BK is breakfast your way? Not quite.

Good morning, Burger King. I've been expecting you.

Having spent the better part of a year++ developing the launch strategy, positioning and marketing plan for Subway's breakfast program, today's topic is near and dear to my heart.

When it comes to QSR breakfast, I'm as tuned in as anyone would care to be. Tuned in enough to spot some holes in the new BK breakfast menu and this new spot that promotes it. Take a look..



Luckily for BK, it has a couple things going right when it comes to breakfast. Males are big breakfast eaters and consumers are less rigid about eating healthy at breakfast relative to other day parts. These facts make superfans and ginormous egg sandwiches two advantages.

Unfortunately, I believe there are a few problems.

First, "platters so big they'll block out the sun" are good in that they're large and filling; not so hot in the portability department, which becomes quite relevant when one considers the eating in the car and picking up en route to work dynamics that define most people's morning routines.

Second, there is a fundamental positioning issue. Some time ago, BK decided to position itself as the fast food place that lets you have it your way. Frankly, I'm not sure that's defendable (for BK) today, if ever it were. To let a customer have it his or her way, there need be more than just a willingness to hold the pickles.

I guess we've all gotten used to BK telling us we can have it our way with burgers, but the insincerity becomes abundantly clear with a new breakfast menu launch. Aside from letting me pick which item I want off the menu, what are they doing to let me have it my way? And if they are doing something, it's a point not made in this ad.

The biggest miss, in my opinion, is that there is virtually no food footage. New product names are sung, which makes them difficult to discern, and there's certainly no mention of ingredients. What's in that bowl? On that platter? Something sweet? Are those peppers? Onions? Sausage?

As viewers, we are left to guess what's on the rotating plates, which seem an obligatory inset, tucked in at the very end.

Breakfast is the most habitual of all day parts. This means if you want me to change my routine, you need to give me a really good reason. Start by making my mouth water.

Did I mention the spot is funny? Absolutely funny and spot on with casting, tone and manner sure to wake up the Superfans. But if history is any indication, BK needs to do more than get the same old people to roll out of bed and march through its doors.

BK is simply not serving up the RTB here, so I am left to call it OFF STRATEGY