Just in time for Lent, McDonald’s is generating buzz in select markets around its Filet-O-Fish sandwich with an interactive gaming site.
The bilingual game, called Shark Bait, tests players skills at saving their Filet-O-Fish sandwich from hungry sharks. To play, consumers log on to FiletOFish.com. The top 50 players’ scores will be displayed on the site. Players can obtain game codes to access higher levels of play by passing the game link to friends, taking a survey or completing levels.
The game, which is part of an integrated campaign targeting young adults in 50 markets, is available in English and Spanish.
Dallas-based Moroch Partners launched the online game to remind customers about McDonald’s year-round availability of its Filet-O-Fish sandwich and its limited edition Double Filet-O-Fish sandwich. The campaign marks the first time a local McDonald’s branch region has launched an advergame (games built specifically around a product or brand) around a company item.
“[Through] online gaming, we are…reaching those young adults in an effective, relevant way,” said Gretchen Crichton, McDonald’s marketing director for the greater southwest region. “Online gaming is huge and continues to grow.”
“The media landscape is continually changing,” she added. “We’ve got to find innovative ways…to reach our customers to spend time with our brand. This is a natural way for us to do that.”
The campaign is running in more than 2,700 restaurants nationwide through the Lenten season. Participating markets include Atlanta, Detroit, Dallas/Fort Worth, Charlotte, Little Rock, Oklahoma City, San Antonio, TX and Sacramento, CA. TV and radio spots, online materials and P-O-P support.
The Shark Bait game offers consumers a chance to interact with the McDonald’s brand in a casual way, said Troy Scillian, executive creative director for Moroch.
“People are harder to target today,” Scillian said. “The Internet opens us to a whole other segment of our audience that can interact with our brand of a longer period of time.”
Network
