Our partnership with Wendy’s began in late 2012, when we became their digital agency of record. While we first focused on digital campaign activation, our role grew to include planning, social media strategy, publishing, and community management.
Today, we serve as the brand voice across all social media channels. We also act as a strategic and creative lead, continuing to produce 360º campaign activations on a project to project basis. Throughout our work, we follow Wendy's philosophy, aiming not for quantity of fans, but quality of experiences.
Case study
Engaging a social community by "mistake."
Wendy’s goal isn’t about numbers. The company just wants to serve quality to every customer. And VML does the same. Instead of fans, clicks, views or follower, our goal as digital AOR is to serve digital experiences that generate the most meaningful and memorable engagement of our target.
Challenge
Get Americans to order Wendy’s new Bacon Portabella Melt on Brioche, despite the fact they may be unsure how to pronounce the word “brioche.”
Idea
People love to point out and share a brand’s social media mistake. So to start conversation and sharing, we sabotaged our own Facebook and YouTube videos by “unknowingly” mispronouncing “brioche” before our customers could.
Result
Our audience actively pointed out our “mistake” and educated their own followers on the proper pronunciation. Over the course of the campaign, we gained more than 50,000 new Facebook fans and captured more than 1.7 million post engagements.
Case study
Helping teens just say yes to Wendy's Baconator.
Wendy’s is dedicated to serving the best quality to every valued customer. So when it comes to one of America’s favorite foods, bacon, they’ve resolved never to slice it too thin, freeze and defrost, or worst of all—microwave it.
Challenge
Many fast food restaurants take perfectly good bacon and turn it bad. We needed to convince millennials that only the best bacon gets on a Baconator.
Idea
We spoofed after-school specials that show teenagers the importance of staying on the right path. With bacon puppets as our young adults, we showed how the right choices can help them achieve the ultimate dream: getting on a Wendy’s Baconator.
Result
Our three tales received over 35 million views, surpassing our goal by 332 percent. And with a 900 percent increase in average positive sentiment following the promoted trend. We turned our love of bacon done right into love for Wendy’s Baconator.