Making Waves with McRib.

Strategy: From accidental leak to national conversation

Sometimes a brief comes in that you just know is going to be big, and the return of the McRib® was definitely one of them. A culture-defining moment, something customers had been crying out for on social media for years, and a plan of action through the line that was all but guaranteed to create headlines.

CRM was in a unique position to activate the initial tease phase of the campaign — sending ‘accidental’ emails and push notifications that would generate excitement and speculation, before moving into the through-the-line campaign of bold visuals and compelling copy.

CRM gives us the opportunity to communicate with millions on a one-to-one basis, making it the perfect channel to play out the first phase of the campaign. To make that happen, we:

• Sent an ‘accidental’ push message, email, and landing page to spark curiosity and speculation at scale
• Created a 404 error landing page that hinted at the McRib® without ever confirming it
• Developed a series of emails designed to promote core menu items — but with a twist
• Transitioned from tease to launch, with the glitch effect becoming stronger and the messaging more playful as the campaign built momentum

The solution: Give people something to talk about

Our activation began with an ‘accidental’ push message, email, and landing page. We knew it would cause a stir, but in reality, it caused a storm.

The push message boasted a huge 18.82% click rate — on average we’ve seen a 2.2% click rate for sends in 2024. Our email had a 49.6% open rate, compared to a 28.5% average open rate. People across the country were debating whether our push was a genuine mistake or clever ruse.

Next up was a series of emails, each designed to promote core menu items. But, of course, there was a twist. An eye-catching animation created a glitch effect, with the McRib® briefly flashing into existence. The hype was heating up and, once more, our work was making waves online.

From here on, the campaign was in full flow through the line, and we turned our attention to using our CRM expertise, innovation and insight to bring the campaign creative to life in email. The glitch effect became stronger, and the messaging more playful, as we transitioned from tease to launch.

The result: The talk of the town

Everyone was talking about it. #McRib trended at number 1 on X in the UK following the push ‘mistake’. Follow-up articles appeared in the Mirror, the Sun, and more — questioning whether the notification was a genuine error or the cleverest marketing move of the year.

It wasn’t just social media that got caught up in the hype — the press did too. Our ‘accidental’ push achieved an 18.82% click rate, 755% higher than the 2024 average. Our email open rate hit 49.6% — over 70% higher than the benchmark.

But beyond the numbers, the McRib® had become a moment. Proof that when CRM is brave enough to lead, it doesn’t just reach an audience — it moves one.