SA McDonald's ad voted best group TVC for 2012/13

South African audiences described the commercial, created by McDonald's South Africa and advertising agency DDB as, "touching, cute, adorable and the most awesome ad ever."

McDonald’s South Africa’s Marketing Director Daniel Padiachy holding the the Best 2012/13 TV ad in APMEA award

Inspiring happiness

The advertisement follows children from children's home travelling on a bus to a McDonald's restaurant where they get McFlurry treats and takes them to an old-age home where they surprise the elderly with the treats. The premise to creating the advert was to capture the similarities that exist between two very different generations, bringing together children and the elderly in a way that demonstrates that nobody is ever too young or old to enjoy an ice-cream treat.

McDonald's South Africa's marketing director, Daniel Padiachy, received the award on behalf of the South African team. "Our brand essence is about happiness; we want to inspire happiness and deliver a good brand experience to the customer and this ad has proven to do exactly that."

This unconventional advertisement demonstrates the brand's accessibility and was aimed at making South African's think about its place in society.

The human touch

The aim of the advertisement was to convey the brand essence in a realistic way that would capture audiences' hearts. To achieve this it was directed in a natural and unstructured style where participants were instructed to do nothing more than be themselves. One of the strategies employed was to surprise the residents of the old-age home completely - without any of them knowing what awaited them.

The surprise and delight on their faces as the children streamed into their breakfast area was completely natural, unscripted and genuine. The advert was created by real people, for real people and focused on what Padiachy refers to as "letting the natural connection happen", which audiences around South Africa came to love.

View the TVC here: