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Essay Subject:
Problems encountered in "Pokeman" tie-in. Public relations efforts re: recall of dangerous toys. Lawsuits; reintroducing toys.... More...
5 Pages / 1125 Words
8 sources, 9 Citations, MLA Format
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Paper Abstract:
Problems encountered in "Pokeman" tie-in. Public relations efforts re: recall of dangerous toys. Lawsuits; reintroducing toys.

Paper Introduction:
It is common practice in the fast food business to develop tie-ins with movies, television shows, and related products with an appeal to young people and families and to do so by offering toys, games, and other products connecting the fast food store to the popular film, program, or character. However, there is also a danger in doing this because such tie-ins are often made long before the release of a movie and so may fail if the movie is not popular. In other cases, some different issue may arise to throw the campaign in a bad light. In the case of the recent problem facing Burger King with its tie-in to the Pokemon characters, the problem was in the packaging. The tiny images of the Pokemon characters were delivered in plastic eggs which, if played with by very young children, could cover the child's mouth and nose and bring about suffocation. This is a nightmare

Text of the Paper:
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The first death was on December 11, and the commissionadvised Burger King to recall the toys on December 15. The public relations campaignchanged from one of enticing people into the stores with the Pokemon toysto assuring the public that the problem would be corrected immediately. In other cases, some different issue may ariseto throw the campaign in a bad light. The actual actions taken alsoseem sufficient and reasonable. This has been very difficult to achieve.Other companies have managed to introduce new items and to fit them intotheir overall marketing strategy--Burger King has managed to introduce sixnew products since 1988 (Branch and Gunn 122). However, the timelost was not that great and did not take so long that the public came tosee the company as stonewalling. As noted, from a public relations standpoint, the company wouldbe in better shape had it recalled the toy immediately after the firstdeath rather than seeing this as an isolated incident. Once the company acted, it did all that it could and cooperated fullywith the Consumer Product Safety Commission. Works Cited"Agency: Burger King Stalled on Pokemon Toy Recall."Branch, S. Competition in this segment of the market is fierce, with a number ofcompetitors seeking a larger share of the market, which is currentlydominated by McDonald's. Videos of the moviewere also being offered ("Pokemon (TM) Returns to Burger King (R)"). The way Burger King handled the public relations element in thisproblem was not too detrimental to the image of the company, but thecompany could have reacted more quickly. It is common practice in the fast food business to develop tie-inswith movies, television shows, and related products with an appeal to youngpeople and families and to do so by offering toys, games, and otherproducts connecting the fast food store to the popular film, program, orcharacter. This response was as completeas could be expected. Urges Customers to Destroy and Discard Pokemon Balls"). In the case of the recent problemfacing Burger King with its tie-in to the Pokemon characters, the problemwas in the packaging. The tiny images of the Pokemon characters weredelivered in plastic eggs which, if played with by very young children,could cover the child's mouth and nose and bring about suffocation. However, there is also a danger in doing this because such tie-ins are often made long before the release of a movie and so may fail ifthe movie is not popular. Restaurant decor has also beenconsidered important in the growth of the company, and Burger King was thefist fast-food chain to introduce dining rooms to give customers a chanceto eat inside. Thisis a nightmare for a company with a family-oriented image, and the publicrelations response is vitally important. Drive-thru service was introduced in 1975 and now accountsfor 6 percent of the business ("Burger King" www.burgerking.com). The company did notdo so, however, until another child died later that month ("Agency: BurgerKing Stalled on Pokemon Toy Recall"). In addition, each companycompetes in terms of their own specific products as well. The Consumer Products Safetycommission urged burger King to take this course, and the two cooperated onthe voluntary recall of more than 25 million Pokemon balls beginningDecember 27, 1999 ("In Wake of Second Death"). Burger King recalled the toys encased in the plastic eggs. The company might claim that it could not have known thiswas more than an isolated incident, but in fact, given the nature of theproblem, it seems likely that it might happen again. and Canada. Some might criticize the stores for bringing Pokemon back so soonafter the problem had occurred, but even this aspect was handled well, withwidespread advertising indicating that these toys were safe and that theoffending containers were not being used. The BK Broiler was a grilled chickensandwich introduced in 199 and has also been highly successful, though theWhopper remains the store favorite. A report on the cable channel MSNBC indicates that Burger Kingdecided to reintroduce the Pokemon toys in March without the container thathad caused the problem. Nearly all of the competitors use similar publicrelations tie-ins with some product or another. The company features the Whopper and the BK Broiler sandwich as well astraditional fast-food fare such as fries, shakes, and soft drinks.Advertising is considered integral to the success of the company and hasdeveloped a number of memorable campaigns. Three months after the recall, Burger King brought the Pokemon toysback to its restaurants, without the encasing balls that had caused theproblem. Burger King conducted the same public relations effort in Canada,with a voluntary recall of the Pokemon balls and with postings of thisinformation in all Burger King restaurants ("Burger King restaurants ofCanada Inc. "What's Eating McDonald's?" Fortune (October13, 1997), 122."Burger King." www.burgerking.com."Burger King Restaurants of Canada Inc. Instead, the company is seen as takingcharge and doing whatever was necessary to correct the problem and assuagepublic concerns, and that was all to the good. The Whopper was introduced in 1957and was an immediate success. The main shift that occurred in the public relations effort cameafter the second death when the company agreed to the recall and otheractions. Consumer ProductSafety commission. 6) Burger King introduced a toll-free hotline with information about the recall (MSNBC). One element in the success of thecompany has been the sale of franchises. Jennifer Winder is a mother who bought several kidsmeals for her son at a local Burger King only for the Pokemon toys. 5) Burger King worked with the Consumer Product Safety Commission to send notification to pediatricians and emergency room directors about the danger posed by these containers. 3) Burger King posted recall messages at all of its restaurants. MSNBCalso notes the tactics being undertaken by Burger King: 1) Burger King was urging customers to destroy the container in which the toy was delivered and to take it away from children under three years of age. 2) Burger King ran a national commercial about the potential danger of the toy. The Pokemon promotionoffered Burger King the opportunity to be associated with a popular imageat the time when a Pokemon movie was being released. This second promotion camecloser to the video release of the movie, Pokemon: The First Movie ("BurgerKing to Bring Back Pokemon"). Thatmix has encountered problems in recent years because the company is sendingdifferent messages, trying to reach different audiences while notalienating its core audience. The company used all the media it was possible touse, including television, cable television, published notification,printed notification in the restaurants, and Internet notification, as wellas specific warnings to medical personnel. The response from Burger King wasnot immediate, according to a spokesperson for the U.S. Instead, it generated opencriticism by a watchdog agency because it had delayed taking action afterthe first death. Clearly, Burger King believed that it was gainingcustomers by offering the toys. This wasa voluntary recall after a child had suffocated in her playpen with half ofone of the eggs over her nose and mouth. Gunn. 4) The company made itself available to customers by phone and email. In any case, thecompany needed to appear to be out front on the issue and instead seemed tobe following the lead of the Consumer Products Safety Commission when itfinally did act. The company was founded in 1954by James McLamore and David Edgerton. Herown son was not injured by the toy, and no damages or compensation werespecified in the lawsuit ("Burger King Sued over Recall"). Burger King Corporation started in a small Miami restaurant and todayhas more than 9, locations in every state and in more than 5 countries. and E.P. This was to be a two-week promotionfeaturing all 57 Pokemon toys and the 2 trading card sheets at more than8, Burger King restaurants in the U.S. Urges Customers to Destroy and Discard Pokemon Balls." Burger King, burgerking.com."Burger King Sued over Recall." ABC News (3 Dec 1999)."Burger King to Bring Back Pokemon." Associated Press (19 Mar 2 )."In Wake of Second Death, CPSC and Burger King Again Urge Consumers to Destroy and Discard Pokemon Balls." News from CPSC (19 Mar 2 ), www.cpsc.gov/cpscpub/prerel/ prhtml / 58.html."Pokemon (TM) Returns to Burger King (R)." American On Line (13 Mar 2 ). The marketingmix for McDonald's has long been effective, with television ads creating acertain image for the company, with menu items that fit with that campaign,and with an aura of service and quality that sustained the company. By this time, Burger King was going togreat lengths to make itself more available to customers and was usingdifferent forms of media to cope with the public relations issue. The toys and trading cards revived the promotion and broughtcustomers back to the stores in large numbers. The recall was voluntary, and indeed couldhardly be otherwise given that no one had any idea who had these toys.There was no way to notify specific customers for that very reason, so allthat could be done was to publicize the problem and tell consumers what todo with the product. However, McDonald's stillhas a larger share of the market than Burger King. Burger King also had to face legal actions because of the deaths.Late in December, a woman in Dallas filed a class-action lawsuit againstBurger King on behalf of consumers who purchased Pokemon toys at the BurgerKing restaurants.

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