The competitive advantage of Chick-fil-A over any other fast-food restaurant in the industry is in the adapted business model which suggests 1) superior customer service, 2) premium prices, 3) high-quality products which are relevant to the prices, and 4) an exclusive franchise model (Harvard Business School, 2015). The uniqueness of the franchise model suggests only a $10,000 upfront payment compared to the hundreds of thousands to start the selective screening process, which results in the annual selection of up to 80 franchise operators. Though Chick-fil-A is a 2016 leader by the number of sales per unit (4,407.10 thousands) compared to McDonald’s (2,550.00 thousands) (QSR, 2017), McDonald’s is the leader of the industry, leaving Chick-fil-A on the 8th position of the QSR 2017 rating (QSR, 2017). In 2016, the systemwide U.S. sales of Chick-fil-A were 7,973.50 millions, whereas the systemwide U.S. sales of McDonald’s reached 36,389.00 millions. Therefore, the winning position of Chick-fil-A is highly doubtful. According to the Consumer Reports (2014), Chick-fil-A is the top 1 choice for the customers in the chicken category, while McDonald’s consumer reviews are shocking because the burgers of this franchise are ranked as “significantly worse” compared to its first twenty competitors.
Two major competitors on the market of mobile operating systems are iOS for iPhones and Android developed by Google. The first mobile OS was iOS for iPhone launched by Apple on June 29, 2007, whereas Android by Google was launched about one year later on September 23, 2008. Android Inc. was founded in 1998 but was later acquired by Google Inc. and transformed into a subsidiary of Google Inc. in 2005 (Bloomberg, 2018a). Apple Inc. was founded in 1977 as a production and design company that media and communication devices, develops software, accessories, and services (Bloomberg, 2018b). Google LLC was also established in the U.S. in 1998 (Bloomberg, 2018c).
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Therefore, Apple Inc. is operating on the market for over 40 years now compared to Android Inc. that would be operating for 20 years if Google LLC had not acquired it. The price gap between Apple and Android which is based on the average selling price of the products for Q1 in 2016, is getting wider, with the Apple iOS product costing $691 while the Android product will cost $215 (Elmer-Dewitt, 2016).
Android was not the leader of the market, and yet, it managed to increase the sales by making a competitive mobile OS with multiple advantages and price being the most competitive advantage of them all. Android started as a tiny startup, but after acquisition by Google LLC, it evolved into the global leader of the mobile operating systems. Significant investments can explain such success along with the dedication and commitment of the engineers. Apple started as the leader of the market, but inefficient leadership, high prices, and lack of perspective resulted in the current market share disposition of 85-86% for Android and 14-15% for Apple, while other global competitors have less than 0.1% of the mobile OS market (Callaham, 2018). The theory of Android’s market prevalence is supported consumer reports of better prices for Android, but at the same time, it is contradicted by the reported better user experience in Apple (Griffith, 2018).
According to the June 2018 statistics (Statista, 2018), Google Android is dominating over Apple iOS with 54.1% and 44.5% correspondingly.
In conclusion, the success of the company depends on the business plan, the prevalence of competitive advantages, and positive consumer reports. Higher prices do not necessarily correlate with being the absolute leader of the market. Usability, customer service, affordability, and better features or characteristics of the offered product ensure positive dynamic in customers’ interest in the offered goods.
- Bloomberg. (2018a). Company overview of Android Inc. Retrieved from https://www.bloomberg.com/research/stocks/private/snapshot.asp?privcapid=23584687
- Bloomberg. (2018b). Company overview of Apple Inc. Retrieved from https://www.bloomberg.com/research/stocks/private/snapshot.asp?privcapId=24937
- Bloomberg. (2018c). Company overview of Google LLC. Retrieved from https://www.bloomberg.com/research/stocks/private/snapshot.asp?privcapId=312932093
- Callaham, J. (2018, July 3). The history of Android OS: its name, origin and more. Android Authority. Retrieved from https://www.androidauthority.com/history-android-os-name-789433/
- Consumer Reports. (2014). Best and worst fast-food restaurants in America. Retrieved from https://www.consumerreports.org/cro/magazine/2014/08/best-and-worst-fast-food-restaurants-in-america/index.htm#mcdonalds
- Elmer-Dewitt, P. (2016, Feb. 15). The Apple iOS and Android gap just gets wider. Fortune. Retrieved from http://fortune.com/2016/02/15/apple-android-asps/
- Griffith, E. (2018, Aug. 23). Why do people switch between mobile operating systems? PCMag. Retrieved from https://www.pcmag.com/news/363269/why-do-people-switch-between-mobile-operating-systems
- Harvard Business School. (2015, Dec. 9). Chick-Fil-A: The top-performing fast-food chain. Retrieved from https://rctom.hbs.org/submission/chick-fil-a-the-top-performing-fast-food-chain/#
- QSR. (2017). The QSR 50. Retrieved from https://www.qsrmagazine.com/content/qsr50-2017-top-50-chart?sort=2016_us_average_sales_per_unit_thousands&dir=desc
- Statista. (2018). Subscriber share held by smartphone operating systems in the United States from 2012 to 2018. Statista. Retrieved from https://www.statista.com/statistics/266572/market-share-held-by-smartphone-platforms-in-the-united-states/
