When it comes to the uber-competitive fast-food empire, Taco Bell finally woke up and served the coffee—along with a slew of breakfast items all endorsed by Ronald McDonald himself.
In order to compete with morning-meal moguls, like McDonalds, Burger King and Subway, Taco Bell began testing a full breakfast menu in 2012 that was finally launched today.
The menu is nothing short of creative. It’s their biggest rollout to date and includes options, like breakfast burritos, donuts and waffle tacos. But where they really focused their creativity was into a killer ad campaign for the launch. Taco Bell President, Brian Niccol, knew that simply offering morning items might not be enough to convince many Americans to abandon their favorite McBreakfasts. So Taco Bell called on their LA-based ad agency, who then called on nearly every Ronald McDonald in the Yellow Pages.
The Mexican food chain located a group of men named Ronald McDonald, then paid them to appear in their TV spots and print ads proclaiming their love for Taco Bell’s new breakfast menu.
They included a disclaimer saying these Ronald McDonalds were not affiliated with McDonald’s Corp in any way. And with that, they successfully found one of the greatest “loopholes” in advertising history. Taco Bell legally made their competitor their spokesperson!
As a copywriter and a lover of shock value, I think that a campaign that bends the rules can be very strategic. If nothing else, it creates a lot of buzz. And in our over-socialized and connected world, sometimes a little publicity is all a brand needs. Only time will tell if Taco Bell’s campaign is successful, but if anyone could convince a McDonalds allegiant to jump ship, what better person than Ronald himself?
You can see Taco Bell’s latest spots and new menu items, here
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