A03. Brand or Product Integration into an existing programme or platform
Contributing Company
TBWA\ESPAÑA Madrid, SPAIN
Media Agency
OMD SPAIN Madrid, SPAIN
Entrant Company
OMD SPAIN Madrid, SPAIN
Credits
Name
Company
Position
Alejandra Gálvez
Omd
Account Director
José María De Diego
Omd
Creative Media Project Manager
Irene Ruiz De Gauna
Omd
Media Planner
Rocio Velez Díaz-pallarés
Omd
Media Planner
The Campaign
In a moment when in Spain almost any brand keeps being aggressive in their communication focusing on price (1€ campaigns battle), the Quick Service Restaurant category is facing a huge lack of differentiation. Despite of the low prices, sales keep at negative numbers as consumers pursue brands and products that offer 'something more'.
Therefore, we challenged McDonald's to strengthen the communication of its premium products through innovation and quality leaving the 1€ battle of the category behind. Moreover, a consumer who's hungry for added value and who's not impressed by ordinary products and promotions, needed to be satisfied.
The idea was to create this new sandwich in front of the consumer's eyes, showing the brands commitment to innovation and quality.
Our objective was to tell the whole story from the very beginning of the creation by authentic and credible people, until the closing of the selection process when a new product is born.
A story told in a natural, not intrusive way linked to Spanish Food culture. And we found the perfect laboratory to create this innovation: the most watched TV contest for professional Chefs, called 'Top Chef'.
The competitors faced the challenge to create the best sandwich ever while using any ingredients they wanted.
At the same time, McDonald's accepted the challenge of turning the winning creation into a commercial product right after the show, an idea that meant a great risk for the brand, not knowing beforehand which recipe would make it to their restaurants' kitchens.
During the TV show and in real-time, all TV-viewers who voted correctly the winning creation through a mobile App were invited to try out the sandwich the very next day.
After the launch of the platform Grand McExtrem in April 2014, this campaign was meant to be a strategic evolution and amplification of the same, increasing brand awareness through innovation and reaching at least the same business results obtained after launch: 4% of sales should come from the new sandwich.
As the new #foodie sandwich, the results were outstanding for both client and category.
From 4% estimated sales, within the first 6 days, the sandwich's sales were 2,5 times higher, reaching 10,1% of all products sold.
And still, after the 5th week, one in the beginning unplanned week of campaign, sales kept being at 6,5%. 2.5% higher than the initially marked and expected objective of the campaign.
Brand awareness increased 15% compared to the 4 previous weeks' average. (Source: IMOP, January 2015. Compared to the 4 previous weeks' average)
After the show, McDonald's reached 74% brand recall with an 88% buying intention. (Source: McDonald's)
Grand McExtrem Topchef is not just a Branded Content, it's the birth of a new product created in 'real-time' in front of the consumer's eyes.
Compared to most of the campaigns of McDonald's where traditional and mass media are being planned, this one stood out as a branded content during the most watched TV Cooking Show in Spain, called Top Chef. 8 professional chefs had to create a new burger for the brand in one of its restaurant's. The result, a 20 minute-long branded TV content that was the springboard to launch this new product nation-wide the very next day of the show awarding TV viewers who participated through a mobile App to try the creation in case they had guessed the winning cook.