Figuring Out Buyer Behavior No. 2

Report the findings:

• Interview #1: 
• This interview was with a junior at UF who lives in a house on the edge of campus. When it comes to fast food, price is most important, then convenience, then quality. She generally tries to eat healthy and look for healthy options. Social media sometimes influences her decision to go to a particular place or get a certain item. Healthfulness has a huge impact on her, especially if they list calories. She agrees that there are not many healthy options on campus. She tries to pick the healthy options, but in general most places on campus are not placing an emphasis on health. She often goes to Krishna lunch, or she will get Subway, Shake Smart, Chick-Fil-A, or Starbucks. She eats fast food more often when she is on campus because it's quick and convenient. She decides where to eat on campus based on where she is headed and if it is on the way. Sometimes she regrets getting fast food because it often makes her feel gross and bloated, especially if the food she eats is greasy and fried. 

• Interview #2: 
• This interview was with a senior at UF who lives in student apartments off campus. For her, convenience and quality matter the most. She looks for food options that he knows will give her energy, make her feel good, and that are high in nutrients. Social media has definitely swayed her food choices, especially with it comes to food choices around campus. She has gone to Concord Coffee because of specials she saw on Instagram, and she has gotten up early to go to the Chick-Fil-A at the Standard because they were doing free breakfast Thursdays. She is very in tune with her body regarding what foods make her feel good and impact her energy levels. She knows her body and that eating super greasy food affects how she feels the rest of the day, so she tries to avoid that. She often tries to pick healthier options (i.e. grilled chicken over fried). She has chosen healthfulness over cheapest price and location convenience when Grill Fresh was still around off University. Their food was filling, flavorful, and healthy, and she would sometimes walk from Reitz on a nice day because she knew she would be getting good food. Having a place closer like that on campus would be appealing. She shared that while that most fast food places on campus try to slap a "healthy option" on the menu just to appeal to people who complain that it's not good for students. She said that having a place that is healthier - albeit a little more expensive - would be a nice addition. She most frequently goes to Starbucks and Chick-Fil-A for food on campus, and Bolay for food off campus. She eats fast food about once a week. 

• Interview #3: 
• This interview was with a sophomore at UF who lives on campus and spends most of her time studying on campus. When it comes to buying fast food on campus, she makes her decision of where to eat based on where she is on campus and how quickly she can grab food. In deciding what to eat, she looks at what is going to be the healthiest option that still sounds good. She looks for food options that she can feel good eating and that don't leave her feeling weighed down throughout the day. She loves looking at food on social media, but if it's not convenient she won't go out of her way to try it. Healthfulness is becoming increasingly impacting her decisions about where and what to eat on campus. It changes what she can eat for the rest of the day. She feels that there are not enough healthy options on campus. Many of the fast food options on campus are greasy and the menu typically has very few healthy options. And if they do, they generally cost more. Each of the fast food places on campus have a token healthy option that usually doesn't sound appealing. Her go-to places for fast food on campus are Chick-Fil-A, Shake Smart, and Subway. She grabs some kind of fast food on campus 3-4 times a week. She looks for places that are grab and go because she prefers being able to get food in under 10 minutes so that she can get back to studying or chilling with friends. 

Draw conclusions:

One thing that really stood out to me from all of my interviews was that students know that fast food doesn't make them feel good. Sometimes it even affects how they feel for the rest of the day. But they continue to eat it because it's convenient. In all three of my interviews I found that convenience is the most important factor for students when it comes to grabbing food on campus. At the same time, healthfulness is still an important factor. More students than I originally expected said that they almost always try to seek out healthy options. The problem is that most places only have one token "healthy option" that is usually a bit more expensive and not even slightly appealing. I was also kind of surprised to hear about the role social media plays in students' decisions of where to eat. Students not only love seeing pics of cool, trendy new things on social media, but especially for food places, being active on social media and promoting frequent specials and deals can often convince people to come and try something new.

Based on the findings from my interviews, this healthy fast food restaurant needs to be equally, if not more, convenient than standard fast food places, it needs to be in a good location that is easily accessible for students, and it needs to offer healthy options that are both delicious and fuel students so that they feel good and energized for the rest of the day. They would all agree that this is something missing on UF's campus right now and that students would greatly benefit from the addition of this healthy fast food spot. The next step, before pitching the idea, would be to talk to members of administration, as well as people who have worked in the restaurant/fast food business to gauge the feasibility of the idea and to learn more about possible challenges I could face along the way.