Day 042 - 31 Oct 94 - Page 56
1 associated with Disney, I would doubt. It is much more to
2 do with the premiums in this case, the toys that we were
3 selling.
4
5 Q. Is it mostly older children that are going to see the Lion
6 King?
7 A. I think if Disney were here, I think he would tell you
8 it would be a vast cross section between young children and
9 adults. It is very much a family film.
10
11 Q. So a lot of kids might enjoy the film and associate
12 McDonald's with it and come in even if they did not buy the
13 toys because, obviously, older kids do not buy the toys?
14 A. I mean, it is possible they could visit McDonald's on
15 that basis, and then when they get there, decide not to buy
16 the meal, yes, that is possible.
17
18 Q. Let me put an obvious question: To me, it is blindingly
19 obvious that McDonald's achieves an enormous amount of
20 publicity through associations and mutual agreements which
21 they do not actually pay for. Obviously, you do pay for
22 certain things and to get something off the ground you pay
23 a down payment. But if you had to spend that amount of
24 money on actual advertisements on television, it would cost
25 you a phenomenal amount.
26
27 So, is that one of the aims of the promotional department
28 to get promoted without actually having to spend an
29 equivalent amount of money that you would have to do if you
30 actually just put ads on the television screen?
31 A. From a business perspective, obviously, one is trying
32 to maximise the deal that you can get with someone. If
33 Disney had agreed to produce the Lion King simply so that
34 we could sell more Happy Meals, then I am sure we would
35 have been grateful for that, but we are actually riding on
36 the back of Disney's popularity for the Lion King. We come
37 to a business agreement with them.
38
39 MS. STEEL: You have talked about the experience in-store is
40 important in that if the experience in store does not live
41 up to the ad, then people will not come back; that is
42 right, yes?
43 A. Yes.
44
45 Q. Is that the function of the real life Ronald?
46 A. No, it is in terms of the broad experience. All
47 advertising can do is encourage people to come into the
48 restaurant. If then something goes wrong, if we fail them
49 in some way in the restaurants, the children do not enjoy
50 it, the parents do not enjoy it -- the food is cold or if
51 it is bad value for money; there can be a whole host of
52 things that may go wrong -- then we are letting down that
53 customer.
54
55 We have given them a promise and we have let them down,
56 which is why I said on Friday how important it is that it
57 is what happens in the restaurant that is the key to having
58 people coming back, and really where our advertising
59 genuinely takes place in the restaurant, and that is the
60 experience.
