Marketing 16th Edition by William Pride,Ferrell

Exercise 16

advocates raised concerns when students brought home report card jackets with a picture of Ronald McDonald on them. "It's a terribly troubling trend because it really, dearly links doing well in school with getting a Happy Meal," the head of the Campaign for a Commercial-Free Childhood told the New York Times.
Blogging about Beef
McDonald's has a strong presence on the Internet, with a corporate website. product and nutrition websites, and individual websites geared m each country when it does business. To generate grassroots word-of-mouth communications about food and service quality, it has enlisted six Mom's Quality Correspondents to go behind the scenes at headquarters, suppliers' facilities, and individual McDonald's stores. The moms are free to look around, ask questions, vieeotape what they see, and then blog about their experiences, including video snippets.
These bloggers can say whatever they like because. says a McDonald's marketing official, "if moms were out there speaking to their communities and online communities unedited, it would get us far more credibility than just posting an article or doing website copy" For example, after the moms traveled to a McDonald's beef supplier in Oklahoma City, one wrote on the blog, "Hey, moms across America-it is really 100% beef!" McDonald's also mainta ins a corporate social responsibility Hog where its managers post informal notes about Wales such as environmental programs, healthy lifestyles, and responsible purcbasicg. When consumers post com-ments in response to these blogs, the resulting dialogue helps McDouald's to better understand public sentiment surrounding such issues and to plan appropriate actions and communications.
Selling the Arch Card
Although McDonald's has sold gift certificates for many years, it now has a corporate sales division that targets businesses that want to give small incentives to employees or customers. The incentive program that McDonald's offers is its Arch Cord, a prepaid gift card issued in the amount of S5, 310, S25, or S50. Businesses can buy up to 25 Arch Cards through local McDonald's outlets. The corporate sales division handles bulk purchases and gives business customers a discount if they buy S10,000 worth of Arch Cards. After recipients spend the initial gift amount, they can pay to reload up to $110 on each card. The next time they visit a McDonald's restaurant, they'll be ready to grab and go with just a swipe of plastic."
1. What role do opinion leaders play in McDonald's marketing?
2 How is McDonald's using marketing to spark learning and positive attitudes toward its brand and offerings?
3: Why would McDonald's select businesses as a target market for its Arch Cards?
4. What environmental forces have created challenges for McDonald's in global markets? What forces have created opportunities in global markets?