McDonald’s first entered China in 1990, and was initially seen as a novelty symbol of Western culture and fast food. Over the decades, the brand evolved beyond its American roots, embedding itself into the lives of Chinese consumers. From a rare dining experience to a beloved staple, McDonald’s represents a blend of nostalgia, modernity, and comfort—resonating with generations as either a treat from childhood or a familiar part of daily life.
Having served as chief growth officer in China for over a year, Yabin He has played an active role in guiding McDonald’s through its recent evolution, emphasising creative strategies and cultural relevance to keep the brand fresh and engaging. He, also the former chief growth officer of P&G Greater China, has already made an impact, revamping McDonald’s marketing with engaging campaigns and messaging targeted to consumers’ ‘inner child’.
In June, McDonald’s unveiled a Chinese Children’s Day campaign that lasted a month. To promote its chicken nuggets, the brand launched a special edition of walkie-talkies, erected pop-up stores, and collaborated with influencer Mr Doodle. The campaign, which garnered five billion impressions, was an instant success. For He, these kinds of campaigns are not just about sales numbers—they’re about connecting with the audience on an emotional level.
Jude Chan, managing director of Leo Burnett China, who works closely with McDonald’s, observed the positive transformations He has brought to the brand. In addition to traditional TV commercials, his team now collaborates with social media experts at Publicis Groupe to create short videos for integrated social media campaigns. “This shift has been one of the most noticeable changes since Yabin joined this year,” Chan noted. “We need to maintain consistent long-term branding strategy while also addressing the short-term competition in the market.”
With the goal of establishing 10,000 stores in China by 2028, He acknowledges the challenges of keeping creative work fresh. Campaign sat down with He to discuss his vision for McDonald’s, his plans for future growth, and how he aims to capitalise on the power of ‘kidult marketing’ among super fans.
Campaign: What are your favourite McDonald's advertising or marketing campaigns of the year so far? Why?
Yabin He: I absolutely love McDonald's Chinese New Year campaign and the June 1 Children's Day campaign we worked on with Leo Burnett. These campaigns showcase McDonald's China's innovative cultural connection and emphasise how brands can resonate with consumers on an emotional level.
Let's dive into our Chinese New Year campaign first. Each year, this festival presents a unique challenge due to its deep-rooted traditional and cultural importance. It’s quite challenging for McDonald’s to align with such a traditional Chinese festival. We introduced the theme ‘Wish you a golden arch this year,’ drawing parallels between the golden arches and happiness and luck. This connection aims to resonate emotionally with our consumers.
We have been collaborating with Shanghai Fine Arts Film Studio (SFAF) for the execution of our projects. SFAF has deep expertise in Chinese film and animation culture, making them a perfect fit for presenting our Chinese New Year film for Golden Arches [Golden Arches is the new official name of McDonald’s in China]. SFAF has helped us to innovate art forms as well. Our first collaboration resulted in hamburgers that were ink-painted and last year, we created a paper-cut animation. This year, we are working on an epic gilt feature film that tells three amazing stories and showcases a beautiful traditional Chinese art form. This addition has set a visual benchmark for our entire CNY marketing, including video ads, product packaging, shop design, and pop-up stores.
Then let’s discuss the June 1st campaign, for which we partnered with Mr Doodle, a well-known trend artist. When we first saw his work, we felt he was the perfect fit for McDonald's because our aim is to present a carefree and childlike sense of fun and joy to everyone who interacts with the brand.
This campaign isn't just about marketing. It’s about sharing an emotional experience. From product design to creative advertising to offline interactive activities, it's a comprehensive, multi-level marketing strategy. We want everyone to feel at one point, that is, they can connect with their ‘inner child’. This philosophy is central to McDonald's in China. We chose Mr Doodle because, in real life, he embodies our inner child. This strategy not only deepens the emotional bond between the brand and the consumer but also showcases our ability to adapt and innovate across different cultural contexts as a global brand.
On the creative side, McDonald's has partnered with Leo Burnett for many years. What is your vision for the future cooperation between McDonald's and Leo Burnett?
The two teams' mutual understanding is excellent and quite familiar. The Leo Burnett team has a deep understanding of the McDonald's brand. I mentioned earlier that my favourite campaigns are the June 1 and Chinese New Year campaigns, and we do nearly the same campaigns every year. However, when you become too familiar with the team and the brand, you can become fatigued. This familiarity may cause you to lose sensitivity and feel that you know everything, posing a challenge to finding inspiration when working on the same campaign.
We have to cultivate this sense of freshness by ourselves. It's very challenging to maintain the same level of creativity year after year while keeping it fresh for consumers and fans. How can we avoid repeating what we've done before? It's easy to fall into the same pattern but discovering new insights and interpreting them from a different perspective is much harder than simply redoing something new. This is probably the enjoyable aspect of working with Leo Burnett, challenging each other to find new perspectives.
What do you see as the most promising sectors for future growth of McDonald’s in mainland China?
Physically, we are expanding our presence across the Mainland China market, with McDonald's now in about 300 cities. Our goal is to open more brick-and-mortar stores in both new and existing cities. However, our focus is not just on gaining more market shares, but also on ensuring that people truly enjoy the experience of McDonald's service. We want McDonald's to integrate into local life and become a part of people's daily lives.
On a deeper emotional level, we want every customer to tap into their ‘inner child’ at McDonald's. We believe in ‘simple pleasures and childlike joy’. We will continue to promote this brand value proposition, as we understand that in today's busy world, many adults still long for the carefree days of childhood. Our focus is on reaching out to Gen Z and Gen Alpha families, as well as consumers who embrace their inner child.
McDonald's plans to expand to over 10,000 outlets in mainland China. What do you think is driving this growth?
We have a plan to open up to 10,000 stores by 2028. We plan to add more stores to the cities where we already have a presence. We also plan to expand into some of the lower-tier cities and offer McDonald's premium service there.
Our plan consists of three key points: stronger, superior, and smarter. ‘Stronger’ means that we will continue to expand our range of services, meet new customer needs, provide convenience in all aspects, create a seamless consumer experience, and innovate new business platforms and dining modes. ‘Superior’ signifies that we will stay true to our brand purpose by consistently delivering the delicious taste from McDonald's, offering quality experiences and promotions, and enhancing the impact of our brand. ‘Smarter’ involves accelerating the digitisation of everything, from the consumer experience to corporate management, and leveraging data and artificial intelligence technology to enhance our decision-making capabilities.
These key principles along with the goal of opening 10,000 stores collectively define our vision.
What is your perspective on sustainability as a brand like McDonald’s?
It is both a corporate responsibility and a key for brand differentiation. McDonald's China has implemented a green growth engine programme to drive business growth while leveraging our brand influence. For example, from packaging to recycling, we want consumers to understand and participate in these green initiatives. Our goal is for McDonald's to be known not only for great taste, but also as a sustainable brand.
In the Chinese market, how does McDonald’s innovate marketing strategies while prioritising long- and short-term profitability?
When we produce TV commercials for long-term communication, we don't focus much on ROI. For example, with pop-up stores, it's difficult to measure ROI, but we still support these events because we see the positive effect they bring to McDonald’s. We can't just look at the ROI of the five billion impressions of the Children’s Day campaign with walkie-talkies. Even though it's difficult to measure, it went viral because the fans found resonance and recognition.
The competition and short-term pressure in today's market are quite strong. However, I believe that's what sets McDonald's apart from other brands. We have a long-term perspective and have been entering the Chinese market for 35 years. We are opening three new stores every day, introducing McDonald's to brand new customers. To them, this means we are still a relatively new brand in China. Many consumers perceive us as a new brand that has been around for only about six months to a year. This also means encouragement and challenge to us.
Our brand's long-term value and customer loyalty are our greatest assets. Therefore, our strategy is to maintain our leading position in the market through continuous innovation and long-term brand building. We need to be flexible in our marketing and adapt quickly to changes in the market while staying true to our original goals and brand values. Our brand values can be summed up as ‘Simple Pleasure, Childlike Joy.’ We will continue to embody these values, and this is why we are producing TV commercials.
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