Do you know what I love about brands that focus on providing utility and/or entertainment to their customers?
I love that they are directly answering the age-old question that every customer has, “What’s in it for me?”
I Pledge Allegiance to McDonald’s
Lost your passport or cellphone abroad? Just stroll through the doors of one of any of the 194 McDonald’s in Austria, and staff members will provide a 24/7 hotline number for the United States Embassy and a phone to call there if needed, according to the partnership announced on Facebook last week.
Diplomacy with a side of fries.
Works for me.
BK’s CMO Brings the Humblebrag to New Heights In Adweek Feature
Adweek is running a case study written by Burger King’s Global CMO Fernando Machado. He provides a detailed explanation of BK’s amazing Whopper Detour campaign, how it came about, and what it achieved.
According to Machado, Whopper Detour catapulted BK’s app from a modest No. 686 in the app store to No. 1 across all categories, on both iOS and Android. It also drove the highest foot traffic—people coming to the restaurant—in 4.5 years.
To make the idea work, BK had to geofence all of its restaurants in the United States (more than 7,000) and all of the McDonald’s restaurants (more than 14,000). That’s was a tall order and not at all “business as usual” for the brand or its agency partners led by FCB/New York.
With the glow of success upon him, Machado turns up the bravado:
So to get people to actually care about our BK app is a testament to the beauty of this campaign, which started with a very simple PR headline: “You will be able to order a Whopper for 1 penny at McDonald’s.” Wait, what? That’s kind of a mindfuck. A Whopper at McDonald’s?
That’s turning brand experience upside down. And that’s showing how technology plus creativity can open new doors for brands and businesses. And while it is admittedly a bit crazy, that tends to be an ingredient in all our best ideas.
I like that he said “mindfuck.” Cursing is real, and there’s a sad dearth of real anywhere near corporate Americana, today.
Here’s another dose of reality served up by Machado:
To make people care, you need a big idea. An idea that plays with people’s imagination, an idea that is fun and connects people to the brand.
The geofencing turned a simple promotional idea into a funny and memorable brand experience. People had fun with it, and it made people care.