McDonald’s China replaces Mascot with Digital Idol “Happy Sister”
【Posted on: 2021 January】
McDonald’s recently launched a new two-dimensional image: Happy Sister. The image of Happy Sister is closer to the style of the popular two-dimensional idols on the Internet, and through a voting process of the nickname, it hopes to gain the attention of the younger generation.
Anyone can interact with Happy Sister on their mini program. It is prominently placed on the entrance to “Happy Little Members” – a section dedicated to providing services for children, including preparing birthday parties, displaying current toys, and displaying McDonald’s children-related activities. Therefore, it is not difficult to see that the image of Happy Sister is mainly aimed at younger audiences, and the focus is to provide companionship and happiness.
Key menu items:
Dancing function – the applet provides interaction between the user and virtual player, performing dance simulation, uploading of scores after recording, and enabling easy sharing. This encourages users to share and immediately promote the image of Happy Sister.
Story function – In the story menu, McDonald’s currently provides two popular science stories, which are presented in the form of audiobooks. The stories are used to attract children and the health science popularization caters to the needs of parents. This gradually blurs the common perception of McDonald’s image equating to fast food and unhealthy eating. In addition to audiobooks, interactive content is also added. Users are able to create their own stories in the menu, save and upload them.
Changing demographics
When it first entered the Chinese market, McDonald’s was sought after by young consumers. With changes in economic levels and concepts, McDonald’s has gradually become a fast food choice for adults, while its status among young consumers and even children has declined. , It’s not difficult to see that the image of Happy Sister was launched to capture the large and potential consumer group of young consumers. Unlike the previous cartoon image design combined with meals, this new brand image works as a physical restaurant. The virtual image of personnel emphasizes companionship and service, which can better cater to the needs of the younger generation.
Starting with young consumers and infiltrating the brand image into the young people’s culture is not only to stimulate more current consumption but also to cultivate the main consumer group in the future to become the “feelings” of a generation.
Long term business value
If McDonald’s can successfully make Happy Sister as a brand image born this time as a self-designed virtual image, it can not only save the high cost of inviting spokespersons but also can use this virtual image to create more additional income. Taking Luo Tianyi as an example, the commercial value created by the two-dimensional idols is very impressive, but whether the business model of virtual idols can be successfully replicated remains a question to be seen.
But from the long-term development perspective, the image of McDonald’s Happy Sister is undoubtedly an attempt by the brand based on the market to maintain its brand vitality through innovation. Whether this marketing method can successfully establish a new brand image and drive new consumption depends on the follow-up and long-term operation.
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