• Ad Age, Tuesday, March 17, 2009 11:30 AM

With consumers seeming to return to traditional Chinese-style fast-food options -- usually rice or noodle dishes that feature chicken -- McDonald's has opened a virtual store to promote its Super Value Meals through an alliance with the online portal Taobao, Normandy Madden reports. The company launched Super Value Meals in China last month.

McDonald's is leveraging the popularity of the Taobao auction site "to communicate the benefits of everyday super value to more young netizens," says Phyllis Cheung, McDonald's vp-chief marketing officer in China. To promote the meals, McDonald's and Taobao launched a promotion that gives consumers a chance to win prizes for 16.5 RMB ($2.41), the price of Super Value Meals.

Web surfers who visit the McDonald's Super Value online store on Taobao can bid for items initially listed at normal retail prices. Every time a user bids on an item, the price goes down by 1 RMB (15 cents) in a reverse-auction format. When the price of the item hits 16.5 RMB, the last bidder can buy it for that price.

Read the whole story at Ad Age »