Chick-fil-A, McDonald's, and Starbucks’ Streaming Ads Outperformed Linear in Q1 2024, per QSR Convergent TV Outcomes Report

EDO finds QSR ads in Q1 were 5% more effective overall on linear TV than streaming and only 17% of ads were exposed to streaming viewers

EDO today launched the QSR Convergent TV Outcomes Report, the first in a series of quarterly category-level reports that deliver holistic linear and streaming ad performance across a range of categories to include retail, CPG, auto, health & beauty, and more. EDO’s report spotlights the brands that saw the biggest lift in engagement when advertising on streaming TV, as well as the states, metro areas, and audience demographics that engaged the most with the category’s Convergent TV ads in Q1 2024.

The QSR market is estimated to reach a staggering $406B this year in the US alone. Since outcomes measurement is a proven, effective way of predicting market share, EDO created this report to help brands optimize their advertising spend by better understanding audience behavior and preferences. 

“To stand out in this competitive landscape, QSR brands need reliable data that empowers them to deliver authentic and memorable experiences,” said Laura Grover, SVP, Head of Client Solutions, EDO. “With a granular understanding of consumers' content consumption and ad engagement, QSR brands are harnessing the power of Convergent TV to optimize campaigns that drive performance.”   

Key insights from EDO’s QSR Convergent TV Outcomes Report include: 

• Overall, consumers were 5% more engaged with QSR ads on linear than streaming. EDO also found that 83% of QSR ad exposures were on linear, while 17% were on streaming.
• QSR brands that generated the biggest spikes in streaming ad effectiveness as compared to their own linear TV ad performance in Q1 include McDonald's (+66% more effective on streaming as compared to McDonald's average linear TV ad performance), Starbucks (+47% vs. Starbucks linear TV average), Chick-fil-A (+32%), Carl’s Jr. (+29%) and Zaxby's Restaurant (+28%).
• TV viewers in Kansas were most engaged with QSR ads on Convergent TV. QSR ads in Kansas were 20% more effective as compared to the US average in Q1, followed by California (+18%), Tennessee (+17%), Arkansas (+9%), and Connecticut (+9%). 
• QSR Convergent TV ads in Portland, OR were 16% more effective than the average ad performance for US metro areas, followed by San Diego, CA (+15%) and West Palm Beach/Ft. Pierce, FL (+10%). 
• Men 65+ were the most engaged demographic with QSR ads on both linear and streaming TV in Q1. This demo was +114% more likely to engage with streaming QSR ads in Q1 as compared to the QSR streaming average, and +35% more likely to engage with linear QSR ads as compared to the QSR linear average. 

The report is powered by Ad EnGage Convergent, EDO’s cross-screen outcomes measurement solution for holistic linear and streaming TV ad performance. EDO launched the platform in 2021 to deliver household-level measurement and enable advertisers to maximize campaign ROI. 

“Brands and agencies working in the QSR category and beyond leverage cross-platform analytics from our Ad EnGage Convergent dashboard to make informed investment decisions for their streaming and linear campaigns,“ added Josh Lee, CTO and Head of Product, EDO. “Our dashboard equips modern marketers with the brand-level competitive ad intelligence and audience segmentation they need to optimize their media buys and drive new business.”

Download EDO’s QSR Convergent TV Outcomes Report to know what’s working for QSR advertisers.