Morning with You: McDonald's Breakfast Menu

McDonald’s has long been the QSR breakfast originator and leader. However, with numerous breakfast options and competitors battling for share with new menu items or serving breakfast all day, McDonald’s had fallen into the background of crowded QSR breakfast landscape in recent years. Asian Americans, especially Gen Z and Millennials are a fast-growing, high-spending demographic, yet they remain underrepresented in the QSR breakfast category
To reignite relevance and engagement, McDonald’s and Admerasia conducted cultural insights research integrating media consumption data and QSR behavioral studies. The findings revealed that breakfast decisions cluster around two key dayparts: late night (9 PM–4 AM), associated with content browsing and next-day planning, and morning (4 AM–11 AM), corresponding with commuting hours and on-the-go decision-making.
The research further showed that 69% of Asian American consumers feel it’s important for a brand’s message to reflect their culture. Among younger audiences, this connection often manifests through storytelling and digital experiences—particularly within digital comics, a medium deeply rooted in Asian culture and widely loved for its emotional storytelling and visual engagement.
This led to a unique partnership between McDonald’s and Webtoon, a leading Korean-origin digital comic platform with over 12 million U.S. users, to launch “Mornings with You.” The branded three-episode comic series celebrated family, morning rituals, and cultural identity. Each story reflected relatable, everyday moments—from study sessions with friends to intergenerational bonds and team spirit—naturally featuring McDonald’s most-loved breakfast staples, the Egg McMuffin and Hash Browns.
By meeting audiences where they already spend time, the campaign transformed McDonald’s breakfast from a menu choice into a cultural moment. The series generated 92,724 reads, 2,805 favorites, and 6,946 engagements, achieving a 7.49% engagement rate, significantly above platform benchmarks. Complementary full-screen video placements achieved a 3.31% CTR and an exceptional 96.78% video completion rate across more than 6.9 million impressions.
“Mornings with You” demonstrated how cultural storytelling and media innovation can revive brand relevance—reaffirming McDonald’s as both a category leader and a brand that celebrates the communities it serves.