When someone thinks of “American Fast Food” what is the first thing that comes to mind? For me it’s McDonald’s and those infamous golden arches. When that image imprints in your brain you can’t help but think of hot golden french fries and the mouth watering Quarter Pounders topped with onions and American cheese. Mmmm, I’m making my mouth water thinking about it. McDonalds has a way of making those ordinary meals something everyone craves. But is that always the case? According to the YouTube video what you see isn’t always what you get. Many consumers are constantly asking why the food looks SO much better on T.V. than in real life.
Everyone knows that food looks drastically different in photography than what actually gets served to you on a plate. Not only do photographers have perfect lighting and the right placement, but also picture perfect ingredients and award winning chefs to create the meals. They also have some clever tricks of the trade: Cereal commercials use glue instead of milk, pancakes are covered in hair-spray, ice cream is actually mashed potatoes, and spray deodorant gives grapes a beautiful glossy finish, and the list goes on…
So in a marketing win by McDonald’s they take you behind the scenes at a photo shoot with their burgers. In the video, Hope Bagozzi, Director of Marketing McDonald’s Canada, first takes the viewer to a restaurant and orders a Quarter Pounder with cheese and then goes back to the photo shoot where the marketing team is about to take pictures of their own Quarter Pounder. Bagozzi walks through step by step addressing all the concerns and criticism that anyone would normally have. She addresses the reasons why the food looks so good on camera and why it does not look as good in real life. They not only do they pick the finest looking ingredients, but the burger gets touched up on photo shop and its ingredients are strategically placed so that the customer is able to see all the ingredients in the sandwich. Real hamburgers are not strategically assembled; they are made with efficiency and speed.
In social media transparency is the goal and this video takes the viewer step by step to address any and all concerns. McDonald’s is trying to take the right step to inform their clients so that they are not “hiding anything” or completely avoiding the concern and speculation. McDonald’s already gets a lot of heat for not putting their customer’s health first but this is a step toward the right direction and being upfront and honest with their audience.
