Six Rules of Brand Revitalization: Learn the Most Common Branding Mistakes and How to Avoid Them, Second Edition

7. Tendency 7: The Lack of Focus on the Core Customer

When we arrived at McDonald’s in 2002, one thing was clear: customers were fleeing the brand. Additionally, demographics were against the brand because women were having fewer children. It is more difficult being a “family and kids brand” when there are fewer families with kids. The bucket was leaking, and the brand was having trouble attracting new customers and keeping current customers. The brand’s core customers still visited McDonald’s, but not as frequently. And, “Research showed that the majority of McDonald’s most frequent customers did not favor eating at McDonald’s. They just went there because it was so convenient and so cheap.”¹

There are observers who believe that over the past ...