CLIENT
McDonald's is the world's No. 1 fast food restaurant franchise with more than 40,000 locations worldwide. Its vision is "to be the preferred place and way of eating for its customers" based on four basic principles that characterise its business philosophy: Quality, Service, Cleanliness and Value.
GOAL ACHIEVED
Expand the brand's presence in the virtual world and connect with new generations of consumers through an immersive and innovative experience.
Innovation and challenges in the Metaverse
The world's leading burger chain has always been known for being at the forefront of original and groundbreaking marketing strategies. And in its quest to continue capturing new generations of consumers, it decided to focus on the Metaverse and gaming for its innovative 360º marketing campaign.
In this way, we developed McDonald's Land, a large virtual environment in Roblox that served as the axis around which the entire marketing campaign revolved, which included a viralisation campaign with influencers to obtain maximum visibility and a phygital promotion that brought Roblox users to McDonald's establishments.
With its unlimited options, this medium was the perfect place to mix creativity and innovation, and allow the target audience to get closer and connect with the McDonald's universe.
In this way, we developed McDonald's Land, a large virtual environment in Roblox that served as the axis around which the entire marketing campaign revolved, which included a viralisation campaign with influencers to obtain maximum visibility and a phygital promotion that brought Roblox users to McDonald's establishments.
With its unlimited options, this medium was the perfect place to mix creativity and innovation, and allow the target audience to get closer and connect with the McDonald's universe.
Strategy and benefits of entering the virtual world
This campaign, aimed at the entire Latin American public, was McDonald's clear commitment to begin its introduction and expansion into the virtual world, having clear key objectives that the brand had to achieve with this experience:
Recognition: Challenging traditional forms of interaction to establish links with its community.
Visibility: Generating a significant impact within the virtual environment that would capture the attention of Gen Z.
Business: Pulling audiences from Roblox to the McDonald's app through exclusive rewards.
Loyalty: Strengthening brand loyalty by using the virtual world as a new communication channel.
Key positioning: Establishing a future presence for McDonald's through gaming and the virtual world.
Recognition: Challenging traditional forms of interaction to establish links with its community.
Visibility: Generating a significant impact within the virtual environment that would capture the attention of Gen Z.
Business: Pulling audiences from Roblox to the McDonald's app through exclusive rewards.
Loyalty: Strengthening brand loyalty by using the virtual world as a new communication channel.
Key positioning: Establishing a future presence for McDonald's through gaming and the virtual world.
To achieve this, it was decided to develop a global strategy in which McDonald's Land, this virtual environment developed by DeuSens on Roblox, would be the central pillar for users to reach to enjoy the experience and connect with the brand, giving it extra visibility through a strong influencer marketing campaign that would encourage their communities to try and enjoy the Roblox experience.
Gameplay and virtual environment options in Roblox
The ambitious development of McDonald's Land by the DeuSens team made this virtual environment one of the largest ever created in Roblox, with 5 different islands, each with a completely different aesthetic, ambience and gamification, and whose conceptualisation was based on representing the 4 products included in the new McCombo Pro menu created exclusively for the promotion of the Roblox experience.
The 5 islands of McDonald's Land and their main features were as follows:
- Central Island: The meeting point for users, where they appeared as a lobby and where they could find a virtual reconstruction of a McDonald's establishment. On this island they could participate in a challenge against the clock in which they had to take a car and drive around the circuit in the shortest possible time, as a nod to the McAuto service. In addition, from this island they could travel to other islands to find other challenges and mini-games.
- French Fries Island: Representing the main garnish of any McDonald's menu, on this island, users had to enter a volcano of Chips, overcoming a parkpur while avoiding touching the ketchup that threatened them.
- Ice Cream Island: A setting that introduced users to a mountain of ice cream that users could slide down on a snowboard to reach the finish line in the shortest possible time.
- Soda Island: An unexplored jungle crossed by a river of soda through which users had to move with a bubble that allows them to float to avoid the ice blocks as they travel through the river for as long as possible.
- Burger Island: The last of the 5 islands, in which users entered a long parkour in which they moved between the most iconic ingredients of McDonald's hamburgers until they reached the top without falling down.
In addition, on the 5 islands, users could find and collect virtual coins that they could then use in the virtual recreation of the McDonald's establishment on the central island to exchange them for wearables and skins, conceptualised with elements of the McDonald's universe, to demonstrate their connection to the brand.
At the forefront of branding in the Metaverse
McDonald's Land has represented a revolution in the world of marketing in the Metaverse, being one of the most significant campaigns carried out in Roblox. A unique experience that has transcended borders, achieving the following results:
- Reaching users from more than 10 different countries throughout Latin America.
- Reach more than 430K visits of Roblox users
- Obtaining more than 37K orders of the McCombo Pro menu.
- Increase sales by 55% through the McDonald's App.
McDonald's has not only positioned itself as a benchmark in the Metaverse and technological innovation, but has also demonstrated its versatility and ability to adapt to current trends and connect with a young and digitised audience. This project has reinforced the brand's digital presence, creating an environment where consumers can experience the McDonald's universe in a new way.
In short, McDonald's foray into the Metaverse has been a strategic success, reflecting its commitment to innovation and its ability to creatively connect with new audiences, redefining the relationship between brand and consumer in the digital realm.
