Wendy's Social Media Tactic
Wendy's Twitter Rants
Wendy’s
is a hamburger chain with more than 6,500 locations worldwide. They opened in
1969 in Columbus, Ohio and offer a wide verity of burgers, fries and other fast
food options. They have been open for 48 years so why are they making headlines
this time? Their Twitter account has been very active doing something now named
Wendy’s Twitter roasts. They respond to many people daily with sarcasm and
sass. They have over 1.3 million followers and have tweeted over 87 thousand
times. Using the young girl with braids
seems ironic compared to their twitter feed. They are still responding to
customer service complaints but their advertising has changed greatly.
Their roasts include customers, competition and anyone who
tweets at them. Burger King has responded a few times but McDonald’s has
remained silent on the topic. Compared to their competition they are very
active. Doing bursts of tweets daily. Burger King (1.5M) has more followers but
has tweeted (17.5K) significantly less. McDonald’s (3.3M) has more followers
and has tweeted (284K) way more that Burger King and Wendy’s. McDonald’s does
daily bursts of tweets replying to their customers, however, they tweet in a polite
way that is expected of billion dollar companies.
Good or Bad?
Personally, I would not follow them as an account. When on a
twitter field it is annoying to see the same person tweeting a bunch in a row.
I usually unfollow them at that point. The strengths of their twitter field as
public relations and marketing has connected them more with the public and gave
them media access. When asked, most people know what the Wendy’s Twitter rant
is they know it and can tell you one that they found funny.
It doesn’t
seem like their competition is getting involved in the rants but it will open
it up to other companies doing the same. No longer will they have to be polite over
social media as long as people see their humor and they do not remain offended.
However, some companies and industries will not use it because it does not fit
their clients or needs. The major threat facing Wendy’s is if their main
competitors, McDonald's and Burger King, decide to retaliate. There could be
very public fights between the companies on social media. It would gain the
public’s attention but force them to pick a side. The backlash could lose Wendy’s
customers and sales.
The idea of responding to customers and everyone on their Twitter
in a way that has never been seen done by a corporation is new and interesting.
It gives Wendy’s an edge in their industry and developed a new way of marketing
and public relations. If they continue to do it correctly and in new
entertaining ways, their viewers will continue to engage and spread the work
and words of Wendy’s by mouth. Whoever is in charge of their Twitter account
has a fun job that I would dream about after college.
(All Pictures are from Wendy's Twitter Feed- Wendy's. (2017, January 3). [Tweet] Retrieved from https://twitter.com/Wendys)
I did not know Wendy's could be that savage with the McDonalds question. That being said, I think they are revolutionary in the way they respond to customers. I do have to agree with what you said though, following an account that posts all the time can be really annoying. In all honesty that is probably why I veered away from twitter, I got tired of all the retweets that were showing up on the timeline. Maybe they should tweet to their followers to direct message them instead.
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed your post, and I would agree that following an account that posts frequently is rather annoying. However, their tactics are working. Prior to "Wendy's Twitter Roasts", I had never paid any attention to Wendy's Twitter page, or their tweets in general. Now, in my feed I see various retweets and comments that I find amusing. Although Wendy's follower base may not be as high as their competitors, I believe their strategy is working. Personally, I have been drawn to their page to see who they are roasting next. Hats off to Wendy's for changing the advertising industry forever.
ReplyDeleteI think this is hilarious and I believe so many others do as well. Like you mentioned Wnedys is so much more active on social media compared to their competitors. Sure, they are addressing it in a fun, silly way but this is so important in the fast food industry. People want a connection with any brand that they are using, they want their product to become personal. With Wendy addressing issues, even if it is in a harsh way, they are still making a connection with their consumers. Also with doing so in such a unique way, they are also drawing attention to their brand and sparking an interest, maybe even in a consumer that has not had Wendy's in awhile. Keep is up Wendy's, you're on to something!
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