Can I Have It My Way?

Dear Burger King:

This letter is to complain about your choice of promotional items, namely those pertaining to the movie Iron Man. At this time, you are promoting the movie Iron Man by including the action figures in your kids’ meals. We have to tell you of our extreme frustration and confusion of including toys from this movie with your kids’ meals.

The movie Iron Man is rated PG-13. That is to say, it is inappropriate for children under the age of 13. So why are you giving these toys away with your kids’ meals? We doubt anyone over the age of 12 still orders from your kids’ menu. Therefore, it makes no sense to give away toys that are inappropriate for the age level of your targeted consumer. As parents, we expect your toys to be G or PG-rated in your kids’ meals.

We are parents of a 5-year-old and a 3-year-old. Upon walking into Burger King, our children expect to get the kids’ meal. However, we will not allow our children to have a toy that is connected to a PG-13 movie, so we will not order that meal for them. Or we will ask for the “toddler toy” instead, which is usually too young for them. They have already seen the posters and the toys for Iron Man in your restaurants, and they know what they are missing. This makes us the bad guys. So you know what is easier for us? We will instead go to McDonald’s or Wendy’s where we can find an age-appropriate toy that is included in the kids’ meals (they are now including American Idol toys at McDonald’s and Arthur toys at Wendy’s, both of which are much more appropriate). Our kids will be happy, and we as parents will be happy. Then we have no problems, and you have lost our business.

Because the quality of your food is so much better than your competitors, we expected a much higher level of service from your company, and we are quite disappointed. We will be informing our friends and family about this experience.

Signed,

Disappointed and Angry Parents

If you agree, please join me in writing a letter to

Burger King Corporation
Promotional Items and Toys
5505 Blue Lagoon Drive
Miami, Florida 33126

The more of us that inform them about this issue, the more likely we will get a positive change. Or you may call their Consumer Affairs Hotline at (305) 378-3000.