Fast Food Marketing in Argentina - School of Journalism and Mass ...

Fast Food Marketing in
Argentina
An American student’s perspective
on McDonald’s in Latin America
Trinidy Martz
July 10, 2010

McDonald’s Did Its Research
“To market a product or service successfully to consumers in
any single market, a manufacturer must invest the time,
money, and sensitivity to discover, understand, and relate to
those consumers’ needs, attitudes, values, emotions, and
behavior.”
- John Philip Jones, The Realities of International Advertising

The Concept of Fast Food
Contradicts Argentine Culture
We learned that dining in Argentina is
traditionally an experience
Families tend to dine together, in part because of
the low individualism ranking in Argentina
Meals typically last up to a few hours and include
three or more courses
A Google search for “fast food in Argentina”
produces far fewer results than a similar search
for the United States
Traditional foods like empanadas are considered
“fast food” for a quick snack between meals
McDonald’s entered Argentina in 1986 and today
has approximately 187 locations in the country
Source: www.McDonalds.com

Compared to the United
States, Locations are Sparse
Buenos Aires – population of nearly 14MM
Approximately ten McDonald’s locations
In New York city alone, with a population of less than 9mm, there are more than
600 McDonald’s locations
Mendoza – population of almost 1.6M
Less than five McDonald’s locations
Buenos Aires
New York City
A snapshot from
Google maps
indicates the heavy
penetration of
McDonald’s in New
York City, with
each pink dot and
lettered bubble
representing a
location
Source: www.citypopulation.de/Argentina.html

McDonald’s Understands the
Demographic Differences
Buenos Aires has the largest number of Jews in Latin
America and is home to the only kosher McDonald's
outside of Israel in the world
The McDonald’s in Abasto Mall is
supervised by a Rabbi, does not serve
dairy and buys its medialunas from a
Kosher bakery
Store front greetings recognize
customer language diversity,
particularly in tourist areas
Source: Frommer’s, www.cyborlink.com, www.jewlicious.com

Even the Websites Reflect
Cultural Cues
McDonald’s website for Argentina was redesigned during the
World Cup, but remains promotionally-driven
June July
McDonald’s website for the U.S. does not reflect pop-culture
cues, instead focuses on food and treats
June July

Physical Structure is Unique
Too
Every McDonald’s I saw in Argentina had two levels and
many had outdoor patios, allowing for larger parties and
longer meal times
No location was stand-alone
Drive-thru is not an option
One location included “Ronald’s Gym Club”
With high uncertainty avoidance in Argentina, a good
approach for McDonald’s is to appeal to the appearancedriven
and health-conscious society with the inclusion of a
gym
A branded gym inside
McDonald’s – not something you
see in the United States

McCafé is More Prominent
Most locations had separate McCafé ordering stations and
seating areas, a nod to the British influence of coffee and
tea times in Argentina
McDonald’s in the United States has an opportunity to
steal share from Starbuck’s with this type of in-store
approach

The Food is Almost the Same
While the food tastes very similar (in my opinion), the menu in each country reflects
cultural differences. One consistency was the use of value menu bundling.
In Argentina, you can find different options including medialunas for breakfast, dulce de
leche ice cream flavors and even empanadas at some locations.

McDonald’s Localizes Flavors
in Argentina
One promotional burger honors the bicentennial celebration
The breakfast menu is limited in Argentina, with primary promotional
support placed on medialunas for the morning daypart
In addition to traditional cheeseburgers and the Big Mac, McDonald’s
also localizes burger choices with options like the Crocante Mexicano
Sorprendete

McDonald’s Sponsorship of the
World Cup was Evident
In-Store Watch Parties
Event marketing includes watch
party sponsorship and street teams
promoting sweepstakes entry
Employee
Game Day Uniforms
In-Store Promotional
Materials and
Sweepstakes

In the End, Marketing is Still
Marketing
A classic marketing technique for fast food
restaurants is to communicate value
messaging to consumers using mass
media and store-front promotional
materials. Once inside the restaurant,
often no promotional support can be
found for discount offers in the hope that
consumers will trade up.
This deal promoted on outdoor billboards was not
supported with promotional materials inside McDonald’s
Strategically placed promotional
materials are used to lure
consumers at the right point in
the purchase cycle. This instore
ad reminds consumers of
dessert upon leaving the
second level of the restaurant.