Wendy's... Is their online presence better than their burgers?

 

    If you live in the United States, chances are you've driven past a fast-food joint that boasts a sign with a freckled, pigtailed redhead on it. Since their first opening on November 15th, 1969, Wendy's "fresh, never frozen" burgers and fries have earned their ranks as one of the most beloved fast-food stops in America. In my town alone are two Wendy's clad with cars at almost any hour of the day. There's nothing better than a Wendy's chocolate frosty with a side of salty fries at 10 PM, except for their killer online marketing presence. From Twitter to Facebook, the redheaded face of the company has earned its ranks as one of the most beloved online brand presences over the past few years. 

    With 3.7 million Twitter followers, Wendy's (in my opinion) has grown an arguably larger cult following on the internet than in their restaurants. Their Twitter bio seems to perfectly sum up their internet presence: "We like our tweets the same way we like to make our hamburgers: better than anyone expects from a fast food joint." They aren't wrong. Their marketing team's witty responses and countless wins in roast battles do a killer job at beating out their competitors while highlighting their great food. Interacting with their fans and foes across multiple different social media platforms gives them high remarks in the online communication department. Not to mention, their social media presence has created a brand identity online that other fast-food joints, like mega-giant McDonalds, haven't even been able to touch. To be fair, Arbys has earned its title as a successful online presence too, but Wendy's just seems to use it to their advantage so much more. By sticking to their clap-backs against other fast-food joints and praise of their loyal customers, Wendy's has created a strong online identity that fits with their unique "fresh, never frozen" food. Their online identity is anything but generic, pumping out fresh new campaigns and social media posts that sit a cut above the rest. 

    While Wendy's does a seemingly spectacular job at maintaining such a strong brand identity on social media, the burger joint could improve the online communication and brand awareness on their website. Personally, I feel like Wendy's website is incredibly generic. The homepage looks like your average fast-food homepage. At the top is a small picture of their logo, their menu, a "Find a Wendy's" and a link to their stories and values. Yes, all of this is important to a customer who is looking to find figure out what kind of burger they want to grab and where, but it lacks cohesion with their firey online persona. The bulk of their homepage highlights their deals and new menu items, but the copy is too straight-forward and borderline boring. At the bottom is your basic "Contact Us," "Franchise," and "Investors" tabs. I feel like these are required for any major company, so I don't have much to say about that aspect. Their website is simple, and it highlights all of the things a normal fast-food joint should highlight, but I feel as if there is so much room for brand awareness and over-the-top marketing. 

    Simply put, Wendy's goes above and beyond in their online communication and brand identity across their social media pages. Their marketing team clearly puts in a ton of time and energy into being a step above the rest in regards to posts, brand awareness, and cutting down the competition. Although their website comes off a bit bland and boring, Wendy's stands out as one of the most successful online communicators in the fast-food biz.