McDonald's vs The Burger Revolution | The Price is Right | 2
Business Wars
Audible
4.6 • 13.5K Ratings
🗓️ 3 September 2025
⏱️ 42 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
The “better burger” business has been rapidly expanding across the United States and internationally, with chains like Five Guys and Shake Shack growing at break-neck speed. In response, McDonald’s has tried switching up its own menu to lure back health-conscious customers. But when the pandemic hits and people start tightening their wallets, the better burger business model will be put to the ultimate test. When it comes down to it, how much do people really value quality over cost?
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | It's early 2016 in the office of a marketing agency called Creata. The agency's been tasked with making a happy meal toy that would be featured in McDonald's for four weeks in the summer. It needs to be |
| 0:21.8 | unique and exciting. For many of us, when we think back to the Happy Meal toys of our own |
| 0:28.2 | childhood, we think of figurines tied to famous IP or movie releases, things like plastic Garfields |
| 0:34.7 | or little mermaid characters. But this time around, McDonald's is trying to create something entirely new. |
| 0:42.3 | At the front of the room, someone jots down a few keywords on a whiteboard, |
| 0:48.3 | apps, technology, healthy. |
| 0:51.3 | Last year, McDonald's launched its first mobile app and Creata wants its toy to get |
| 0:57.6 | kids and their parents excited about that emerging technology. But the bigger task is this. The toy |
| 1:05.4 | should remind parents that happy meals can be part of a healthy, balanced lifestyle for kids. |
| 1:11.6 | For the past decade, McDonald's has suffered as Americans increasingly demand quality, |
| 1:16.6 | healthy food. |
| 1:17.6 | So the company's been trying to switch up their happy meals to address this. |
| 1:21.6 | In 2014, they added low-fat yogurt as an option for happy meal sides. |
| 1:26.6 | And now they want this new toy to make more people associate McDonald's with good eating, healthy eating. |
| 1:34.7 | One of the creator employees has an idea. |
| 1:38.4 | Hey, what if we made a wearable step counter? |
| 1:40.5 | You mean like a fit bit? |
| 1:41.8 | Yeah, like a colorful watch kids could wear. It would actually |
| 1:45.3 | count steps, encouraging kids to be more active. Everyone in the room nods. It's perfect. Fitbits are all |
| 1:54.4 | the rage in the 2010, so kids and parents will both be excited about it. And it combines everything |
| 2:00.4 | McDonald's wants to highlight, |
| 2:02.2 | a commitment to making children healthier and a move in a modern, more tech-based direction. |
... |
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