A New Look for McDonald's

(page 2 of 2)

A timeline of McDonald's packaging design over the past 32 years.

Story Tools

• post a comment
• e-mail this story
• print this story
• order a reprint
• suggest a story
• digg this
• save to del.icio.us

Advantages of Continuity

More than merely an aesthetic exercise, McDonald's rollout is one of the most ambitious in the growing number of digital asset-management systems—online repositories of branding materials like logos, images, and video clips that marketers have access to. Advertising giant Ogilvy & Mather built the first such system in 2001 for IBM (IBM). And Coca-Cola (KO) is currently rolling out a similar system (BusinessWeek, 10/13/08). "The scale is hard for most people to imagine," says Aaron Keller, managing principal of Minneapolis-based design firm Capsule. By 2010 nearly 56 million customers a day will be staring at similar if not identical McDonald's packaging designs.

Still, the new packaging forgoes the clever shapes that design-savvy companies routinely show off—think the intricate folding boxes of Apple's (AAPL) iPod or the bulbous shape of popular pomegranate drink POM. Then again, for a company that sells 550 million Big Macs a year in America alone, keeping it simple may have its advantages. And continuity, says the company, will enable 82% of its consumer packaging to continue being made from renewable paper or wood materials. What's more, Boxer's Castledine says, alternative shapes tested poorly with McDonald's employees. "The current box is well loved by the cooking crews," he says.

McDonald's Dillon says the company knows many consumers will end up tossing out the new packaging without giving the design more than a passing glance. Still, she insists the new design presents an opportunity to strengthen the McDonald's brand. "People want to know more and more about the food they're eating," adds Castledine. "And, well, the box is the most intimate touch point with any brand."

Business Exchange related topics:
Franchise Ownership
Consumer Marketing
Consumer Packaged Goods

Vella is a writer for BusinessWeek.com in New York.