Burger King gets grilled as its intent is swiftly misinterpreted on International Women’s Day

Burger King used a play on the phrase “women belong in the kitchen” to promote scholarships for women seeking to advance in the culinary world, but the line was quickly misinterpreted as an International Women’s Day effort that missed the mark.

A full-page ad running in The New York Times shows the line in large font and follows with several lines that explain the idea behind Burger King H.E.R. (Helping Equalize Restaurants) scholarship, including the low representation of women in chef and head chef roles across the industry.

On Twitter, however, the usage of the line was quickly misconstrued. Burger King U.K. tweeted out just the line “Women belong in the kitchen” and it was only in subsequent tweets that the intended meaning was explained. The campaign comes from David Miami.

Reactions on social media showed that many people were disappointed by the brand’s choice of language. Burger King is often outspoken in its marketing and uses some snark in some of its social media posts. But the backlash to the attempt at flipping the intention of “women belong in the kitchen” shows the risk of getting too playful with social media marketing, especially when many viewers see messages in isolation, and not as part of a broader campaign. 

“There’s a fine line between edgy and inappropriate or dangerous to your own reputation today. That line is constantly shifting, and brands need to weigh the potential cost of going too far against the benefits of more views, clicks, and shares from their marketing attempts,” says Erik Bernstein, president at Bernstein Crisis Management. “In this case, I believe Burger King is going to see a negative ROI.”

Fernando Machado, global chief marketing officer for Burger King’s parent company, Restaurant Brands International, posted the full ad on Twitter.

Below, some of the social media reaction.