Whatever happened to Ronald McDonald? Where is he?  And, the Hamburgler? What happened to him? Did you notice when they left? It occurred to me recently that they are MIA (missing in action) as part of the McDonalds’ brand.

We still have the Ronald McDonald house, which provides a tremendous service to sick children and their families, but where is Ronald McDonald himself? He used to be on TV commercials and made public appearances. You would see him and the Hamburglar and the other characters of Ronald McDonald land at grand openings of a McDonalds and other events. Looks like they were quietly retired from the McDonalds’ brand.

And, who has said hello? The Burger King in his costume.

I personally like the Burger King with his plastic face and frozen smile. Burger King didn’t try to make an animated character or overdo the Burger King concept. He’s just kind of totally fake and you know it, and more importantly, he appeals to kids AND adults.

Brand mascots can really do a lot to build a brand – especially when they are oddly real or people can identify with them – think Energizer Bunny or Owens Corning’s Pink Panther.

But, seriously, what did actually happen to the Hamburglar?

McDonalds’ marketing used to be totally driven towards kids. Their whole advertising was focused on engaging children and reluctantly the parents would give in and truck on down to the local McDonalds to get them Happy Meals that included little plastic toys – like the Hamburglar.

Now, as our population is getting older and making healthier food choices, McDonalds has changed gears – its advertising is focused toward aging boomers who want to have healthier food and McDonalds has revamped its menu to include more salads and lower fat meals.

So, while we might be pained to have seen the exit of Ronald McDonald and the Hamburglar, McDonalds was smart to reposition themselves and take advantage of the changing demographic trends by offering healthier fare that appeals to both boomers and their older, more health conscious children.

Let’s say you have a new company. It’s got all the elements of a good brand, but no one knows about it. What’s the best way to break into the market – advertising or PR?

If you answered PR, you’d be right.

Why?

1. Because it’s new, you probably have a great story to tell about the brand. Why you created it, the benefit it provides, etc.
2. PR is going to be more cost-effective than advertising, even in a smaller local markets. This can be a significant consideration for a start-up brand that may have a limited marketing budget.
3. Advertising builds effectively over time, but it’s costly. So, unless you’ve got deep pockets, you’re not going to launch a new brand with extensive advertising. PR is going to be much cheaper and more effective with the initial brand launch.
4. Another subtle benefit of PR is the implied endorsement of your brand from the media that runs a news story about it. This is very powerful and you just can’t buy that kind of influence.

Just do it.

Quality is job #1.

We try harder.

Healthy fast food.

It is entirely possible to “own” a phrase or a word in the mind of consumers. The above examples prove that – and it’s not just an option for big companies.

If you the phrase you choose describes what your brand stands for or cuts through to your brand’s core values, you can own that phrase. Being able to achieve “phrase ownership” is a quick way to communicate an idea to your customers.

Think about Burger King, they owned, “Have it your way.” Which, in essence sent the message to consumers that if they went to McDonald’s they couldn’t be sure if they could order their Big Mac with no pickles.

With Burger King, you told them what you wanted and they would  make it.

That one small difference was the reason their marketing campaign was very successful. They focused on the one thing they knew they could do better than McDonald’s, developed a phrase for it and delivered on their promise.