- McDonald’s on June 12 will launch a campaign focused on brand character Grimace’s birthday, based on a press release and extra details shared with Marketing Dive. The effort is centered around a Grimace Birthday Meal that features a limited-edition purple shake inspired by the mascot’s color.
- The push also includes an 8-bit video game on desktop and mobile, Grimace-inspired merchandise, a Snapchat AR experience, a phone number to text Grimace “directly” and a charity tie-up with Ronald McDonald House Charities (RMHC) via Instagram.
- Grimace’s birthday parties through the years are featured in a latest 30-second spot. The effort sees McDonald’s tapping into nostalgia around memories of childhood birthdays on the fast food chain.
McDonald’s goes all-in on a campaign around Grimace’s birthday as a option to tap into consumer nostalgia around childhood birthday celebrations on the chain and its amusement locations called PlayPlaces. Nostalgia has been a key a part of McDonald’s recent marketing efforts — from its McRib Farewell Tour to its adult Happy Meals — because the brand looks to interact with consumers around positive memories during a period that is especially fraught on several socioeconomic fronts.
“Our fans have amazing childhood memories of their birthdays at McDonald’s… and Grimace’s Birthday is all about paying homage to the amazing, fun moments all of us share,” said Tariq Hassan, chief marketing and customer experience officer at McDonald’s USA, in a press release. “We’re excited to place a contemporary spin on these memories to proceed to drive McDonald’s relevance with a latest generation. Grimace is the proper lovable icon to have McDonald’s meet our fans on the intersection of nostalgia and culture.”
The multifaceted campaign utilizes several tactics and digital channels which were central to marketer efforts lately. In collaboration with Krool Toys, McDonald’s will release a free-to-play video game, available on desktop and mobile, that lets players race around classic McDonald’s birthday scenes as Grimace looks to search out mascot characters like Birdie and Hamburglar. The brand may also release Grimace-inspired merch on its e-commerce site, GoldenArchesUnlimited.com.
On mobile, Snapchat users will give you the option to make use of the platform’s Scan technology to unlock a special AR experience when scanning the chain’s Golden Arches. The brand may also promote a telephone number, referred to by the brand as Grimace’s “personal phone number,” for a text-based activation. As a part of a purpose-driven effort, consumers can visit the chain’s Instagram story on June 13 and 14 and share a birthday memory via the “add yours” sticker, with McDonald’s donating $5 to RMHC (as much as $200,000) for every picture shared.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7uORD_5DHDI
A latest 30-second spot, narrated by Brian Cox and soundtracked by Mase’s “Feel So Good,” shows Grimace’s birthday celebrations in years past, nodding to restaurant designs and consumer behaviors which have modified over time.
The Grimace Birthday Meal includes fries, the alternative of a Big Mac or 10-piece Chicken McNuggets and — in a primary for the brand — a limited-edition purple shake.
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