Social Data Shows Something Is 'Definitely Wrong' At Panera

Last week, Panera Bread Co PNRA put out earnings that disappointed investors, as revenue came in below expectations.

In addition, the company is scaring investors with talk that its “Panera 2.0” project will take longer, and cost more than anticipated. This project is designed to speed up the experience at Panera, with ordering kiosks and other digital initiatives.

But is speed of service really what’s ailing Panera customers?

To find out, I dug into social data around the brand. That’s what we do at LikeFolio.

First of all… something is definitely wrong. Overall mentions of Panera were down by nearly 33 percent last quarter versus the same period a year ago. That’s NEVER a good sign.

On the flip side, sentiment is pretty good at around 87 percent positive… people aren’t taking to Twitter to show their disappointment with their experience. For comparison, that’s about where Starbucks Corporation SBUX sentiment comes in as well.

In fact, the only real indications we’re seeing that speed is a problem at Panera are talking about something very different….

That’s right… it’s employees talking about business being slow. LOL.

Obviously, there are slow times at all restaurants… I get that. But is Panera 2.0 really necessary? Is it going to be worth the expense?

Based on what we see in social data, slowness of service isn’t anywhere near the top of customer complaints. They’re actually more likely to complain about the slow wifi than slow service.

Panera customers are definitely less excited about going there.

But perhaps instead of spending all this money on building kiosks, Panera would be better off figuring out what it is that is actually turning customers off.

Image credit: Mike Mozart, Flickr