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COME AS YOU ARE
Sometimes things are so obvious we forget about them...
It’s true: often when we don’t have something anymore, when we’ve lost it or “it’s not working,” that’s when we realise how much we liked that thing or person. Well, Mackey D’s (well yeah, we’re all friends here, so we can say Mackey D’s and not McDonald’s) is a bit like that. It’s practical, it’s friendly, it’s cheap, there’s one on every corner, and we’re so used to it, we’ve made it such a part of our daily landscape, that 30 years after the first one opened we’ve forgotten to what extent Mackey D’s revolutionised the “restaurant:” At any time, alone or with friends, chicly dressed or in shorts, for a burger or a coffee – we can go there when we want, with whom we want, any way we want.
And that’s the tagline of the advertising campaign: “Come as you are.” But that’s advertising. How do you use the internet to prolong the message, so that people will take it up themselves? At Duke, we started from the other end: what would it be like if you couldn’t “come as you are” to Mackey D’s? And from there, the idea took off: we created a fake spotter (who makes your average nightclub bouncer look like a Care Bear) who reprimands people for a huge variety of reasons: their clothing, attitude (“no one is allowed to be grumpy at Mackey D’s”), the hours they keep, etc. – while hidden cameras capture the customers’ dismayed reactions. It’s funny, and what’s more, it says exactly what the ads are saying: “This is Mackey D’s, I can come as I want, the way I am (watcha buggin’ me for?).” And here, it’s the customer themselves who are saying it, spontaneously, rather than the brand putting out a message.
There’s no need to say that it’s working sensationally well: through viral, with over 1 million views on the video-sharing sites; over 800 sites relaying the content; and 1.5 million views through banners. Maybe that’s the magic of the internet: you can not only tell the audience what you want to say, but you can also make it so good that they’ll want to share it with other people. UNO Promotional offers – oh, so tedious…! Or are they? Ah, remember the good ol’ days of Panini albums (Ok, it was only for men, but anyway), those albums where you had to collect all the stickers, where you always needed Gascoigne (back in his Tottenham days) but where you had more chance of finding Southampton’s substitute ‘keeper. And remember school breaks when you did your swapsies? “Got, got, got, got, haven’t got...!!!”
What’s the connection with McDonald’s? Well, today it’s just the same, except it’s called Uno+ and the stickers are found on McD products (some, not all – one shouldn’t overdo it), and by collecting them you can win things (that makes them different to the Panini figurines, but still), things like free fries (OK, not bad... got), cups (better, but… got) and even one PS3 console per restaurant (haven’t got!!!).
The good ‘ol days are gone. It’s now 2009 (I know, 2009!) So let’s forget paper and get into the era of the digital collector!
And that’s the tagline of the advertising campaign: “Come as you are.” But that’s advertising. How do you use the internet to prolong the message, so that people will take it up themselves? At Duke, we started from the other end: what would it be like if you couldn’t “come as you are” to Mackey D’s? And from there, the idea took off: we created a fake spotter (who makes your average nightclub bouncer look like a Care Bear) who reprimands people for a huge variety of reasons: their clothing, attitude (“no one is allowed to be grumpy at Mackey D’s”), the hours they keep, etc. – while hidden cameras capture the customers’ dismayed reactions. It’s funny, and what’s more, it says exactly what the ads are saying: “This is Mackey D’s, I can come as I want, the way I am (watcha buggin’ me for?).” And here, it’s the customer themselves who are saying it, spontaneously, rather than the brand putting out a message.
There’s no need to say that it’s working sensationally well: through viral, with over 1 million views on the video-sharing sites; over 800 sites relaying the content; and 1.5 million views through banners. Maybe that’s the magic of the internet: you can not only tell the audience what you want to say, but you can also make it so good that they’ll want to share it with other people. UNO Promotional offers – oh, so tedious…! Or are they? Ah, remember the good ol’ days of Panini albums (Ok, it was only for men, but anyway), those albums where you had to collect all the stickers, where you always needed Gascoigne (back in his Tottenham days) but where you had more chance of finding Southampton’s substitute ‘keeper. And remember school breaks when you did your swapsies? “Got, got, got, got, haven’t got...!!!”
What’s the connection with McDonald’s? Well, today it’s just the same, except it’s called Uno+ and the stickers are found on McD products (some, not all – one shouldn’t overdo it), and by collecting them you can win things (that makes them different to the Panini figurines, but still), things like free fries (OK, not bad... got), cups (better, but… got) and even one PS3 console per restaurant (haven’t got!!!).
The good ‘ol days are gone. It’s now 2009 (I know, 2009!) So let’s forget paper and get into the era of the digital collector!