Indeed, nothing is sacred from sponsorships (ugh)

Full story here

While backlash has resulted in this Florida School pulling its deal with McDonald's to sponsor student report cards--and I understand that printing and mailing costs can be difficult for the school--the marketer in me shakes my head.

Is nothing sacred when it comes to sponsorships? Apparently not.

To be clear, it was the school that called on McD's for the sponsorship, not vice/versa (this is not a post scolding McD's for hopping on an opportunity). But concerned parents voiced-back with 2,000 calls of protest. McD's will still cover the cost of the printing but will pull any references to the company (which is a smart move).

So I gather the school administration said, "We're too broke to cover $1,600 in printing fees of 27,000 report cards so let's be innovative like marketers and leverage a sponsorship!"

Ugh.

To be sure, there's innovation and then there's pollution. And there are lines that should not be crossed. Get truly innovative and figure out online systems for delivering report cards (go green!), or charge parents extra for printed report cards...but don't turn report cards into advertising vehicles.

Why? Because a school is not a commercial entity (it's filed under "academia") and because once you cross that line it won't be long before you can no longer see the line.

Hey, but at least the kids that made all As and Bs are entitled to a free happy meal--so there's a terrific example for the school to be setting. In a time where it is estimated that 1 out of 3 U.S. students won't graduate high-school, I'm willing to bet that a happy meal ain't gonna do the trick. (Ugh, indeed)

PS: And the reason that so many countries will justifiably continue to kick the U.S.'s butt for decades to come? It won't be outsourcing, immigration or otherwise my friends, it will be that we continue to fail our kids in the very core area of basic education. But at least they can work at McDonald's...which gives a whole new spin on the term "Fast Food Nation," eh?

Comments

[Stephen Denny]

Who would make a good sponsor of your local school's report card? How would you (or we - let's be inclusive) define or refine the list?

I can think of a couple of good angles that wouldn't smack too much of blatant commercialization. But let's all take a moment and violently agree on McD's being inappropriate.

[CK]

@Stephen: Thanks. Not sure I'm into any commercial entity sponsoring report cards. But I'm open to thoughts/contenders by the crowd.

I can see sponsorships when it comes to 'extracurricular' activities, as those aren't core-education related, they're "extra". My concern is when we start crossing that line...I hold lines as sacred becuz much bad comes from crossing 'em (we marketers have a way of polluting many media).

Oh, and I'm not a hater of McD's, in fact I find their "Ronald McDonald houses" to have set the bar insofar as commercial charities and wrote on that before. But stay out of core education ;-).

[Ryan Karpeles]

You make a great point. Why not send report cards online? It almost makes too much sense...

Heck, you could even have RSS feeds for each grade your child receives ;-)

[Lewis Green]

CK,

I assume the school you are talking about is public. (If it is a private school, then commercialization may be appropriate.) Public schools are funded by that taxpayers. In theory, that means the taxpayers own and operate the school. Any and all commercialization of report cards (events are another matter) must be permission-based. In other words, taxpayers must approve the move.

[Cam Beck]

I appreciate the fact that you're not bashing Mickey-D's for this. The rhetoric on the AdAge article, calling McDonald's "predatory" is quite over the line.

McDonald's is doing something they hope rewards kids for good grades. I can't fault them for that, although, like you, I question the usefulness. A happy meal doesn't make that great an incentive, and I doubt it has an impact on the dropout rate.

To the other point, if the parents of that district want to spend that $1,600 on printing report cards instead of a couple new computers, I guess that's their prerogative.

One thing we have learned from this is that school administrators make poor marketers.

Really. That cheesy graphic was the best they could do?

BTW - It would be very unwise to try to "go green" with report cards through email and the web, or by charging more for printed report cards, since doing so would be a case for de facto discrimination - withholding access to those who are economically disadvantaged, which are those who have the higher dropout rates anyway, and need the access the most.

[CK]

@Lewis: I do assume the school is public, yes. Especially since we're talking 27,000 report cards and the "county" was referenced in the AdAge piece. I hear you on taxpayers voting on this.

@Cam: Nope, not bashing McD's at all (actually the only time this blog has given McD's a "talking to" is when I felt they were going against their strong brand ;-). Now, I might have felt McD's crossed the line if they approached the school. But that wasn't the case.

On the 'green' angle, you have a very good point--and I'm not sure if having library access (getting the grades at those computers) does the trick since since school libraries aren't open later hours.

And yes, I don't expect administrators to be the best marketers. I bet they were trying to be creative "like those savvy marketers who leverage sponsorships." Ugh.

[Ryan Karpeles]

@Cam: Good point about the email issue. How about an opt-in for people who do want it electronically?

Or would this lead to more polarizing of students and their families?

[Pete Bowers]

The AdAge article mentions that for 10 years prior to McD's involvement Pizza Hut had picked up the tab with no parental complaints. But it does not state whether any graphics or coupons were displayed on the report cards during that time. If not I wonder if it was McD's or the school's idea to add them this time.

As to a possible electronic version, one of the reasons my daughter's elementary school (public) sends home printed forms is that they have to be signed by a parent and returned to the school to show that a parent received it. Granted anyone could sign it, it's not a foolproof system, but it also provides a section for parents to state any concerns and set up a face-to-face meeting with a teacher if necessary.

[Bill Gammell]

CK,

I think you are missing a real opportunity here for McDonald's. Armed with the student's grades they could really do some outstanding personal and relevant marketing. Here are some examples:

“So what if you got a D in Speech. Buck up little cowboy, today is your lucky day. We have a job for you as Head Mumbler in our drive thru”.

“Congrats! You got an A in Music. Too bad this won’t do you any good out in the cold cruel world. But maybe this Big Mac for $1.99 will.”

“Sally, I’m not so sure I’d be lettin’ your mamma know that you got an A in Sex Ed. I don’t think her little heart could take the news. But it could take a nice, juicy Double Quarter Pounder with Cheese. Hearts are funny that way.”

Just a thought :)

[Becky Carroll]

CK, thanks for bringing this one into the light. A few thoughts. As far as McDonald's goes, although they were not the ones seeking the sponsorship, perhaps they should have considered what parent reactions could be to this (it only took me about 2 seconds to figure that one out). In these times of "every customer impression makes an impact - and potentially a conversation", marketers need to think twice about possible negative views of their brand.

My other thought was about electronic report cards. My older son's school has an online grade system where I can track his grades throughout the semester - it's great! But I think an e-report card would have too much potential for tampering. Good 'ol paper feels much more reliable to me.

Rock on, CK! :-)