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Marketing mix of Subway

Marketing mix of Subway

Traditional marketing mix consists of four elements i.e. product, price, place, and promotion. However, the mix has been extended to include three more elements i.e. process, people, and physical evidence. This is a detailed analysis of the marketing mix of Subway. Subway is a famous American fast food restaurant. It operates in 111 countries and has more than 41,000 restaurants worldwide.

Products of Subway

Subway is very famous for its submarine sandwiches. Chicken & Chorizo Melt, Italian BMT, Chicken Tikka, Meatball Marinara, Chicken Teriuaki, and Veggie Delite are some of the popular Subway sandwiches. In addition to sandwiches, the restaurant also offers salads, kids pack, sides and drinks (Subway, 2021).

Sandwiches are very customised and come with two sizes i.e. full (foot-long) and half (six inch). Customers can choose from a variety of breads, salads and sauces to make their sandwiches truly customised! However, availability of some of the items depends on individual restaurants and countries where the restaurant operates. For example, the menu does not include pork and beef products and instead has a variety of vegetarian items in India.

Price and pricing strategy of Subway

As Subway is a global restaurant, prices of products vary from restaurants to restaurants and countries to countries. Subway pricing startegy is arguably premium particularly when compared to the pricing of KFC and McDonalds. In the UK, the price of a 6-inch sandwich is typically £3.99, while a foot-long one is £5.99.

However, many would argue in defence of Subway’s premium pricing that the restaurant maintains high quality and offers a nutritious alternative to traditional fast foods which drive the cost high resulting in premium pricing.

Place/Distribution channels of Subway

Subway restaurants are found all across the countries in which it operates. Customers can usually find them in airports, shopping malls, amusement parks, business centers etc. The restaurant website has a ‘Find our stores’ section where they can put their post code, country, or city name and browse. They can then find their nearest Subway restaurant soon! Most of the Subway restaurants have both eat-in and take-away services. The restaurant also offers home delivery services in some countries partnering with companies such as Uber Eats, Grubhub, DoorDash and Postmates.

Promotion strategies of Subway

Subway uses a variety of media to implement its promotional activities. Its adverts are seen on television, newspapers, of course social media. The restaurant has millions of followings in social media.

According to Gutmann (2020), Subway spent $459 million in advertising campaigns in the USA in 2019. It is famous for its celebrity endorsement as well. Its brand endorsement partners include but not limited to Olympian swimmer Michael Phelps and Brazilian football legend Pele. Subway also uses sales promotion regularly to increase its sales and repeat purchases.

Process in Subway

Process refers to a standardized set of activities that accomplish a specific task, such as processing a customer’s order (Baltzan & Philips, 2009). What do people do when they go to a Subway store to have a sandwich? First of all, they choose the bread, size and the type of sandwiches e.g. Chicken Tikka. Then, cheese is added to their sandwich if they want. They then decide if they would like to have it warm or cold. Then, they need to choose their salads followed by sauces. Then, they move on to the till to pay and get a glass for their drinks. This is a typical process of purchasing a Subway product.

People of Subway

Customer service is of the highest priority for Subway as it serves millions of customers worldwide in a day. The restaurant always looks for talented and motivated people to join their team. It offers a great number of worldwide opportunities. The jobs are divided into three categories i.e. headquarter jobs, local restaurant jobs, and regional jobs. Job applicants can browse the restaurant website or visit their local store to explore career opportunities.

Physical evidence of Subway

The last element in the marketing mix of Subway is the physical evidence which refers to the elements of the physical environment visitors and customers experience. For a restaurant brand like Subway, the main physical evidence issues are how the stores look, the seating facilities, how the employees are dressed and so on. The official website of the restaurant looks beautiful and is user friendly. Overall, Subway does really well with the elements of the physical environment.

We hope the article ‘Marketing mix of Subway’ has been a good read.  You may also find ‘Swot analysis of Subway’ useful. Other relevant articles for you are:

PESTEL analysis of Subway

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Last update: 09 January 2021

Further reading/references

Subway (2021) All sandwiches, available from http://www.Subway.com/en-gb/menunutrition/menu/all (accessed 09 January 2021)

Gutmann, A. (2020) Doctor’s Associates (Subway) advertising spending in the United States from 2012 to 2019 (in million U.S. dollars), available from https://www.statista.com/statistics/306676/ad-spend-Subway-usa/ (accessed 08 January 2021)

Photo credit: pinterest.com

Author: M Rahman

M Rahman writes extensively online and offline with an emphasis on business management, marketing, and tourism. He is a lecturer in Management and Marketing. He holds an MSc in Tourism & Hospitality from the University of Sunderland. Also, graduated from Leeds Metropolitan University with a BA in Business & Management Studies and completed a DTLLS (Diploma in Teaching in the Life-Long Learning Sector) from London South Bank University.

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