Wendy’s does not need an excuse to brandish its style of snark on social media -- it’s part of the QSR’s identity. It is the brand’s fluency at having fun in the social space that garners so much attention. Wendy’s Twitter account (@Wendys) has become a go-to for social media sass. But it is during March Madness that the brand really works to showcase its ties to the NCAA. Wendy’s Senior Dir of Media & Social Jimmy Bennett said in addition to being the official hamburger of the NCAA, it has “found ways to not just lean into organic, but lean into some specific beta relationships with some partners.”
SOCIAL SNAPSHOT
Must-follow: Cookie Monster. It’s unexpected, but he speaks the truth in such a natural way. I really appreciate and love that Cookie holds so true to his voice.
Favorite app: Delta. That’s my go-to. It’s so easy when you need to make changes, when you need to make updates, when your luggage is coming in, when connecting to customer service.
Average time per day on social media: Two or three hours and that’s broken up in smaller chunks throughout the day.
Success of brand’s unique voice:
The biggest thing is we have confidence in who we are. We really understand our personality, understand our voice. It’s this sassiness that is anchored in authenticity and talking to people in a way they deserve to be talked to; not talking down to anybody, but talking as you would engage with any friend.
Maintaining voice across staff:
It’s something we craft very carefully, we keep a close eye on. Luckily, the individuals who are working have been doing so for quite a bit, so we have gotten very comfortable in understanding who we are and what we stand for. We are always looking at new introductions to the team, especially when we want to make sure we have the appropriate set of diversity that covers all the different passion points and all the potential conversations with which Wendy’s could participate. As we introduce some of those new individuals to the team, we really work hard to make sure they understand what are the guardrails, what are the areas where we can have a conversation.
Getting involved with teams on social media:
When we are able to do it with individuals who have so much passion, it takes on a different form. There is something unique about different personalities that are so recognizable such as Nebraska football, the A’s or any number of organizations we’ve been able to have a back-and-forth conversation with. Fans are so excited when they see these personalities come together. We are eager to have conversations with everybody. The big thing for us is to make sure we are invited to the conversation.
Capitalizing on March Madness:
Being the official hamburger of the NCAA has given us a really good platform to engage and it’s given us a lot of credibility to speak more competently in this space. We know that March Madness is one of the most engaged, passionate events in not just sports but pop culture. That was one of the big rationales why we dove into this relationship three years ago.
Final Four plans:
We are continuing to do a lot with Facebook and teams with some custom targeted content. We are working with Snapchat and an extension on ESPN that focuses on some “Biggie” moments from the games. The big highlight we are going to see on Twitter coming out of the Final Four is sponsorship of a Twitter watch party. It is a live stream event where we have four individuals with unique perspectives coming together and talking about what’s going on in the game. That’s in partnership with Twitter and Turner.
Activating on Twitch with L.A. Gladiators:
Gaming is something we jumped into with a lot of passion and a lot of energy. We started our own channel on Twitch where we live streamed Wendy’s playing some games. We have been able to find some powerful and really custom authentic moments to really dive in and do more in the gaming space. We’ve continued that relationship with Twitch. The OWL L.A. Gladiators picked up on it, realizing we were there to have fun.
If you know anyone who should be featured for their use of social media, send their name to us at jperez@sportsbusinessdaily.com.
