McBaguette
McDonald’s France
TBWA\Paris
Overview
It’s the season three premiere of the hit Netflix show “Emily in Paris”, Emily has to create the McBaguette campaign for her luxury agency. Her guilty pleasure becomes the main subject of the series for 30 minutes and fits perfectly with the usual script.
The Challenge
The McBaguette, an exclusive fast food creation by McDonald’s France, helps distinguish the regional menu from its American origins. How could the brand then distinguish its messaging from conventional menu item ads?
A brief came to TBWA\Paris: “’Emily in Paris‘ is looking for partner brands for its next season.”
This unlikely collaboration would place the Frenchiest of burgers in the heart of the Frenchiest of American TV shows.
The Solution
The sandwich fit naturally into the series as Emily’s dream subject, the intersection of French and American culture. Since “Emily in Paris” primarily focuses on fashion and runways, the episode played on the iconic “baguette” purse – an elongated bag carried under the arm, reminiscent of the French baguette. Guided by this, McDonald’s created the McBaguette baguette bag to talk about its exclusive partnership.
The idea also put a twist on the international McDonald’s platform “Famous Orders” by creating the famous order, not of an existing celebrity, but of a fictional character. The Famous Order of Emily in Paris: a McBaguette, a medium fries, a drink and two macaroons.
The “Emily in Paris” menu was available in restaurants for three weeks, promoted with animated, contextualized restaurant displays, an Instagram campaign and a tag for connected TVs which totaled 128 million views.
The Results
The collaboration with Netflix helped to reinforce McDonald’s position in pop culture and has had a direct impact on sales. McDonald’s traffic has increased, sales forecasts have doubled, and one in five McBaguettes was sold specifically from the “Emily in Paris” menu.
