It looks like McDonald's isn't lovin' its old slogan anymore and wants a new one as CEO Steve Easterbrook continues to drive the burger giant towards a simpler, efficient and more-lucrative tomorrow.
After years of decline, McDonald's is continuing its comeback within the fast food industry by simplifying its menu. It made clear indications of this change in 2015 when it slowly started to cut back on all the items it once offered. Prior to that point, it sold as many as 121 items - 75 percent more than what it offered just 10 years before.
To signify this change as it goes into the future, McDonald's wants a slogan to match, filing to register a trademark for the slogan "The Simpler the Better" at the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office earlier this month.
Granted, this doesn't mean the burger chain will actually use the slogan. As a company spokesperson noted, the company regularly files intent-to-use trademark applications as part of its regular business procedure. Evidence of this can be seen with terms like "McBrunch," which the company trademarked but never used.
Coincidentally, this flies in the face of initiatives McDonald's has launched recently, most famous among them being the All Day Breakfast. While the all day breakfast has been a monumental success for McDonald's, boosting the chain's profits ever since it was implemented, it also complicated the menu by adding 24/7 breakfast menus, so much so that franchisees quickly deemed the initiative a logistical nightmare.
Similarly, introductions such as an "artisan" chicken sandwich and testing for items like customized burgers and Chicken McGriddles made McDonald's seem more interested with conducting wild menu experiments than actually simplifying it.
Regardless of these complications, as stated before, they have brought success to the burger chain. In Q4 2015, U.S. comparable sales rose 5.7 percent - the largest jump in four years. Of course, that number was stymied by a 3 percent drop in customer visits at established locations in 2015, so the chain still has a way to go.
All in all, McDonald's is on the fast track to success after spending the last few years in the muck. A mantra focusing on simplicity isn't a bad thing - so long as it sticks to it. It's certainly better than the original "Let's eat out!" or the more recent "Choose Lovin'."
