IRVINE, Calif., April 7 (UPI) -- After making McDonald's Ronald McDonald the target of its first commercial promoting its breakfast menu, Taco Bell is taking aim at the fast food chain again.
Taco Bell will release Monday afternoon another commercial that makes fun of McDonald's and asks customers to switch over to Taco Bell's new breakfast menu. The commercial uses "Old McDonald" as its soundtrack. It portrays the consumption of an Egg McMuffin as outdated and suggests that if the main character wants to get with the times he should have Taco Bell's new Waffle Taco.
"I've been eating Egg McMuffins since 1984. But when I saw Taco Bell made a Waffle Taco, I figured I would get with the times," the man says.
Taco Bell CMO Chris Brandt said that the aim of the commercial was to show consumers that McDonald's has been selling breakfast for years and that Taco Bell was offering the "next generation" of breakfast. He said that in order to make a mark in the market the brand had to be disruptive and that directly targeting McDonald's would resonate with consumers.
"We have to do things to grab attention," said Brandt. "We're trying to position ourselves as the next generation of breakfast."
While the Taco Bell commercial is very cheeky, it has a very serious purpose -- steal attention and market share from McDonald's in the $50 billion fast-food breakfast business. Taco Bell is aiming to generate a buzz about its new products and increase morning foot-traffic, while putting McDonald's in the precarious position of either responding to these commercials or just ignoring them.
[USAToday] [AdAge]
