Burger King has named OKRP as its creative agency of record and has named Omnicom Group's PHD as media agency for that chain alongside its Restaurant Brands International siblings Popeyes and Tim Hortons, Ad Age has learned.
Finalists for the creative account included 360i, Fig, and incumbent David, the last of which pitched alongside Ogilvy. Burger King has worked with David on creative and with Horizon on media for roughly eight years. The latter pitched the media account in a review conducted by ID Comms, which also led the creative review, and will continue to serve as the partner for Burger King Canada, BK said. Horizon will also still work with Tim Hortons on traditional media in Canada.
“The team is working to evolve and build on the iconic Burger King brand by optimizing media firepower and modernizing the ‘Home of the Whopper,’” said Tom Curtis, president of Burger King North America in a statement confirming the win. “To further our effective messaging strategy, we are locking arms with veterans of this industry who heard us loud and clear when we asked for strategic business partners equipped with the speed, data, insights, creativity and innovation to help us drive growth.”
"The decision to engage PHD as a media partner across brands signals a change for RBI and its brands towards a portfolio view — a shift that optimizes media efficiency and effectiveness across RBI with consistent standards to leverage scale and maximize purchasing power," said Burger King in a statement. "While each brand will maintain a unique vertical within the broader partnership, a portfolio relationship leverages the buying power of all brands. PHD brings a strong background of QSR experience, and they will be leveraged as a strategic business partner responsible for accelerating a data-driven, omni-channel planning approach for each brand."
Burger King said OKRP was chosen "with intentions to help reintroduce the iconic brand—through campaigns and messaging that uniquely reflect its modern and relevant identity. OKRP brings an incredible depth of restaurant experience, through proven leadership in creating best-in-class category and advertising strategy, food differentiation, and creative excellence that increases brand love. Their leadership strength and culture align with the path Burger King is focused on in becoming guest-obsessed, driving relevancy and authenticity in culture, achieving business objectives and reclaiming Burger King’s status as an iconic brand."
Whoppers and ice cream
Burger King has been trying to boost its business, which appears to be showing some traction: The brand’s fourth-quarter results showed a 1.8% increase in U.S. same-store sales, exceeding analyst estimates.
Over the past years, Burger King’s work has made headlines and awards such as its “Moldy Whopper” campaign and its more recent poop emoji-inspired ice cream launch. Burger King lost its No. 2 U.S. burger chain status to Wendy’s in 2020 and its U.S. measured media spending fell 22.9% to $286.8 million in 2020, according to Kantar data from the Ad Age Datacenter, as the pandemic disrupted the restaurant industry.
In a February earnings call, Curtis said Burger King would be looking to simplify its brand positioning and go back to some of its more traditional messaging.
Have it your way
"I think we'll be focusing on our core—on the Whopper, flame-grilling, 'Having It Your Way'—those are really the things that made us great and the things that will make us great going forward,” Curtis said. “Just focusing on those things and doing it in a simplified way with added firepower through the distinct messages that we’ll be out there with are going to be key for us to growing market share over the course of time going forward.”
Curtis, who joined the company from Domino’s Pizza a year ago as its chief operating officer and was appointed president in August, is expected to detail a strategic plan for the chain shortly that would focus on operations.
Restaurant Brands International had 2020 estimated U.S. systemwide ad spending (including spending from franchisees and company-owned restaurants) of $590 million, according to Ad Age Datacenter.
