case study

Helping Quick-Service Restaurant Optimize Menu Innovation

overview

A leading quick-service restaurant chain set out to optimize its menu by innovating within its grilled chicken category. The objectives were to identify the most preferred sandwich combinations, reduce menu complexity while maintaining variety, drive customer traffic through product innovation, and uncover differences in preferences across key demographic and behavioral sub-groups. Socratic partnered with the client to design research that balanced customer appeal with operational efficiency.

The Solution

Choice-Based Exercises With Socratic Configurator Analysis ℠

Socratic combined a menu-based choice exercise with its proprietary Configurator Analysis℠ to uncover the most appealing sandwich builds. Consumers were asked to create custom sandwiches across dozens of variables, allowing the research to reveal natural preferences, trade-offs, and commonalities across diverse customer groups. The analysis also profiled the consumers configuring each preferred combination, linking product appeal directly to targetable segments.

Menu-Based Choice Exercise

This exercise allows survey respondents to build their ideal chargrilled chicken sandwich from among:

9 bread type options (e.g., honey sourdough, multigrain ciabatta)
5 bread shapes (e.g., bulky round, oblong)
16 cheese options (e.g., chipotle cheddar, queso fresco)
4 lettuce options (baby greens, no lettuce)
12 topping (e.g., fried onions, grilled pineapple)
40 condiments (e.g., avocado mayo, sundried tomato pesto)
9 packaging options (e.g., foil bag, paper box)

Images, ingredient descriptions, fun visuals (e.g., moving the bun down an assembly line) can be included as part of this exercise to enhance engagement and comprehension.

Socratic Configurator Analysis ℠

Configurator Analysis is a proprietary analysis technique first introduced by Socratic Technologies in 1999. It is designed to gain a deep understanding of the value relationship between the discrete components of products & services, as well as to better understand the types of consumers attracted to each preferred combination.

Modified van Westendorp Pricing Analysis

Socratic paired a survey respondent’s ideal chargrilled chicken sandwich with a modified van Westendorp pricing exercise.

The Outcomes

Seven Unique Sandwich Combinations Identified

The study revealed seven distinct sandwich combinations, differentiated by build size and by whether toppings and condiments leaned toward classic or more unique options. Each combination resonated with a different customer segment, segmented primarily by demographics such as age, gender, and region, as well as loyalty to the brand versus competitor purchasers. Pricing analysis further optimized each build, ensuring profitability and highlighting opportunities to increase average spend per visit.

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