After experiencing falling sales and the resignation of its C.E.O. in the beginning of 2015, McDonald’s rebounded with efforts to appeal to a group that many brands want to win over: millennials. The fast-food brand’s most notable approach was refreshing its signature slogan with the “I’mLovinIt24” global marketing campaign, in which the brand declared March 24, 2015, a worldwide day of joy that involved throwing 24 events in 24 cities in 24 countries in 24 hours.
The idea was to bring people together with different experiences that included a giant McCafé coffee-cup ball pit in Sydney, Australia; a tollbooth that was transformed into a McDonald’s drive-through in Manila, Philippines; a philharmonic “McOrchestra” performance in Vienna, Austria; a slot machine in Rio de Janeiro that gave out coupons made of ice that guests had to redeem before they melted; and a two-hour Ne-Yo concert in Los Angeles, in which the R&B singer performed a new “Lovin Anthem” with lyrics he had crowdsourced from fans on social media. By the time 24 hours were up, more than 40,000 people had engaged with the campaign on social media by using the hashtag #ImLovinIt.
McDonald’s also introduced all-day breakfast—a menu change the brand’s fans had wanted for years—last fall. The addition led to its best quarterly growth in almost four years, with a 5 percent increase in global same-store sales reported in January. All-day breakfast has given the brand opportunities to promote with new activations at events like the Recording Academy’s “Grammy Celebration” in February, which featured a custom photo booth with a bed and branded pajamas for guests.
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