How McDonald’s scaled loyalty to engage millions of customers worldwide

McDonald’s is one of the world’s leading food service brands with more than 36,000 restaurants in over 100 countries. Committed to bringing “feel‑good moments” to its customers, McDonald’s has made MyMcDonald’s Rewards a pillar of its engagement strategy – seamlessly integrating it across mobile, drive‑thru, counter, and kiosk experiences.

MyMcDonald’s Rewards has set the standard for loyalty best practices – not only among quick service restaurants but across the broader loyalty landscape. Since 2021, SessionM has powered MyMcDonald’s Rewards, helping McDonald’s drive deeper customer engagement and increase frequency at scale.

SessionM and McDonald’s partnership began in 2018 and is a relationship based in trust and a shared vision for innovation in loyalty. As one of the largest loyalty programs globally – handling over $30 billion in transactions in 2024 – MyMcDonald’s Rewards operates with a complex tech stack across multiple vendors that vary by region.

SessionM has supported McDonald’s in launching MyMcDonald’s Rewards in key markets and will continue to support over the next several years as their chosen partner. McDonald’s also leverages complementary solutions at Mastercard, to further enhance their loyalty program and overall customer engagement.

SessionM has industry‑leading capabilities in loyalty and engagement, including end‑to‑end services, technology, and the fastest, most secure processing network in the world. Mastercard also acts as a truly global partner for McDonald’s, meeting their scale from a security, local, regional, and global perspective.

SessionM has played a critical role in McDonald’s loyalty expansion, supporting launches in five key markets: United States, Canada, Germany, Australia, and the United Kingdom.As McDonald’s continues to grow internationally, SessionM’s purpose‑built capabilities to support multi‑brand, multi‑country organizations and templatized implementation approach allow for cost savings and accelerated speed to market, ensuring a consistent and efficient rollout across regions.

Initially, SessionM played a hands‑on role in campaign design and management, working directly with local teams. By providing comprehensive training and resources, local markets gradually transitioned to independently managing their campaigns. SessionM continues to offer ongoing strategic support and subject matter expertise. This approach empowered local markets to determine campaign strategies and execution approaches, while the global team provides oversight.

• SessionM supported several high‑volume campaigns, including a record‑breaking "Free McNugget Day," which drove over 1 million mobile orders in a single day.
• SessionM developed custom logic that supported separate points management for corporate and franchisee owned stores, while maintaining a unified customer experience.
• New campaign use cases, such as multi‑visit campaigns with channel restrictions, have been developed in partnership with SessionM to support McDonald's evolving loyalty strategy.