Case Study: Why America Is Addicted To Olive Garden

1. Based on the articles, “Darden Restaurants” and “Why America is Addicted to Olive Garden,” the Darden Company has a market orientation and adheres to the marketing concept. According to MKTG “market orientation is a philosophy that assumes that a sale does not depend on an aggressive sales force but rather on a customer’s decision to purchase product.” The “marketing concept is the idea that the social and economic justification for an organization’s existence is the satisfaction of customer wants and needs while meeting organizational objective.”
Darden Restaurants focus on the customer’s expectations and building long-term relationships. David Pickens, the president of Olive Garden, begins staff meetings with his managers by reading and listening to letters from customers. Pickens is truly interested in the customers experience at Olive Garden. Managers read letters from
Darden has high hopes for success and plans to open more units over the next year.
4. Darden’s 2007 acquisition of LongHorn Steakhouse most resembles product development. Darden surveyed thousands of consumers “about every menu item and every last detail about its restaurants.” They improved their menu and changed the décor of the restaurant. Darden plans to open “hundreds of new restaurants.”
5. Factors of the external environment have influenced Darden’s marketing mix decisions during the time Mr. Otis has been CEO of the company include the declining economy, the need to provide healthier menus, supply and demand issues just to name a few. According to MKTG “The term marketing mix refers to a unique blend of product, place (distribution), promotion and pricing