Don't Believe The Hype - Subway Was Successful Before Jared | Small business news; tips; networking

Posted by Steve Fitzpatrick under Advertising
From http://typicalbusiness.com 4298 days ago
Made Hot by: SimplySmallBiz on February 13, 2013 12:43 am

You've probably read the articles on the successful repositioning of Subway using Jared - which supposedly brought huge success to the business.

Bollocks!

This article breaks down Subways success and shows the 8 key ingredients required for any business (and it has nothing at all to do with Jared).

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Comments

Written by HeatherStone
4296 days ago

Hi Steve,

While I totally agree the marketing of Subway as a healthier fast food choice wasn't the key to their success overall, I think you could argue it does go along with point two: "Find something consumers want and make it or provide that service." One of the reasons Subway was ahead of the curve here was that they listened to their customers, one of whom became a big part of their brand, as the market began demanding healthier choices. While their competitors raced to catch up, Subway became the leading brand in a health conscious revolution that, even more fortunately, coincided with a growth in the company's overall visibility. So unlike McDonald's, Subway had less need to reposition itself in the marketplace. The company's brand became associated with health almost at the same time an advertising campaign was making its product mainstream.

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Written by Steve Fitzpatrick
4296 days ago

Hi Heather,

Thanks for your comments. I agree with your first statement, but if you refer to the timeline again you'll see; 1997 - SUBWAY® chain introduces the “7 under 6” menu, featuring seven sandwiches with 6 grams of fat or less.

What that means is that Subway did exactly what you suggested, before Jared came on board. The article was really looking at Jared's influence on the success of Subway. However, they already had all the 'ingredients' of success before he came along in 2000.

They also definitely had the jump on their competition, and didn't suffer like McDonalds did after the Super Size Me assault in 2004.

Thanks for your feedback!

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