Why McDonald’s doesn’t advertise during COVID-19.
Have you seen McDonald’s advertisements since the COVID-19 Alert Level’s been lowered to Level 3? Other fast food restaurants probably advertise their contactless pick up procedures but other than that, have you seen any ads from big fast food brands like Maccas, Burger King, Wendy’s, and Carl’s Junior?
It’s been over a week since Alert Level 3 was implemented in New Zealand. It’s basically Alert Level 4, but with drive-thrus and takeaways. That’s an oversimplification but plays an important role in relaunching the country’s economy as mentioned by the government. Retail and restaurant businesses are encouraged to conduct “business as usual” but not as they used to. Now, new safety measures are in place ie. contactless pick-ups and drive thru options – which is the key advertising message these companies communicate with their audiences. While everyone’s done a good job in keeping to themselves and staying in their bubbles in Alert Level 4, issues started to rise because of the minor liberty we’ve been given in Alert Level 3.
Time and again, the government reiterates the message about staying at home as much as possible and to only go out when it’s absolutely necessary. It just so happens that in Alert Level 3, people find it necessary to queue for hours in a McDonald’s drive thru or flock right outside a Burger Fuel branch. I’ve spoken about how the new normal is upon us – about how handshakes are going to be a thing of the past, about how people are more likely to see essential workers more sympathetically, and how advertisers should really speak to their audience with more empathy.
To my surprise, it seems like most people will just revert back to how it was. Unconsciously take up people’s personal space, breathe the same air, and being 2 metres away from others will only last until the alert levels are lowered, even though Level 2 has a 1 metre social distance rule. Perhaps convenience is the reason for all of this. In terms of advertising, McDonald’s is a brand that’s so big that they don’t even need to advertise to get people queuing in their drive thru for over 2 hours just to get junk food.
Remember during the start of the pandemic when toilet paper flew off the shelves? Is this like that? Is this panic buying part 2? What is it about the likes of McDonald’s and Burger Fuel that even the Prime Minister had to tell us off for not keeping our social distance with each other just to get a burger? Surely it wasn’t because of advertising – or at least not the advertising they do now. It’s the brand they’ve developed and established over the years that people resonate with, and this is something their products and services often can’t uphold. I can’t tell you how many times McDonald’s has given me the wrong order or how many times I felt sick after eating their food but I still come back for more. Sadly, I can’t say the same for sit-down restaurants because I’m the type of person who doesn’t come back to a restaurant, no matter how good the food was, if I’ve gotten food poisoning from them or if the host was rude.
Taking McDonald’s as a prime example – we all know how iconic this brand is. The Golden Arches is one of the most recognisable symbols in the world. It doesn’t matter that a documentary such as “Super Size Me” or multiple research about how their food never spoils, is out there. People all over the world still want it. Want it so bad that queuing for hours with other people and risking their health isn’t even an issue – yet we complain about queues in the groceries when we were in Level 4. They’re willing to wait for so long only to be able to post their Maccas selfies on social media for everyone else to see. As if they’re passive aggressively saying, “Look at me! I waited for a long time. I have Maccas again! Screw the Coronavirus!”
The question now is, do fast food brands like Maccas have immunity to the effects of COVID-19? The food and beverage industry is one of the biggest industries that took a great hit from the virus. Yet McDonald’s still stands tall after the lockdown, operating more smoothly than other restaurants (or those operating at all for that matter), as if nothing happened. Moreover, they also keep getting free, customer-generated content! Advertising through word of mouth is more powerful than ever especially when conversations are just a few clicks away and right in the palm of your hand.
Think about your local café or your favourite fine dining restaurant for a second. Perhaps you’re excited to visit them again or maybe you’re anxious to be surrounded by people again and have become entirely sceptical about being out of your bubble when it’s unnecessary. But think about catch ups over coffee, yarns over drinks, and meals with loved ones that didn’t only fill your stomach – they filled your heart, too. Cheesy as it sounds, these restaurants are more than just places to get food from. Restaurants are a source of community. It’s where bonds are made, people are celebrated, and a place to take the edge off even – or at least that’s what they used to be, pre-pandemic. These places continue to struggle because of the pandemic while big fast food companies are thriving just after the alert level was lowered to 3. Smaller restaurants can double down (if possible) on advertising once they’re advised that they can operate normally again, but the damage has been done.
They can’t compete with big fast food brands. Most of these restaurants have a very tight niche and rely on word of mouth and social media as their main form of marketing. The quality and overall experience is what differentiates them from fast food restaurants, especially expensive fine dining restaurants where you get quality food and top-notch service. The kind of food and service that we don’t expect any fast food restaurant to deliver – so you’re happy to pay for that premium! You most likely didn’t find your favourite restaurant through bus stop advertising. Perhaps you heard about them through your mate or through social media when someone you follow dined there and took photos that look nice and posh. Placement plays a huge role in advertising i.e. don’t expect fine dining restaurants to advertise in bus stops because people who can afford their food are more likely not on the bus.
I didn’t see a single ad for McDonald’s during the lockdown period and even when the lockdown was about to end. Nor have I seen any ads from them now because let’s face it, they don’t need to. Their consumers and the media do it for them. They’ve been ahead of their industry for years and perhaps they were even ahead of this pandemic. The big bosses at Maccas probably didn’t break a sweat when they found out their branches can’t operate because they always knew they’d be back. On the other hand, smaller, local restaurants are still trying to figure out how to, or if they can even, bounce back from the wreckage COVID-19 has done to their business.
All that said, perhaps the reason for what seems to be the sequel to panic buying is that people are simply giving into a sign of normality. People want things to go back to normal and since getting McDonald’s used to be such a normal thing to do, they took comfort in it, hoping that normality is just around the corner. Perhaps they don’t take those takeaway photos to brag, but to simply remind their friends that, “Hey! We’ll be out of all of these uncertainties soon enough.”
Big fast food brands have taken nudges here and there because of this pandemic but small local restaurants have taken a much larger blow. Branding is powerful but it’s also built over time, grown through gaining your customers’ trust, and made strong through the constant communication between the business and its audience. McDonald’s just happened to be a brand that listens well to its customers in terms of what products they should sell them. Maccas in different countries tailor their meals to suit what the locals eat while also incorporating their signature dishes such as the Big Mac. But we have to remember that this didn’t happen overnight. Saying they have immunity from the pandemic is not entirely correct since their stock price is down by 1.46% today.
So let’s just say it’s unfair to compare apples with broccolis. They might be in the same industry but they’re playing in different markets. But riddle me this; if your favourite restaurant were to become a big brand and franchise like McDonald’s, (lowered prices, quick service, and all that) would you still want to eat there? Or would you choose McDonald’s? Or are you more inclined to finding a new favourite restaurant when things go back to “normal”?
