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For the past year, we’ve brought you ideas on how to market
to college students in our series on university marketing. During this
time
we’ve been working with universities to ask students themselves why
they buy
pizza. There hasn’t been a study done on this group to date, so read on
to find
out some clues to selling more pizza to students.
Our Sample
Group
We surveyed
171 college students on why they buy pizza. The surveys were conducted
at the
Where to
Buy Pizza
The biggest factor in making a
decision on where to buy a pizza was price for 37.4 percent of
students.
Quality followed closely at 33.3 percent. Surprisingly, only 9.9
percent
thought coupons were important in deciding where to buy. Location and
referral
by a friend were the least important factors.
The most popular reason not to order
a pizza from a particular pizzeria was bad pizza. Over half of the
students
polled cited this as their number-one concern. Price was again another
important factor in the decision making process. Almost 25 percent said
they
would not buy pizza from a certain restaurant because of the cost.
Other reasons
not to order from a pizzeria were: long wait (10.5 percent); bad
service in the
past (7.6 percent) and delivery charges (4.1).
Conclusion:
Price and quality stand
out in the mind most for students.
How the
Pizza Is Built
We asked the students which part of
the pizza was most important when they decided to buy a pizza. Students
were
fairly divided on crust and toppings being the most important; 28.1
percent
were crust people, and 41.5 percent were for toppings. Almost 19
percent
favored the sauce as most important, and 11.7 percent said it was the
cheese
that mattered.
Conclusion:The
crust and toppings
are the two factors students can decide on themselves.
How They
Get Their Pizza
The next question was on the method
of getting the pizza. The majority chose delivery as their means of
getting
pizza; 67.8 percent said this is their preference. Only 11.1 percent
opted for
dine-in. About 21 percent like to pick their pizza up.
Conclusion:
Delivery continues to be
the most popular way to attract students
How Often
They Eat It
Ever wondered how often students
ordered in a month. Well, we found that 37.4 percent order pizza once
or twice
a month, 19 percent order it only once a month, and 25 percent order it
three
or four times a month. Those ordering it five or more times a month
came in at
17.5 percent.
Conclusion:
Most students eat pizza every
month.
Which
Chains Do Students Pick Most?
Most students polled picked Papa John’s as
their favorite chain restaurant (34.5 percent). Domino’s followed at 23
percent
and Pizza Hut was number three at 18.7 percent. A little over 13
percent
checked other chains. Seven percent said they don’t order from major
chains.
Conclusion:
Choices for pizza will
continue to depend on the strength of the local management.
Do Students
Use Coupons?
When asked if they use coupons as a
factor in deciding where to buy pizza, most students said this was not
the most
important factor, but we found that 66 percent of them use them. The
other 34
percent said they don’t use them.
Conclusion:
Students are looking for
the best deal.
When Do
Students Eat Pizza?
The majority of students said they
eat pizza for dinner (69.5 percent). Very few eat it for lunch (9.4
percent).
Wonder who’s calling after 11 p.m.?
It’s hungry students. Twenty-one percent said they order it when then
have the
late night munchies.
Conclusion:
Night is the time
students are awake studying and partying. Pizza is a good, quick meal
that they
don’t have to go get.
Does
Advertising Matter?
It matters more than you may think.
Thirty-nine percent said they pay some attention to ads. Only 7 percent
said it
mattered a great deal. A little more than a third said it didn’t matter
that
much, while 19 percent said it didn’t matter at all.
Conclusion:
It seems that many
students are hearing or seeing the ads. They are probably saving box
toppers
and mailers with coupons so they get the best deal. I know when I was
in school
I always kept the pizza coupons from the box full of junk I got at the
post
office every week.
Do Delivery
Charges Matter?
The overwhelming response was, “Yes,
it matters” to 72 percent of the students. Only 28 percent said they
didn’t
care.
Conclusion:
This is a factor to
consider in college towns where delivery is prevalent.
Do Students
Want Restaurant or Frozen
Pizza?
Again students are lazy or busy, the
majority, 66 percent said they want it fresh, hot and delivered. Only a
third
prefer frozen.
Conclusion:
Most students are eating
out. The percentage that buy frozen might be influenced to buy take ‘n’
bake as
it moves in to more markets.
There you have it. Students are out
to get the best tastes for the best price. They like coupons and
specials. They
want it brought to them. College kids like to make their decisions
based on limited
budgets and convenience. It seems the marketing is working. Keep up the
good
work!
– PMQ –