Last week social media was atwitter. Debating if a set of scented candles intended to bring together all the smells of the ingredients used in a Big Mac, was something to be embraced or mocked.
Who would choose to be immersed in the smell of ketchup, pickles, onions, beef, and the like? Any self-respecting member of the Quarter Pounder Fan Club, that’s who.
The set of six candles pictured above sold out in mere days. Disappointed fans will have to settle for some other McDonald’s themed items still available for purchase at Golden Arches Unlimited, the online shop for fans of the franchise launched on December 4th, 2019.
While the main name says “Unlimited,” the items that appear under the Quarter Pounder Fan Club are not. So, the candles, like everything else on that page (except the 2020 calendar) have sold out.
The marketing impact of branded merchandise
A CNBC article quoted Joshua White, SVP of Strategic Partnerships at Bamko, about reinforcing relationships by selling branded merchandise. “You need to understand what the values of that brand are and figure out how to take an intangible concept, like a brand, and transform it into a physical object that captures the essence of that brand.”
Encapsulating that brand identity in a way that resonates with its “target demographic” takes a special kind of insight. He doesn’t call it a science or an art but “an alchemy.” He explained the process to CNBC as follows:
“At the heart of what we do is creating an emotional attachment between brands and their audiences. That’s where we always start – what is the emotional outcome that we are driving towards and how do we create that connection between brands and consumers.”
The results can be transformative, indeed. The right product can serve as “a magnificently powerful advertising tool that transforms customers into brand evangelists,’” White told CNBC. And the impact of that can be far greater than that of ads generated on the business end. Now that’s the sweet smell of successful branding.