Adwatch (Feb 15) top 20 recall: McDonalds

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I was lucky enough to spend many days locked in a darkened room last summer, overdosing on crap coffee with a bunch of marketing and advertising luminaries, as part of the first Cannes effectiveness jury.

One of the most deserving Cannes Lion winning papers was for McDonald's - a redoubtable demonstration of long-term brandand equity-building that delivered both sales effectiveness and significant ROI. It was a beautiful demonstration by client and agency of how rational messages underpinned by brand persona led to effective trust and behavioural action.

I have worked with a few retail clients over the years, and it's fair to say that the 'promotional' or 'new range' briefs are among the most challenging to land in any agency. An idea can often get in the way of the message. The lack of an idea can lead to that commercial message landing on deaf ears. Blending a range or 'offer' execution with the brand's tone of voice can create tensions between commercial requirements and brand values.

The perennial challenge is how to ensure that promotional or range messages engage people so that they actually take the time to listen to what you say.

McDonald's and Leo Burnett have consistently cracked that particularly tough nut over the years. A sense of humanity and unadulterated self-deprecating British values resonate through a variety of McDonald's initiatives and sales-driving messages. Half-price Big Macs, new sandwiches and McFlurry flavours have all been communicated and leavened with charm, wit and warmth that make us care for the brand.

In this instance, it's a coffee-range ad. McDonald's does a range of fresh coffee made with Arabica beans, don't you know. This is a nicely performed and charmingly understated execution that eavesdrops on conversations that happen over various cups of coffee. Even the paper cups look nice.

Within seconds the 'low-involvement processing' styling and tone (coupled with plenty of branded cups) ensure that I know it's a McDonald's ad. This is not to the ad's detriment - it's still an execution to which I'm prepared to donate 30 seconds of my hard-earned spare time.

Yes, it's a coffee-range promotion, but it's much more than that, because it broadens my thinking about what McDonald's offers and it makes it feel like a positive retail experience rather than a 'grab and go' shop. Perhaps most importantly, it is likeable.

I bet the ad will sell a few coffees, burgers and McFlurries and continue to underpin McDonald's brand position in the UK psyche.

I'm sure people will be assessing further evidence of its effectiveness in jury rooms for some time to come; maybe even over a McDonald's coffee, rather than the tasteless stuff that I endured in Cannes.

Brand Strategy Verdict?

McDonald's doing what it does best: demonstrating a range in an emotive way, thus leavening a commercially focused message with engagement.

8/10

League Tables

Adwatch (Feb 15): Top 20 recall
Latest	Feb-08	Brand	Agency/TV Buyer	Recall
rank				%
1	(–)	Virgin Media	DDB UK/Fifty6	78
2	(–)	Comparethemarket.com	VCCP/ZenithOptimedia	68
3	(–)	National Accident Helpline	CST The Gate/Carat	59
4	(–)	British Gas	CHI & Partners/Carat	57
5	(–)	BT Infinity	Abbott Mead Vickers BBDO/Maxus	52
6	(–)	McDonald's	Leo Burnett/OMD UK	51
7	(–)	Aldi	McCann Erickson Manchester/Universal McCann Manchester	46
8	(–)	Isme	Addiction London/Carat	37
9=	(–)	Moneysupermarket.com	Mother/MediaCom	36
9=	(7=)	Argos	CHI&Partners/Mindshare	36
11	(–)	Sensodyne	Grey London/MediaCom	35
12=	(–)	Pantene Pro-V	Grey London/Starcom	34
12=	(–)	Kia Sportage	David & Goliath/MPG	34
14=	(10=)	Morrisons	DLKW Lowe/MEC	32
14=	(–)	Netflix	In-house/In-house	32
14=	(–)	ING Direct	BMB LLP/PHD	32
17=	(–)	Kingsmill	Contagious Content/ZenithOptimedia	31
17=	(–)	McCain	BMB LLP/PHD	31
19=	(–)	Diet Coke	Mother/Vizeum	30
19=	(–)	Kraft Belvita	Euro RSCG London/PHD	30

This article was first published on marketingmagazine.co.uk