Why does mcdonalds take the mcrib away

Guess what, everybody, McDonald's is bringing back your favorite boneless slab of ribs pork sandwich — the McRib! That's right, McDonald's has just announced that as early as October 7, the McRib will be returning to its menus across the country. If perhaps you're feeling a little cautious with your excitement for the McRib this year, it's probably because the McRib is just doing what the McRib does.

By that, we mean it comes back into your life, gets you all excited that it's returned, and then poof — it's gone. Thanks, McRib. So why exactly does McDonald's keep pulling this yo-yo trick with the McRib year after year?

The McRib last made an appearance on the McDonald's menu in November of and there's really no telling how long it will hang around this time. See director's response. Watch this robot take over a fry station. Matt Damon: Clean water access frees up time for school. Barbara Corcoran: The housing boom is not a bubble. The fast food company announced Thursday that the barbecue sandwich will be available in over 10, restaurants as soon as Monday.

But, McDonald's said, the menu item will only be around for a limited time. The McRib returns as soon as next week. That's by design. Seasonal items are an important marketing tool for the food industry, according to Alexander Chernev, a professor of marketing at Northwestern University's Kellogg School of Management.

Limited releases almost give consumers a Pavlovian response. Every time Burger King brought it back, social media would go off as everyone got hyped about Mac n' Cheetos returning.. That's exactly what McDonald's does with the McRib. Major news outlets and the entire internet picks up the story every time the McRib comes back, which in turn brings in more traffic as fanatics of the sandwich come in droves to sample it once more.

Because McDonald's is so ubiquitous and the McRib so noteworthy, fans are then disheartened when it leaves and rejoice exuberantly when it returns. If the McRib were always on the menu, it wouldn't have the same appeal and excitement every time you went to try it. Thus, between cost control and marketing allure, McDonald's has developed a clever strategy to draw the masses in with their McRib release campaigns. As Inc. The fast-food chain calls it "the sauciest moment of the year.

The McRib — seasoned boneless pork, tangy barbecue sauce, onions and pickles on a hoagie-style bun — first launched regionally in Kansas City, Kansas, in before its national debut the next year. Credit its return to its cult status. Followers will drive long distances to get one. Haters, not so much.