Day 041 - 28 Oct 94 - Page 26
1 or other, which is the point of the advertisement. Is that
2 a regular feature of McDonald's advertising?
3 A. Yes, it is. Basically, there you saw two types of
4 advertising, one which was promotional which, as you
5 suggested, was offering something very particular and
6 usually for a very limited period of time, and the other
7 was much more to do with some of the general attributes of
8 McDonald's. For instance, the first one was Meals on
9 Wheels which was take-away, or the sort of general image of
10 McDonald's and the relationship.
11
12 Q. I wanted to ask you about that; that was going to be my
13 next question. One notices in the adult advertisements,
14 from time to time, some considerable use is made of
15 children. There were some schoolchildren in grey blazers;
16 there was another one with some children having a birthday
17 party; there was a grandmother with a small baby who rather
18 rudely refused to eat a hamburger. What is the purpose of
19 using children in that way in the adult advertisements?
20 A. Really, they are just the reflection of a typical day
21 and a typical week across McDonald's. They are the typical
22 cross-section of people that you would find in a McDonald's
23 restaurant.
24
25 Q. Can I take, for example, the one with the schoolchildren --
26 I forget which one it is called -- where the mother sees
27 her rather glum looking child off to his first day at
28 school, then they all come pouring out of the school, down
29 the steps, she meets him, gives him a big hug and takes him
30 off to McDonald's with a whole lot of other
31 enthusiastic-looking children; what are McDonald's trying
32 to put across with an advertisement of that kind?
33 A. Specifically, very much as a treat; when a child in
34 that case has had one of the big days in his life, the
35 first day at school, to treat the child afterwards to
36 somewhere that the mother knows that the child will enjoy.
37 It is reflecting that slice of life, if you like.
38
39 Q. One sees also from time to time in those advertisements --
40 I forget which one it came from -- a nuclear family, if you
41 like, sitting at a table eating food. What image is that
42 supposed to project, so far as your company is concerned?
43 A. That we are very much a family restaurant. We welcome
44 all elements of the family both together and individually.
45
46 Q. The third thing I wanted to ask you about was this: In
47 comparing the adult advertisements with the children's
48 advertisements, am I right that one notices in the
49 children's advertisements a relative absence of actual menu
50 items from the advertisement; is that right?
51 A. Yes, it is, yes.
52
53 Q. Can one generalise overall that that is a comparison which
54 can be made between children's and adult advertising by
55 McDonald's?
56 A. Generally, yes, it is.
57
58 Q. What is the reason for that?
59 A. In the area of advertising to children, we do not
60 really sell in a direct way. We do not, therefore, show
