Waste-reduction and healthy eating are important to millennials, but they don’t always see McDonald’s as a brand that shares those values.

To strengthen the relationship, during the McFlurry activation, summer 2017, McDonald’s gave its disposable drink tray a second-life as portable smartphone speaker. The brand goal was to bring people together and turn them into brand advocates.

The McDonald’s boombox was constructed by developing a 100% recyclable cardboard cover for the drink tray with fold-out speakers and docking area for a phone.

The brand partnered with Toronto industrial design firm Stacklab to bring the idea to life. When the first prototype didn’t amplify the sound enough, they enlisted the expertise of the University of Waterloo Audio Research Group, who guided design tweaks to achieve optimal sound quality – ultimately doubling the volume of the phone’s internal speakers.

On July 28, complimentary McFlurries in the boombox trays were given to people at Toronto’s Woodbine Beach.

With just $5,000 spent on paid media, the boombox story traveled far beyond the shores of Lake Ontario. Within days it had appeared in popular sites like Mashable, Inc., and HypeBeast, and was covered by influencers like Unbox Therapy and Facebook’s news site.

It achieved 5.5 MM impressions in Canada alone, and was picked up organically by media outlets that applauded the brand’s innovation.