Wendy’s transformed its social media presence in 2017 by adopting a sarcastic, witty tone on Twitter, roasting both competitors and fans alike. What started with a pointed reply about McDonald’s frozen fries quickly evolved into snappy back-and-forths, turning its feed into must-follow content. The brand encouraged users to ask, “Roast me,” and delivered savage comebacks like calling a Big Mac question “your dignity.” This edgy approach maximized shareability and built a loyal online community.

In 2018, Wendy’s institutionalized its roasting strategy by creating “National Roast Day,” a social media holiday inviting anyone brands, celebs, or regular users to request a roast. The initiative generated over 30 million organic Twitter impressions in mere hours and trended widely.

Expanding into video, Wendy’s brought the concept to TikTok in 2023, hosting three days of roast content featuring an animated Wendy character. The campaign reached over 109 million views and gained more than 153,000 followers, even as users compared the video style to the original Twitter tone.

Wendy’s success stems from embracing a distinct brand voice, real-time engagement, and cheeky competitor jabs especially targeting McDonald’s to humanize the brand and resonate with younger consumers. Their strategy earned multiple accolades, sparked mainstream media coverage, and translated into higher social followings and increased foot traffic.