After nearly a decade off its menu in the U.S., American fast-food chain McDonald's is bringing back its fan-favorite McRib sandwich.
The company said it will be making the McRib available at all of its 14,400 restaurants across the U.S. starting Dec. 2.
McDonald's originally introduced the barbecue-flavored pork sandwich to its restaurants in 1981 following years of prior product and market testing. The company made it available in its U.S. stores periodically only over the past decades.
In other markets, the McRib was available for short periods of time each year - mostly during the fall. While it has become a permanent menu item in McDonald's stores in Luxembourg and Germany, the McRib has been absent in the U.S. for close to 10 years.
According to Northwestern University's Kellogg School of Management, providing a limited-time offering to consumers each year is a great marketing tactic for the food industry. Bringing in an exclusive product gives consumers something to be excited about and something new to try. This also provides them with a new reason to visit the company's outlets.
"When you have these exclusive products, which exist for a short period of time, it gives people a reason to come to the store," the university's marketing professor, Alexander Chernev, explained during an interview with CNN.
Chernev said another great example of a company that takes full advantage of the marketing tool is Starbucks. The coffee chain regularly releases its timed-exclusive Pumpkin Spice Lattes and red cups each year - creating worldwide hype that greatly boosts its sales.
In the past, McDonald's had typically released the McRib at select locations in the U.S. However, this year is different because it has chosen to make it available nationwide. Limiting the release to select locations had caused huge crowds to gather - a big no-no given the pandemic. This may be the reason why McDonald's has chosen for a nationwide release, experts speculate.
McDonald's sales recovered over the last quarter as most of the world had reopened following the pandemic. In the U.S., the company reported a 4.6% increase in sales for its third quarter, according to a regulatory filing submitted earlier in the month. The company is expected to release its full third quarter results soon.
