company’s decisions. Other strengths of Chipotle Company have been through the stakeholders or rather the customers who protect the company from their ruining enemies.
• Weaknesses –the company is bound by so many weaknesses that affect its productivity in line of work. Lack of clear definition of what type of food they offer have resulted in accusations from critics of selling genetically modified food. This has been as a result of the company’s failure to publicize its level of sustainability. Lack of transparency like other companies has placed the company on a hot spot, being accused of sweet words but no action to deliver them like it is done by her competitors. Being unable to prove of their actions to her critics and competitors like McDonald’s has proven a challenge and efforts to resolve it has proven futile. Issue on lack of backup system on its data line is also another weakness and requires the company to relevantly apply the system, one of the shareholders asserts that. The company should also give a clear cut of is supply organic to prevent the so many questions from officials and other stakeholders. The so many weaknesses faced by Chipotle is as a result of ignorant management team, failure to clearly have an oversight on company’s proceedings makes the team to deliver beyond expectations.
• Opportunities –the company being formed on the basic knowledge of a well-informed chef and adequate funds and resources it’s an opportunity for its growth. Positive customer income has been the greatest motivation to Chipotle Company giving it more advantage to extensively grow in all sectors. Loans provided to Steve by his father and other monetary institutions took it a mile higher allowing it to grow without fear of resources.  Despite it being on the spot for its increasing weakness, its profit margins is overwhelming and gives it an opportunity to grow and deliver in better chances than its competitors and with almost an immediate hit to be the best American Food Grill. Having partnered with McDonalds which is an international restaurant gives it platform and opportunity to grow in to better international levels. Knowledge acquired during its interaction with international performers is important to help the company grow in a clear cut of developments and profits doing away with losses.
• Threats – in every growing or developing company and especially in Chipotle, threats are indeed real and are a gents of growth where managed well. Increased critics lower the morale of company’s performances making it hard for the company to perform with an essence of re correcting its critics. This is a threat of performance and if not corrected may result in losses (WILLIAMS, 2015). Failure of publicizing a company’s sustainability report is also a threat and the company may face real judgment in accordance with the law. This results in wastage of a lot of time and resources that could be used in company’s productivity. Increased competition is an opportunity to grow and a threat at the same time, since the company gathers courage to be more productive but with interactions of being beaten by other competitors. Competition is a health factor in business where it’s well perceived and coordinated.

• Chipotle aims to be the fastest growing fast food outlet in the world.
• To be the most efficient and effective customer relating firm.
• Be the most influential fast food company by creating employment opportunities to the jobless and follow marketing rules
• Create awareness to customers and stakeholders about the right food to take and act as examples
• Ensure that even those in rural areas understand the meaning of fast food and even buy it (new objective).

The company will enhance many marketing strategy plans such as;

• Product strategy, from the customer acquiring idea about their fast food, (KOTLER & PHILIP, 2010) they will be served with the best food and the very fresh in the market.
• Distribution strategy, the company uses the most appropriate and admirable means of distribution. Very tidy personnel who don’t and can’t use any type of drugs to harm our customers
• Pricing strategy, Chipotle charges favorable and premium charges for all of its services and if need be for any increments, it will be as it’s directed by the monetary chambers.
• Communication strategy, the company will enhance the marketing communication strategy to pass and communication beliefs to the customers as well as the stakeholders (HENDERSON, GULATI & TUSHMAN, 2014).
• Promotional strategy, advertisement and creating awareness will be done by promotional mix department following set rules of promotion in marketing.

• The chipotle company will enhance the use of their mix team that consists of personal selling, advertising, sales promotion and public relations together with relevant marketing tools that will help stress on customer value and forms customer relationships.
• Creating awareness to their customers and other stakeholders through active groups, media stations, and articles. Since the process is very expensive, the company’s top leadership together with their mix teams will have to strategize on the way to carry out their plan without wasting resources (MISHRA, 2009). Resources to carry out this process will come from the budgeted resources taking 15% of the profits.
• Using its marketing mix team, Chipotle Company will introduce a research-like activity to be able to know where it fits in the society as a fast food outlet and its effect on the company (JOBBER & ELLIS-CHADWICK, 2016). The mix team personnel will dress in civilians so not to be recognized and just ask random questions about the company. This will also be done through promotions and retreats in the company’s outlets. With the intended growth of the company as the years goes by, Chipotle strong growth awareness is key element to enhance its long-term success.
• The company will stress on reaching those in rural areas and tell them about fast food, importance and need to make them part of their frequent meal (RUSSO, 2010). This can also be done using traditional media stations to reach them through our placed media experts to give the right information.

During the first year, the company is anticipated at $899.070 million. Sale price average of $7 per unit, variable cost of $4.20 dollar per unit. The profits will shine after their sale exceed 75.844units. During year 3 as it continues to grow, profits will be after sale of more than 233.110 units.

Analysis; profits in year one after sales above75.844units

Profits in year three after sales above 233.110units

Company’s financial control will be done by our well-trained accountants with help of external auditors to help us keep watch of our financial proceedings. Use of marketing mix teams will also be important to help us keep truck of our customers and maintain our positive relationships with them and also help us keep in touch at all times (KURTZ, 2014). By the help of this steam, a strategy will be laid down to help understand the company’s progress. The company is also looking for ideal specialized marketing personnel to help improve their means of service provision to its people hence increasing its productivity.

Conclusion

A marketing plan is a very great deal for any small scaled or large scale business units to help give an outline of its business activities in relation to companies set goals and objectives. The marketing plan should be simple to understand and be written in a manner that favors’ all company departments to help it grow as expected. A company or any other business unit’s objectives should be strategized to know what comes first and the intensity of the objective to the company performance with a note that all objectives are important the difference is only the time they are achieved. Strategies and tactics should be in line with the beliefs of the company and as the law require to prevent extensive conflicts with legal bodies to help save time and resources. It’s also important for every company to have a favorable budget that fits the company’s set objectives and should be in relation to available resources, controls that help to overlook the company’s proceedings and developments should be well experienced and with qualifications stated by marketing laws.

• Chipotle Company should strictly observe the set business/marketing rules to reduce conflicts with legal bodies. Example, not publicizing their sustainability report was wrong and should be rectified.
• The company should adapt strategic management process to know what to strategize first as stipulated by the set objectives and in accordance with available resources.
• Measure controls used by the company should only be the once stated in the marketing plan.
• Using great masses to create awareness may result to misunderstandings to the target group and so Chipotle Company should only engage enough professionals to create awareness.
• The company should adapt the model of self-service in their outlets to reduce congestion during service delivery. 

References

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