Wendy's made its own phones—'Hey Wendy' voice assistant included

Limited edition offer from McCann Canada promotes its mobile app

Published On
Sep 29, 2021
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Wendy's is promoting a revamp of its mobile app in Canada by creating its own limited edition smartphones—and they even include a digital assistant that you can summon up with the words "Hey, Wendy."

McCann Canada created the phones, which are being given away via Twitter for 20 days only. The phone is a re-badged Samsung Galaxy, skinned with Wendy's branding and featuring the "Hey Wendy" voice assistant, who we're told will respond to questions with some "sassy zingers" in the brand's tone of voice. There are also some Wendy's "Easter eggs" hidden on the phone to amuse users, and the FAQ section of the website is also worth a read: questions include "Why did you make a phone?" Response: "We just felt like it." There's also "Can it make calls?" Answer: "Yeah it's a phone."

To get hold of one, customers need to download the new Wendy's app, heart their favorite order, screenshot it and tweet it using the #wendysphone hashtag.

McCann Canada developed the concept and the launch campaign, which includes sponsored ads on Spotify and Twitter, a branded emoji and a livestream event. PR and influencer outreach is being handled by Ketchum, and media is handled by Initiative.

“Launching a mobile app in a super competitive market wasn’t enough of a challenge for us, so we decided to enter the mobile phone industry as well,” said Josh Stein, chief creative officer at McCann Canada, in a statement. “I’m just kidding. We did it because we saw an opportunity to make something expected more interesting: People expect apps—but they don’t expect the phone to come with it."