All about the Burger by Sef Gonzalez

Author:Sef Gonzalez [Gonzalez, Sef]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781633539631
Publisher: Mango Media
Published: 2019-03-27T14:31:58+00:00

The Burger Wars between Burger King, McDonald’s, and Wendy’s from 1982 to 1985 were never really about who had the best food. They were more about one-upping and outsmarting the competition on the advertising front. It was also the battle for the number two burger spot in the United States, as McDonald’s had a commanding lead and firm grip on the number one spot.

Who Threw That First Stone?

We can track the beginnings of the Burger Wars to when Burger King lured away Don Smith, McDonald’s third highest ranking exec, in 1977. His “Operation Phoenix” began the head-to-head competition between BK and McDonald’s. After his departure in 1980, Burger King sales were suffering, and Norman E. Brinker from BK’s parent company started a series of commercials that went after their competitors.

In September, 1982, Burger King cast the first stone with a twenty-million-dollar series of national TV commercials that featured five-year-old Sarah Michelle Gellar, who would later become famous for playing the lead in Buffy the Vampire Slayer.

A Very Big Message commercial:

“When I order a regular burger at McDonald’s, they make it with 20 percent less meat than Burger King. Unbelievable! Luckily, I know the perfect way to show McDonald’s how I feel. I go to Burger King.”

Broiling Versus Frying commercial:

“I can’t figure McDonald’s out. Everybody knows flame broiling beats frying three to one. It was on TV. But McDonald’s is frying their hamburgers, unbelievable! Well, I like them flame broiled, so what are you gonna do? I know, go to Burger King!”

Other commercials featured Elisabeth Shue of Back to the Future, Adventures in Babysitting, and Leaving Las Vegas fame.

A Friendly Wager commercial:

“Stop what you’re doing and go to your phone. I wanna make a bet with you. See, in a coast-to-coast survey, three out of four people said they liked their burgers fixed their way. That’s how we do it at Burger King. Now here’s the bet, pick up your phone and call any four people. I’ll bet at least three will choose to have it your way like at Burger King. Any takers?”

A Very Important Message commercial:

“At this time, we’d like to offer our sympathy to McDonald’s and Wendy’s. You see, the Whopper beat the Big Mac for best taste overall among consumers of both burgers. In a similar test, we beat Wendy’s Single. Now, that may have surprised McDonald’s and Wendy’s, so we just wanted to say, it’s OK, guys, winning isn’t everything, but it sure is fun!”

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