I read a shocking news on Wall Street Journal: Burger King mascot is stepping down from the throne. Burger King was bought by a private-equity firm last year and as a part of its effort to reinvent itself, it will slowly phase out use of its King mascot and focus on the quality of burgers in its latest TV and online campaigns. Unlike McDonald’s Ronald McDonald, Burger King mascot wasn’t resonating enough with the customers although both mascots have been around for many years. Apparently, what made people go to Burger King was the quality of Burger King’s food, not the resonation with the mascot. Thus, Burger King will start a food-centric marketing approach.
I suspect that this change is partially due to public pressure on fast food restaurants to retire their cartoon characters in regards to the rising problem of child obesity in U.S. I mentioned this in my posting about McDonalds’ including fruits in its happy meals. McDonald’s isn’t retiring Ronald McDonald, saying that he hasn’t been shown as eating or promoting food and the food is selling itself, not the mascot. I don’t know if I can agree with this. Nothing can compare to home-made burgers but if I have to choose, I personally like Burger King better. It has thicker, juicier meat and has more of fresher vegetables. My kids, however, LOVE McDonald’s. I don’t know if it’s the toys, the mascot, or the food. I hope all the fast food chains become more health-conscious and try to improve the quality of their food. 
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