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After almost two years of trying to beat chicken with burgers, the fast food giant has entered the chicken sandwich fray.
This week, McDonald’s becomes the latest American restaurant chain to jump into the chicken sandwich craze that Popeyes sparked two years ago, rolling out its version, with quirky, spicy, and luxe variations on February 24. .
Popeyes had long been a player in the war for fast food supremacy, building on the allure of its Louisiana-inspired offerings and a menu largely centered on chicken and shrimp. But that all changed in 2019 when he launched his chicken sandwich in what has become a landmark event in the annals of fast food. The outwardly banal sandwich has become a staple treat, driven by the hype and scarcity as much as taste.
The sandwich spawned too many pieces to think about, put a cashier at gunpoint, and disrupted Popeyes’ supply chain for months. He also broke the Internet (and parts of the US national highway system) and increased the shares of his parent company, Restaurant Brands International.
As Wendy’s, Burger King, KFC and others scrambled to catch up, McDonald’s has resisted a chicken sandwich makeover – until now.
“We’ve heard from our customers loud and clear, and we know they crave more chicken options,” McDonald’s executive Linda VanGosen said in a statement. “We are confident that all chicken lovers – from traditionalists to spice lovers – will discover a new favorite menu that they will come back to again and again.”
While delicious and filling, chicken sandwiches are hardly new to fast food chains. Popeyes created a frenzy by first playing the drum and then leaning into the fervor his sandwich sparked on the internet, building excitement for his product and traffic to his site and standalone app with every post he made. exasperated opinion or cheerful critic on social networks. Along the way, he has shown that the internet buzz can turn a second tier brand into a category leader.
Even if McDonald’s new sandwich ends up clogging the roads near a mall or shopping complex near you in the weeks to come, Popeye’s may already have won the first publicity contest by hijacking the promotion by McDonald’s line.
To build enthusiasm for its new offerings, McDonald’s released limited edition chicken-themed products like hoodies and a 7-inch vinyl record. McDonald’s directed users to the recently announced CHKNDrop.com site, but neglected to check the world for misspellings. Popeyes jumped at the chance, offering 500 free sandwiches to the first users to grab one of dozens of near-missed URLs like chikindrop.com
“If you are chronically misspelled, you are guaranteed not to receive a 404 not found message if you misspelled them. [website] trying to type in your search bar, ”Popeye said a statement. “You can just find a free Popeyes Chicken Sandwich instead.” The 500 free sandwiches were quickly bought by avid fast food outlets.
McDonald’s large number of locations and fame will likely make this chicken war an unfair fight in terms of commodity sales, but McDonald’s is going to have to do more than rest on its arches to defeat Popeyes at its own game.
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