Model American
August 22nd, 2008
In a masterful ploy for the hearts and minds of millions of Chinese children, McDonald’s hired Michael Phelps as their “Global Ambassador” to teach the Chinese how to eat like Americans. Phelps helped launch McDonald’s Champion Kids program where 300 kids from around the world were brought to China “for the experience of a lifetime.”
According to McDonald’s Global Chief Marketing Officer Mary Dillon, “These kids will reach out to thousands more, connecting with their worldwide peers to communicate the sights and sounds of the Olympic Games.”
In other words, these kids know thousands of kids, who know thousands of kids, etc. And if we can covertly create a ubiquitous presence in their lives with warm and fuzzy childhood memories of lunch with gold medal Olympians, they and all of their friends are much more likely to become “Heavy Users” when they grow up.
Targeting children with experiential marketing campaigns is nothing new for McDonald’s. In fact, they are so good at it that a study which came out in August, 2007 found, “Most 3- and 5-year-olds who taste-tested a variety of foods said they preferred the ones in the McDonald’s wrapper — even though the foods were exactly the same…”
Since Ronald McDonald was introduced in 1963 McDonald’s has continued to refine and perfect their approach to children. In the words of my 5-year-old niece, “He’s funny, because he’s got big red shoes!”
Yet, since the 2004 release of Morgan Spurlock’s Super Size Me, many people have become cautiously optimistic about the education of Americans regarding the ills of fast food.
However, with fast food junkie turned Olympic gold medalist Michael Phelps all too ready to proclaim the good news of the golden arches, it appears that for today, we’ve made one step forward and two steps back.
Tags: Dead Wrong
Posted in
Fast Food, Studies |
No Comments »
