Though McDonald’s is the #1 fast food chain in the world, in the Philippines, it’s a far second to the local, homegrown giant that Filipinos love. For McDonald’s to connect with Filipinos, it identified:

- A channel that no brand had localized yet: Drive-Thru, and

- A market that rarely felt seen: Filipino commuters from the rural areas

By rebranding its “Drive-Thru” to “Ride-Thru” and pushing this further by featuring a uniquely local ride commonly found in provinces, McDonald’s won over both the hearts of Filipinos and a bigger share of the market leader’s business.

Though McDonald’s is the #1 fast food chain in the world, in the Philippines, it’s a far second to the local, homegrown giant that Filipinos love and take pride in.

With menu items that Filipinos love and flavors that specifically cater to the Filipino taste buds, it is well-loved by Filipinos both local and abroad, even being dubbed as the “McDonald’s of the Philippines.” As a dominant market leader in the Philippines, it enjoys the lion’s share of the local market that is more than all the other multinational fast food brands in the country combined.

Though McDonald’s has done a lot to adapt to the local culture, it’s difficult to compete against a brand that has become almost synonymous with the Filipino identity. Thus, the objective is how can McDonald’s deepen its connection to the local market.

As a brand that welcomes all kinds of people, McDonald’s is an advocate for inclusivity. Localizing the brand means welcoming Filipinos across all walks of life. Though the main competitor has a strong equity in local, McDonald’s could become more local by featuring the Filipinos that may not necessarily feel welcome because they cannot identify with the advertising they see.

A great example is in Drive-Thru. Drive-Thru in the Philippines do not cater to the realities of Filipino roads today. Often only showing cars and big cities, the reality is:

(1) Filipino roads are now dominated by bicycles and motorcycles that had first risen in popularity during the pandemic

(2) 52% of Filipinos live in rural areas, many of whom could not possibly afford a car.

To bring the brand closer to local culture, McDonald’s had the opportunity to localize through Drive-Thru.

When two-wheeled vehicles like motorcycles and bicycles first became popular in the country, McDonald’s rebranded its Drive-Thru to Ride-Thru, being the first fast food brand to welcome all kinds of local rides — from scooters and motorcycles, to tricycles and bicycles. While this was successful, this could be pushed further to truly make all commuters feel welcomed and included at McDonald's Ride-Thru - especially rural car-less Filipinos who perceive McDonald’s Drive-Thru stores to be intimidating and unwelcoming to them because they neither drive cars nor live in the cities.

Rural Areas:Home of the Most Diverse Filipino Rides

However, some of the most Filipino rides are actually from the rural areas. With less modes of modern transportation typically present in cities (like cars or the subway), unconventional rides like redesigned motor vehicles and animal-drawn carts are prevalent in these areas. These unique and unconventional rides highlight the Filipinos’ creatively resourceful spirit.

McDonald’s Ride-Thru welcomes every kind of ride – no matter how many wheels... or legs they have.

To continue pushing McDonald's Ride-Thru's message of inclusivity further, McDonald’s took over the annual Kneeling Carabao Festival on May 14, 2022. Held in a farming town just north of the capital, the festival’s main event is a parade of over 800 carabaos (water buffalo), honoring the country’s iconic national animal that farmers use to get around and plow the fields.

During this festival, McDonald’s created a detour where farmers and their carabaos went and ordered at the McDonald’s Ride-Thru, in a unique and massive display of local color.

To spread the message of the brand’s advocacy, a film documenting the activation was created and shared on social media. It was also amplified through a calendar of content in key social networking sites throughout June and July.

A Ride-Thru Experience Like None Other Wins the Hearts of Filipinos

Carabao-Thru successfully uplifted brand affinity for the target audience. By August, ‘Brand I Trust’ score for McDonald’s Drive-Thru for areas outside Metro Manila increased by 8.5 points – 4 times that of the main competitor’s.

The activation also caught the attention and earned the admiration of Filipinos across the country. The campaign achieved great organic media results

- 60M reached

- 12M engagement in one week

- 10M views

- 95% positive sentiments - Filipinos expressed love for the brand and admired McDonald’s for highlighting local culture and the people behind it.

Successfully communicating McDonald’s Ride-Thru’s accessibility and inclusivity to Filipinos from both urban and rural regions, McDonald’s stole share from the main competitor and its share of visits increased nationwide by 3% vs. previous month, with more riders of alternative vehicles visiting the stores.

While the main competitor has a strong equity in being Filipino, Drive-Thru is a channel that they had not yet maximized or localized. On the other hand, McDonald’s was the first to see the value of localizing this channel. First, it rebranded “Drive-Thru” to “Ride-Thru” seeing the rise of bicycles, motorcycles and unconventional rides during the pandemic. It was so successful that other brands began increasing Drive-Thru communications geared to these riders. Now, McDonald’s Ride-Thru even welcomes a uniquely Filipino mode of transportation that no other fast food brand in the country had bannered, including the most Filipino brand of them all.

As the iconic national animal of the country, the carabao has a special place in Filipino culture. It symbolizes hard work and perseverance, traits that are dear to all Filipinos. Sharing these traits, farmers are highly respected by Filipinos for the work they do despite the meager income they make. To see both the Filipino farmers and carabaos (communities and rides that are representative of the Filipino spirit) at McDonald’s Ride-Thru made this execution all the more admirable.