Spicy Profile Pics
Wendy’s
Issue 59 | June 2021
Agency
VMLY&R
Creative Team
Global Chief Creative Officer Debbi Vandeven Chief Creative Officer, North America John Godsey Chief Creative Officer, Kansas City Noel Cottrell Group Creative Director McKay Hathaway Creative Directors Matt Keck, Eamon Conway Associate Creative Directors Ricardo Vallejo, Chad Ford Senior Art Director Conor Clarke, Ben Conahan Art Directors Ryan Woods, Ben Grace Copywriter Jon Colon
Other Credits
Chief Client Officer, North America Jennifer McDonald Group Director, Client Engagement Kelly Gartenmayer Associate Connections Director, Social Samantha Schuster Associate Director, Client Engagement Erica Green Senior Connections Manager, Social Emmy Hanlon Associate Director, Planning Zach Leffers Connections Manager Carolina Mach Senior Campaign Program Manager Laura Picicci Client Chief Marketing Officer, Wendy’s Carl Loredo Vice President, Media and Social, Wendy’s Jimmy Bennett Director, PR, Wendy’s Frank Vamos Social Media Specialist, Wendy’s Kristin Tormey
Date
2020 - 2021
Background
Wendy’s decided to update its signature 4 for $4 value meal (a sandwich, fries, chicken nuggets, and drink for $4), introducing a new spicy chicken sandwich as an option. The task was to generate attention on the 4 for $4’s new look before spending money on paid media.
Fast food value meals aren’t the sexiest things to talk about. The task was to find a way to capture people’s attention and get them excited about the new 4 for $4.
The usual product and price promotion messaging would not cut it.
Idea
Today, when people want attention, they update their photos on social media.
Wendy’s wanted attention and they planned to update Wendy’s social media profile pictures when they wondered: could they get other people to update their profile pictures for them as well, turning them into 4 for $4 advertising? To promote the new spicy 4 for $4, Wendy’s offered to spice up their Twitter followers’ profile pictures.
Thousands of people responded and were tweeted back their new spiced up pictures.
Other brands now began to want attention too and Wendy’s obliged, inserting 4 for $4 into ads into the profile pictures of Microsoft, Toyota and even Stella Artois.
With Spicy Profile Pics, Wendy’s turned profile pictures into a new form of media placement.
Results
In creating a new media space, Wendy’s not only reached their 3.7 million followers but also the 33.8 million followers of the many brands whose profile pics they took over, with a 26% average engagement rate (10 times their 2-3% benchmark) for their most replied-to tweet ever.
The Spicy Crispy Chicken Sandwich launch also led to a 9% increase in sales of the already popular 4 for $4, making it one of their most successful value promotions of the year. By year’s end, Wendy’s overtook Burger King to become the No. 2 hamburger chain in the USA.
Our Thoughts
If it’s true that people hate advertising so much, then why are so many of them turning their most personal spaces into billboards for a burger? Well, people only hate bad advertising. When it’s hilarious (which this photoshop extravaganza is) then it morphs from advertising into pop culture.
It’s incredibly hard to pull off without being very, very annoying and yet Wendy’s continues to show be astonishingly adroit in making its presence felt in social media.