SOCIOLOGICAL MARKETING RESEARCH OF COFFEE SHOPS MARKET IN BELGOROD

СОЦИОЛОГИЧЕСКОЕ МАРКЕТИНГОВОЕ ИССЛЕДОВАНИЕ РЫНКА КОФЕЕН В Г. БЕЛГОРОД

Захарова Анастасия Сергеевна

студент, кафедра социологии и организации работы с молодежью, Белгородский государственный университет,

РФ, г. Белгород

Савенкова Ирина Викторовна

канд. экон. наук, доц. Белгородский государственный университет,

РФ, г. Белгород

ABSTRACT

The article presents the results of a sociological marketing research that studies the attitude of residents of Belgorod to the coffee industry. The study identified the most popular coffee shops in the city and identified the reasons for their popularity. In addition, we have formulated recommendations for the development of the coffee industry in Belgorod.

АННОТАЦИЯ

В статье представлены результаты социологического маркетингового исследования, изучающего отношение жителей г. Белгород к кофейной индустрии. В ходе исследования были выявлены наиболее популярные кофейни города, определены причины их популярности. Кроме того, нами были сформулированы рекомендации по развитию кофейной индустрии в Белгороде.

Keywords: marketing research, sociological research, market research, consumer research, consumer decision.

Ключевые слова: маркетинговое исследование, социологическое исследование, изучение рынка, изучение потребителей, потребительское решение.

Coffee shops have become an integral part of the life of megacities, but also of provincial cities. Today, coffee shops are a popular food destination for Russians. According to experts, 60% of Russians regularly visit coffee shops and pastry shops. The unsaturation of the catering market allows experts to talk about the potential success of any restaurant projects. Taking into account the lack of development of this segment and the presence of demand from the population, experts consider the market promising for further development.

To date, 47 names of coffee shops and «to go» coffee outlets have been registered in Belgorod. And the share of coffee shops in the market of public catering establishments is 9.2%. In addition, the capacity of this market in Belgorod is comparable to the indicators of cities such as Voronezh, Volgograd, Krasnoyarsk, which are many times higher than Belgorod in terms of population.

Market analysis is the most common and necessary direction in marketing research. Without data obtained in the course of research, it is impossible to systematically collect, analyze and compare the information necessary for making decisions related to market activity, market selection, determining sales volume, forecasting and planning market activities. Market research provides an information base for making effective decisions.

The object of research is the market of coffee shops in Belgorod.

The subject of the research is factors that influence the level of customer loyalty, as well as the advantages of coffee shops that are the most competitive in the market

The purpose of the study is to study the consumers ' commitment to coffee shops in Belgorod.

Research problem:

1) the study of consumer behavior;

2) identification of criteria that influence consumer decision-making;

3) identification of the most competitive representatives of the market; determination of their competitive advantages.

The hypothesis of the sociological research:

1) At least 20% of the city's residents visit coffee shops;

2) the Distribution of consumers between coffee shops and «to go» coffee outlets in Belgorod is uneven, several large coffee shops have taken over most of the consumer market;

3) Important factors of customer loyalty in the coffee shop market, in addition to delicious coffee, are: a wide range of drinks and desserts, compliance with the correct coffee preparation technology, adequate pricing policy of coffee shops.

The main method of data collection in this study is a questionnaire survey conducted in the form of an individual survey among the residents of Belgorod with a quota method of sampling from the general population. The sample was 100 people aged 15-70 years.

In order to identify the factors that influence consumer decision-making, as well as to determine the most competitive coffee shops in Belgorod, we conducted a sociological study using the survey method.

According to the survey, more than a third of respondents drink freshly brewed coffee, namely 36%. Of these, a total of 56.8% said that they most often drink coffee in coffee shops and coffee points «to go», which is 20% of the total number of respondents (figure 1). At the same time, 31% of respondents visit coffee shops.

Figure 1. Distribution of answers to the question «Where do you drink coffee most often?»

According to the analysis, 47 names of coffee shops are currently registered in Belgorod, but not all of them are known among the city's residents. Brand awareness is an indicator that reflects the level of consumer awareness of the brand. It is the result of the company's marketing policy: PR, the development of a memorable name and logo, the choice of the location of the institution, etc.in marketing, the «capital truth» is that the consumer often prefers familiar brands. The most famous coffee shop in the city is «Calypso». 76% of respondents know about this institution. The second most recognizable coffee shop was «Komod» (62%), followed by «Traveler's coffee» (52%). It should be noted that all the above institutions are located in the city center, and the leaders of the rating – «Calypso» and «Komod» are chains.

It is also important that brands of coffee shops are more recognizable than brands of coffee outlets with themselves.

Despite the unquestionable leadership in terms of brand awareness, Calypso coffee shop took second place in the distribution of answers to the question «Which of these coffee shops/coffee outlets have You visited at least once?», this option was chosen by 24% of respondents, 29% of respondents visited the Komod coffee shop at least once, And 18% – «Traveler's coffee». However, these figures reflect consumer loyalty – the desire to return to the coffee shop again. Let's compare the distribution of answers to the questions «Which of these coffee shops/coffee outlets have You visited at least once?» and «Which of these coffee shops/coffee outlets do you visit most often» in table 1.

Table 1.

Comparison of the distribution of answers to the questions «Which of these coffee shops/coffee outlets have You visited at least once?» and «Which of these coffee shops/coffee outlets do You visit most often»

It follows from the presented data that it is not enough to attract the consumer. It is important to develop a loyalty program so that visitors who come to an institution once will want to return there again. After analyzing the data in table 2, we will determine what percentage of visitors managed to make their regular customers of each of the coffee shops under consideration.

Table 2

Regular visitors of coffee shops in Belgorod

Thus, we can distinguish 7 coffee shops where more than 30% of the total number of visitors became regular customers: «Calypso» (58.3%), «Komod» (51.7%), «Coffee Bean» (40%), «Coffee wine» (36.4%), «Kitchen coffee & donuts» (36.4%), «Gingerbread» (33.3%), «Vozduh» (33.3%).

The most important criterion for choosing a coffee shop for the majority of respondents is delicious coffee (55.5%), while they note that they do not understand whether it is prepared in accordance with the canons. 11.8% emphasize the importance of proper coffee preparation, the same number of respondents believe that the most important feature of any institution is its pricing policy. The respondents also noted a wide range of coffee and coffee drinks (8.8%), the presence of other drinks in the menu (2.9%), and a wide range of desserts (2.9%) as determining the choice of coffee shops.

Next, we will present a table with an indicator of satisfaction of Belgorod residents with the level of development of the coffee industry in the city. Table 3 shows 4 criteria, the maximum possible score for each of them is 5 points.

Table 3

Satisfaction of Belgorod residents with the development of the coffee industry in Belgorod

Thus, we can conclude that residents of Belgorod are committed to the coffee culture: 36% of respondents drink freshly brewed coffee, 31% - visit coffee shops. The most recognizable coffee shops are «Calypso», «Komod» and «Traveler's coffee» – more than half of the respondents know about them. In addition, the coffee shops «Calypso» and «Komod» are the most visited in the city.

Based on the research, we can make a SWOT analysis of the Belgorod coffee shop market in order to structure and organize the data obtained and make recommendations for further development of the coffee industry in the city (table 4).

Table 4

SWOT analysis of the coffee shop market in Belgorod

Based on the above, we can say that at the moment the coffee industry is quite popular in Belgorod: every year new coffee shops and coffee points «to go» are opened and they are in great demand from consumers. According to the survey, almost a third of respondents (31%) visit coffee shops.

The most popular coffee shops by recognition and attendance criteria are Komod, Calypso and Traveler's coffee. At the same time, in terms of attracting regular customers, Traveler's coffee occupies only the 9th position in the rating, and coffee Bean closes the top three.

Thus, we can formulate a number of recommendations addressed to coffee shops in the city to improve the state of this market in Belgorod.

1. Use of alternative methods of coffee preparation. New brewing methods are aimed at maximizing the taste of the grain. They do not create a new taste, like cocktails with milk, espresso and syrups. The alternative reveals the natural characteristics of coffee: density, aroma, sweetness, acidity. At the moment, there are the following alternative methods of making coffee: purover (V60, hario), siphon, aeropress, kemex, brew-bar (combines the previous methods).

2. Introduction of seasonal drinks in the coffee shop menu in order to avoid the problem of «seasonality» in the demand for coffee shops. According to a study conducted by the Kommersant newspaper, the seasonal decline in coffee shop services during the summer is about 25%. In hot weather, hot drinks do not interest the consumer, so the menu of many coffee shops appears seasonal lemonades, smoothies, fresh fruit. Recently, Ice-coffee has become more and more popular. its variety is quite wide: from classic black coffee to matcha latte.

3. The introduction of unique author's drinks to the menu is a powerful tool for attracting new consumers. Of course, coffee drinks with various types of toppings that turn them into a dessert will attract new customers, even those who do not drink coffee in its pure form.

4. Capping operations. Coffee capping is a professional term established by the coffee Association of the United States (SCA) in order to evaluate the quality of flavor and aroma characteristics of roasted coffee beans. There are 3 formats of capping: triangulation, alternative cup tasters, capping with food.

5. Establishing contacts with the consumer. This can be done by conducting a survey to evaluate their own activities, or through social networks. The most popular coffee shops in Belgorod actively maintain profiles on Instagram, which allows you to inform potential customers about their activities, as well as receive feedback directly from consumers. User feedback is the basis for improving the company's operations.

6. In connection with the expansion of fast food and bakery chains, it is important not only to preserve their distinctive features, but also to learn from the experience of competing markets. So, the presence of sandwiches in the menu of a coffee shop will make the consumer not only come for a Cup of coffee, but also stay for lunch.

7. Development of a loyalty program. A loyalty program is a set of marketing activities for developing repeat sales to existing customers in the future, selling them additional products and services, promoting corporate ideas and values, and other potentially profitable behaviors. It is carried out mainly at the stage of maturity of the product's life cycle. There are 3 types of such systems:

• discount program. The simplest type of loyalty program. Its essence is that the user receives a magnetic card with a fixed discount amount. Each time they visit, they present their card at the time of payment for the order. At checkout, the card is read, and the purchase amount is reduced by a certain percentage;
• cumulative (bonus) program. The user pays the full cost of the order, but their card accumulates points. For example, 5 bonus points for every 100 rubles. One bonus is equal to one ruble. At some point, when the points accumulate decently, they can be paid instead of money. It is usually allowed to deduct points as a partial payment: the amount in the receipt is reduced by their number;
• mixed-combines a discount and bonus system. A person receives both a discount on the card and points to the bonus account.

The introduction of a regular visitor card, the promotion «every nth coffee free» definitely inclines the consumer to choose a specific coffee shop.

References:

1. BelBusinessConsult «Coffee Market in Russia» [Electronic resource] Access mode: http://belconsult.ru.
2. Golubkov E. P. Marketing research: theory, practice and methodology. M.: Finpress, 2012. – 416 p.