Burger King Lays Its Fries on the Line

When Burger King Corp. goes fry-to-fry today against archenemy McDonald’s Corp., the Miami-based chain will be putting its money where its mouth is.

The nation’s second-largest burger chain plans to give away an estimated 9 million small orders of fries at its 7,400 restaurants on its self-proclaimed “Free FryDay.” The publicity stunt--which incorporates a subsequent giveaway of Mr. Potato Head toys in kids’ meals--is designed to showcase the “new and improved” French fries that Burger King introduced Dec. 10.

The one-day potato blitz could reap a bonanza for Burger King, restaurant industry observers say, if consumers walk away believing that the chain’s new fries are the best thing since, well, French fries.

“They can talk all they want about their new product, but the only way to make it work is to get people to try them,” said Irvine-based restaurant industry consultant Randall Hiatt. “Instead of putting a full-page ad in Time magazine, they’re putting their food into people’s mouths.”

Burger King’s marketing push won’t stop with its French fries, though: “They’ll also be able to use ‘FryDay’ to sell more of their new Big King burger,” said Dennis Lombardi, a vice president with Technomic Inc., a Chicago-based consulting firm. “This could turn into a good, overall marketing tactic for stores.”

Large nationwide giveaways are relatively uncommon, Lombardi said. Taco Bell Corp., for example, gave away at least $6 million in food during a 1995 sampling designed to introduce its ill-fated Border Lights line.

The danger with giveaways is that they can backfire--as McDonald’s found out last spring when it ran short of the popular Beanie Babies promised as part of its kids’ meal program, upsetting children and parents alike.

Burger King risks alienating consumers, restaurant industry observers said, if the taste and texture of the new fries, which are crispier, don’t click, or if long lines on Friday force customers to wait for their free fare.

While Burger King will spend millions of dollars to advertise its daylong giveaway, observers say the promotion won’t be as costly as it seems. That’s because most consumers will buy a soft drink and, perhaps, a sandwich to go along with the free fries, which typically retail for about $1.

“If they can sell even a soft drink with those fries, the profit margin on the drink will be enough to do OK on the profit side,” Hiatt said. Fast-food chains that typically battle each other on the burger front are shifting to French fries because fries are a popular menu item: Americans ate an average of 30 pounds of fries in 1996, up five pounds from 1990, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

Chains have a healthy appetite for French fries because they’re a highly profitable item. Industry experts say that restaurants can register as much as an 80-cent profit on a $1 order of fries.

Julie Robertson, director of product marketing for Burger King, said the new fries are more expensive to produce than the chain’s old recipe. But Robertson also said the chain has no immediate plan to pass costs along to consumers.

Burger King’s high-profile advertising campaign for its new fries includes a Claymation commercial with the venerable Mr. Potato Head and a new version of the classic “Shaft” song sung by composer Isaac Hayes.

Publicly, McDonald’s executives have brushed off Burger King’s challenge, describing their company’s fries as the long-standing “gold standard.”

But the world’s largest fast-food chain has pumped up advertising for its fries, and according to a company memo published recently by the Wall Street Journal, McDonald’s is dead serious.

In the memo, McDonald’s USA Vice Chairman Jack M. Greenburg crows that McDonald’s has “the best fries--bar none. . . . There’s no better time to show our competition that we have the will and ability to crush any challenges.”

“If we do this right and keep our eyes on our fries, we will win this battle and make significant headway in the war as well.”

Burger King’s new fries are an admission that its old fries weren’t up to the challenge, Robertson said.

The chain claims that its new recipe, which took two years to perfect, keeps the fries crispy on the outside and softer on the inside. Burger King also argues that the recipe generates fries that will stay warm longer--an important attribute for take-home diners.