McDonald’s two most recent menu item announcements appear to be linked by a frail but beautiful reality: plump, juicy Chicken Strips… No sooner had McD’s revealed it was launching Chicken Strips… Than it narrowed down the window for return of beloved Snack Wraps…
McCrispy Chicken Strips are ‘back’ – with enhanced batter-based coating – May 5 at McD’s.
Soon to appear in parallel as the starring player in returning Chicken Snack Wraps…
McD’s has been been teasing its fans like a crazy old cat lady with a string toy about the return of the iconic, beloved Snack Wrap. But it’s latest menu reveal is the addition of new McCrispy Chicken Strips.
Meanwhile, McD’s has been touting the upgrade with which it’s blessed it’s Chicken Strips. Which will benefit both the new Strips and the Wrap. Because, I suspect, the new strips will be the core ingre-dient in both menu items. The Strips will be offered in 3- and 4-piece orders with new Creamy Chili McCrispy Strip Dip. Each Snack Wrap will probably feature one or two Strips with trimmings rolled in a warm corn tortilla.
McD’s has been milking the relaunch as the Snack Wrap for months, now. In fact, it seemed as though the chain was pushing the envelope fans’ patience, playing it so coy about the big release date. Then, just as everyone thought they were ready to spill the beans – the company announced the advent of its new Chicken Strip snack/main.
Treading a thin line
McFans must be getting tired of having the McWrap dangled in front of them on their metaphorical string… Then hastily withdrawn so many times. Sounded to me as though the McWizards behind the curtain were having some sort of trouble putting the final touches on their upgraded Strips, delaying the promised reappearance of Wraps.
Then the cosmic tumblers clicked together, revealing the answer to their Strips issue. And it was full-steam ahead for both menu items.
But what a disappointment it would have been for the hard-working marketing department trolls to have both the Strips and the Wraps come out too close to each other, stealing each other’s thunder.
A fly on the wall…
I’d have loved to be a fly on the wall during the (probably) tension-filled ‘talks’ between the Strips development team and the Snack Wraps re-development team when it came time to decide who was going to ‘drop’ first.
Genius move or Hail Mary?
Releasing the Strips by themselves first turns out to be a genius move… They really did need to be splashed onto the market first, to get maximum mileage from the upgrade angle. Then bring the Wraps back after a decent interval as the logical obvious next step in McD’s ‘new chicken initiative’ or whatever they’re calling it.
“The demand for chicken strips has been remarkable to see across the industry, so we knew we had to deliver something so craveable that it was worth the wait,” McDonald’s Chief Marketing and Custo-mer Experience Officer Alyssa Buetikofer said in a statement. “We took our time, listened to our fans, and created a product we knew they would crave. And the best part is we’re just getting started.”
‘Took their time’, indeed! The Strips / Wraps release saga will be remembered as a bumpy, hurry-up-and-wait affair at best. But I think we can all agree – the Strips HAD to come out first, by themselves, for the whole scenario to work at all…
Which leaves the Wraps where?
The Strips announcement was accompanied by another puzzle piece in the Great Snack Wraps mys-tery… Now, the official word is, they’ll be back, for sure, officially, and permanently, on 0x.14.2025. Which everyone watching the situation takes to mean ‘on or before September 14 this year’.
My take
C’mon McDonald’s! The ‘treasure hunt’ approach to teasing the release date for the new Snack Wraps was cute at first. But it’s getting pretty old pretty fast, now. And the fans are getting restless…
~ Maggie J.