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Marketing*Strategy*

The*Humpty*Dumpling*Food*Truck*

Alabama&White&&&Danny&Ma&

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Table!of!Contents!

INTRODUCTION) 3!

SITUATIONAL)ANALYSIS) 4!DEMAND)ANALYSIS) 4!BUYER)BEHAVIOR) 6!SEGMENTATION) 8!COMPETITIVE)ANALYSIS) 10!SWOT) 13!

GOALS)AND)OBJECTIVES) 14!TARGET)MARKET)SELECTION)(PRODUCT)MARKET)GRID)) 14!

MARKET)PROGRAM) 15!STRATEGY) 15!TACTICS) 15!EVALUATION)PLAN) 16!

APPENDICES) 17!!

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Introduction!

ACW food groups is dedicated to creating delicious, high quality food and beverages served in

inviting establishments. We aim to always source the best local ingredients and commit to investing in people and planet to promote a better world.

For the Humpty Dumpling Food Truck, we propose to target middle and high income individuals

and households as well as all sized organizations. Our goals for The Humpty Dumpling include 100% local sourcing of ingredients, seasonal menus, and specialty beverages. Additionally, we hope to turn a profit in five years and create a fun, fair working environment for all employees.

Our initial strategy is to start with our daily operating food truck offerings to our target segments

in a few set location around Denver and develop a booking and location tracker app. We want to expand into catering events and new markets after turning a profit that we can invest in those programs. We will be moderately priced in between the average fast food establishment and a more casual sit down restaurant. Promotion will include website, social media, word of mouth, and eventually commercial ads.

The Humpty Dumpling food truck business mission is to offer US citizens with quality food on a

mobile basis while sustaining uncompromising principles as its aims to compete with a moderate price. The company's decision-making will follow these guidelines: Provide a good working atmosphere and respect employees; Corporate diversity is a necessary aspect for the company to carry out its business; Establish long-term relationships with customers, consider the environment and customer safety, and consider the company's survival and future success depends on its profitability.

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Situational!Analysis!

Demand!Analysis!

What is the Market?

Our first task is to define the market in which we would operate in the U.S. Our business would fall into the restaurant industry, more specifically quick service/casual eateries. This differs from establishes such as coffee houses or fine dining restaurants because they cater to a different target consumer and require alternative demand analyses. The closest type of business competition would be fast food chains and casual, quick sit down restaurants which based on our research is generally in high demand but attracts specific geographic locations and target markets as well.

How Large is the Market?

The size of the market in this situation is defined as the size of the eating out market in the U.S. More specifically, the casual eating segments and food truck segments already existing. Eating out in the U.S. is consistent with 20% of Americans eating out at least once a week, 49 million reporting eating out in the spring of 2016, and 72% of Americans choosing to eat at a quick service location for lunch. Additionally, American cuisine was the most popular with local, fresh ingredients being an important influencer for most consumers.

What factors influence demand for the product?

Price: Consumers are very sensitive to the price of the product, the change in prices can affect the demand in the products.

Income level: The income level of the consumers determines the demand in product. The greater income can indicate a greater buying power.

Consumer taste and preference: Consumers taste and preference can vary and affect the demand of the product. There are many factors influence consumer taste and preference and therefore influence the demand of the product. For example, people in a hurry might prioritize the time getting their meal instead of a sit-down meal which takes longer. In addition, food truck creates an environment and experience that are different from the regular restaurant dining, therefore, people might be more willing the pay for the food truck than in a fast food restaurant, which will also affect the demand of the product.

Competition: Competition can influence the demand of the product. In the city of Los Angeles where food trucks are very popular tend to be more competitive, people have more options therefore can influence the demand. In addition, food trucks similar in ways that it is hard to differentiate one from another.

Place: Location influence the demand of the product. When placing a food truck in populated tourism area might have higher demand than placing it in a quiet distant neighborhood. Certain states have more prevalence of food trucks already including California, Florida, Texas, New York, Washington, and Colorado being the most popular.

Advertisement: The power of advertisement cannot be neglect. The more explosive and attractive advertisement can influence the awareness of the product, and the word of mouth can also increase the awareness of the product and therefore increase the demand of the product. Moreover, recently many TV series also casting food truck series.

Weather/Season: Weather can be one of the important factors influence the demand of the product. Food truck is more popular on the sunny day than on a rainy day, and therefore the weather affects the demand of the product. Additionally, the season influences how often people eat out as they tend to go out more during the spring, summer, and early fall than in the winter.

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Is demand consistent over time or does it fluctuate in response to temporal or cyclical factors?

For the most part, demand in this industry is relatively consistent but it does fluctuate regularly based on a few specific factors. As mentioned above, weather as well as income and the overall health of the economy affect how often consumers eat out and how much they spend. Although the cycle of seasons, holidays, and the economy does create varied demand throughout the year, they are consistent year to year and thus can be planned for.

Industry Growth

According to the U.S Chamber of Commerce Foundation Food Truck Index food trucks are expected to increase from $650 million in 2014, to $1.2 billion in revenue in 2015 and to approximately $2.7 billion in 2017. According to IBISWorld, the food truck industry grew at an average rate of 7.9% per year since 2011. There are 3,703 trucks and 13,501 employees at the end of 2016. This information leads us to believe that there is positive room for new entry and growth into this market.

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Buyer!Behavior!

5 Step Model The 5 Step Model is the best way to describe the consumer behavior for our industry. They begin

with the problem recognition which could start at several places some as simple as “I’m hungry” or more complex “I’m hungry but I’m on a budget and I want good quality food”. This can be the individual consumer behavior. Then they move on to an information search where they attempt to obtain all the possible options that could satisfy their problem. These range from friend and family recommendation to a google search by location or possibly an app search by price. The third step involves alternative evaluation where consumers compare the options to find the best fit for their current needs. They calculate subconsciously based on elements such as “What makes this fast food chain better or worse than a food truck?” Or “What kind of cuisine sounds good to eat today?” Then they move on to the purchase decisions where they decide where to buy and follow through on that purchase. “Mexican sounds good so I will eat at the taco place today” or “I just got my paycheck, perhaps I’ll eat at a steakhouse today.” This step is where all the alternative evaluation factors matter most in attracting new customers to the business. The last step is one of the most important in the food industry. Based on a variety of factors such as service, food quality, and location- customers now decide how they felt about a product and whether they would purchase it again. A good experience builds brand loyalty and creates repeat customers. A bad experience creates cognitive dissonance and a bad company reputation. See charts below for more examples of the 5-step model for our food truck business.

Other Models Additionally, learning theory and economic theory could be used to partially describe our consumer’s

attitudes. With learning theory, the expectation is that a consumer would choose to purchase our food out of hunger primarily. This follows the desired state versus the actual state because the consumer is hungry and wished not to be. If our cues are correctly placed and our quality is good in the consumer’s point of view, then this will successfully create a response, evaluation, and memory scenario which will likely lead to repeat buying behavior. Economic theory also fits because of the cost aspect of our product. Although consumers are ultimately fulfilling a need and will do so however they can, there is also a rational process by which they can search for what they want based on taste and price. These two factors are important and a lower cost but still delicious product will bring certain customers to the business.

Similarities and Differences Between Consumer Groups

In the food service industry, there are many different types of consumers but they can often be

separated into distinct consumer groups mainly individuals, households, and organizations. These groups value different things and process information a little differently or have different motivations for buying. This ranges from young, middle aged, and older populations. They can be separated by all different levels of income such as low and middle and based on how they consume food. On the go, in the home, and out for special occasions are all differences in the way consumer groups make decisions and process information.

An understanding of how consumers process information.

The most important attributes that consumers evaluate for food trucks and restaurants in general

include location, food quality, customer service, food type i.e. cuisine or alternative health options, and price. Consumers attitudes and intentions center around one of the most basic human needs- food and water. This drives many people to seek out sustenance and the goal to fulfill the hunger need is the core

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intention of our consumers. How they do this can vary based on individual and social attitudes and other intentions they may have for themselves, their lives, or their families. This could include such things as the attitudes towards eating out vs cooking at home or how certain cultures treat meal times socially. Some look at it as an important event that brings people together in the day while others look at it as a necessary inconvenience. As an example: The attitudes in the United States tend to be somewhere in the middle of those two examples whereas those in Europe tend to lean towards the former. These types of attitudes will be crucial to successfully choosing a target market and location for our food truck business.

A description of the various influences that can move a consumer toward choice.

There are other factors that influence what they choose to eat and how much they spend. All our

potential customers could go to the grocery store and cook a meal at home for a relatively cheaper unit cost than eating out or could choose to go to a higher cost/ higher end establishment. Social factors, time, discretionary spending habits, taste preferences, and the search for something new or exciting can influence a consumer to purchase other offerings such as our food truck. Rising incomes indicate an increased willingness to eat out and to try to new establishments. The economy in general is also an important factor as it continues to rise and do well, the proportion of people willing to eat out increases. Price seems somewhat flexible with many consumers varying the type and price index of the restaurants they frequent from day to day. However, the U.S. tends to eat a more expensive meal at dinner and a more cost sensitive one at lunch. Social influences are also critical- the healthy eating movement, increased popularity in specialty diets such as veganism, friends and family pressure or recommendations, increasing incomes, changing population demographics such as the millennial focus on experiences, and prevalence of easy access to information are all elements to consider when opening our food truck and specifying a target market.

Messages geared towards experiential eating, high quality food, and excellent customer service are most likely to influence a customer’s decision. Social media and website traffic is the most important including spaces on apps such as Yelp and Google location searches. Food magazines and blogs can also influence decision making because of the customer review element to their stories. Consumers will easily be able to determine the restaurant specs based on this online information. T.V. or print ads are less effective but still have a place for targeting specific demographics.

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Segmentation!

The basis variables we investigated included demographics, psychographics, and perceptions and preferences. These included a wide range such as:

Income Lifestyle Taste preferences Location Age range Gender Family Size Customer Service Expectations Experiential Expectations

After doing some basic research and inferencing about the potential populations we could target, we

decided that three variables were the most important to start with as a basis variable for the charts below: Income, Lifestyle, and Service Expectations. These three were the best for segmentation because they are the top influencers in a customer’s buying behavior for the food industry and would most likely transfer to our food truck as well.

According to the research, income is the main influencer on food expenditures. This includes not

only where consumers choose to eat but how often and how much they spend per outing. For this reason, it was the first variable we created segment charts for. Lifestyle was also an important factor that came up in our research. This variable determines location in terms of where consumers go out to eat and what kind of food they eat which is important when considering the food truck and who it might cater to the best. Lastly, the third variable we inferenced was the next best way to segment the population was service expectations. Population, internet, and eating trends are making this element increasingly vital in a consumer’s buying process which is the primary reason we used it above some of the other next likely variables. Customer reviews and recommendations are much more accessible via the internet so customers can conduct more research and pick one restaurant over another based on the service.

There are several key differences between each of our segments in all the three charts. The first

chart focuses on Income. We divided the segments into low income, middle, and high. Apart from the difference in buying power and overall propensity to spend money on eating out, they also have differences in the buying process. Lower income people tend to focus more on the lowest possible price regardless of quality, service, or nutrition. This is borne out of necessity and the push to try to be healthier on a budget is helping this issue but it is still a consideration when deciding on our target market. Middle income and high income share more commonalities than either do with lower income but middle income segments tend to be more price flexible, not wanting to pay exorbitant amounts but willingly to spend more to get what they want. This makes them more willing to spend time reading reviews and listening to recommendations that comment on price. Higher income people spend a lot more and generally do not care about the price if their other important needs are met by the establishment.

The second chart’s key differences relate to lifestyle and how that affects the household buying

process for each group. Accessibility focused lifestyles lend them to search based on convenience above everything else. Distance from work or home can be essential since this group does not always have reliable transportation or the time to spend on restaurant not conveniently placed. The next group places high emphasis in lifestyle preferences on having many options and trying different types of food. The buying process for them focuses on alternative evaluations that reflect options above convenience and higher participation in the post-purchase behavior. The third group in the lifestyle buying process focuses more on quality and taste of food. They search based on food as well as what might be on trend in their

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social circles. Quality and taste preferences greatly influence their alternative evaluation and post-purchase behavior. Consequently, these tastes can also lean towards more elevated than other groups.

The third variable is service expectations and specialty uses and one of the three groups varies

much more than the other two. The first group doesn’t care about service quality at all. The primary motivation for them in information search may not include service ratings or reviews and thus it doesn’t influence whether they choose to frequent one place over another. Additionally, they may have post-purchase behavior that disregards an effort for good service in favor of something else. The next group is truly middle of the road. They want good customer service and may put preference during the alternative evaluation on places that are casual but have a wait staff or other amenities. They are flexible when it comes to the information search and may reflect an emphasis on wait times and operating hours. The third segment in this variable category must have gourmet quality and stellar customer service. They rarely eat at restaurants that do not have a wait staff, high end atmosphere, and amenities such as a bar. This changes their information search because they are less likely to do a google search or read blogs to find out about new places and their quality of service. Additionally, alternative evaluation may focus more on events or classic/reliable establishments. These three segments vary distinctly based on service expectations and the drastic differences may force us to choose one over the other without the option to create a product for the other segments.

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Competitive!Analysis!

Customer-based Approach

The food industry has been booming at a pace faster than ever before in terms of both units available and sales. Modern citizens are living a busier life and are attaining access to various food products thanks to technology growth. Thus, the concept of the food truck has been emerging in the past decade and is now important in the customers’ daily life. However, when we take a deep look at the demands of our customers, it is obvious that food truck is far more than about food. We can see the food vlogs and the trendy chic foody pictures on Instagram or Facebook. We see the Chia Seed Bowls and the churros. People queue in front of new local eats and dives featured on T.V. and many other trendy food shops. Food is no longer about food itself. It is something that you can utilize to show yourself or your lifestyle. In this case, we can see the change in the market and food truck is now competing with many products that seemed to be irrelevant before. For example, Starbucks is one of the potential competitors of food truck as both are trying to grab the time and attention of consumers via social channels. Another example competitor in the sphere of social media is the cosmetics industry as they are also something for the consumers, especially the young consumers (they are the group that mainly treat food as “not food”). The traditional needs for food truck still exist though. Thus, those diners and fast food chains are also strong competition to food truck. Among them, those chic and fancy ones are the strongest competitors as they attract young people most.

Strategy-based Approach

Competition has driven the market dynamics of the industry. Different strategies are effective in a diversified market competition scenario. Business managers are keenly concerned about current and potential environmental competition as well as positioning the brand to attract the desired customer and compete in the desired arena. Splitting competitors into three primary groups is the best strategy to identifying and mitigating competition concerns for The Humpty Dumpling. These categories are Fast Food Chains, Casual Restaurants, and Events or Establishments that offer food as well as entertainment. The largest group of these categories is the fast food and although it is not the direct market The Humpty Dumpling wishes to compete in, the fast-paced nature of The Humpty Dumpling makes this group viable competitors for consumer dollars. To this end, we see KFC as an example of competition in the fast food restaurant industry. Similar to McDonald's, KFC is also one of the oldest and most diverse fast food chains in the world. It operates through a range of restaurants, corporate operations and global franchises. Due to its rapid expansion, McDonald's has operations in 119 countries and employs more than 400,000 people worldwide. On the other hand, KFC has a similar presence, but the number of employees is slightly higher than 25,000. Both KFC and McDonald’s has a stable and strong growth trend on a global scale. Many fast food companies are seeking expansion in business in their existing markets including Burger King, Five Guys, White Castle, KFC, and McDonald’s and are seeking expansions through oversea markets.

Identifying Potential Competitor To group those competitors, we must group our customers first. There are three large groups of consumers who we identified in our segmentation section: people who don’t have time (need to grab some food fast), people who love to eat and show (need to show that they are trendy and unique), and

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people who consume impulsively (like when they are shopping or hanging around with friends and randomly run into some food truck). For the first group, food is just food and is used primarily to fulfill the fundamental needs of hunger. The competitors in this area are mostly fast food chains and small diners. The

franchisers are the biggest players and strongest competitors due to their brand power and numbers of shops. For the second group, food is a combination of satisfying hunger, focusing on quality, and maintaining a specific lifestyle image. Thus, the competitors here are mostly those trendy shops like local casual restaurants and other food trucks. Those competitors aim to compete in lifestyle and fashion. For the third group of consumers, impulsive eating is key. Thus, the key competitors are those existing shops of food in malls, entertainment parks, and other facilities where people spend their spare time.

Predicting Competitor Behavior

External competition factors affecting the fast food industry include opportunities and threats. Prospects for companies in these industries include; the current international market is expanding due to the current general appeal to fast food. This has become an important opportunity for US companies to explore markets in other countries around the world. The big or traditional players such as McDonald’s are not the only ones seeking oversea opportunities. We expect fast food chains to continue to push marketing that portrays their restaurants as more than cheap unhealthy food. They are now trying to convince the consumers that they are real, good, and of high quality as their reputations are the image of low-quality food and un-delicious food. The second group is likely to utilize social media and branding to create the environment and loyalty in the younger, experience and lifestyle image fueled generation. Quality, consistency, and service are unlikely to be as much of a concern as camera- friendly bites and social engagement. The third group is not a direct competitor but still can draw customers away by offering convenience of not having to leave an area to attain reasonable food. We expect events and entertainment venues to continue contracting to our direct competitors or establishing their own food and beverage.

Competitive Strategy The Humpty Dumpling’s business focus is on freshly prepared beverages and food for people

across the US. The business will operate entirely in mobile capacity through our food trucks except for business offices held in Denver. The company plans to expand its business and purchase a second truck that operates in different regions. The company also plans to make considerable sales through cooking, shipping areas, as well as placing trucks at nearby and military bases during the weekends and local festivals. It is estimated that 1/2 of total sales revenue will come from these truck operations. To avoid and reduce inventory damage, the company plans to provide food and beverage delivery services to third-party cafes, restaurants and other food service outlets under controlled conditions.

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This will fulfill both the needs of satiety and lifestyle, with a moderate price but a premium quality of fast food. Key competitors facing our business include Burger King, McDonalds, KFC, Local mom and pops, and casual establishments such as Qdoba, Jimmy John’s, and Tokyo Joes. Marketing strategy is also one of the key competing tools for the company to win in the market. One big advantage Food Truck has is that it could market itself as it moves around all the time. As the truck itself can act as its own marketing platform, the opportunity allows proprietors to concentrate on operational costs. This advantage will make it a financially viable business idea characterized by limited advertisement costs especially compared to its competitors located in brick and mortar properties. Thus, pricing will also be one of the key competitive advantages.

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SWOT!

SWOT ANALYSIS

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Internal Strengths:

1.! Unique Concept/Product Offering 2.! Passionate Leadership 3.! Great Marketing Plan 4.! Creative Culinary Collaborators 5.! Relativity low Start-up cost compared

to regular restaurant 6.! Mobility 7.! Flexibility 8.! Large Differentiation Potential 9.! Low-stocking requirement 10.!Environment protection and less

waste

Weaknesses:

11.!No Capital 12.!No Employees 13.!No Investors 14.!No Truck/Store Front 15.!No App 16.!No Advertising or Brand 17.!No established customer base 18.!Costly location permits 19.! Inability to sell alcohol in truck

platform 20.!Hard to predict customer need

External Opportunities:

21.!Market Demand for Quick food

options 22.!Consumer push for better quality and

service in fast food 23.!Experience driven generation 24.!Low barrier to entry 25.!Large potential market(s) 26.!Moderate customer loyalty in food

category 27.!Quality/service sensitivity 28.!Fair Economies of scale 29.!Large availability of suppliers 30.!Consumer demand for healthy but

delicious options

Threats:

31.!Many competitors 32.!Location Specific industry 33.!Large Conglomerates in industry to

compete with 34.!Long profit return cycle 35.!Strong threat of Substitution options 36.!Price sensitivity 37.!High buyer power 38.!Commodity product 39.!Potential economic downturn

pending 40.! increased environmental concerns

regarding food production and consumption

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Goals!and!Objectives!

Target!market!selection!(Product!market!grid)!!

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Segments Attribute Food

Truck Booking Events Truck

Rental Mkt

Potential (Million)

Individuals Low Income

Price .07 X X X $324

Mid Income

Service .05 .01 X X $486

High Income

Quality .03 .01 .04 X $810

Household Lifestyle Quality .11 .02 .14 .09 $216 Experience Service .21 .05 .28 .19 $108 Events Price X .02 .14 .09 $216

Organization Companies Price .09 .02 .11 .07 $207

Events Service .43 .09 .57 .37 $54 Experience Quality .11 .02 .14 .09 $216

The goal date for unveiling The Humpty Dumpling food truck in the Denver area to the public is

2022 with capital fundraising, menu plan, and design completion goals of 2021, 2022, and 2022 respectively. !!!!!!!

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Market!Program!

Strategy!

Our strategy for The Humpty Dumpling includes three main product-market combinations and related tactics to support them. A food truck that operates daily in a few chosen locations throughout the city of Denver. This operation will target individuals and households of all incomes and sizes by offering delicious, moderately priced food and beverages. Locations will have space for an outdoor seating area in addition the truck and staff. Parks and other public spaces are perfect for families to enjoy a picnic or quick meal without having to cook and bring all the accoutrements with them. Another truck can be placed in high traffic city areas such as downtown near businesses and professionals. This truck could operate daily to serve busy professionals. Additionally, we will offer event catering services to organizations who wish to rent our truck and staff operations for a flat flee. Finally, our last offering will be an easy to navigate booking app that will track our truck’s locations as well as allow people to mobile order pickup and reserve events.

Tactics!!Food Truck 1: The price of this product will be in the mid-range, with the average meal and drink per

person to be between $15-30. A range is useful because different combinations of menu items may yield different total prices. Promotion will be through The Humpty Dumpling website, social media- Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram, and word of mouth. A special for the first opening week could include discounts on beverages or if the person makes a positive yelp review. Weekly specials featuring local ingredients or new beverages could be offered to guests.

Food Truck Events: Booking the food truck and staff for events will work much like catering with the

truck stationary at the event for the duration of the dinner period, setup, and cleanup. Open to the public but advertised for organizations, the minimum price for an event would be $6000 to break even on the cost of running the food truck for the duration of the event. Promotion for this service would be through the website, booking app, and social media and would include messages that appeal specifically to large organizations.

Booking App: The booking app for our Food Trucks would include location services, menu and

prices, as well as a mobile ordering system. Organizations could use the app to submit event requests as well. The price of the app would be folded into our overhead costs and any revenue from the app would come from partner ads. These could either be complimentary or unrelated businesses but not potential competitors. Promotion to use the app would be through the Website and social media Encouragement to use the app could include price deals such as 50% off total order, etc.

The first step in our market program implementation plan is to raise capital and finalize concept

details such as the menu. Creation of the product (the truck, app, and menu samples) would be next as well as supply chain set-up, hiring, and training of staff. Promotion for the new food truck would begin at least 6 months before the scheduled grand opening with soft openings for food critics, etc. before that. A dedicated team to handle marketing, social media, booking, and event services will be necessary to continue gaining new customers.

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Evaluation!Plan!The evaluation method we use will begin with a 3 month capital fundraising evaluation to update the

budgets for product creation and marketing and inform or adjust timelines as necessary. After opening, quarterly updates to all information, strategies, and training manuals will help The Humpty Dumpling stay organized and profitable. !

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Appendices!

!Table 1 Organizations

Stage of Buying Decision

Description for:

Problem Recognition How many potential customers can we get? How to systematically train all the employees? How to measure profits? Organization consumer behaviors different from household and individual in problem recognition that the questions they concern are broader compared to household and individuals. It might be harder to predict and recognize problem compared to individual and household because of the broad spectrum of the problem.

Information Search Marketing research and data analysis on food truck union, previous experience at different type of events, customer feedback on online or offline platform, appearance of the food truck itself, case studies of the history or stories of different food trucks and the organizations. Information search are similar in ways that to collect information about food truck and the industry.

Alternative Evaluation How many profit can we make as an organization, what is the law and regulation related to food truck vs. individual business, what is the customer feedback on overall rating about the food truck business or specific type of food truck. Alternative evaluation is different for organizations as a whole because it involves many perspectives to consider like profits etc.

Purchase Decision What type of customer will interested in buying food from food truck, how to evaluate customer buying powers, what is the advantages and disadvantages of food truck compare to similar services or competitors like pop-up stores or fast food restaurants. Purchase decisions also varied in organizations vs for individual and household.

Post-Purchase Behavior Will the customers buy the product again? What is the expectation and satisfaction of the food truck business, what is the effect of word of mouth for food truck?

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Table 2 Households

Stage of Buying Decision

Description for:

Problem Recognition Who makes the buying decision in the family? What is the budget limit in purchasing a product? How to allocate the money?

Information Search Past experiences with food truck, friends and family referrals about specific type of food in food truck, customer review on yelp about specific food trucks, food magazines. Households information search would be very similar to individual information search.

Alternative Evaluation Budget on how many money they can spend on food, the needs of solving hunger, and the preference of the food type.

Purchase Decision Customer needs if they are hungry, customer buying powers or “hungry consuming phononom”, customer feedback on the scene of satisfaction, comparisons with similar service like fast food chain.

Post-Purchase Behavior Retention rates, expectation and satisfaction, customer reviews, word of mouth

Table 3 Individuals

Stage of Buying Decision

Description for:

Problem Recognition I’m hungry- I need to eat. I’m bored with my options- I want something new. I need yummy food. I need something affordable to eat. I want to eat somewhere quick. Similar with household situations.

Information Search Good search on google map or nearby reviews, friend and family referral about the food truck, Yelp reviews, Poster advertisement on the street or promotional events. Similar with household information

Alternative Evaluation Friend and family feedback on the taste of the, customer review about the food or services. Like household situations. Can be bias or affect alternative evaluation depending on various personal taste.

Purchase Decision Individual taste of the food, preferences of the location or the type of food provided, budget that allow to spend on food, time flexibility with food. Can largely influence by first time experience or mood at the time of the purchase.

Post-Purchase Behavior

Retention rates if the location is convenience, expectation and satisfaction of the food itself, customer reviews of the food, word of mouth or event and time.

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Table 4 Individuals Basic variable: Income

Segment 1 Segment 2 Segment 3

Problem recognition

Low income- I need something economical

Middle income- I need fast and quality food

Wealthy- I need something interesting

Information search

Looks at google location, family history of places that are cheap.

Looks at google location, family recommendations on places to go, yelp reviews and ratings

Some google search, family and friend recommendations, critic reviews

Alternative evaluation

Economical, tasty, fast

Good quality food, fast, good services

Good quality food, good review, fresh and creative

Purchase decision

Individual needs, budget range, time, preference

Preference, time, quality, type of food

preference , time, word of mouth, quality, type of food

Post-purchase behavior

Retention rates, is it worth is for the amount I pay?

Expectation and satisfaction, customer review

Expectation and satisfaction, customer review

Descriptor variables

Below U.S median household or individual income

On or above U.S median household or individual income

U.S top 20 percent household or individual income

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Table 5 Households: Basic variable: Lifestyle/Taste Preference

Segment 1 Segment 2 Segment 3

Problem recognition

convenience/fast: I want something that is convenience/fast to work with my busy schedule

Type of food and options: I want to have more options with my food choice and preference.

Taste and quality: I want to have food that qualify my taste preference and in good quality

Information search

Google search on what is close/convenient, family historical eating places,

Google search on location but not tied to convenience, family and friend reviews on taste preferences, yelp ratings on quality

Search for what’s trendy and popular, family and friend recommendations, critic reviews

Alternative evaluation

location( busy street corner, college campus, etc)

Food festival, large events(sport, music etc)

Location(nearby shopping malls, stores, downtowns etc)

Purchase decision

Time permission, food quality

Food type, taste preference, options

Food type, taste preference, food quality

Post-purchase behavior

Retention rates, friends and family referrals,

Word of mouth, friends and family referrals

Word of mouth, friends and family referrals

Descriptor variables

5-10 min walking distance, 5-10 min meal prepare time

The type of food offered Personal preference on food quality and taste

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Table 6 Organization: Basic variable: Service/Experience

Table 7

Segment Attribute Ratings

Households Individuals Organizations

Income Level 10 7 5 Lifestyle/Taste Preference

6 9 8

Specialty Uses/Experience

8 8 10

Scale: 10= most important 1= least important

Segment 1 Segment 2 Segment 3

Problem recognition

I don’t care about service that much

I want to eat at a place that has good customer service/place that waits on me.

I must have a place with gourmet service and ratings

Information search

Info search remains same as other categories

Yelp reviews, recommendations

Family history, what’s on trend, critic reviews

Alternative evaluation

Location of food truck, (worker concentrated area, office area etc)

Location, events, season/weather

Special festival, populated location, promotion events

Purchase decision

Time and personal needs

Personal preference, state of mood

Personal preference, advertisement effects, state of mood

Post-purchase behavior

Retention rates, food quality and satisfaction

Word of mouth, customer review

word of mouth, branding

Descriptor variables

Basic food service Provide food and service, asking for feedback and recommendations

An unique food truck environment, cool decorations, creative and fresh menu/dishes

! 22!

Table 8 Buying Criteria The Humpty

Dumpling Fast Food Fast Casual Casual/Sit Down

Price Medium Low Low Medium Quality High Low Medium Medium Experience Medium Low Medium High

!Sources https://www.foodtrucknation.us/wp-content/themes/food-truck-nation/Food-Truck-Nation-Full-Report.pdf https://www.statista.com/topics/1957/eating-out-behavior-in-the-us/

https://www.statista.com/statistics/800934/mobile-food-services-us-establishments-state/

https://www.statista.com/statistics/801002/mobile-food-services-us-employees-state/

https://www-statista-com.du.idm.oclc.org/statistics/444924/industry-value-us-food-trucks/