Why is this work relevant for Brand Experience & Activation?

McDonald’s Ride-Thru is an activation-led campaign that changed the way people perceived and experienced the Drive-Thru. The campaign created a massive yet simple change—we renamed Drive-Thru to Ride-Thru and launched the stores on-ground during National Ride-Thru Day, supported by a social media program, and outdoor and radio ads. We welcomed all kinds of motorists on different vehicles, and opened up the platform for a much larger potential and audience base.

Background

During the pandemic, the Drive-Thru emerged as one of the most preferred channels in the QSR industry. It proved to be a safe and convenient way for customers who wanted to minimize face-to-face interactions and the time spent outside their homes. Given its heightened relevance, the client McDonald’s recognized that success here would be crucial for overall success in the entire industry. The goal was to increase guest count, sales revenue, and ultimately market share in the Drive-Thru space, where they lag behind their QSR-rival, the homegrown Jollibee brand. To achieve this, McDonald’s needed to penetrate an untapped audience of non-4-wheeled drivers, who represented a majority of the traffic on the road.

Describe the creative idea (20% of vote)

The Drive-Thru had always been positioned and perceived as a channel for cars. McDonald’s saw this as an opportunity to change the way people saw Drive-Thru by focusing on one message: We welcome everyone on the road. From Drive-Thru to RIDE-THRU. With this one small change to the name, McDonald’s got people rethinking the very nature of the category. No matter the ride – whether you ride on motorcycles or bikes; scooters, skateboards or even horse-drawn carriages – you’re welcome to Ride-Thru at McDonald’s.

Describe the strategy (20% of vote)

To position McDonald’s as having an inclusive Drive-Thru, we made use of a unique POV-- that the brand understands the needs of under-represented audiences. We represented other non-four-wheel vehicles by unearthing an insight that had come to light because of COVID: “When pandemic restrictions limited everyone’s mobility, Filipinos found their will and set of wheels to keep moving.” We learned that Filipinos got back on the road during the pandemic by getting on their motorcycles, their bikes, their scooters, and more. So we decided that McDonald’s should celebrate all these riders for finding a way to keep moving on, which in most cases was not on a traditional car.

Describe the execution (30% of vote)

The change from McDonald’s Drive-Thru to Ride-Thru was launched through social materials that welcomed all types of vehicles to the store. Various McDonald’s stores around the Philippines then changed their store pylons from “Drive-Thru” to “Ride-Thru”. We further pushed the idea during National Drive-Thru Day, rebranded as National Ride-Thru Day, and surprised people on all kinds of rides with free apple pies and other treats. We then released an online film documenting the diverse vehicles that visited McDonald’s. Outdoor, Waze ads, social media posts, and other in-store promos also led more motorists of all kinds to visit and order at the Ride-Thru.

List the results (30% of vote)

The Ride-Thru campaign reached over 21 million people, with the online video alone garnering 7 million views and 36 thousand reactions. People online also commended the message of inclusivity, praising its timeliness during the pandemic. This allowed McDonald’s to grab huge market share from the market leader, Jollibee, with Jollibee’s market share declining by 6 percentage points as McDonald’s gained 2 points. The campaign also led to a 17% increase in McDonald's Drive-Thru guest count, and an overwhelming 47% increase in sales compared to months prior to the pandemic. Internally, the Ride-Thru effort was also recognized by the McDonald's global team as among the best and most effective local campaigns in the Asian region.