010652 Burger King: Results of Burger Opinion PollJune 26, 2001Miami, fl - In a nationwide poll of 1,000 adults 18+ commissioned by Burger King Corporation, 78% of those polled overwhelmingly stated that they prefer to eat their hamburger with french fries, the second place finisher was a soda with 52% selecting this option. In response to this staggering input from consumers, beginning today at participating Burger King restaurants in the United States, customers who order a Whopper or Double Whopper sandwich will receive a free order of medium french fries. The recommended price point for the WHOPPER sandwich in company-owned restaurants is $1.99 and the recommended price for the Double Whopper is $2.79. “Consumer preference is very important to us and is a significant factor in defining our promotions,” said Dana Frydman, senior director, product marketing. “Consumers told us loud and clear that a hamburger and french fries are a perfect pair. The Whopper and Free Fries promotion delivers this winning combination.” Ketchup and salt were the two most popular condiments customers choose to accompany french fries with 57% of respondents naming ketchup as their favorite add-on choice and 39% naming salt as their favorite. Only 21% of those polled are true “french fry aficionados” who eat their french fries unadorned. In line with poll findings, Burger King restaurants offer customers the choice of both ketchup and salt to accompany french fry orders. In fact, the refined fries now featured in U.S. restaurants are topped with salt applied by specially designed shakers to deliver the perfect amount of salt. This innovation responds to extensive consumer research that indicated the demand for consistency in salting was an extremely important indicator in satisfaction with the french fry product. Another interesting finding was the fact that only 11% of respondents confessed to helping themselves to another person's order of fries when alone in the car and purchasing food for others. Of those polled categorically, 58% denied ever munching on someone else's fries on the trip home from a fast-food hamburger restaurant. Burger King Corporation officials may request a recount of this particular finding. Burger King Corporation serves about 1.7 billion units of french fries at the 8,300 restaurants in the U.S. each year. This amounts to approximately 600 million pounds of french fries. Over the course of a year, customers in Burger King restaurants purchase enough french fries that, if placed end- to-end, would make seven trips between the Earth and the Moon. (Distance between the two is 240,000 miles.) “Our customers told us they are now very 'satis-fried' with our french fries -- they're crispy on the outside, tender on the inside, and salted just right,” Frydman added. In addition to in-restaurant and drive-thru merchandising, the four-week “Whopper and Free Fries” promotion will be supported with national television advertising created by McCann Erickson, the general market adult advertising agency of record in the U.S. Two :30 second spots have been produced for this promotion including “Fistful of Ketchup” and “Nap.”
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