Note to McDonald's: Hi. And thanks for listening.
McDonald's today announced it's forming a Global Moms Panel to guide the company on how best to serve mothers and families, inside and outside of its restaurants worldwide.
Yes. Thank you for listening. In fact, McDonald's theory behind its panel is a big part of why Quick Serve Kids exists. We need to be talking about this stuff, you Giant Corporations and Us Moms. Granted, McD's beat me to the punch. They're rolling, and QSK is still breathing its first breaths. But they've got a lot more money than I do. And they're not caring fullt-time for a 23-month old. Anyway.
Further official QSK reactions to McDonald's news release (release in bold, QSK not):
"The newly-formed international panel is part of an ongoing commitment by McDonald’s to connect more closely with its customers and engage them in meaningful dialogue. “McDonald’s recognizes and appreciates the important role moms play in the well-being of their families,” said McDonald’s Global Chief Marketing Officer, Mary Dillon. “We intend to listen and learn from our Global Moms Panel with the goal of providing the best possible experience for families in our restaurants around the world. We want to become the best ally we can for moms and a true partner in the well-being of families everywhere.”
There are a lot of us out here hoping the company will really listen. Mary Dillon is new in that position, and bringing the increasingly monied and powerful moms+families market into the fold is a huge part of her job description. QSK will be watching to see how she follows through. The journalist in me realizes this announcement will get McDonald's lot of coverage in the media and, more importantly, the parenting magazines. Public relations scoooooooooooooooooorrrrrrrrre!
The McDonald’s Global Moms Panel will focus on such key topics as balanced, active lifestyle initiatives, restaurant communications and children’s well-being. The women bring diverse backgrounds, experiences and perspectives to the panel and represent six countries: Argentina, China, Germany, Italy, the United Kingdom and the United States.
Like the diversity. Very cool. Note what's missing in that list: advising on the actual nutritional make-up of the food. We at QSK applaud the emphasis on healthy, active lifestyles—we adhere to School of Moderation in All Things—but the fact is, given the opportunity, there are specific changes I'd like to see McDonald's make to its menus...changes that would better support that healthy lifestyle.
If the moms say, "I don't want my four-year-old to see ads pushing French fries," will McDonald's take its ads off of Nickelodeon? Or at least change the ads to make it seem cool and fun to order plain bugers, side salads, fruit, and milk and reserve the shakes and fries for treats?
Bottom line: McDonald's wields a ton of power. It is also a brand that is here to stay, meaning it can shape policy and culture throughout the lives of our kids and our grandchildren. Let's hope this the formation of this panel marks a genuine effort to improve our kids' lives—and make parents' jobs a little easier, too.