Challenge:
In Romania, decades of distrust—rooted in communism and intensified by the post-truth era—still shape how people see big brands. Quick-service restaurants, especially McDonald’s, face constant scrutiny, fueled by health myths, memes, and misinformation.
Post-pandemic, conspiracy theories and rising nationalism have only deepened skepticism, pushing consumers toward local alternatives and away from global players. In a world where facts are blurred by personal truths, trust is fragile.
To close the gap between perception and reality, we wanted to launch a platform rooted in transparency and humor, showcasing the real quality of McDonald’s food. By blending hard facts with emotional storytelling, we set out to challenge myths and rebuild trust, one honest message at a time.
Idea:
Something Worth Knowing was a platform built to surprise even the most loyal McDonald’s fans, by revealing unexpected truths about their favorite products.
We created an online video series with our local suppliers, tackling viral myths and conspiracy theories with humor and facts. From jam makers to chicken farmers, we showed the real stories behind our ingredients, reminding people that McDonald’s can be both trusted and loved.
We amplified the message with a playful TV love story, revealing surprising product facts, like local meat in the McCrispy or organic eggs in the McMuffin, wrapped in emotion and charm.
Everything led to cevabundestiut.ro (somethingworthknowing.ro), a digital hub where wild internet myths met sharp humor and real facts, straight from our suppliers. We leaned into Romania’s appetite for sarcasm and conspiracies, disarming doubt with laughter and transparency.
Execution:
We created cevabundestiut.ro (Somethingworthknowing.ro) as a permanent, digital-first hub designed to provide transparency and debunk myths about McDonald’s products.This platform serves as a trusted resource where consumers can access detailed information about our ingredients and their origins. By serving clarity and reliable insights together with humor and storytelling, we aimed to foster trust, strengthen the bond with our audience and create a commercialized form of Trust that is credible, ownable/differentiated, likable, against most quality comms, that look fake and depersonalized (‘sleeping pills’ )
To introduce the platform, we launched with a ‘smile-provoking’ digital-first video content series in collaboration with local suppliers. This content goes deeper into details, humorously addressing popular internet myths and conspiracy theories about our ingredients, shedding light on the truth – from local jam producers to trusted chicken meat suppliers – reminding consumers McDonald’s is a brand that can be trusted and providing rational and emotional reasons to visit.
To maintain momentum, we continued with a TV campaign inspired by romantic movie aesthetics. The ‘mouth-watering’ ads depict heartfelt love stories between consumers and their favorite McDonald’s products, showcasing emotional connections through longing glances, playful humor, and heartwarming “aww-moments.” These engaging vignettes serve as teasers, sparking curiosity and encouraging viewers to discover more on the LP.
Key visuals
Results:
The ‘Something good to know’ campaign delivered game-changing outcomes, transforming McDonald’s brand perception and driving explosive business growth in Romania. Brand trust surged to 50% (+1pp), while relevance and food quality perception soared by 3pp each, tripling targets and proving McDonald’s is a brand Romanians love. Sales skyrocketed by 10.7% compared to last year, guest counts rose by 1.4% and visit share climbed by 0.5%. Across media, the campaign captivated millions: TV reached 4 million people with 60% seeing it 3+ times, and YouTube ads hit a 50% view-through rate, outpacing industry standards.