McDonald’s is giving away a souped-up sofa to promote delivery.
The “McDelivery Couch” is a La-Z-Boy outfitted with built-in coolers, light-up cup holders, phone chargers, adjustable seats and a McDonald’s-Uber Eats blanket that says “Going out is overrated.”
The company is giving away the couch in a sweepstakes that runs through April 8. Customers enter by tweeting about menu items they like to have delivered and can enter as often as once a day.
“The McDelivery Couch sweepstakes celebrates our shared love of staying in, as well as our mission to bring people together over food and fun experiences,” said Elizabeth Campbell, senior director of brand and menu strategy for McDonald’s, in a statement.
The giveaway comes as restaurant chains are increasingly promoting their delivery services in a bid to win over more of that service so it helps generate profits.
Given the fees restaurants pay delivery companies to provide the service—or their own costs if they deliver themselves—companies have to generate enough orders to improve profitability. As such, companies are increasingly marketing their delivery services.
McDonald’s began working with Uber Eats on delivery in 2017 and now has the service in about 9,000 of its 14,000 U.S. locations.
Company executives have said that the chain has shifted its focus on delivery from expansion to awareness.
“To me, 2017 and ’18 was really about getting the restaurants on,” CFO Kevin Ozan said at the J.P. Morgan Gaming, Lodging, Restaurant & Leisure Management Access Forum last week, according to a transcript of the presentation from financial services site Sentieo. “What you’ll see in 2019 is about optimizing that. How do we increase awareness?”
Ozan said that guest counts for delivery in the U.S. “are relatively low per day, per restaurant.” But, he said, “the opportunity is enormous.”
Customers frequently order delivery again after they try it, he said, and it comes with higher customer satisfaction and generates business in the evening and night hours when the restaurants are not as busy.
“You will likely see some more advertising related to delivery just so that people become more aware that we’re offering McDonald’s through delivery,” Ozan said.
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