MARKETING MIX – 1 INDIAN CASE STUDY : HOW CAN M’EATING SQUARE INCREASE THEIR EFFICIENCY IN PEOPLE AND PROCESSES ELEMENTS OF THE MARKETING MIX TO INCREASE CONSUMER SATISFACTION?”

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Research question with a focus on marketing mix –

“How can M’eating square increase their efficiency in people and processes elements of the marketing mix to increase consumer satisfaction?

Rationale for the marketing mix study–

M’eating Square is a restaurant, based in Navi Mumbai, in any service-based business people and processes play a major role. Today we are ahead of time in technology, before visiting any new restaurant, people check its rating on google or zomato¹. Ratings of M’eating square have always been formidable in food quality and ambiance.

However, many customers have provided low ratings, complaining about unprofessional behavior of waiters or sometimes delay in services. M’eating square aims to provide the best customer experience and physical evidence, however, delay in services have cost them fewer customers coming back to the restaurant.

They have been trying to find ways to overcome this problem. Hence, it will help the company, I will carry out research and propose solutions after analyzing all benefits and drawbacks.

Theoretical frameworks of the marketing mix study –

• Analyzing the effect of investing in training on the overall marketing mix

• Identifying the reason for the delay in service which hampers the marketing mix

• Customer problems which hamper the marketing mix.

• SWOT analysis, Gantt charts, Mc Gregor’s theory, Abrahms Maslow’s theory, Two-factor theory to improve the marketing mix

¹ Zomato is an Indian restaurant search and discovery service founded in 2008

Key areas of the syllabus under marketing mix–

• 1.2-Types of organization.

• 1.3-Organisational growth and objectives.

• 1.5-External environment

• 1.4-Stakeholders.

• 1.7-Organisation and planning tools

• Human resources

• Operations

• Communication

• Motivation

• Leadership and management

• Corporate culture

Methodology to improve marketing mix-

Primary research –

• Questionnaires for employees

• Interview with owner

• Interview with senior managers of the firms

• Questionnaire for consumers

• Observation

Secondary research –

• How to measure the effectiveness of training?

• Academic references.

• Customer reviews on reliable internet sources

ANTICIPATED LIMITATIONS –

• IN-ACCURACY IN RESULTS – The results of the budgets might be inaccurate and even small deflections might lead to the formation of false answers and will, therefore, affect the final decision.

Solution – Increased sample space

• BIAS IN THOUGHTS – Different employees might have different mindsets and their opinion might be based on different prejudices leading to conflicts in content expressed. Solution– Ask all employees and know all perspectives.
• Limitations in the number of responses – The responses which I will receive are very limited in number as compared to the number of people working for the company and many small issues might not be rectified with small sample size.

Solution – Include as limitation in conclusion

• DISHONESTY IN ANSWERS – The company aims to create a stable market image and therefore not give all the accurate details, sometimes even to protect their data from reaching the competitors.

Solution – Assure complete confidentiality and ethical presentation of data.

• Some employees may be unwilling to truthfully rate their job satisfaction levels.

Solution – Assure that the data will not be shared with seniors.

• Data obtained – Data from secondary sources might be biased and limited.

Solution – Balance with data of different websites

Action Plan ( Gantt Chart)-

Introduction –

M’eating Square is a restaurant based in Navi Mumbai, set up by Sankalp Hospitality a year ago, has a reputed image, it is well known for its food quality-taste and breathtaking ambiance.The physical evidence plays a great role in their marketing mix.

Its target segment is the upper-middle class audience for full course meals and meetings at their lounge. It can accommodate more than fifty customers being served by 8 waiters, 3 bartenders, and 2 on-floor managers.

Ratings of food outlets is an emergent trend today as they determine the marketing mix success. Customer reviews or customer experiences are given prominence, Zomato² and Google reviews have also identified M’eating Square as one the best restaurants  for their ambiance and food taste in the locality.This adds a tangible effect to the consumer and forces them to come back to the restaurant again and again. It overall improves the the marketing mix success rate.

However, their reviews have increased complaints about unprofessional staff behavior and delay in services. This has been hampering their marketing mix predominantly off late.

Managers have received similar complains and customer satisfaction has decreased off late, which deviates them from their vision and mission statements which is

“To sell delicious and remarkable food and beverages to match our world class location, to consistently provide our customers with impeccable service by demonstrating warmth, graciousness, efficiency, knowledge, professionalism, and integrity to our work.” ³

Hence, there is a pressing need to address this problem and find solutions so that the image does not get tarnished and the overall marketing mix optimal combination is not lost.

Google is readily accessible and if the customer reviews or customer experiences do not change, it will be known to all customers and their image will be relegated.

Hence, to help M’eating Square gain its old reputation and a profitable marketing mix, under my main research question –

“How can M’eating square increase their efficiency in people and processes elements of the marketing mix to increase consumer satisfaction?

2 Zomato is an Indian restaurant search and discovery service founded in 2008

3 Vision statement of M’eating Square

Methodology-

I have employed both Primary as well as secondary research to strengthen my research. Initially, to know the market image of M’eating Square, after taking an interview of owner and managers, I got to know what complains are they receiving.

I had to do basic Secondary research, which brought me to a conclusion that the image of M’eating Square is degrading because of delay in service and unprofessional staff on google reviews. This is causing major rupture in the marketing mix delivery.

However, this could have had biased and inaccurate data, hence, self-finished surveys from customers as well as waiters, surveys helped me with the Data collection, most vital for analysis and identification of solutions/recommendations.

Considering the possibility that any suggestion couldn’t be executed without bearing in mind the needs of the customers, these reviews precisely helped me include such points. Another mode of primary research implied by me was observation, I wanted to know the exact time the customers have to wait.

Findings-

I started with a survey of the consumers, trying to identify the main reason for decreased customer satisfaction, hence the questionnaire involves 4 questions which try to gauge their experience of the Restaurant.The decreased customer satisfaction is a major contributor to an unbalanced marketing mix.

The above graph (figure 1) ratings given by the customers

Here,

• The blue line represents that the customers hated it
• The red line represents that they were dissatisfied
• The orange line represents that they were neither satisfied nor dissatisfied
• The green means that the services could have been better
• The purple line shows how many customers loved the services.

4 Presented in appendix. 1

Clearly, around 70% of the customers were either dissatisfied with the speed of service or hated it, while other aspects have a relatively very high rating, however because of the speed of service, the overall experience of the customers have fallen down.This has been effecting the marketing mix.

• As the waiters play a major role in presentations as they represent the restaurant and create the first impression of the restaurant in the consumers’ mind. Here, again the customers were asked to rate the waiters on a scale of one(Lowest) to five(Highest).

The customers gave ratings between 3-5 to the appearance of the waiters. However, in punctuality, amicability, knowledge about the menu and efficiency, the customers gave them ratings between one to three.

• The manager was well versed with the increased complains of delay in service and always thought it is because of a lack of employee’s motivation or delay on cooking in some of the dishes.

• Performance appraisals are always done via cash gifts while the recruitment methods were typically an interview with the waiters and trials for chefs. Training was provided to the waiters about the menu where briefings about the menu are given to them so that they can help the consumers with placing orders
• I also asked the waiters if they feel overburdened, only 9.1% answered as no, which means that their workload is high and they identified the need of more waiters as well as chefs for effective and efficient work.

To further identify the main reason for increased dissatisfied consumer base, I asked associated questions to waiters, consumers, and the manager which could directly help to identify main reasons of the delay and identify if there is a communication gap. This could have been a major issue in unbalanced marketing mix.The findings are as follows-

Consumers–

Waiters-

• Generally, a waiter takes 5-6 minutes to attend a consumer after entering the restaurant. While they take around 6 minutes to serve the food after being prepared by the chefs.

Managers-

According to the managers, one waiter should cater to a maximum of 4 tables at the same time. The average time taken to place the order is 10 to 15 minutes while he takes only 6 minutes to serve the food after being prepared by the chef.

Observation –

Work	Food preparation	Taking the order	Serving the food
Time taken	10-15 minutes	13 minutes	7 minutes

Analysis-

Process-

SWOT ANALYSIS⁵–

Despite numerous strengths of M’eating square, its overall ratings on Google and Zomato are very poor which is one of the biggest threats to the restaurant. The main reason is unprofessional staff and delay in the services of the restaurant.

Customer reviews and ratings kept decreasing. Furthermore, the manager and owners started receiving complains about the delay. The main reason for this delay is the increased pressure on the waiters which has caused demotivation amongst the employees.

After basic primary research, I established that there was the difference in the time taken by the consumers, waiters, and managers in the time stated by all of them, hence to distinguish the actual numbers, I started observing all the stages involved.

Time took (Minutes)	ordering food	Preparing Food	Serving	Overall wait time
Consumers	7-10	XX	7	20-30
Waiters	6	10-15	5	15-20
Managers	8	10-15	5	20
Observation	8-10	10-15	8	20-30

5 Presented in appendix – 1.

The main reason why the management could not recognize the delay is because of the perception gap, there is a difference of 10-15 minutes between the time that it actually takes than to what the staff thinks they take to serve the food. I tried to observe all the stages, from the point where the consumer enters the restaurant, to where he leaves served and arranged it in a flow chart.

Further, I tried to know the time each stage should ideally take to finish the work on time and the time it actually takes in the restaurant as per my observations-

There is a delay in many of the stages involved in operations of the restaurants, the main delay is because of the waiters, waiters are often overburdened and have to serve more tables that they are advised to.

However, if M’eating square aims to regain its brand image, they need to start finding ways through which they can reduce the overall time they take to serve the food. They can plan how the customer spends the time waiting for food at the restaurants or streamline their menu and create a standard operating procedure for the employees. They can also improve their billing systems (POS⁶) to decrease the time taken.

6 A point-of-sale (POS) transaction is what takes place between a merchant and a customer when a product or service is purchased, commonly using a point of sale system to complete the transaction.

PEOPLE –

Processes of any firm can be accomplished easily if the employees are dedicated and motivated, however, motivation could not be found in the culture of M’eating Square. They have a lot of demotivated workers, employees often overburdened and hence any planning from the management is not implemented easily, employees do not coordinate with each other.

After blithely asking them about their income levels, bestowing to the Abraham Maslow’s theory of motivation, I found that though they have met their physiological needs, they are still in the lower levels of the pyramid as their income levels are low.

I found that managers follow laissez fair leadership style, because of which employees have become irresponsible, which implies that they are Theory X employees according to Mc Gregor’s theory.

To keep them motivated the employer should offer attractive rewards as they have no inducements to work and effective training is necessary. However, appraisals are given to them, but only in the form of cash which might not be ideal for theory X employees. According to Fredrick Herzberg’s Two Factor theory, money is not a motivator for them, but a hygiene factor for employees. It infers that salaries or cash benefits will not motivate them to work but their absence will demotivate them and if they have to keep them motivated they need to identify ways through which appraisals can be given to the employees.

Conclusion –

In conclusion, it can be said that M’eating Square needs to increase its efficiency in terms of employees. Data collected with the help of interviews and analysis of Data clearly indicates that due to an increase in overall time taken in services, they have received a lot of complaints and have led to the customer, However, with the help of a tool like Gantt charts and motivation theories, we can still increase consumer satisfaction. However, these theories were found by American scholars and hence might not be applicable in Indian culture.

Moreover, these changes can cause an increase in price and cost of production which have not been analyzed hence the suggestions cannot be completely applicable to the restaurants which is one of the limitations of the IA. However, if the finances are managed, these suggestions can help M’eating Square to overcome its problems and can assure success. However, I could have further considered other elements of the marketing mix for research and considered the financial data to provide more relevant and precise recommendations for M’eating Square.

Recommendations with respect to improving the process element of the service-

• Multi-tasking- The company must understand that in order to reduce their total time taken, they must make the use of Gantt Charts so that they can serve the food in the minimum time required. However, some dishes are made just in case and hence they might have a delay in its preparation.
• Buffet System – They must also add buffet system for food so that if anyone has to hurry, they can buy a buffet meal. As most of their customers are workers, they do not have extended time for lunch breaks.
• Efficient inventory control system- Managing ingredients and equipment required is also very important for managing the overall flow of the processes involved in the kitchen. This will minimize the wastage of food and will also help in decreasing the time taken to cook the food.

Recommendations with respect to improving people element of the service-

• Staff (appraisals) – they should give attractive gifts and awards which could motivate  the employees like –
• An employee of the month
• An employee without any sick leaves
• Family Trips
• Certificate of appreciation, and recognition amongst other employees. Etc.
• Training should be provided to waiters about professionalism. However, this would cause an increase in the cost of the firm and if they reduce their cost, they will have to change their recruitment process and add a filter of experienced and trained professional.

Bibliography –

• Job, Alison. “SWOT Analysis Examples.” Entrepreneur, 3 Aug. 2018, www.entrepreneurmag.co.za/advice/business-plans/business-plan-research-and- preparation/swot-analysis-examples/.
• Morreaux, Angelique de la. “The Types of Restaurant Employees.” Small Business – Chron.com, Chron.com, 26 Oct. 2016, smallbusiness.chron.com/types-restaurant- employees-14354.html.
• “Restaurant Management Tips.” Restaurant Management Tips – Restaurant Advice – Running a Restaurant, www.restaurantreport.com/management_tips/index.html.
• “What Is a Gantt Chart?” Gantt, www.gantt.com/.

• IB Business and management textbook, paul haung, 3^rd edition.

APPENDICES –

1.Questionnaire for Waiters –

Q1- How many tables do you attend to at one time?

Q2- Do you feel you are overburdened during the peak hours?

Q3- Do you feel the recruitment of more waiters is required to reducing workload per waiter?

Q4- Where do you think there is a delay and we can increase the speed of service? Q- Do you feel the recruitment of more chefs could lead to a decrease in the speed of service?

Q5- How long does it take for you to attend the customers for taking the orders?

Q6- How long does it take to serve the food on the table after the chef has prepared it?

Q7- Did you undergo any training program post your appointment?

Q8- On a scale of one to five rate the effectiveness of the training given? Q- How are incentives or performance appraisals given to you?

Q9- Are you satisfied with your job?

2. Questionnaire for Consumers –

Q1.

Q2.

Q3.

Q4.

Q5.

Q6.

Q7.

3. Questionnaire for Manager/ Owner –

Q1.

Q2.

Q5- Q7

The SWOT analysis of M’eating square

Strengths–	Weakness-
Exterior,     as     well     as     interior decoration, add up to the ambiance.No similar restaurant in the locality.Good brand image.Old and established restaurant.Availability of funds.International cuisine availablechefs training by Sanjeev Kapoor.Prices are comparatively lower than restaurants in the area.Attractive     discounts     on     drinks, internationally awarded bartender.Many corporate offices nearby.Discounts for corporate professionals.Training is given to waiters about the menu.Free welcome drink with dinner.Live Music every Saturday-Sunday eve.Lounge open 24/7Low operation costs.Famous sea-food.	Long waiting time for customers.No     training     provided     for     the professional behavior of the waiters.Food offered is not creative, also available with competitors.Demotivated staffEmployee turnover rate has increased
Opportunities-	Threats –
Airoli knowledge park setting up which will have more than 5000 employees. (Less than 2kms away)Luxury housing buildings coming up.Shop     adjacent     is     now     vacant, expansion is possible.The main competitor is closed.Reduction in GST to only 5%.	Poor ratings on google and ZomatoMall development project nearby, more than 40 fast food chains setting up.Business lease period is over, there are heavy chances of increase in rent.Industrywide increase in costs of sea- food.