Not Lovin' It: How the McDonald's App Turned Customers Into the Product

McDonald's built one of the most downloaded food apps in the world, and the customers using it describe a crime scene: orders charged and canceled with no refund path, deals that vanish at the register, rewards that fail to scan in front of a line of strangers, and a privacy policy that says the company may profile their psychological trends and behavior. In this zoomed in episode, Brian J. Crowley and Eve Eden investigate how an app can be a business triumph and a customer experience disaster at the same time? Links: WFTV Action 9 investigation on canceled orders and refunds: https://www.wftv.com/news/local/not-lovin-it-mcdonalds-customers-have-mobile-app-complaints/Y3ASQYX6XNDDFPCTS56U6S3YZA/ Tasting Table on the disappearing app deals: https://www.tastingtable.com/2099096/problem-mcdonalds-mobile-app-according-to-customers/ BigGo News on app surveillance and two tier pricing: https://biggo.com/news/202510090122_McDonalds_App_Privacy_Concerns Daily Meal on what the app knows about you: https://www.thedailymeal.com/1455292/mcdonalds-app-tracks-activity/ McDonald's Privacy Statement: https://www.mcdonalds.com/us/en-us/privacy.html McDonald's app page with the August 2026 terms update: https://www.mcdonalds.com/us/en-us/download-app.html Hosted by Brian J. Crowley & Eve Eden Edited by Kelsey Smith Intro Animation & Logo Design by Brian J. Crowley Music by Nicolas Lee A joint production of EVE | User Experience Design Agency and CrowleyUX | Where Systems Meet Stories ©2026 Brian J. Crowley and Eve Eden questions@UXmurdermystery.com Thank you for watching and or listening! For informational/entertainment purposes only. Views are commentary and speculation, not statements of fact. Discussions of real companies/individuals use publicly available info for critique and education. Not factual assertions about motives or intentions. Creators disclaim liability for damages from reliance on content. Events may be dramatized for illustrative purposes.