Hi,
Today we’re discussing Burger King’s recent rebrand and its CMO - Fernando Machado, who made the magic happen.
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🍔 Rebrand Alert 🍔
Last week, Burger King announced its first major rebrand in over twenty years. The retro-influenced identity is instantly recognizable. It pays a tribute to the brand’s history while maintaining a minimalist, refreshed look.
Why is everyone talking about this ‘rebrand’?
To say it has been a busy week in the US is an understatement. Despite this, the announcement earned impressions, press coverage, and organic online chatter. When was the last time a “rebrand” got you this excited?
It’s hard to recall the number of times Burger King has come up as an example of a brand that successfully breaks through the noise while staying true to its message.
To understand the hype, you have to understand the person behind it:
With more than 120 Lions in Cannes, topping ‘Innovative CMO’ lists, and the only person to win Adweek’s Grand Brand Genius twice, Fernando Machado has built a reputation for pushing creative boundaries in marketing.
And while he didn’t build the Burger King brand and reputation overnight - he did it faster, and more successfully than others who have been tasked with similar challenges.
Machado’s secret sauce (and what you can learn from it)
As a leader, Machado actively encourages a culture of risk-taking. He walks the talk. The risks he took with campaigns such as the Whopper Detour paid off and made Burger King a creative trendsetter in the fast-food industry. Brands like McDonald’s, Wendy’s, and Popeye’s had to step up their game, and as a result, he set a high creative bar for the entire industry. He says:
People tell me ‘You guys (at Burger King) are fearless’. That’s bullshit. We’re afraid all the f——g time. The only difference is we do it even when we’re afraid. Fear is a part of the journey of doing something different.
He emphasizes that the risk-taking is not with customers alone, but internal stakeholders too. Sometimes, people are so afraid to be seen as ‘unpopular’, they hold back from advocating for the best ideas. Part of embracing fear is understanding what makes people tick. And you might have to pick up a few fights along the way to make magic happen.
When Machado joined Burger King six years ago, he didn’t take the approach of “Out with the old, in with the new”. Instead, he started by understanding what people love about the brand and then built upon that. The rebrand reflects this - it celebrates the company’s history while making way for its future. Many marketing leaders are so excited about adding their stamp to the brand, they forget to acknowledge its existing perception in the market.
And finally, he understands that the brand is for a global audience. Machado was born in Rio, grew up in Brazil, and started off his career at Unilever, working on a small detergent brand. He spent 18 years in the company and was behind some of their most successful global campaigns, including Dove’s Real Beauty Sketches, which earned accolades from all over the world. He continues to bring this authenticity to present-day campaigns. For example, in the recent rebrand, Burger King featured actual employees in its new ads and promotional pictures. Staying authentic to your brand is an inside-out approach. Sometimes, your customers and frontline workers know more about the business and brand than you do.
By the People, For the People
People care about your rebrand when you’ve invested time in building a community of people who appreciate what your brand stands for, trust you and your actions, and are cheering for you every step of the way.
In the future, I'm expecting more marketing leaders to build brands in public - actively involving customers, employees, and loyalists and giving a behind-the-scenes look into their creative processes. This will go a long way in creating a brand that's built to last several lifetimes.
Until next week,
Shrikala