The Deets

This both scares the crap out of me and gives me hope:

McMarketing: Kid taste tests have startling results

Conducted at Stanford University, the taste test had kids ages 3 to 5 enrolled in Head Start programs sample various foods. Some were packaged in McDonald’s wrappers some were not. Nearly anything that the kids thought was made by McDonald’s – even carrots or apple juice – was deemed tastier by the kids than the non-McDonalds sample.

It scares the crap out of me that anyone would consider McDonald’s carrots better than normal carrots.

However, I have hope since I know few adults who share the same perceptions of McDonald’s food. Everyone I know who goes to McDonald’s goes out of convenience rather than taste. If you’re in Menomonie, WI and hungry, it’s not a bad option. However, it’s certainly not every day food.

That’s what one stock analyst following Starbucks seems to believe.

Marc Greenberg, a Deutsche Bank Securities Inc. analyst in New York, reduced his target price for Starbucks shares to $32 from $37 today, saying that positive consumer reaction to McDonald’s brew poses a threat to the coffee chain.

Personally, I can’t remember the last time I’ve had a cup of coffee from either establishment. I think the last time I was in a Starbucks was to use the bathroom in Vancouver 13 months ago, and I occasionally get a Diet Coke with a McDonald’s meal on road trips.

Any coffee aficionados want to weigh in on this one?

via Howard Kaplan