Wendy’s takes a dig at McDonald’s French fries to promote its ‘Hot & Crispy Fries’

American fast food chain Wendy’s, in a new campaign for its ‘Hot & Crispy Fries’, puts down McDonald’s, saying that its fries are almost preferred 2 to 1 over the ones served at the latter.

The campaign guarantees that Wendy’s fries will always be hot and crispy, or else will be replaced for free. These ads are not for the Indian market.

The commercial starts with a voice-over asking the oft-heard question in international fast food chains, ‘You want fries with that?’ It is followed by an image of soggy fries, saying, ‘Nobody wants cold and soggy fries with that’.

The brand makes itself stand out in the commercial with a glossy storefront and a voice chirping from a digital speaker system, “What would you like with your Hot & Crispy Fries?” This is in contrast to a rundown building in a trash-littered parking lot, representing its competitors.

CNN Business had reported in August that the fries have been created in a way that they retain more heat and keep its crispiness longer, as compared to its predecessor. This was done as more people shifted their ordering preferences to drive-thrus and delivery because of the COVID pandemic.

"What we've done is balance the cut of the fry and kept a little bit of the skin of the potato on the fry to be able to drive flavour. We used a batter system that allows us to be able to maintain crispiness, both when they're fresh and hot out of the fryer as well as several minutes later," Wendy's president Kurt Kane told CNN Business in an exclusive interview.

Wendy's spent the last four years researching how to upgrade its fries. About 20 different designs were considered before finally landing on these ones.

Wendy's is known for trolling its competitors in the past as well. In 2018, it launched a national TV campaign calling out McDonald’s for using frozen beef patties in its hamburgers. Last year also, when the brand launched its breakfast menu, it took a dig at its competitors by putting up people’s tweets mocking Burger King and McDonald’s on billboards. One of the tweets read, “Wendy’s is making breakfast now, meanwhile Burger King is still trying to figure out this whole ‘lunch’ thing everyone’s talking about.”

In an interview with afaqs!, Indrajit Ghosh, VP and global head - marketing communication and design, Rebel Foods, which sealed a strategic partnership with Wendy’s to develop and operate its cloud kitchens pan-India, said that he aims to make it (Wendy’s) a Rs 150-200 crore brand in the country.