Wendy's, the No. 2 fast-food burger chain in America, recognized a unique opportunity. Their primary competitor, McDonald's, was plagued by a well-documented and culturally acknowledged issue: perpetually broken ice cream machines.

Ice cream is a big deal in America. Americans eat roughly 4 gallons of ice cream per year, and a quarter of Americans consume frozen treats three times per month, specifically at restaurants. Therefore, ice cream and frozen treats represent a massive growth opportunity for Wendy’s.

The Frosty is Wendy’s most iconic and recognizable product. However, despite the Frosty's fame, our biggest competitor, McDonald’s, has three times as many locations and the most downloaded food app in the world, making them more convenient than Wendy’s could ever be.

How could we talk about our iconic Frosty in a way that would convince Americans to skip McDonald’s and head to Wendy’s instead?

Our core challenge was to leverage the ongoing cultural conversation surrounding McDonald's broken ice cream machines to generate positive news and buzz around Wendy's Frosty.

Our goal was to transform a competitor's weakness into a strength for Wendy's in order to drive sales.

Our idea was to provide a “Frosty Fix” to alleviate the disappointment caused by customers being turned away from McDonald’s due to their broken ice cream machines.

To achieve this, we would utilize real-time data and targeting through the McDonald’s app and McBroken.com, a consumer-created website dedicated to tracking the operational status of McDonald’s ice cream machines. This real-time use of data is how we would identify the right locations to “fix.”

Next, we would use geolocation within the Wendy’s digital ecosystem to send targeted push notifications, emails, and in-app messages to customers near malfunctioning McDonald’s machines, offering a $1 Frosty as the more reliable choice.

Finally, we’d deploy custom “Frosty Fix” trucks to areas with broken ice cream machines in Chicago, the headquarters of McDonald’s, to offer free Frosty treats to customers experiencing the disappointment in real time.

Americans eat roughly 4 gallons of ice cream per year, and a quarter of Americans consume frozen treats three times per month, specifically at restaurants. Therefore, ice cream and frozen treats are a massive opportunity for the restaurant industry.

But when McDonald’s has nearly three times as many locations as Wendy’s, they’re the ones most likely to get the visit.

However, they notoriously have broken ice cream machines. The ice cream machine is most often broken around lunchtime and typically lasts for 2 to 3 hours. Therefore, could we use the disappointment experienced by these treat-seeking consumers to Wendy’s advantage? Could that advantage be increased if the disappointment was multiplied across the three times as many McDonald’s locations? After all, disappointment is a powerful motivator.

Our strategy was to use this disappointment at McDonald’s to motivate consumers to choose Wendy’s by turning every one of their broken ice cream machines into an ad for Wendy’s Frosty.

Wendy’s is no stranger to poking fun at McDonald’s. After all, Wendy’s was founded in direct opposition to McDonald’s. Therefore, we kicked off Frosty Fix with a series of organic teasers across our social media channels, playfully highlighting the disappointment caused by our competitors' broken machines. Then we hinted at an upcoming "Frosty Fix," which generated buzz and curiosity.

We officially launched Frosty Fix in Chicago, McDonald's headquarters, on September 26th and 27th. Frosty trucks strategically positioned themselves near McDonald's locations with broken ice cream machines, identified through real-time data, offering a welcome alternative to disappointed customers.

We went beyond the streets and expanded the fix nationally, amplifying the message through Wendy’s digital channels, social media, and earned media.

Using data from our digital ecosystem and McBroken.com, we sent real-time push notifications, in-app messaging, and email alerts directly to customers near broken McDonald's machines. We offered a $1 Frosty and positioned Wendy’s as the hero saving them from dessert disappointment.

We quickly created video content from our Chicago activation to blast across Wendy’s social channels, showcasing Wendy’s as the hero to disappointed treat seekers. Earned media further amplified our message nationally, highlighting the consistent availability of Wendy’s Frosty compared to our competitor.

Frosty Fix was a resounding success. We effectively positioned ourselves as the reliable dessert option by capitalizing on our competitor's shortcomings. Our fix generated more than 1.17 billion earned media impressions from 1,200 placements. Beyond earned media, people were taking to social media to talk about it, and mentions of Wendy’s increased by more than 350%.

The positive impact extended beyond social media. Our research showed that frequent McDonald’s customers now viewed Wendy’s more favorably than before, increasing their likelihood of choosing Wendy’s for their next fast-food visit.

Finally, and most importantly, our efforts drove a 24% increase in Wendy’s Frosty sales year-over-year during the week of Frosty Fix.

Our efforts definitively proved that when America needs a frozen dessert fix, they need a Wendy’s Frosty.