by Randy Mitchell, Creative Director

A restaurant owner in San Antonio just changed her menu. Whose advice did she follow?

A university cafeteria director in Pennsylvania just bought a new electric steamer. What influenced his decision?

A millennial operator in Florida just upgraded his supply inventory tracking system. Where did he research his technology options?

If you could follow those foodservice professionals from the first moment of consideration all the way up to the moment of decision, it would be a fascinating experience. Then you could see first-hand what truly influenced their actions at every stage of their purchase decision journeys. You would also find some surprising insights along the way.

That dynamic decision-making journey is the subject of a new food industry research study. The “Media Consumption Behaviors and the Decision-Making Journey of Foodservice Operators” Study was developed by Boomm Marketing & Communications to help foodservice marketing professionals make better-informed decisions when creating communications strategies. The research was conducted by leading foodservice research firm Product Evaluations.

Insights marketers need in a format they already use

To make the information more actionable to foodservice marketing professionals, the food industry research study findings were aligned to a decision-making path that follows the sales funnel.

At each phase, the study reveals what media choices foodservice operators used to influence their decisions. Those media sources range from websites, trade publications and social media to customer feedback, industry colleagues and sales representative interactions.

The entire foodservice industry is represented

One of the most significant challenges in foodservice marketing is accounting for the remarkable diversity of market segments, age groups and operation types. For this reason, the Foodservice Feedback: Media Consumption Behaviors Study included 400 decision makers and influencers at the unit level. This total was divided into 200 commercial and 200 non-commercial operators. Every age group was also represented, ranging from Millennials to baby Boommers.

The purchase decision types that participants were asked about included

• Menu changes
• New food products
• Back-of-the-house equipment/supplies
• Front-of-the-house equipment/supplies
• Technology

“We have seen highly effective media usage studies of this type in many industries, but it was a definite need for the foodservice industry,” said Gary Mattes, CEO of Boomm. “We were all very intrigued by the findings, including the differences in the decision-making process between Millennial and senior operators.”

In order to make the study findings available to foodservice marketing professionals, a series of white papers and infographics is being released covering a wide range of topics.

Study highlights and insights

The first white paper from the new food industry research study is available for download now. It shows the buyer’s journey for a number of important purchase decisions aligned to the sales funnel. Contact Gary Mattes today to access this valuable resource.