McDonald's has been on a sales skid and many watchers of the golden arches point to a failure by the chain to connect with Millennials as a major factor in its struggles. That's where Fred Ehle comes in. He has just been named as McDonald's first VP-customer officer.
Mr. Ehle will report directly to Deborah Wahl, McDonald's chief marketing officer in the U.S., who, as Ad Age points out, has reorganized the company's marketing department by demographic focus since taking over in March.
In his new role, Mr. Ehle will turn his attention to gaining the insights needed to help improve the customer experience at McDonald's. This will be a major challenge relative to Millennials who experts say are drawn to the higher quality offerings of chains such as Chipotle.
Whatever Mr. Ehle does, there will certainly be pressure for him to do it quickly. McDonald's shareholders are certainly not lovin' the latest numbers posted by the fast food giant, with same-store sales in the U.S. down 2.8 percent in August following a 3.2 percent decline in July.
Earlier this week, McDonald's launched its second national Free Coffee Event, giving consumers the opportunity to get a small McCafé coffee during breakfast hours at participating locations. The event runs through September 29.
- McDonald's Reports Global Comparable Sales For August - McDonald's Corporation
- McDonald's Reports Global Comparable Sales For July - McDonald's Corporation
- McDonald's Names First VP-Customer Officer - Advertising Age (tiered sub.)
- McDonald's Sales Woes Continue in August - The Wall Street Journal (sub. required)
- McDonald's Sees Biggest Sales Drop in a Decade - Time
- McDonald's USA Perks Up The Nation With Free Coffee - McDonald's Corporation