The Challenge
Shakashaka: Reigniting Fry Love with Gen Z McDonald's, synonymous with its iconic fries, faced the challenge of reigniting love for them amidst strong competition and an ad-averse Gen Z seeking cultural immersion. The core challenge for McDonald's was to reconnect with this generation & build relevance through an experience first approach that captured eyeballs, sparked conversations, drove brand adoption, and ensured optimal sales. So, we turned Shake Shake Fries into Shakashaka: a musical phenomenon designed to expand our tribe. Spreading 360-degree Vibrations: Through interactive experiences like in-store “Shakashaka classes,” fry bag manuals, influencer collaborations, meme culture activations & a series of hilarious films featuring an enlightened "Shakashaka preacher," we created a universe. The result: 181.5M views, a 7.6M+ engagement count, a 40% fries sales lift (over plan), and a 25% app adoption surge—all while boosting brand relevance among Gen Z by 4pp.
The Solution
Building a Universe around a single shake Through Shakashaka, we built a branded experience universe that included: In-store "Shakashaka Classes" where customers learned the rhythmic techniques. Redesigned fry bags manuals, these activations transformed the simple act of eating fries into a must-have cultural ritual for Gen Z & enhanced the dining experience at McDonald’s. The experience was amplified through: Influencer partnerships, meme-driven social media engagement, radio spots & digital banners. The storytelling revealed the cosmic vibrations hidden within the Shake Shake bag through: the Mythological world of Shakashaka: Introducing the musical, cosmic world of Shakashaka. The Origin: Expanding on the backstory of the product and its ritual. The Wisdom Tutorials: A three-part tutorial teaching Gen Z how to Shakashaka. The consistent tone and attention to Gen Z humour ensured the campaign was not just seen, but culturally adopted. Brand-owned experiences turned upthevolumeonourfries
