Mobile Marketing: Fries and a Casual Game?

Mobile marketers have a few kinks to iron out before they reach the delicate symbiosis between the marketer and the marketplace.

Burger King has announced a new mobile game. Users can play for a monthly fee of $2.99 — about the price of fries and a Coke.

So, there are two sides to put the mayo in dissecting Burger King’s rationale here.

First, let’s say the target user is a Burger King fan. She likes the kitschy enamel King from the TV ads as much as she likes BK’s juicy flame-broiled taste. But, is she enough of a fan to pay $2.99 a month to play the Burger King game on her handset?

From another angle, let’s say the target user is just a really avid casual gamer. But, of the games she could select, is she attracted to branded games of this nature; games where you have to “remember how to make a Whopper” and have to “squirt ketchup through the air while navigating through a BK restaurant?”

The jury is out on this one for me. I know we’ll continue to see experimentation with co-branded marketing campaigns, banner ads, branded content, “pay walls”, etc. I just wasn’t prepared for someone to suggest that users would like to pay recurring monthly fees for branded experiences; especially coming out of the fast food category.

Read the Press Release