McDonald’s Brings Home The Bacon With Hollywood, Sports, Social Media Celebs
Thursday, February 7, 2019 at 09:40PM By Barry Janoff
February 7, 2019: Burger King has gotten a lot of post-Super Bowl LIII buzz — both pro and con — for its “Eat Like Andy” spot.
Less discussed, the 30-second spot, “Fry Show,” with Ken Jeong and J.B. Smoove touting McDonald’s just-launched bacon options for Cheesy Fries.
A full-fledged multi-media campaign loaded with sports media, online influencers and bacon broke out soon thereafter and is now underway on air and online.
McDonald’s is asking people to choose sides — Team Bacon vs. Team Classics — involving for a limited time such staples as Quarter Pounder Bacon and Big Mac Bacon.
Jeong and Smoove discussed for 30 seconds of Super Bowl LIII time (approximately $5.25 million to CBS) whether bacon was a good add-on, with Jeong on the side of bacon as the star and Smooth offering, “It’s the fries' show — McDonald’s World Famous Fries.”
Now also in the mix: Stephen A. Smith and Jalen Rose from ESPN and singer Amber Liu and social media presence Mike Bow.
The whole process launched with Bacon Hour Jan. 29 offering free bacon on the side with any menu item for a full hour at participating restaurants.
Now, McDonald’s is saying, “Enjoy the taste of crispy, applewood smoked bacon on classic McDonald’s menu items. For a limited time, try Quarter Pounder with Cheese Bacon, Cheesy Bacon Fries and Big Mac Bacon.”
Fueling the fire is a question that McDonald’s had to ask but really has no answer: Bacon or Classic?
“Is bacon the best thing to happen to our Classics? Or are McDonald’s Classics the best thing to happen to bacon? Try for yourself — deciding is delicious,” asking people whether they are Team Bacon or Team Classic and share their opinions on Twitter and other social media platforms.
“Crispy bacon is the best thing that ever happened to the Big Mac,” former NBA player and now ESPN hoops analyst Rose says in “Pinnacle.”
“Are you insane,” replies Stephen A. from ESPN's First Take and a lead ESPN NBA analyst. “The Big Mac is the pinnacle of taste-bud perfection.”
Jeong and Smoove return to foster the debate in “Classics vs. Bacon.”
Eating Bic Macs while watching basketball on TV, they break out the sports cliches.
"Bacon brings a whole new dimension to the game," say Jeong.
"Bacon does not win championships," counters Smoove. "Special sauce wins championships!"
Liu squares off against Bow in their “Debate” spot, which turns into a dance-off with no resolution.
Also in the mix, a standalone spot, “Voice Assistant,” in which a guy debates his voice assistant over whether crispy applewood smoked bacon is the best thing to happen to McDonald’s Classic Big Mac, or if it’s the other way around.
Ultimately the voice assistant turns off the lights, asking “Without the Big Mac, would bacon even exist?”
The existential debate continues.
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