McDonald’s interestingly benefited from its website to communicate its values around community engagement and involvement, environmental and social responsibility, and to create online communities associated with the brand.
Knowing that the company’s most important principle is to support the communities in which it operates and to identify with them, McDonald's embraces the concept of corporate citizenship and corporate social responsibility. It additionally seeks to boost community engagement, mainly local ones, and to be environmentally responsible in relation to the processes associated with its products.”
For instance, McDonald’s explains on its website about its community activities and how it contributes to the society. It gives information about RMCC which “provides accommodation, fundraising, and special needs grants in support of children's causes.”
On its UK website’s football section, it gives details of how it is boosting grassroots football over the next 4 years by funding through partnerships with the leading UK football bodies.
Other information related to CSR include environmental messages; for example, "the welfare of our chickens is always a priority".
McDonald’s and Community Building
McDonald's believes that “virtual or online communities are one of the essential components of successful Web presence”. Therefore, the company focused its online community building and engagement on children. As a matter of fact, it established a Kids Zone on its UK website which provides details of its Happy Meals, online games, and paint box all written in an easy-to-read, colorful format.
Additionally, the corporate attempted at engaging people via different interactive strategies. One of these tactics involved campaigns that drive audience from one channel to another and enhance interaction with the brand. For example, McDonald’s launched an online extension to its new Big Mac television promotion. This campaign provided a real time community channel to the Big Mac television commercial characters,. They constructed it in a way that made it appear live as well as included weekly newsletters and interactive online games with many prizes.
This was crucial to engage customers and be able to collect information about them.
Source
Rowley, J. (2004). Online Branding: The Case of McDonald’s. British Food Journal, 106(3), 228-237. Retrieved from https://search-proquest-com.neptune.ndu.edu.lb:9443/docview/225158737?pq-origsite=summon
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