McDonald’s ends ‘imlovinit24,’ but vows to keep the ‘lovin’ going

Ne-Yo’s free concert in Los Angeles capped McDonald’s imlovinit24 drive. PHOTO BY HIYASMIN QUIJANO

LOS ANGELES — McDonald’s “imlovin24” campaign in 24 cities across the world in 24 hours ended with a surprise and free Ne-Yo concert in Hollywood event space The Avalon last March 24.

The Grammy award-winning R&B artist performed his latest song, “Every Day with Love,” for the first time as well as a number of his best hits including “Let’s Go,” “Miss Independent” and “Closer.”

Almost 75 years after the establishment of the first McDonald’s hamburger restaurant, and yet the fast food chain that is 80-percent franchised continues to nurture its relationship with customers.

As a foodservice retailer employing almost two million people in approximately 36,000 restaurants all over the world, McDonald’s Corporation wants to make sure people in more than 100 countries are always “lovinit.”

Matt Biespiel and Joel Yashinsky of McDonald’s U.S. and Margot Torres of McDonald’s Philippines answered several questions commonly asked by its customers.

The “imlovinit24” campaign has ended, and everyone at the LA surprise concert had a great time. How will this 24-hour global initiative help the McDonald’s Corporation for the rest of the year?

 The imlovinit24 is an illustration of McDonald’s evolving approach to marketing, shifting from a traditional mass advertiser to a content producer. Moving from ads to acts, the initiative is a key way that McDonald’s is connecting with consumers via more authentic and engaging methods. It also was the first effort managed through the company’s new global brand hub, which enables McDonald’s to monitor and manage digital conversation around the brand. (Matt Biespiel, Senior Director, Global Brand Development, McDonald’s Corporation).

WATCH: Ne-Yo’s imlovinit24 performance

Are there other campaigns McDonald’s is a part of associated with health, education, or American families?

Our customers told us that they would like to see more nutritionally balanced choices. Earlier this year we introduced Cuties, a kid-sized fresh fruit, in McDonald’s Happy Meals and Mighty Kids Meals as a part of our ongoing commitment to champion children’s well-being. The introduction also supports our partnership with the Alliance for a Healthier Generation on a Clinton Global Initiative (CGI) Commitment to increase access to fruit, vegetables and low-fat dairy. We continue to look for ways to offer nutritionally balanced menu choices that feature the recommended food groups and nutrients as outlined by the USDA and USDHHS Dietary Guidelines for Americans, 2010. Currently, McDonald’s is testing junior bananas at select restaurants. (Joel Yashinsky, Vice President, Marketing, McDonald’s USA.)

Health consciousness is really spreading. How is McDonald’s adapting to that trend? Is there anything new to expect on the menu?

McDonald’s is always looking to evolve our menu to better meet the changing preferences and expectations of our customers. In addition to introducing Cuties in McDonald’s Happy Meals and Mighty Kids Meals and testing junior bananas at select restaurants, we have new menu sourcing initiatives in McDonald’s U.S., including using only chicken raised without antibiotics that are important to human medicine. McDonald’s U.S. restaurants will also offer customers milk jugs of low-fat white milk and fat-free chocolate milk from cows that are not treated with rbST, an artificial growth hormone

Why was recording artist Ne-Yo chosen for this campaign?

McDonald’s believes a little more Lovin’ can change a lot, so we partnered with Ne-Yo, an artist that is capable of bringing joy to not only to his fans but to people all over the world. (Yashinsky).

How can McDonald’s assure people of the quality of its food in the face of publicized criticisms of fast foods?

We know that our customers, fans and skeptics have questions about how our food is made.  While they enjoy their McDonald’s favorites like Chicken McNuggets, they also have questions regarding the ingredients and how our food is prepared.  We wanted to answer their questions directly and engage in an ongoing dialogue about our food story, so last we launched the “Our Food. Your Questions” initiative. We plan to continue the conversation and give fans and curious consumers alike the information they’re looking for. (Yashinsky).

Filipinos show their love through food, but now that the global campaign ‘imlovinit24’ is over, how can McDonald’s Philippines keep spreading happiness?

Spreading happiness and bringing people together are part of the brand’s DNA. For over 33 years in the Philippines, McDonald’s has been part of the local community, serving great-tasting food at good value and providing a haven for families and friends to be together. Before imlovinit24 and the McTollbooth, McDonald’s in the Philippines has done numerous consumer engagement programs.

We had Analog Hours, which encourages friends to spend time together offline (without their phones) for a few hours under the BFF Bundle campaign last year; Lucky Drive, where car owners of one lucky color got a free McDonald’s product when they drove through at a designated hour of the day in October/December 2014. (Margot Torres, Vice President, Marketing McDonald’s Philippines)

Just curious. Approximately how many toll fees were paid for and how many breakfast sandwiches were given away?

Over 1,000 McMuffin sandwiches and 300 toll fees were paid for the 1.5 hours that the McTollbooth was open. (Torres)

And ongoing efforts?

On National Breakfast Day, since 2012, we’ve been giving away 1,000 McMuffin sandwiches per store; and for the past 20 years, the Kiddie Crew Workshop, where kids 5-12 years old participate in a weeklong workshop in the store to make cheeseburgers, greet and serve customers and learn values such as teamwork, hard work, sharing and responsibility. McDonald’s also offers McCelebrations to bring people together to celebrate anything from birthdays, graduation and even town fiestas.

Ronald McDonald House Charities, McDonald’s charity of choice, is also part of the local communities in the Philippines with three flagship programs focused on children and education — Ronald McDonald Read to Learn, which teaches beginning reading to first grade students; Ronald McDonald Bahay Bulilit, a day care center where kids in low income areas can learn and play in a safe place; and Ronald McDonald Bigay Tulong (Give Help), which helps communities affected by natural disasters. Here, stores serve as drop-off points for those who wish to donate in kind. Donations are also made through canisters in store and from a portion of every Happy Meal sold. (Torres)

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