Neil Golden explains how McDonald’s Play to Win strategy boosted its brand in ethnic markets

Speaking to a packed house at the ANA’s Masters of Marketing Conference, Neil Golden, senior vice president and chief marketing officer of McDonald’s USA, rattled off some impressive figures. Since the start of the restaurant chain’s popular “I’m Lovin’ It” campaign in 2002 (its first global campaign and the company’s longest running ever), sales have risen 45 percent, guest count is up 20 percent, cash flow is up 50 percent, and the corporation’s market share has jumped 24 percent.

“McDonald’s has seen a $10-billion rise in annual sales over the last six years,” Golden said. “And those five notes,” he continued, referring to the catchy “bah-da bup bah bah” jingle at the end of each commercial, “has gained McDonald’s 100 percent brand recognition” and the No. 6 spot on Interbrand Corporation’s list of most recognized brands.

But the success behind the I’m Lovin’ It campaign, said Golden, stems from the company’s global growth strategy, Play to Win, which focuses on not merely growing bigger but growing better. “McDonald’s serves 58 million customers every day,” he noted. “We meet the needs of most of those customers with one brand.”

To do that, explained Golden, McDonald’s uses consumer insights to tap into the company’s fastest-growing markets: ethnic communities. It isn’t about putting an American restaurant in an ethnic community, Golden insisted, but about starting a restaurant that appeals to a community of people. McDonald’s use of focus groups, in particular, allows the company to discover what’s truly important to a community so that it can offer the right menu.

“We ran 23 focus groups on the West Coast,” Golden pointed out. “Twenty-one of them were dedicated to Spanish-only markets.” From the feedback generated in those focus groups, McDonald’s created its Fiesta Menu. “In those communities, the Fiesta Menu outperformed the general market,” he noted. “Focusing on ethnic insights gives us a huge advantage.”

In largely Hispanic communities, TV spots incorporate English and Spanish and use the tag line “Me Encantan” instead of “I’m Lovin’ It.” In largely African-American markets, spots focus on how food can bridge different communities — something that focus groups revealed is important to many African-Americans.

Focus groups also revealed that Asian customers are the most discerning coffee drinkers, so ads in Asian markets focus on McDonald’s McCafe selections. By using ethnic insights to more directly engage local markets, Golden argued, a brand can gain more attention. And by incorporating a positive message, a brand can establish an emotional connection that will earn lasting customer loyalty. “From planning to execution, the ethnic consumer and the perspective he/she has is central in our thought process,” Golden said.

“Before Play to Win,” Golden summarized, “we weren’t supporting our key assets as much as we should have. We needed to reconnect with our consumer. At the end of the day, there was incredible demand for the brand, but people needed a reminder of why they should eat here. Multicultural marketing has helped fuel our business and the success we’ve enjoyed.”

Through focus groups, McDonald’s found who ate at their restaurants most frequently. “We found that these groups are among the most loyal users of our brand,” Golden added. “We want to adapt our products to stay loyal to them as well.”