You probably remember McDonald's famous, Grand Clio-winning sundial billboard, created by Leo Burnett almost a decade ago, which used the sun's shadows to suggest what you should be eating and drinking at certain times.

Now, here's a kind of sequel—a McDonald's billboard from Canada that's likewise in harmony with the movements of the sun. It's a digital billboard for the Egg McMuffin, which rises into view just like the sun in the morning.



Cossette in Vancouver created the board, and tells us it started out as an entry in an out-of-home contest called Carte Blanche. (Creatives propose ideas for real clients; the winning team gets a trip to Cannes, and the winning client gets $50,000 worth of free media space in its city.) The Cossette/McDonald's team won the contest, and then executed the ad for real.

"The digital board was synced to sunrise times over the course of the buy, with each frame lined up as best as we could get it," a Cossette rep tells us.

A bright idea, indeed.



CREDITS
Client: McDonald's
Agency: Cossette, Vancouver, Canada
Creative Director: Michael Milardo
Art Director: Cameron McNab
Copywriter: Kate Roland
Director of Brand Services: Anne Buch
Brand Supervisors: Melissa Guillergan, Karen Babiak
Director of Production: April Haffenden
Production Supervisor: Sue Barteluk

In recent years, at the far end of the channel lineup, a slew of upstart broadcast diginets, or subchannels, quietly started popping up thanks to changes in FCC regulations that let TV stations broadcast multiple channels. And while much of their programming—news, weather and lifestyle content characterized by low production values—would hardly be considered Emmy-worthy, some are stealing a page from cable networks like USA and TBS in their early days by leaning on reruns of classic TV shows.

MeTV, a channel that airs The Honeymooners, has been cleared in 94 percent of the U.S., according to Neal Sabin, vice chairman of parent Weigel Broadcasting Co. And Tribune Media's Antenna TV, a diginet whose schedule is filled with episodes of series like Leave It to Beaver, has cleared the top 20 markets and 75 percent of the country.

Even though some of these old shows predate the Cuban Missile Crisis, they are helping the diginets gain traction with advertisers in addition to market share. "It's been a good business since day one," said Steve Farber, Tribune's svp of operations. The channel is already profitable. "You don't need to be at 75 percent to start making money," Farber said.

It's not all about reruns. One diginet, the African American-targeted Bounce Media's Bounce TV, airs some original shows, including the upcoming Mann & Wife, starring two Tyler Perry regulars, David and Tamela Mann. 

Bounce TV looks to original programming like Mann & Wife.

Currently, there are more than 200 diginets, which could grow to 300 in the next five years, according to Michael Kokernak, president of media consultancy Across Platforms. New entries this year include Katz Broadcasting's comedy channel Laff, which debuts in April, and Buzzr from FremantleMedia North America and Debmar-Mercury, which will feature game shows and launch this summer.

Fewer than 15 diginets have significant market share. Most attract direct response on a national level, and a combination of spot and direct response locally. (Only two channels—MeTV and Bounce TV—are tracked by Nielsen.) The bigger players, unsurprisingly, have been best able to break through with big brands. Bounce has attracted some 30 major advertisers, including Toyota, McDonald's and PepsiCo.

As for MeTV, it will hit between 20 and 30 percent national spot this year, said Sabin. Among those placing spots on MeTV is Horizon Media, including ads from Geico, said David Campanelli, the agency's svp, director of national TV. "We certainly don't compare MeTV to ABC, NBC or CBS, but we would compare it to a midsized cable network," Campanelli said.

According to Weigel's analysis of Nielsen 2+ numbers from last December, MeTV ranked seventh among cable networks between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. weekdays. It edged up to No. 4 among cable channels in adults 35-64 in the same period. However, results are not as spectacular in the evening or with younger demos.

The diginet model can be a winner for local broadcasters. In many cases, "the stations aren't paying anything for the programming, and all they're doing is sharing the sales revenue," explained Mark Fratrik, svp, chief economist at the research firm BIA/Kelsey.

As for the genre's long-term prospects, "a lot of it depends on the content and if it can generate a rating," said Leo MacCourtney, president and CEO of ad rep firm Katz Television Group. "If it can, then it becomes more of a general market sell."

And there are other challenges. "It certainly feels like available spectrum is going to be harder to find in the major markets like New York or L.A.," said Jonathan Katz, founder of Katz Broadcasting and COO of Bounce TV. "But over time, that may change as broadcasters adapt certain technical standards that allow for even more robust use of their spectrum."

For Lego's marketing team, everything is, well, awesome today when it comes to social buzz garnered from last night's Oscars. 

According to Amobee's Brand Intelligence division, the toy brand received 47,290 mentions on Twitter during ABC's telecast of the awards gala, with 45 percent registering as positive—in terms of consumer sentiment—and only 14 percent negative.

While The Lego Movie was notably snubbed by the Academy when Best Animated Picture nominees were announced, the movie's popular soundtrack was up for Best Original Song (though it lost to Selma's "Glory"). The toy marketer got a big boost online when "Everything Is Awesome" was performed early in the program by The Lonely Island alongside artists Tegan and Sara, with Questlove on drums.

Lego artist Nathan Sawaya also helped boost the brand's visibility by creating Lego Oscars that were given out during the song performance to several stars, including an incredibly excited Oprah Winfrey:

I loved @Oprah's face with my #LEGO Oscar! #Oscarspic.twitter.com/IdU4dnAHA7

— Nathan Sawaya (@NathanSawaya) February 23, 2015

.@Oprah just hanging out with one of my sculptures, no big deal. #LEGO#Oscarspic.twitter.com/0BYsOIbyQP

— Nathan Sawaya (@NathanSawaya) February 23, 2015

Another brand winner at the Oscars telecast was Dove, whose #SpeakBeautiful TV spot generated 29,250 mentions—91 percent of which were positive, per Amobee.

Both Lego and Dove trended nationally on Twitter while stealing a little bits and pieces of the spotlight from the evening's marquee show biz stars, particularly standout musical performer Lady Gaga (577,143 social mentions, 38 percent positive), Oscars host Neil Patrick Harris (219,375 social mentions, 34 percent positive) and Patricia Arquette (168,930 social mentions, 48 percent positive). Arquette made her mark on the show with a statement about equal pay for women after winning the Best Actress in a Supporting Role award. 

And here were the three best-performing consumer brands after Lego and Dove during the 87th Academy Awards, according to Amobee. The Foster, Calif.-based tech vendor said most of its numbers were pulled from Twitter, with a smattering of stats coming from Facebook and YouTube.

• Coke: ­ 12,600 social mentions, 28 percent positive, 14 percent negative
• Samsung: ­ 11,502 social mentions, 23 percent positive, 9 percent negative
• McDonalds: ­ 6,075 social mentions, 17 percent positive, 21 percent negative

Lastly, Samsung once again had a selfie moment—this year with comedic actor Jack Black for a few  seconds rather than 2014 host Ellen Degeneres. For anyone watching on a flat screen TV, the smartphone's logo was pretty easy to see, and the brand seemed to enjoy strong social chatter for the second consecutive year.
 

Can a brand help improve a consumer's state of mind or even dare to make them happier? That's what marketing for brands like Coca-Cola, McDonald's and Dove is attempting in 2015. These big brand marketers are using various campaigns to make the world a kinder, happier place—whether that's combating hate online or making consumers smile with a new love-inspired currency. Though the brands' motives aren't entirely altruistic, the overall happiness goal will help position these brands for better engagement with the much sought-after millennial segment.

According to a recent study by ZenithOptimedia, The Pursuit of Happiness, brands that can help millennials achieve happiness stand the best chance of securing long-lasting and profitable relationships with that consumer group. 

A recent study finds that brands that make millennials happier stand the best chance of a profitable, long-lasting relationship with them. Illustration: Sam Island

"By understanding how millennials find fulfillment in their lives, brands can play a meaningful role to support and enhance their pursuit of happiness," said Linda Tan, strategic insights director for ZenithOptimedia Worldwide.

With that in mind, these brands, which have used myriad positive campaigns for decades, have amplified and personalized that type of messaging. McDonald's used the Super Bowl to kick off a new in-store campaign, Pay With Lovin', where randomly selected consumers would be able to use emotional connection as a currency. The campaign is part of the brand's new push to lean into the love aspect of its "I'm Lovin' It" brand slogan. The in-store campaign lasted two weeks, served over a million people and boosted the brand's perception online from roughly 30 percent positive or neutral brand perception in 2014 to 85 percent positive or neutral, according to McDonald's.

"When you focus on the idea [of happiness], you're a better brand," said McDonald's CMO Deborah Wahl. "It can completely change the way that a brand engages with its customers, and that's why we feel so strongly about [this trend] ... it can help drive the right sort of purpose-driven behavior."

Dove and Coca-Cola took their recent happiness-oriented campaigns to Twitter using targeted campaigns to turn online hate into something positive. With branded hashtags #SpeakBeautiful (Dove) and #MakeItHappy (Coke), the brands attempted to use marketing to make the Internet a happier, friendlier place. 

Coke bravely took on online haters with its upbeat #MakeItHappy push. Gawker pounced on it anyway.

With #SpeakBeautiful, which will continue throughout the year, Dove hopes to foster positive self-esteem for women and girls.

"Twitter allows us to send one-on-one responses to women and girls to inspire them to help change the way we talk about beauty on social media," said Jennifer Bremner, director of marketing for Dove. "It only takes one tweet to ignite a positive trend online."

For Coke, #MakeItHappy used Ascii art—which generates images out of lines of text—to target different hateful tweets and turn those words into cheery imagery. According to Coke, its campaign received 95 percent positive and neutral social responses. 

Dove continued its positive focus on women with its #SpeakBeautiful branded hashtag.

ZenithOptimedia's study also found marketers that give millennials a clear understanding of what their brand stands for and tap into that demo's love of good experiences by making their consumer journey enjoyable are well on their way to supporting millennials in their pursuit of happiness.

"If happiness is a core brand attribute or a benefit that is obviously associated with a brand, that's an area they can play in [with their marketing campaigns]," said Stuart Sproule, president of Landor North America. "But my concern [with this trend] is that brands will try to leverage happiness in a hollow way. With millennials there can quickly be a degree of cynicism that will see right through a transparent attempt to suggest that using a brand or experiencing a brand will lead to happiness because it probably doesn't."

Coke experienced this cynicism in early February when writers from Gawker pranked the brand's #MakeItHappy campaign. By taking advantage of the campaign's automated function, Gawker was able to get Coke's Twitter account to inadvertently tweet lines from Adolf Hitler's Mein Kampf, essentially having the soft drink maker send out the very type of hate it was looking to combat.

While Coke ended its Twitter campaign, the prank didn't make it reconsider its brand positioning. During the Oscars, Coke debuted a new spot which showcases its happiness spirit and, according to a spokeswoman, "Happiness will remain at the forefront [of Coke's marketing] in 2015."

"You can't please 100 percent of people all the time," said Wahl. "[Gawker's prank] just shows there's a lot more work to be done and leadership brands need to keep pushing. "

Here's everything you need to know about the last 24 hours in advertising, in case you blinked.

Buzzing on Adweek:

Brands spread messages of love in 2015
This seems to be the year of love, as brands including Dove and McDonald's create campaigns focused on the idea of spreading good vibes. (Adweek)

Why everyone suddenly wants a Canada Goose coat
The $600 Canada Goose coat has become more of a hot commodity, especially after Kate Upton donned one on the cover of Sport's Illustrated's 2013 Swimsuit Issue. (Adweek)

This Ad Council PSA will give you the chills
For the "Love Has No Labels" campaign, the Ad Council and R/GA put together a three-minute PSA that delivers a powerful message about personal biases and diversity. (Adweek)

Mentos' refreshing new ad
BBH London's spot for Mentos NOWMints takes a humorous approach to the typical lovey-dovey breath mint ads. (Adweek)

Tinder's new and improved app
Tinder released an updated version of its dating app, which puts a limit on the number of swipes. You can only get more if you pay $9.99, if you're under 28, or $19.99 if you're older. (Adweek)

Always releases 'Like a Girl' sequel
P&G and Always followed up on the viral "Like a Girl" campaign with a new spot focused on young women and girls showing how they've changed the idea of what it means to do something like a girl. (Adweek)

Around the Web:

Battling for a top ad spot with Alibaba
Ad spots on Alibaba's marketplaces Taobao and Tmall can be costly for advertisers looking to bid the highest amount for top ad spots online. (The Wall Street Journal)

4A's questions Nielsen practices
The American Association of Advertising Agencies released a white paper that questions Nielsen for neglecting the paper diary method, which it says is key for local TV markets. (Media Post)

Carrie Underwood could put some pressure on Adidas
Carrie Underwood's exclusive line is coming to Dick's Sporting Goods, and Adidas may lose out in the deal. Dick's will pull some Adidas stock to make room for Underwood's line. (Fortune)

New members for the Marketing Hall of Fame
The American Marketing Association named its 2015 inductees for the Marketing Hall of Fame, which includes Ogilvy & Mather's Shelly Lazarus. (Marketing Hall of Fame)

Robert Downey Jr. for HTC
Actor Robert Downey Jr. not only narrates a new campaign for HTC, but he also wrote the script for the ad, which debuts the One M9 smartphone. (Fast Company)

Michael Roth on Interpublic's acquisition strategy
Interpublic CEO Michael Roth said he only puts aside $150 million to $200 million each year for mergers and acquisitions because it's all he thinks the company needs. (The Wall Street Journal)

Industry Shake-Ups: 

New head of the Americas for BBDO
BBDO named Chris Thomas as the new head of the Americas, after he worked around the world, most recently as the agency's CEO of Asia, the Middle East and Africa. (Adweek)

Doner expands in L.A. with new hires
Doner announced two new executives hires, Zihla Salinas from RAPP and Jason Gaboriau from CP+B, as managing director and ECD, respectively. (Agency Spy)

In its ongoing bid to win over millennials, McDonald's is making its first official debut at this year's South by Southwest Interactive. The fast food giant's activations have all the makings of a traditional festival sponsor—a food truck, an interactive lounge and a party—but if the brand's previous attempts attempts are any indication, McDonald's is in for a challenge.

To make up for slumping sales the past year, McDonald's has tested mobile payments and introduced multiple new advertising campaigns meant to refresh its image, particularly with younger diners. Those efforts have gotten mixed reviews, so it's unclear how this week's festival activations will fare with SXSW, which tends to draw in a lot of millennials.

"Our presence at SXSW will highlight our commitment to digital innovation and enhance the onsite experience for attendees," said Becca Hary, a rep for McDonald's. "McDonald's has never been involved with SXSW in an official capacity, making this an even more exciting time for our brand."

A food truck set up on the corner of 4th and Red River streets in downtown Austin will have a charging area (dubbed Fry-Fi stations), street performances and live music. The truck will serve breakfast and lunch—including French fries and Shamrock Shakes on St. Patrick's Day, followed by all-day breakfast on March 18 for those who had a bit too much fun the night before.

The burger slinger will also sponsor a lounge at the conference, which is equipped with Wi-Fi, charging stations and TVs that stream coverage from panels. As Quartz reports, McDonald's will also host three pitch sessions in the lounge where startups will come up with new restaurant, delivery and digital ideas.

Then on Saturday night, McDonald's is hosting a private party with cocktails (an email invitation promises maple-bacon-bourbon Old Fashioneds) and performances from DJ Slaptop and Meg Mac.

Still, McDonald's has an uphill battle when it comes to standing out at Texas' biggest arts and entertainment festival.

Last week, the brand came under fire when indie band Ex Cops posted on Facebook that the brand asked them to play at the festival for free. In lieu of money, the band was promised to "be featured on screens throughout the event" and possibly recognized on McDonald's social media accounts.

This year's SXSW Music event is scheduled to bring in 2,200 regional, national and international acts. So does McDonald's understand the size and scale of its SXSW involvement?

Ex Cops singer Amalie Bruun summed it up by telling Rolling Stone last week, "If we're not going to get paid for our live shows, what are we going to get paid for?"

We've reached peak brand inanity on Twitter, and it seems to have affected—or infected—almost every marketer trying to capitalize on the top trending hashtag "five-word deal breakers."

The social media elites at some of the nation's biggest brands are either out of ideas or just phoning it in today, because most of them are using the same joke to join the conversation. The common theme: if someone either hates or hogs all of a certain product, that's a dealbreaker. The hashtag started trending because of last night's @Midnight show, hosted by hero comic nerd Chris Hardwick.

The brand contribution is almost sad, because sometimes Twitter is an inspiring place, including marketing messages. Not today.

Not only are brands like Skittles and Chick-fil-A using the same joke, but it's also been done before with similar trending topics.

Even Señor Grandes Fresh Mexican Grill used the gag nearly two months ago when "five ways to ruin a date" trended. Its contribution was just what you'd expect: "I don't like Mexican food #5waystoruinadate." It wasn't funny then, and it's still not funny now. Not when Papa John's says it. Not when Pizza Hut says it. Not when Reese's says it. Not when Bass Pro Shops says it.

The joke was recycled when "good advice in four words" started trending today, too.

Some brands have found ways to jump into these trends without coming off hamfisted. State Farm, for instance, and its spokescharacter Jake, known for wearing khakis and a red polo, tweeted this:

#5WordDealBreakers We do not sell khakis. (Uhhhhh....Buh-bye then.)

— Jake from State Farm (@JakeStateFarm) March 11, 2015

Look for yourself and laugh—or don't—at the repetition among so many other tweets today:

I ate both of them #5WordDealBreakers

— REESE'S® (@ReesesPBCups) March 11, 2015

I took the last slice. #5WordDealBreakerspic.twitter.com/KEy6as2CxI

— Papa John's Pizza (@PapaJohns) March 11, 2015

"I think fishing is boring" #5WordDealBreakers

— Bass Pro Shops (@Bass_Pro_Shops) March 11, 2015

Let's just eat in tonight. #5WordDealBreakers

— Popeyes Chicken (@PopeyesChicken) March 11, 2015

I ate the last Nugget. #5WordDealBreakers

— Chick-fil-A, Inc. (@ChickfilA) March 11, 2015

"Skittles are okay, I guess." #5WordDealBreakers

— Skittles (@Skittles) March 11, 2015

I ate your fries, soz. #5WordDealBreakers

— McDonald's S. Africa (@McDonalds_SA) March 11, 2015

I actually prefer eating @marmite. #5WordDealBreakers@midnight

— Vegemite (@Vegemite) March 11, 2015

Go here right now. #GoodAdviceIn4Wordspic.twitter.com/xwpNXd46fE

— Arizona Iced Tea (@DrinkAriZona) March 11, 2015

Less than a week after members of the indie rock band Ex Cops mocked McDonald's on Facebook for asking them to play for free, the Golden Arches has thought better of it.

A McDonald's rep emailed the following statement to Adweek: "SXSW started as a conference and festival for the music industry, related press and up-and-coming musicians bringing the community together to showcase their talents. We are excited to expand our support of music at our SXSW activation where the lineup features a great assortment of more than 20 bands, honoring the spirit of the festival. To further support these artists, all bands performing at our showcase will be compensated."

How much cash they'll be offered is unclear. The Ex Cops have already declared they're not interested in whatever the new pitch is; though a tweet from the band today shows it is happy to have changed the fast-food chain's mind.

We are thrilled that our letter made a difference. Thank YOU for helping us. Artists should be paid for their work. pic.twitter.com/KumE3YQMwr

— Ξx Cops (@ExCops) March 11, 2015

Meanwhile, McDonald's is super sizing its South by Southwest marketing this year, including a food truck, an interactive lounge and a party.

Whether it can fit in with the cool kids after the bad Ex Cops publicity will be worth watching. It could be an uphill battle in social media.

Here is Burger King's response to the brouhaha in a Promoted Tweet.

Guy asks for extra flame grilled Whopper "Wait, do you guys need more fire?" *Pulls out mixtape*

— Burger King (@BurgerKing) March 9, 2015

In 1940, Richard and Maurice McDonald started a BBQ joint in San Bernardino, Calif. It took eight years for the rookie restaurant to develop its brand and switch focus exclusively to burgers and French fries, solidifying itself as the greasy hamburger connoisseur we think of today.

In 1955, McDonald's franchises were introduced when businessman Ray Kroc came into the picture, opening the first location in Des Plaines, Ill. Since then, the fast-food giant, thanks in part to its iconic Big Mac, has become synonymous with America and consumerism. With more than 35,000 outlets around the world, McDonald's serves almost 70 million customers a day, lending credence to its "billions and billions served" billboard tagline.

The fast-food mainstay has come a long way since 1940, and just might be more American than apple pie. Through myriad sponsorships like Nascar, the National Football League, Olympics and others, McDonald's has proven its name and message can be translated to a range of audiences. Need more proof? Both Woody Allen and LeBron James have been spokespeople for the burger chain.

Now, McDonald's, and every other brand on earth, has its sights set firmly on millenials. And there may be no better way to reach them than infiltrating their world, which is exactly what McDonald's hopes to do as South by Southwest Interactive's sponsor. This is the first time McDonald's has shown up in Austin for the event, and it's hanging its hopes on quirky activations, healthier menus and more–hoping beyond hope that the young tech set will want to sit at its table in the cafeteria. They didn't get off to the best start, but anything is possible.

Much has already been made about McDonald's sponsorship of this week's South by Southwest Interactive. And regardless of whether you think the brand should be here, there's little doubt that the festival attracts a slew of startups that McDonald's wants to work with to revamp its image.

To put that concept in motion, McDonald's hosted three Shark Tank-styled sessions on Friday when startups pitched their best digital marketing ideas to a panel with execs from the fast-food corporation, as well as Coca-Cola and StoryTech. The aspiring entrepreneurs were tasked with reimagining one part of McDonald's digital business—either content, the restaurant experience or delivery/transportation.

The winner of today's competition (see below for which startup prevailed) gets a trip to brainstorm with McDonald's at its Oak Brook, Ill., headquarters.

Whether or not any of these ideas actually pan out for McDonald's isn't clear, but based on the packed crowd from the day's first session, the burger slinger certainly has piqued folks' interest.

Here is a rundown of what the four startups from the restaurant experience panel showcased today.

Lisnr
Lisnr's beacon-based technology plugs into apps so marketers can activate based on a song or another audible noise.

For example, McDonald's app could pick up on music and sound playing in the background as someone is standing in the store. It's a similar concept to Shazam, but uses beacons to power the experience.

Lisnr's already been employed by Mondelez and Budweiser.

Bud used the technology during its Made in America music festival this summer to deliver coupons. According to Lisnr CEO Rodney Williams, the app sent out 20 to 30 location-based daily messages per user during the festival. Roughly 35,000 people downloaded the app, and 29,000 opted in to receive messages.

Williams said that he wants McDonald's to utilize his company's technology so that the brand can recognize in-store patrons. For example, imagine if an employee knew someone's name or normal/typical order as soon as they walked into a store.

Novalia
The Cambridge, England-based startup adds interactive and digital components to print.

Novalia's owner Kate Stone demonstrated her technology on a poster of a drum during her pitch. Touching different sections of the poster triggered an audio clip of a drumbeat to play.

Beer marketer Beck's has already tried out the tech. For McDonald's, Jones played off of the brand's "I'm Lovin' It" slogan with a concept for a poster that lights up a heart when people touch it.

And while the bulk of discussion at the event was about mobile, Novalia's Stone pointed out that print is still more widespread than digital advertising. "[Print] is more pervasive than smartphones," she said. 

The concept of activating print media is probably appealing to a brand like McDonald's, which still pours money into traditional advertising.

Enplug
Enplug powers digital displays and connected apps.The company's software plugs into social media and apps to pull up real-time feeds of user-generated content that can appear via digital displays and TV.

Granted, user-generated content may have a reverse effect for McDonald's based on its social media fails over the years.

One of the app's other interesting use cases is that it lets restaurants manage wait lists. While McDonald's obviously isn't a sit-down joint, the tech could also potentially be used to handle things like mobile ordering.

Snowshoe
Snowshoe makes 3D-printed pieces of plastic that works with smartphones to pull up digital content.

Unlike most mobile technology out there that does the same thing (like NFC or QR codes), people don't need an app to use it because sensors are built into the plastic that all phones recognize.

Cameron Houser, vp of business development and product at Snowshoe, pitched the concept of putting kiosks with the 3D-printed chip into stores. Her idea was to take Happy Meal toys digital with Web content and games by tapping them against her company's technology. Houser also showed off a couple of mock-ups with sweepstakes, promotions and coupons.

Anyone who's been following McDonald's digital marketing over the past year knows that the chain is serious about mobile payments and this sensors-like stuff. The problem with other technology, though, is that it doesn't work with every phone.

Since Snowshoe's technology leapfrogs that problem, it is obviously an appealing proposition for McDonald's, which is likely why Snowshoe won today's competition.

"We dovetail nicely with so much that will probably be the restaurant of 2050 where people just don't love that feeling of 'where's my app?'" Houser explained.

And that's exactly what the Golden Arches wanted to hear. 

Food trucks are everywhere in Austin. And now, there's a new kid in town.

That new kid is McDonald's, the fast-food juggernaut and 2015 South by Southwest sponsor. As if people couldn't get any more cynical about South by becoming one giant playground for brands, the Golden Arches has settled right smack dab in the middle of it all with its own food truck—which is actually more of a food big rig, as this thing dwarfs any food truck you've ever seen.

We went to the McDonald's activation, just steps from the convention center, and found out what this thing was all about. Proving everything is indeed bigger in Texas, the sizable footprint takes up the corner of 4th and Red River Streets in downtown Austin.

We asked patrons—some local, some from out of town, even some international folks—about their experience. Take a look at the video above. 

But before it opened on Sunday, we asked the local food trucks—some of whom had several vehicles in different locations—what they thought of the idea, and how it could impact local business and culture. Reactions were mixed, but it's safe to say many folks were surprised, at least, by the news. 

One food truck operator sounded off: "McDonald's benefits no one, at all—in any way. It's really shitty food. McDonald's is crippling in every sense, and to see them trying to get in on something that is completely counter to what they are is just kind of gross."

Hear what others thought in the video above.

Check out more of Adweek's SXSW coverage here. 

Video is a top priority for some of the biggest brands, who want to get the most out of posts and ads on social networking sites. So on Monday, when Instagram released tips on how to create the most sharable video, marketers were prone to listen.

Since launching video and new video features such as ads and fast-motion Hyperlapse over the past year, major advertisers have been experimenting with the format. Banana Republic was among the first to put a sponsored video—of a designer sketching an outfit—on the Instagram app, which counts more than 300 million users. 

"We are really pleased with the result from our ads on Instagram. It's an exciting way to have an active dialog with customers—both existing customers and new ones who start following the brand—all sharing great feedback," Aimee Lapic, Banana Republic's svp/gm of customer experience, said in an emailed statement. "Instagram offers a dynamic way for Banana Republic to share our evolving style and aesthetic in a creative way that's unique to this channel."

Instagram is still an evolving platform, and for now, it's mostly a vehicle for brand awareness rather than direct sales. It also lacks the targeted sophistication of Facebook, but its user base is surging. And brands like the fact that whatever they post there shows up in followers' feeds, unlike on Facebook, where an algorithm determines who sees what.

Video is of growing importance on Instagram, too. The Gap, which owns Banana Republic, recently launched a Web series on the platform ahead of its spring line. That's just one example of the expansion of original content.

And this week, Instagram shared video tips for brands. Here are four ways to make the most of the 15-second, autoplay, looping format:

1. Think silent

Don't forget that sound does not autoplay, so think like Charlie Chaplin and create action that's not necessarily dependent on audio.

 

A little lovin' conquers all.

A video posted by McDonald's (@mcdonalds) on Dec 30, 2014 at 11:52am PST

2. Get moving

The video does autoplay, so get to the action right away. Don't linger in the opening with a still scene.

 

The Big Game calls for a big game. Literally. Check out this #HyperMade project and create a giant balancing block tower for your #footballparty. #DIY #hyperlapse

A video posted by Lowe's Home Improvement (@loweshomeimprovement) on Jan 23, 2015 at 11:41pm PST

3. Set the pace

You only get 15 seconds, but the videos do loop—playing over and over. Use every frame of those 15 seconds with deliberate care, and think about how the pace affects the story and tone.  

 

Home is where the biggest hugs are... and the littlest ones #feelslikehome

A video posted by Qantas (@qantas) on Feb 19, 2015 at 7:22pm PST

4. The right perspective

Pro tip here: A low camera angle can make the subject look intimidating, so give the viewer an elevated camera position.

 

Mini #Caramel Apple Pops? Yes, please!

Chipotle prides itself on being a different kind of fast-food company, and that even applies to how it briefs its ad agencies.

For example, the company does not feed real-time, quarterly sales figures to its creative shops, which include CAA Marketing and GSD&M. Why? Well, that's what the other food chains do, explained Mark Crumpacker, Chipotle's chief marketing and development officer, today at the 4A's Transformation conference in Austin, Texas. Also, when you focus on short-term gains you lose sight of the big picture of what you're trying to accomplish, namely building a distinctive brand.

"We don't look at short-term quarterly sales. We don't manage our business quarter to quarter. We manage it for the long run," Crumpacker said during a discussion of Chipotle's marketing approach that was led by Forbes editor Jennifer Rooney. 

Chiptole CMO, Mark Crumpacker | Photo: Getty Images

Crumpacker added that Chipotle spends just 1.6 percent of its sales revenue on marketing, compared to the fast-food category's average of about 6 percent. Of course, Chipotle is a fraction of the size of McDonald's and can't outspend the market leaders. Chipotle's food costs are higher (35 percent of sales) than the industry average (27 percent). So, the company needs those dollars that are not spent on marketing to cover the cost of its ingredients.

"So, we've already made our commitment. We've already made our bed, and that is to say that our ingredients are better, and that's the story," Crumpacker said. "What I get to do is basically tell that story. Why is it better? So, we're investing in the long run."

Crumpacker added dryly that if "there came the day where [my bosses] came to me and said, 'Hey, I need like 10 percent sales [gain] next quarter,' they'd just have to fire me."

Egg McMuffins aren't just mediocre pastries stuffed with microwaved eggs, bright yellow cheese and ham product. They are a form of tyranny.

That, at least, is the upshot of "Routine Republic," a riveting and surreal new Taco Bell campaign from Deutsch. A year after the agency cheekily hired a bunch of guys named Ronald McDonald to celebrate the Mexican-themed fast-food chain's first foray into breakfast, the shots at the Golden Arches are barely masked.

In the three-minute centerpiece ad below, McDonald's affable but intrinsically creepy mascot is reimagined as a sunken-eyed Stalinist clown (though perhaps bearing closer resemblance to Mao). He rules over a small army of look-alikes and an oppressed proletariat in a decrepit, cloistered city with a beefy security apparatus. Run-of-the-mill breakfast sandwiches are his preferred method of subjugation.

Taco Bell, meanwhile—aided by "Blitzkrieg Bop," the universal theme song of teenage rebels in the late '70s (so perhaps an appropriate foil for a geopolitically themed bogeyman and/or Bond villain of roughly the same generation)—is the champion of non-conformists, who simply want hexagonal, instead of circular, breakfast foods. The spot even delivers the added gut punch of twisting McD's promise of happiness (on which the burger chain's advertising loves to harp) into a nefarious lie—a drab, gray, industrial (read: overprocessed) landscape (because those A.M. Crunch Wraps are surely only made with the freshest of organic, local ingredients).



That's all to say, it depicts a dystopian world, but the whole concept also can't help but come across as some kind of meta wormhole, like a microcosm of capitalism trying to devour itself. A smaller fast-food giant is knocking a bigger goliath for creating a fantastical totalitarian communist state, wherein the greatest strain on individual freedom is uninspired food, and the most dire physical threat to would-be defectors is whatever horror befalls a person who gets hit by a confetti bomb, or jumps into a grimy ball pit. (Though, in fairness, it's always been hard not to wonder what's lurking in the bottoms of those things—they're too colorful to trust.)

In fact, the campaign's biggest problem may be that it's too well done. The visuals nicely mimic the state-sanctioned artwork of the communist era—e.g., majestic sunburst portraits, imposing statues—and morph it into a series of creative, dog-whistle attacks. In addition to the epic narrative ad, which will air as a :60 on the season finale of The Walking Dead this Sunday, there's a mock-propaganda video (which might remind some gamers of BioShock) and a series of posters espousing the principles of the breakfast dictatorship.

Overall, it's probably not quite as ham-fisted as Nikki Minaj heroizing herself using Nazi imagery in a pop music video—but the frivolous McDespot comparison is also perhaps a touch insensitive, given, you know, the mass killings and other atrocities that marked the Stalinist and Maoist regimes.

Potential political indecencies aside, though, it does make for pretty light, entertaining fare. In the marketplace, Taco Bell is the underdog (whatever happened to the chihuahua anyways?), and from a corporate perspective, needs to be scrappy and get noticed. This certainly does that, punching above its weight, and coming out with a happy ending. The two heroes (a brooding guy and a hot girl, duh) crawl out of their culinary prison a through Shawshank-Redemption-style hole in the wall (presumably burned through with some fire sauce, or chiseled out with a spork) and lead the masses to the promised land of six-sided sandwiches.

Ultimately, though, nobody can claim to be a true Taco Bell breakfast revolutionary until they've eaten every single item on the menu in one sitting.

See some of the print work here:

CREDITS
Client: Taco Bell
Ad: "Routine Republic"
Chief Marketing Officer: Chris Brandt
VP, Brand Creative Director: Tracee Larocca
Director of Advertising: Aron North
Manager, Brand Experience: Ashley Prollamante
Food Consultant: Carolyn Avelino

Agency: Deutsch
Chief Creative Officer: Pete Favat
Chief Digital Officer: Winston Binch
Executive Creative Director: Brett Craig
Group Creative Director: Tom Pettus
Creative Director: Scott Clark
Creative Director: Pat Almaguer
Senior Art Director: Jeremiah Wassom
Senior Copywriter: Chris Pouy

Director of Integrated Production: Vic Palumbo
Executive Producer: Paul Roy
Producer: Damon Vinyard
Music Director: Dave Rocco
Associate Music Producer: Eryk Rich

Design Director: Nathan Iverson
Senior Designer: Erin Burrell

Group Account Director: Walter Smith
Account Director: Katie Klages
Account Supervisor: Krista Slocum
Account Executive: Kaitlin Tabar

Chief Strategy Officer: Colin Drummond
Group Planning Director: Jill Burgeson
Group Planning Director: Lindsey Allison
Senior Account Planner: Kelly Mertesdorf

Director of Integrated Business Affairs: Abilino Guillermo
Senior Business Affairs Manager: Ken Rongey
Associate Business Traffic Manager: Missy Stella
Senior Broadcast Traffic Manager: Sarah Freeark

CEO, North America: Mike Sheldon
President, Los Angeles: Kim Getty

Live Action Production Company: Arts & Sciences
Director: Michael Spiccia
Director of Photography: Germain McMicking
Managing Director / Partner: Mal Ward
Executive Producer / Managing Partner: Marc Marrie
Head of Production: Christa Skotland
EP / Producer: Ben Scandrett-Smith

Editorial Company: Union Editorial
Editor: Jim Haygood
Assistant Editor: Anil Baral
President/Managing Partner: Michael Raimondi
Executive Producer: Rob McCool

VFX: A52
VFX Supervisor/Lead Flame Artist: Andy McKenna
Flame artists: Pat Murphy, Hugh Seville, Steven Wolff, Jesse Monsour, Andres Barrios, Chris Moore, Michael Plescia, Richard Hirst, Michael Vagliently, Enid Dalcoff, Christel Hazard, Dan Ellis
Head of 3D: Kirk Shinatni
CG Supervisor: John Cherniack
CG Artists:  Ian Ruhfass, Joe Paniagua, Jose Limon, Josephine Kahng, Vivian Su, Wendy Klien, Chris Janney
CG Tracking: Joseph Chiechi, Michael Bettinardi, Michael Cardenas
Roto: Tiffany Germann
Art Director: Earl Burnley
Animation: Jeffrey Jeong, Lucy Kim, Tae-Kyu Kim, Trix Taylor, Alan Chen
Head of Production: Kim Christensen
Executive Producer: Jennifer Sofio Hall
Executive Producer: Patrick Nugent
Producer: Stacy Kessler-Aungst

Motion Graphics: Steelhead
Executive Producer: Ted Markovic
Motion Design Director: Jason Porter
Motion Designer: Luis de Leon
Producer: Matt Johnson
Mixer: Chase Butters

Color: A52
Colorist: Paul Yacono
Producer: Anna Vegezzi

Illustrator, Routine Rules Poster: Paul Rogers
Agent: Sally Heflin @ Heflin Reps
Illustrator, all other posters:
Erin Burrell: Senior Designer

Licensed/Composed Music, Credits and Track Info:
Elias Music
Music composed by Elias Arts
Executive Creative Director: Vincenzo LoRusso
Creative Director: Mike Goldstein
Executive Producer: Vicki Ordeshook
Head of Production: Katie Overcash
The Ramones "Blitzkrieg Bop"

Audio Post Company: Formosa Santa Monica
Mixer: Tim West
Mix Assistant: Aiden Ramos
Producer: Jennifer Bowman

Shoot Location: Budapest, Hungary

Taco Bell is calling McDonald's a disgusting communist pig, but McDonald's doesn't care, because McDonald's still has the Big Mac. And now, the Big Mac is getting its very first lifestyle collection of merchandise for those who want something a little more meaty than what Martha Stewart can deliver.

The collection—which includes everything from clothing to wallpaper to bed sheets, all emblazoned with images of the chain's signature sandwich—was launched Tuesday at a "McWalk" fashion show in Stockholm, Sweden. (It follows the success of Big Mac thermal underwear—at the time, a one-off product that McDonald's Sweden made as part of its sponsorship of the Swedish Alpine and Cross Country Ski Team.)

If you're so inclined, you can order this stuff at bigmacshop.se.



While not an April Fools joke (you'll have to wait until next Wednesday for those), this stunt was part of a global day of McDonald's hijinks that took place Tuesday. Called imlovinit24, it featured goofy antics from McDonald's marketing teams in 24 cities worldwide in 24 hours.

Among the other highlights: a coffee-cup-shaped ball pit in Sydney, Australia; a giant Big Mac jigsaw puzzle in Madrid, Spain; a Joy Maze in Bucharest, Romania; a McOrchestra in Vienna; and a Ne-Yo concert in Los Angeles.

Here's a simple and fun McDonald's campaign from Leo Burnett Dubai promoting the fast-food chain's delivery service, showing various characters receiving exactly what they love in a McDonald's bag. (Not McDonald's food, mind you, though you get the point.)

And that's a key that the robot is getting, people. A key.

Via Adeevee.

More ads and credits below.

CREDITS
Client: McDonald's
Agency: Leo Burnett Dubai, United Arab Emirates
Executive Creative Director: Andre Nassar
Creative Director: Rondon Fernandes
Art Directors: Daniel Salles, Robison Mattei, Victor Toyofuku
Copywriter: Wayne Fernandes
Head of Art: Bruno Bomediano

Want to buy a latte with your fitness tracker? If you use an American Express credit card, now you can. Today, AmEx announced a partnership with Jawbone that it claims will make it the first wearable fitness technology brand to accept mobile payments.

Jawbone's new Up24 retails for $199 and lets American Express cardholders pay for things by tapping the bracelet against payment readers in stores.

The tracker has an NFC—or near field communication—chip that syncs with a new app Jawbone will launch this summer. After downloading the app, consumers log in with the same password and user name they use on AmericanExpress.com. From there, they pick the right credit card to transfer money to the Jawbone.

American Express' wearable move is interesting amid the hype around Apple Watch—which will have similar features—and a brewing mobile payment war, but it's not the first time AmEx has explored new ways for people to pay. Here are three other ways cardmembers can pay:

McDonald's
On the opposite end of the brand spectrum, AmEx also partnered with McDonald's last year to let diners pay for meals with reward points.

When you swipe your credit card at the cash register, the screen shows how many points you've earned. Clicking through finishes the payment, and 100 points is worth $1 of free food.

The program also links with American Express' mobile app.

Verifone
Similar to the McDonald's program, AmEx members can swipe their credit cards in 7,000 New York cabs.

Once a rider chooses to pay with a credit card, a prompt on the checkout screen shows how many reward points are needed to pay for the ride.

Uber
Last year, the financial company inked a deal with the ridesharing app so that loyalty program members can pay for their rides using reward points.

Uber's deal also lets people double their reward points by booking their ride on the app. Other brands like Starwood Hotels have since used Uber for similar marketing promotions.
 

McDonald's in France makes some of the most spare, striking outdoor ads anywhere. For the past couple of years, the OOH ads have shown just the menu items, with almost no branding at all—first in closeup photography, then with simple drawings of the products.

This summer, the brand, working with TBWA Paris, is evolving the campaign by adding emojis to the images. (Emojis are now a requirement of every ad campaign everywhere, by the way.) The product drawings are now made up, pointillist style, of tiny emojis—reflecting the emotion stirred by the products.

For example: The Big Mac is made up of hundreds of little thumbs-up signs; the fries are made from smiley faces; the sundae from musical notes; and the Happy Meal from heart symbols. (Those are the only four menu items highlighted this time. The Happy Meal is new to the campaign, while the Quarter Pounder, Filet-O-Fish and Chicken McNuggets have been dropped from the ads.)

McDonald's says the "pictograms" campaign has "placed the brand at the heart of the pop culture." Indeed, the marketer clearly believes the work is practically high fashion. This year's campaign includes a McDonald's collection at Colette, the Paris fashion and lifestyle store, consisting of six products bearing the campaign's imagery—T-shirts, tote bags, scarves, iPhone cases, notebooks and postcards.

See the rest of the images below.

The outdoor ads:

 
The Colette collection:

Here's a nifty invention for people brave enough to eat McDonald's—the new "BagTray" from DDB Budapest.

It is, as it sounds, a bag that's also a tray. Just tear off a tab at the bottom of the brown paper bag, pull off the top and watch the whole thing turn into a cardboard tray that will reduce the odds of spilling your oversized soda all over the back seat of your car, or your laptop, or the lawn where you're having a picnic (though surely the ants would love that).

Hopefully, you also won't have to worry about the grease from your fries soaking through a flimsier vessel and dumping its golden payload on the floor, ruining your day and staining your property (though odds are there's enough oil packed in there to eat through foamcore).



The product name is more or less perfect, clear and direct but also just the right amount of silly. It helps that the graphics in the demo video are charmingly twee, in a corporate sort of way—even if the willfully quirky ukelele-and-whistling-and-handclaps soundtrack wants so badly for you to be happy that it might make you claw your ears off instead.

Regardless, whether you're a mom feeding her kids while shuttling them around (though she's still pretty blasé about tilting the whole thing) or a cool kid just hanging out with your friends on your skateboard (are teenagers really that polite these days?) or a busy business executive cramming in lunch at your desk (that guy totally looks like he works at the ad agency), it's clear the BagTray is the bag/tray for you.

Whether the tool actually works is probably a different question. And it's also not clear whether you can use one without going to Hungary, which sort of undermines the whole convenience factor.



CREDITS
Client: McDonald's
Agency: DDB Budapest
Chief Creative Officer: Péter Tordai
Head of Art/Art director: Guilherme Somensato
Copywriter: Vera Länger, Giovanni Pintaude
Illustrator: Adrián Bajusz
Product Designer: Márk Dávid, András Bálint
Animation: Réka Horányi, Anita Kolop
Business Director: Judit Majosi
Account/Producer: Rozália Szigeti
Promo film: Somnium Studio

McDonald's has resurrected the Hamburglar, and he might steal your heart.

That's the view of half the Internet, anyway, as the chain unveiled the new version of the character Wednesday—a masked man who is either hot, creepy or a WWE wrestler, depending on whom you ask.

Ronald McDonald got his own makeover last year, but the Hamburglar's is more extreme. (He used to look like this.) And his upgrade seems to be this week's Dress debate.

Check out some of the reactions below. 

 
Some people think he's hot... 

The Legend. The Lore. The good looks? Hamburglar is back, America, and he's after our Sirloin Third Pound Burgers! https://t.co/M2Zi2OXo4u

— McDonald's (@McDonalds) May 7, 2015

Gonna be weird to tell my kids that the Hamburglar wasn't always hot af. pic.twitter.com/QD2p50kWza

— Louis Peitzman (@LouisPeitzman) May 6, 2015

[INT. MCDONALDS HQ] EXEC stands in front of WHITE BOARD: Gentlemen, I present: the turnaround plan! WHITE BOARD READS: "HOT HAMBURGLAR"

— Rusty Foster (@rustyk5) May 6, 2015

Christian Grey as The Hamburglar pic.twitter.com/GW4btJtQGM

— Maggie Serota (@maggieserota) May 6, 2015

Aaron Eckhart looks great as the new Hamburglar

— Richard Lawson (@rilaws) May 6, 2015

McDonalds going for the Twilight Moms demo with hot new Hamburglar antihero

— Allison F. (@ablington) May 6, 2015

 
Others think he's creepy...

the new #hamburglar looks like the creepy guy at your high school reunion that makes you wonder what went wrong... pic.twitter.com/VqoDAq2t8y

— suggestaurant (@suggestaurant) May 7, 2015

Ew, why did McDonald's bring back the Hamburglar and why is he a creepy suburban hipster?

— Natacia Knapper (@nknapper) May 7, 2015

So...McDonald's new Hamburglar? Pretty sure I saw him in that video about creepy ways your kids will be abducted. #marketingfail

— Stephanie Sigafoos (@ssigafoos) May 7, 2015

Why pay workers more when Mcdonalds can instead save their business with a creepy new Hamburglar.

— Jamie Kilstein (@jamiekilstein) May 6, 2015

There's no way the new Hamburglar is more creepy than this pic.twitter.com/Vys9uLYo0P

— Sarah N. Emerson (@SarahNEmerson) May 6, 2015

Like, couldn't the new Hamburglar ONLY steal burgers from the other hamburger chains? Like Omar on THE WIRE? "Robble comin'!"

— Patton Oswalt (@pattonoswalt) May 7, 2015

 
And one WWE wrestler had to clarify that he is not, in fact, the new Hamburglar...

Just to clarify, I am not the new @McDonalds Hamburglar #FACTpic.twitter.com/YkOv5WBufy

— Cesaro (@WWECesaro) May 6, 2015