A Dream to Some ...

I can’t begin to tell you how much of a genius the man is that came up with the Monopoly game at McDonald’s.  The concept takes what we call “third party promotional agreement” and takes it to the next level.

In a third party agreement, three different people or organizations (duh) benefit from some sort of promotional program.  For example, if you are promoting an upcoming event at a local arena, you may have a meet and greet with a player from the team that is coming to play at the venue, located at a local shopping mall, advertised on a primary radio station.  In this situation, the three parties involved are 1) the venue/event, 2) the mall and 3) the radio station.

Each party in this scenario receives some sort of benefit.  The radio station gains exposure because they are involved in a big event at the venue, the venue receives promotion for the event and the mall receives business from people who come to meet the talent from the upcoming event.

McDonald’s Monopoly game takes third party agreements to a whole new level.  It is a dream to some, and a nightmare to others.  As a business-minded person, I have an appreciation for this promotion.  In case you live under a rock, the Monopoly game at McDonald’s involves receiving special game pieces on many different items on the menu.  Customers collect game pieces to try to win prizes in different categories.  Each category has a different sponsor.

So, in the grand tradition of super sizing (even though they technically got rid of that official title), McDonald’s has taken a third party agreement and made it a 10 party agreement.  Good for McDonald’s.  Geniuses of marketing.