McDonald Marketing (Ethical or Unethical)

2. Marketing to Children
• The Happy Meal that is targeted towards
children began in 1979 and became rapidly
popular.
• In 2010 McDonald's was sued for unethical
marketing practices
• Monet Parham came forth to sue McDonald's

3. Critics
• Nearly one in five children in the United States is
obese, according to the U.S. Centres for Disease
Control and Prevention.
• And the food is more often junky than nutritious
• Is it unfair for McDonald's to bypass parents and
market directly to little children

4. Customer views?

5. Nutritional information for
Happy meal
Source: Center for Science in the Public Interest
Calories Percent of
meal’s
calories from
saturated fat
Percent of
meal’s
calories from
total fat
Sodium
Hamburger,
French fries
and soft
drinks
590 8% 31% 710
milligrams
Hamburger,
Apple dippers
and low fat
milk
450 7% 18% 570
milligrams

9. McD Advertising
• Brilliant Marketing Campaign
• The key issue here is whether this is deceptive.
Because children do not yet have the reasoning to
understand unfair marketing.

10. Questions?
• Should advertising fast food to children be illegal?
• What is the government's role?
• Best way to fight childhood obesity is more exercise
and less time spent watching TV or playing video
games?
• Happy Meal advertising ethical or unethical?

11. What is being done?
• McDonald's has been told to change its advertising to focus
on the food and not on its Happy Meal toys
• In some countries, including the UK, there is a ban on
advertising foods high in fat, salt, and sugar to children.
• McDonald’s has taken steps to provide healthier options on
its menus, like salads and smoothies
• The fast food company has been fined $1.6 million for
allegedly using advertisements to target children in Brazil

12. Cont.
• McDonald's giving away books in
Happy Meal
• McDonald’s Is Transforming Happy
Meal Boxes Into VR Headsets