In celebration of Global Mental Health Awareness, McDonald’s launched a meaningful communication campaign inspired by stories about children’s mental health. The campaign quickly received strong support and spread worldwide. Through meaningful messages and familiar images, McDonald’s contributed to raising public awareness about the importance of taking care of children’s mental health, while also arousing positive emotions and deep empathy.
McDonald’s and the Journey to Discover the Pure Joy of Children
The global mental health crisis, which affects nearly 1 billion people and causes hundreds of thousands of deaths each year, has prompted brands to seek meaningful touchpoints in their communications. McDonald’s has tapped into a unique perspective on the issue, particularly among children.
Research by McDonald’s UK found that nearly half of children feel pressured to appear happy all the time, even when they don’t feel that way. This reveals the gap between parents’ perceptions and their children’s actual happiness.
From there, “The Meal” campaign was born, to encourage families to talk more openly about their children’s emotions and mental health. By changing the design of the Happy Meal® box, McDonald’s hopes to create a catalyst for these important conversations.
“We understand the importance of encouraging open conversations about mental health within families,” said Louise Page, McDonald’s Director of Consumer Partnerships and Communications. “We hope that through this change, we will inspire more families to engage in positive conversations about children’s emotional well-being and health.”
Explore fun activities in “The Meal” with McDonald’s
“The Meal” campaign is not just a regular media campaign, but also a campaign IMC (Integrated Marketing Communication) Multi-platform, combining the power of CSR, Social Media, OOH, Short Film, Influencer, SFVOD… with the support of McDonald’s, Ready10 and BBC.
Some of the campaign highlights include:
“The Meal” Movie
The campaign kicks off with an emotional short film directed by Jake Mavity and produced by Rogue Films. In just two minutes, the film conveys a powerful message about the importance of allowing children to express a range of emotions, not just joy.
The film opens with the kids receiving their familiar Happy Meal® box, but this time without the iconic smile. Instead, they are free to choose and paste stickers with different expressions on the box. This sparks heartfelt conversations about their friends’ emotions and what they mean.
Rio Ferdinand joins McDonald’s in the meaningful campaign “The Meal”
Football legend Rio Ferdinand not only lent his voice to the film but also actively participated in the campaign through photoshoots, media interviews, and social media promotions. Drawing on his own experience as a father, Ferdinand conveyed the campaign’s message in a genuine and relatable way, helping to spread the meaning of “The Meal” to the community.
Why did McDonald’s remove the smile from the Happy Meal?
In a bold move, McDonald’s decided to remove the iconic smile from the Happy Meal® box, replacing it with the message “It’s OK not to be happy all the time.” In addition, stickers with different expressions were provided so that children could freely express their true feelings.
2.5 million of these limited edition Happy Meal® boxes have been distributed to over 1,400 McDonald’s restaurants across the UK, along with a range of stickers depicting children’s emotions. This change not only creates a new look for the Happy Meal® but also conveys a meaningful message about accepting and respecting all children’s emotions.
Embark on a journey to create a space that supports the community
McDonald’s didn’t stop at changing the design of its Happy Meal® box, but also partnered with BBC Children in Need to create a dedicated support center that provides families with resources, guidance and encouragement to have open conversations about their children’s emotions and well-being.
The hub is easily accessible to consumers via the QR code on the limited-edition Happy Meal® box, as well as via McDonald’s website and social media channels.
The campaign was also amplified on many other media channels such as OOH, social networks, SFVOD… In particular, McDonald’s has collaborated with many reputable Influencers in the field of parenting to share their views and experiences on talking and sharing emotions in the family.
“The Meal” has received positive feedback from the media since its launch. Although the implementation activities are not too new, the special point of the campaign lies in the way McDonald’s exploits insights and chooses messages.
In a broad topic like mental health, McDonald’s cleverly focused on the aspect of “happiness” and children. This message not only attracted the attention of parents but also created widespread sympathy in the community. Because children are always the objects of concern and protection, issues related to their mental health always receive special attention.
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