Case Assignment #1
Name: Zachary Dornoff
Assignment Information
●​ Due Date/ Time: Thursday, September 25th by the start of class (Canvas), meaning it is due
for: Section 3 at 9:30am, Section 4 at 11:00am, and Section 5 at 12:30pm. Late assignments
will not be accepted. When you come to class on Thursday, September 25th, we will dive
straight into discussing this case. It is important that you come to class prepared. This
assignment is intended to help you think through the case and the key issues that will be
discussed in class.
●​ References: Each assignment must include at least 3 high-quality outside sources. Failure
to meet this requirement will result in a 20% deduction. Acceptable sources include reputable
business and industry publications (e.g., Forbes, Harvard Business Review, trade journals),
market research databases (e.g., Mintel, Statista, IBISWorld), credible news outlets with
strong editorial standards, and peer-reviewed academic journal articles. Unacceptable sources
include Wikipedia, random personal blogs, opinion sites without editorial review, and uncited
or unchecked AI outputs (e.g., ChatGPT, Gemini) used as the only source.
●​ URL to purchase case: https://hbsp.harvard.edu/import/1328483. This case costs $4.95. If
this will burden you in any way, please send me a Venmo request @Jordan-Moffett for this
amount (my profile picture is the same one I use on Canvas–my super cute yorkie Groot).
Instructions
1.​ Read the case. It should be evident in your responses that you have read the case (e.g.,
referring to key statements, statistics, trends, discussions, etc.).
2.​ Respond in DETAIL to the questions from a marketer’s perspective. Make sure that you
provide very detailed, extensive responses to each question and that you use relevant market
concepts from class. Speak “marketing.” You should be thinking about and responding to
these questions from a marketer’s perspective and NOT your own personal perspective (e.g.,
Marketer Perspective: Burger King’s emphasis on X resonates with consumers in this target
market, because they value Y. Personal Perspective: I love that Burger Kind does X, since I
really like Y.)
3.​ Your proposed target market drives everything. After you dig deep into who you think
Burger King should target (Issue #1), all your responses afterwards should make sense
considering the target market that you described.
4.​ The connections between responses must be clear and you must provide support for
your reasoning and recommendations. Answer the questions as if you are explaining
things to someone who has ZERO knowledge of the case. I should not have to read between
the lines when going through your assignment or make assumptions based on what I think
you mean. Be explicit and clear in terms of the “why” this is your reasoning or
recommendation. It is okay if it feels repetitive.
Making Burger King Cool Again Recommendation and Road Map
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Case Assignment #1
You have been hired as a consulting firm to help make Burger King cool again. Your GOAL is
to develop a comprehensive plan that will allow the brand to grow and resonate with your
defined target market, while at the same time keeping costs minimal.
Issue #1: Target Market. Who should the target market be and why?
Short Name/Label for Target Market: Food Smart Millennials
Tell me about this target market and be as detailed as possible. Who are they? What are their
values, desires, preferences, behaviors, and so forth? Where do they get their information?
Discuss anything that is RELEVANT in this context that will help you craft an effective
campaign for this target market.
-​ Ages: 18-30. Specifically young adults and professionals as well as college students
(Gen Z and Millenials).
-​ They care about familiarity and structure. They prefer easy availability and cheap prices
but still want value and authenticity when it comes to the food. The passage mentions
that around this age group sees Quick Service Restaurants (QSR) as fake quality
showing they prefer authentic food instead.
-​ They obtain their information from various social media sites (Tiktok, Instagram,
Twitter, Facebook, and Snapchat) promoting brands that are more vibrant,
self-conscious, and authentic.
-​ There is also the outside aspect of social factors like inclusiveness that plays an
important influence on this market.
Provide descriptors for this target market (e.g., age, gender, income).
-​ Ages: 18-30
-​ The gender for this market might be slightly leaned towards men as they tend to go to QSR’s a
little more but overall it is mainly gender-neutral when it comes to marketing tactics.
-​ For total income, this market would make between $20,000-$40,000 as it consists of college
students and entry level positions for people with careers.
-​ This market is socially aware and active. They are also focused in Suburban and Urban areas.
-​ This group has a strong inclination towards social media and mobile platforms compared to just
watching television.
Why this target market?
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Case Assignment #1
-​ Burger King wants to be cool again so this market depicts their best chance for growth and
improvement. This group sees Burger King as unhip and old-fashioned while places that lean
casual like Chipotle are winning over their culture. Burger King could sustain long-term
significance among QSR’s and steal this type of food culture from places like Chipotle by
enticing their audience with creative marketing tactics, social pertinence and quality but
affordable food.
-​ Obtaining this target market could drive a wedge that puts Burger King over the family oriented
Mcdonalds and active social media of Wendy’s.
Issue #2: Positioning.
How should Burger King position itself given all the changes in the environment?
-​ Given the changes in the environment, Burger King should adapt an exciting flame grilled
substitute that can challenge weak fast food.
-​ Burger King can gain status again by being the cool and fully authentic QSR overtaking the
likes of Mcdonalds, which has a more family-oriented approach.
How does this position reflect the defined target market?
-​ This position will help specifically connect with young consumers and their drive for creative
and genuine brands. They turn their history of flame-grilling into a whole new cultural status
which is relevant for younger consumers.
-​ It also helps expand the consumers' craving for brands that go against the norm and are trying to
improve upon their already existing authentic flame-grilled style of food.
Which attributes would you focus on that are listed on page 8 of the case?
-​ Burger King should focus on the attributes of Health Conscious and Premium.
Why those attributes?
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Case Assignment #1
-​ The passage mentions consumers are 91% more likely to switch brands due to a good cause as
long as price and quality stay the same which relates to consumers being conscious about their
health choices but struggle to change their ways due to their attachment to these places.
-​ By enhancing the Whopper and making improvements on it, Burger King can reinforce that
flame-grilled is surpassing flat-top cooking. This aligns with the Premium attribute. By
reinforcing the flame-grilled technique, Burger King can compete and take over these fast and
casual chains that these young consumers look to for quality.
-​ This demographic is more health conscious in today’s age focusing on sustainability and
healthy eating. While they don’t always eat healthy, it’s the option that counts for them. By
offering fresh ingredients and balanced menu items to bolster brand credibility and reduce the
stigma around fast food being unhealthy.
-​ Burger King can utilize these two attributes to make its brand cool again by providing premium
flame-grilling and fresh, healthy menu items to align with the values of young consumers.
Issue #3: Resource Allocation.
How should marketing dollars be allocated between the following areas? How does this fit with
the target market? (Note: In your description of your target market – you should have brought up
information that connects to your response here).
o​ TV:
-​ 25% of the budget should be allocated towards TV. They can establish short 10 second
ads nudging the younger audience about the Whoppers flame grilled authenticity. While
the focus is a younger demographic, not alienating other age groups will help support the
franchisee’s beliefs.
o​ Digital marketing and PR:
-​ 60% of the budget should be allocated towards digital marketing and PR. They need to
dedicate a plethora of their resources into influencer deals, TikTok videos, and
experimental stunts to help boost media exposure. This aligns heavily with the digital
aspect for this target market as they live on social media in a sense.
o​ Brand design:
-​ 15% of the budget should be allocated towards brand design. By updating brand
packaging and having an updated in-store environment helps create relevance among
those socially conscious consumers. Atmosphere and brand presentation are part of
having that edgy and bold positioning. This relates back to the health conscious
consumers and what they could offer towards them.
Issue #4: TV Advertising.
Of the options listed on page 9 of the case, which do you feel would work best for the TV
advertisements? Why? How does this fit with the defined target market? (Note: In your
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Case Assignment #1
description of your target market – you should have brought up information that connects to your
response here).
-​ Burger King should focus on their Core Products and their reliability and authenticity
when it comes to presenting their TV advertisements. Their ads need to focus on the
flame-grilled and modification aspects of the Whopper.
-​ They could set up an ad that is 15 seconds long to where the audience sees the Whopper
being cooked authentically. There is a vibrant text on the screen “Fire-grilled is Superior”
or something similar and demonstrates topping availability with an edgy or quirky vibe at
the end.
-​ This fits into the target market as it helps separate Burger King from its competitors.
They create a standard that young consumers prefer. By allocating the message as simple
but effective, Burger King can have sustainability by fortifying the Whopper as the
essential product for its audiences.
Issue #5: Social Media/ PR.
Look at the 8 mock-ups and decide which two would make the most sense to implement for your
campaign. In evaluating the ads, complete the table below to organize your thoughts. (Note: In
your description of your target market – you should have brought up information that connects to
your response here).
Mom’s
Whopper
Whopper
Millionaire
Whopper
Grade
Fit with
Brand
Catchiness
Possibly but
leans more
towards
family-oriented
style.
Possible but
having a prize
isn’t unique to
Burger King.
Weak. Very
boring and no
spark.
Not at all. Very
boring and
seems
old-fashioned.
Somewhat.
“Millionaire”
can grab the
attention of
people but
doesn’t
correlate to
the target
market.
Weak.
Correlating
grades with
food doesn’t
work for this
Chance key
media will
cover this
idea
Weak. Won’t
do well on
social media/
If there is a
reward it
could garner
some media
focus but
nothing too
special.
Weak. Won’t
garner any
national
media
Chance
people would
talk about
this
Weak. There
is no
draw/nothing
exciting to
talk about.
Some talk but
no lasting
effects on
social media
or from
influencers.
Fit with defined
target market
Weak. People
won’t share
or talk to their
friends about
it
Weak. Doesn’t
apply to
authenticity or a
more edgy-style.
Weak. Doesn’t
connect with
young adults and
college students.
Weak. Doesn’t
correlate with the
market of Gen-Z
or Millennials.
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Case Assignment #1
target
audience.
Could be
deemed as
comedy but
nothing too
apparent.
attention.
Falls flat.
Possible
small media
coverage but
nothing
noticeable in
the grand
scheme of
things
Strong. Very
high chance
some national
media outlets
cover this due
to the strange
name.
Whopper
Pawn Shop
Possible fit as
it has a weird
name but could
be a little too
out there.
Whopper
Vending
Machine
Strong fit. It is
a creative idea
and is focused
solely on food.
Strong. A
very different
name that no
one has seen
before.
Whopper
Strong Fit.
Camouflage Quirky and fits
the Burger
King mold.
Strong. Very
fun and also
memeable for
young
audiences.
Strong. Could
resonate with
some social
media
platforms.
Pregnancy
Whopper
Possible fit.
Leans more to
the risk aspect
of things.
Whopper
Bricks
Solid fit but
nothing crazy.
Doesn’t
mention food
but is
somewhat
creative.
Strongest.
Catches
people off
guard because
it is so
different and
unusual.
Somewhat
catchy.
Different but
is not food
focused at all.
Bricks do not
correlate with
food.
Could garner
a lot of media
attention due
to possible
controversy
from the
name.
Could garner
some
coverage but
overall weak
news
reception.
Some social
activity
between
friends as it’s
a name that
hasn’t been
seen before.
Could help with
the humor side but
isn’t focused on
the food so
probably not.
Strong. Good
for sharing
across
different
social media
sites like
TikTok and
word-of-mout
h.
Strong. Easily
shareable
among young
friends as it
could be seen
as edgy.
People would
talk with their
friends if a
food item had
“pregnancy”
in the name.
Strong fit. It is a
bold statement but
also interactive for
younger
demographics..
It is way too
niche to gain
that much
word-of-mout
h.
Leaning strong fit.
Gen-Z could gain
humor from this
and it is something
different.
Possible but not
likely. Very risky
as it could separate
the product from
the specific target
audience due to the
high risk.
Weak. Doesn’t
connect with the
younger audiences
who strive for
authenticity in
their food and this
feels fake.
Now, based on the above table, select the two that would make the most sense and respond
to the questions below. (Note: In your description of your target market – you should have
brought up information that connects to your response here).
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Case Assignment #1
How will you
measure its
performance? (List
key metrics and
objectives)
#1:
Whopper
Vending
Machine
#2:
Whopper
Camouflage
Social media
engagement (Shares
on Tiktok, Instagram
and the use of
hashtags related to
the restaurant). Also
by looking at foot
traffic for places that
have vending
machines installed to
see if it’s beneficial.
Focus on the amount
of app downloads
and how many
consumers are using
promo codes or
promotions. Also,
they should look for
a sales increase in
ages 18-30.
How should social What are the
media influencers risks?
be involved?
How can you
mitigate the risks?
Vending Machines
being shown in
Youtube videos
and food critic
reviews to help
expand
experiences for the
consumer
watching.
Limited
availability of
vending machine
locations and the
chance of them
constantly
needing
maintenance
would pose a
huge risk.
Start in largely
populated areas like
Chicago, New
York, Los Angeles
creating a limited
experience, but to
see if the vending
machines would do
well with a lot of
consumers passing
by the vending
machines everyday.
Influencers on
TikTok: Meaning
their small
accounts could
help create a good
word-of-mouth
and make it a
popular trend
among this
younger
demographic.
Could be taken
as unserious and
the consumer
will pass it off as
a joke due to the
goofy name.
Best case scenario
would be to tie it
back to the
authentic style of
the Whopper.
Issue #6: Think Outside the Case Box.
Given the target market you described in Issue #1. What would be a different (and possibly more
effective) social media campaign that you would run than those two selected from the case in
Issue #5. (Note: In your description of your target market – you should have brought up
information that connects to your response here).
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Case Assignment #1
Campaign
Mission
Campaign
Message
Campaign
Success
Measurement
Reasons for
why this
campaign
would be
effective given
your target
market
By reinforcing their authentic flame-grilled Whoppers, Burger King needs
the approach of something vibrant and viral that goes with the company’s
ideals. It needs to help clarify an overall prevalence and knowledge for the
younger consumers.
“Fire-grilled is superior” - This would need to not only represent their
flame-grilled burgers but also be able to directly compare them to their
competitors, allocating that the food is made differently. The message
would be to demonstrate that their product is the only “true” way to cook a
burger.
They would need influencers on TikTok and Instagram to help boost the
Whopper creation by creating videos and doing various challenges to help
promote it. They could create various different challenges and track user
engagement through hashtags, shares, resposts, and comments. Lastly, they
could create different types of surveys to see how much younger audiences
know about their brand.
This campaign would be effective because it is very on-point for marketing
tactics from Burger King. It shows their authenticity and gives them a
strong reputation. This could allow them to possibly go viral with this
marketing campaign which would allocate for social media influencers to
play a part because they will draw-in this necessary market. This younger
market loves battling each other online with extreme measures of humor, so
things would be active online. This idea wouldn’t cost that much for Burger
King helping them reach a wider audience through social media platforms
while keeping cost minimal.
References
-​ https://www.washingtonpost.com/food/2024/12/11/top-food-trends-2024-value-meals
-dying-chains-recalls-galore/
-​ https://www.forbes.com/sites/davidhochman/2025/09/04/why-gen-z-cant-stop-eatingat-brazilian-steakhouses/
-​ https://www.forbes.com/councils/forbestechcouncil/2024/05/20/5-ways-consumer-be
havior-is-changing-with-gen-zs/
Gen AI Disclosure Statement
Did you use Gen AI for this assignment
(Yes or No)?
Yes
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Case Assignment #1
If yes…
●​ Which program(s) did you use
(e.g., chat GPT, Bard, Bing,
Claude)?
●​ What did you use it for and was it
helpful?
-​ I used ChatGPT and Microsoft Copilot. I
used it to help brainstorm some ideas
relating to issue 1 and 6 and then also to
help create a structure around my answers
so I could be organized. It also helped me
with some broad case insights so I could get
a rough outline of where to go once I got
started. Overall, it helped garner a rough
outline of what I wanted to talk about and I
expanded on it with detail.
-​ I deemed it to be pretty helpful as it mainly
helped me set up my structure for analyzing
the case from a marketers perspective and
then I took it from there.
If no….
●​ Why didn’t you use it?
●​ Do you think it would have helped
you to use it – why or why not?
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