Gabriele De Santis Selected work / Burger King

Burger King®
Integrated campaign

Burger King

Break the bias
Academic year 2023–24

It’s the Whopper. PLANTBASED

The Whopper at the center of the Plant Based campaign
BREAK
THE BIAS!

Taste doesn’t judge.
Do you?

Explore the campaign

Campaign concept
Student project

↳The challenge

Brand strategy / Art direction / Integrated advertising

Taste first.
Judge later.

Burger King speaks to people who think for themselves. But when it comes to plant-based food, people tend to judge before they even take a bite.

The challenge: invite people to discover a plant-based alternative with the same pleasure, the same irreverence and zero compromise on the brand’s attitude.

↳Insight

What you see isn’t always what you eat.

Illustration of a girl with two cucumber slices over her eyes
A mouth with French fries spilling out

Bias
is loud.

Caught between clashing opinions and clichés, taste takes a back seat. To change the conversation, we start from the very thing everyone thinks they already know.

↳The concept

Fewer labels. More bites.

BREAKTHEBIAS.

One idea, five ways
to change minds.

01Out of home

Prejudice,
on full display.

“Tastes like nothing.” “It’s cardboard.” “It won’t fill you up.” We take the clichés and put them up for everyone to see. Proving them wrong: a composition of fresh ingredients, color and pure appetite.

Building wrap with the claim “Non sa di niente” (“Tastes like nothing”) over a full-bleed spread of plant-based ingredients
01—01 / Building wrapTastes like nothing.
Metro poster: “Mangialo te il cartone” (“Enjoy your cardboard”)
01—02 / MetroEnjoy your cardboard.
Street poster: “Non può saziarti” (“It won’t fill you up”)
01—03 / StreetIt won’t fill you up.

02Influencer campaign

First you judge.
Then you look closer.

A proposal starring Italian TikTok creator Rosalba Andolfi: a livestream that seems to spiral out of control, a conversation that heats up and an ending that changes the whole picture.

Proposed talent / Rosalba Andolfi

Rosalba Andolfi, the talent proposed for the campaignMockup of Rosalba’s livestream on a smartphone
01 / Doubt

One stream.
One bite.
One doubt.

Live from Seoul, Rosalba talks about how hard it is to find vegan options. Then, on camera, she bites into a Whopper. A voice off camera cuts into the stream.

Storyboard / Sparking the conversation
Mockup of articles and online posts about Rosalba’s livestream
02 / Buzz

The internet
has already
decided.

Reposts, comments and sponsored articles fuel the debate. The content spreads, but one piece of the story is still missing.

Storyboard / Media amplification
Visual reference for the commercial’s behind-the-scenes footage and the final reveal
03 / Reveal

Same bite.
A whole different
story.

The full commercial reveals the set, the crew and the crucial detail: the burger was a Veggie Whopper. The bias was in the eye of the beholder.

Storyboard / The film reveals the concept

03Social campaign

The feed shifts
perspective.

A carousel invites people to take a closer look at something familiar. Same look, with a surprise to uncover: plant-based lands in the feed, speaking the brand’s language.

And now,
let’s talk.

The Break the bias series opens up the dialogue. Questions collected through Stories become the starting point for clearing up doubts and myths about plant-based food.

Instagram question sticker: “Avete anche i nugget vegani?” (“Do you have vegan nuggets too?”)Instagram question sticker: “Ci sono allergeni nel Veggie Whopper?” (“Are there allergens in the Veggie Whopper?”)Example of a community question about a supposed risk of the vegan burgerInstagram question sticker: “Quali sono le salse vegane di Burger King?” (“Which Burger King sauces are vegan?”)Less bias.
More questions.

03—02 / Stories · Sample questions from the community

04Display campaign

Look closely.
Then choose.

Which one is plant-based? A banner turns the doubt into a little game and invites people to continue the challenge in person.

05Outdoor activation

SPOT THE
IMPOSTOR.

Two identical burgers. One taste. One choice.
Bias, put to the test in real life.

Visual of the Burger King “Trova l’impostore” (“Spot the impostor”) pop-up, with a green entrance and campaign graphics
05—01 / Pop-up experienceInstallation concept

The plot
twist?
Two for two.

The proposal takes the game to major Italian cities. After tasting two Whoppers, participants try to spot the plant-based one. Only at the end, in a separate room, do they find out both were plant-based. Their reactions become new social content.

Front view of the pop-up, with the message “Entra e scopri il primo morso” (“Come in and discover the first bite”)
05—02 / The entranceStep in and find out.
The Burger King pop-up in its urban setting, with passersby in front of the facade
05—03 / The settingThe brand meets the city.

Burger King / Break the Bias

LESS BIAS.
MORE BITES.