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1940: First McDonald's Location opens in San Bernardino, CA |
McDonald's has been a revolutionary and most prevalent fast food locations since its first location opened in San Bernardino, CA in the year 1940. McDonald's has provided various examples of innovations that has molded today's fast food restaurants. Such innovations to its image, menu items, and the development of speedy service (development of the drive-through), and the advancement of the milkshake has dramatically transformed this burger stand into a burger conglomerate. McDonald's is not only known for their golden french fries and serving "two all beef patties, special sauce, lettuce, cheese, pickles, onions, on a sesame bun," but has also been recognized as one of the most powerful and influential marketing/advertising companies to ever exist. Their ultimate success, global brand awareness, and the ability to thrive in today's declining market can be contributed to a simple and basic process simple as ordering a #3 meal from the value menu.
By providing a convenient product and service, McDonald's has been able to retain a large amount of customers for more than half a century. These are various examples of how they have made it convenient to their loyal customers.
Amount of Locations: As of 2010, there are over 31,000+ locations worldwide
Hours of Operation: Select locations have established late hours to serve late night consumers
Utilization of the Drive-Through & "Speedy Service": Allowed the possibility for large amount of customers to be served within a timely fashion (revolving door service). The original owners even eliminated seating and switched to paper and plastic utensils to speed up the service.
Prices: Two words; "Value Meal"
Incentives: From Happy Meals to the Monopoly Game, McDonald's has provided a wide variety of incentives to their customers to entice them to return.
Pay Pass: Allows customers even faster service by giving them the choice of not fumbling for change.
FUN FACT: The McDonald's adopted the "assembly line" production line concept used by Henry Ford and Ford Motors, Inc. to speed up and truly create a fast food service.
MARKETING/ADVERTISING
From Speedee to that creepy clown Ronald McDonald, the Big Mac to the McGriddle, and from the Value Meal to the Happy Meal,"McDonald's has for decades maintained an extensive advertising campaign. In addition to the usual media (television, radio, and newspaper), the company makes significant use of billboards and signage, sponsors sporting events ranging from Little League to the Olympics. Nonetheless, television has always played a central role in the company's advertising strategy.To date, McDonald's has used 23 different slogans in United States advertising, as well as a few other slogans for select countries and regions."- Wikipedia.org
Even in this difficult market, the golden arches have aggressively marketed themselves religiously to attract and create consumer traffic by launching new ad campaigns ( breakfast, Big Mac, Fish Fillet, etc.) and slogans to prevent a stale message and continuously remind and stimulate the American consumer's hypothalamus.
FUN FACT: For all those peeps who didn't pass Biology in high school, the hypothalamus is the portion of the human brain that influences hunger.
EVOLUTION
The concept of evolution I'm talking about is not the one that pins Darwin v. Divine Creation or Adam & Eve v. Tadpoles and Single Cell Organisms, but the process of marketing evolution. Marketing Evolution can be described as continuously adapting and altering marketing/advertising campaigns to prevent a stale message to co-exist with the constant changing of consumer buying habits and thought process. In simple words McDonald's has done a wonderful job of "evolving with the times." McDonald's has perfected this art throughout the years by evolving their service and products, but most importantly, their campaigns. Everywhere you look there is always a new menu item, seasonal promotion, newly developed television or radio commerical, massive billboard, or catchy slogan accompanied by a jingle to shake the cob webs and implant a new message into the consumer's psyche.
McDonald's has been a revolutionary and most prevalent fast food locations since its first location opened in San Bernardino, CA in the year 1940. McDonald's has provided various examples of innovations that has molded today's fast food restaurants. Such innovations to its image, menu items, and the development of speedy service (development of the drive-through), and the advancement of the milkshake has dramatically transformed this burger stand into a burger conglomerate. McDonald's is not only known for their golden french fries and serving "two all beef patties, special sauce, lettuce, cheese, pickles, onions, on a sesame bun," but has also been recognized as one of the most powerful and influential marketing/advertising companies to ever exist. Their ultimate success, global brand awareness, and the ability to thrive in today's declining market can be contributed to a simple and basic process simple as ordering a #3 meal from the value menu.
Before I begin, let me go on record by saying that I haven't set foot in a McDonald's location for nearly 6-7 years for personal reasons and I have no idea what the #3 meal is now these days and it's probably not the healthiest thing for you (That's right, I've seen Super Size Me), but the #3 is significant to this post. For example, McDonald's has implemented 3 basic advertising/ marketing principles throughout the years that has guaranteed their burger monopoly (See what I did there?) These 3 basic principles are CONVENIENCE, MARKETING, and EVOLUTION.
CONVENIENCE
By providing a convenient product and service, McDonald's has been able to retain a large amount of customers for more than half a century. These are various examples of how they have made it convenient to their loyal customers.
Amount of Locations: As of 2010, there are over 31,000+ locations worldwide
Hours of Operation: Select locations have established late hours to serve late night consumers
Utilization of the Drive-Through & "Speedy Service": Allowed the possibility for large amount of customers to be served within a timely fashion (revolving door service). The original owners even eliminated seating and switched to paper and plastic utensils to speed up the service.
Prices: Two words; "Value Meal"
Incentives: From Happy Meals to the Monopoly Game, McDonald's has provided a wide variety of incentives to their customers to entice them to return.
Pay Pass: Allows customers even faster service by giving them the choice of not fumbling for change.
FUN FACT: The McDonald's adopted the "assembly line" production line concept used by Henry Ford and Ford Motors, Inc. to speed up and truly create a fast food service.
MARKETING/ADVERTISING
From Speedee to that creepy clown Ronald McDonald, the Big Mac to the McGriddle, and from the Value Meal to the Happy Meal,"McDonald's has for decades maintained an extensive advertising campaign. In addition to the usual media (television, radio, and newspaper), the company makes significant use of billboards and signage, sponsors sporting events ranging from Little League to the Olympics. Nonetheless, television has always played a central role in the company's advertising strategy.To date, McDonald's has used 23 different slogans in United States advertising, as well as a few other slogans for select countries and regions."- Wikipedia.org
Even in this difficult market, the golden arches have aggressively marketed themselves religiously to attract and create consumer traffic by launching new ad campaigns ( breakfast, Big Mac, Fish Fillet, etc.) and slogans to prevent a stale message and continuously remind and stimulate the American consumer's hypothalamus.
FUN FACT: For all those peeps who didn't pass Biology in high school, the hypothalamus is the portion of the human brain that influences hunger.
EVOLUTION
The concept of evolution I'm talking about is not the one that pins Darwin v. Divine Creation or Adam & Eve v. Tadpoles and Single Cell Organisms, but the process of marketing evolution. Marketing Evolution can be described as continuously adapting and altering marketing/advertising campaigns to prevent a stale message to co-exist with the constant changing of consumer buying habits and thought process. In simple words McDonald's has done a wonderful job of "evolving with the times." McDonald's has perfected this art throughout the years by evolving their service and products, but most importantly, their campaigns. Everywhere you look there is always a new menu item, seasonal promotion, newly developed television or radio commerical, massive billboard, or catchy slogan accompanied by a jingle to shake the cob webs and implant a new message into the consumer's psyche.
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2010: Over 31,000+ locations worldwide |
McDonald's...Butta Ba Ba Ba...I'm Loving...I'm Loving your marketing/advertising ideology, not your food! McDonald's has brilliantly marketed themselves that the public is willing to overlook the details of how their food is prepared. For example, do you know how their "juicy and fresh" McNuggets are made? Even if I told you, I would still spot you in your car sitting in their drive thru.
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