2016 Winners & Shortlists

BIG MAC WALK

BrandMCDONALD'S
Product/ServiceQUICK SERVICE RESTAURANT
EntrantLEO BURNETT DUBAI, UNITED ARAB EMIRATES
CategoryEvents & Experiential (incl. stunts and celebrity endorsement)
Entrant Company LEO BURNETT DUBAI, UNITED ARAB EMIRATES
Advertising Agency LEO BURNETT DUBAI, UNITED ARAB EMIRATES
Media Agency OMD Dubai, UNITED ARAB EMIRATES
Production Company BIG KAHUNA FILMS Dubai, UNITED ARAB EMIRATES

The Campaign

The Big Mac… it’s an icon that’s known and loved by millions around the world, but not here in the Middle East – a region that simply didn’t grow up with the burger. We needed to establish the iconic status of the Big Mac to a generation who had absolutely no emotional connection to it or the long history and legacy that made it the icon that it is. So we decided to create an iconic attitude for the Big Mac, one that this young generation could relate to and participate in. We launched a simple and fun movement that invited people to celebrate their simple everyday victories with an iconic celebratory walk - we called it a Big Mac Walk. We teamed up with Neymar Jr. - one of the most iconic footballers today - to create his unique Big Mac Walk in celebration of his own iconic little victory, and the movement caught on. We invited people to submit their Big Mac Walks online for a chance to meet Neymar Jr., or to visit our flagship stores where they could take a Big Mac Walk to enjoy a free Big Mac. Young people embraced the little victories in life that they hold so dearly… but now they enjoyed them with a Big Mac.

The Brief

We needed to establish the iconic status of the Big Mac to a generation who had absolutely no emotional connection to it or the long history and legacy that made it the icon that it is. We needed to create a new and iconic attitude for the Big Mac that this young generation could relate to and participate in; changing the perception of the sandwich from a dated and foreign one, to a modern and universal one that is a part of their everyday lives, interest and passions.

Execution

We decided to create an iconic attitude for the Big Mac, one that this young generation could relate to and participate in. We launched a simple and fun movement that invited people to celebrate their simple everyday victories with an iconic celebratory walk - we called it a Big Mac Walk. We launched our campaign on YouTube with an edit featuring different people celebrating their everyday victories with a variety of cool Big Mac Walks, inviting people to participate and submit their own Big Mac Walks. We then teamed up with Neymar Jr. - one of the most iconic footballers today - to create his unique Big Mac Walk in celebration of his own iconic little victory, and the movement caught on. We invited people to submit their Big Mac Walks online for a chance to meet Neymar Jr., or to visit our flagship stores where they could take a Big Mac Walk up to the counter to enjoy a free Big Mac.

The campaign is still ongoing so its effect on sales as well as consumer perceptions towards the Big Mac are very difficult to measure at this point. However, as of February 11, 2016, the films have a combined reach of 17.7 million, with 8.5 million combined views on Facebook and YouTube, with almost 100,000 comments and 12,000 shares, and they continue to grow. The success of the campaign on social media points towards a very positive reception by consumers. People went so far as to recreate the entire film in their video submissions, and a popular group in Egypt (Asa7be Sarcasm Society) even spoofed the film in the tense build up towards a local top-tier football fixture. Ultimately, he campaign made its way into the daily lives of the youth we were looking to connect with.

The Strategy

We needed to establish the iconic status of the Big Mac to a generation who had absolutely no emotional connection to it or the long history and legacy that made it the icon that it is. We needed to create a new and iconic attitude for the Big Mac that this young generation could relate to and participate in; changing the perception of the sandwich from a dated and foreign one, to a modern and universal one that is a part of their everyday lives, interest and passions.

Credits

Name Company Role
Bechara Mouzannar Leo Burnett Dubai Chief Creative Officer
Andre Nassar Leo Burnett Dubai Executive Creative Director
Michael Habre/Saadi AlKouatli Leo Burnett Dubai Creative Directors
Tariq Ayass/Makarand Patil Leo Burnett Dubai Creative Team
Jad Mouhawej/Rasha Alazem Leo Burnett Dubai Account Management
Leo Burnett Planning Department Leo Burnett Dubai Planner
Shereen Mostafa Leo Burnett Dubai Head of TV Production
Nathalie El Boustany/Nadya Tershina Leo Burnett Dubai Producer
Omar Hilal Leo Burnett Dubai Director
Joaquim Miquel Leo Burnett Dubai DOP
Ahmed Hafez Leo Burnett Dubai Editor
Eddy Rizk Big Kahuna Executive Producer
Chady El Khal Big Kahuna Producer
Serena Dubai Serena Dubai Post-Production
Trehmer Moscow/Zombie Studio Trehmer Moscow/Zombie Studio 3D Animation
The Garage/Hosni Ali The Garage/Hosni Ali Sound Design
Good Times Roll by GRiZ x Big Gigantic Good Times Roll by GRiZ x Big Gigantic Music
Leo Burnett Chicago/Chris Clark/Nick Keenan Leo Burnett Chicago Music Department
Hady El Haj Celebrity Management Celebrity Management