Wendy's Made a Smartphone With a 'Hey, Wendy' Digital Assistant

People love Wendy's, and they love smartphones. Now, those two great tastes will taste great together—for the lucky few who'll win a limited-edition Wendy's Phone, loaded with a "Hey, Wendy" digital assistant.

The idea, from Wendy's Canada, is intended to boost downloads of the Wendy’s Canada mobile app. For a chance to win one of the phones, you have to download the app; find your favorite Wendy's order inside the app; and post a screenshot along with the hashtags #WendysPhone and #Contest.

One winner will be chosen each day for 20 days through Oct. 17.

The phone itself is a customized Samsung Galaxy A11 smartphone. It comes with a digital assistant that replies to "Hey, Wendy" prompts. Users can expect "some pretty clever comebacks" to certain questions, per press materials. "Just say 'Hey, Wendy' and you can set an alarm, get directions, even ask Wendy to tell you a joke. And if she feels like it, she might even do it!"

We're told the phones feature "their own branded OS skin plus the latest technology including an integrated GPS navigation system to get Canadians to their nearest Wendy's, as well as ample battery life to watch Wendy's ads, order Wendy's, and watch videos while eating Wendy's. And if they must take pictures of their food, there's no better way to do it than on the Wendy's phone, complete with front and rear facing cameras with more megapixels than the Baconator has bacon."

"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," says Josh Stein, chief creative officer at McCann Canada. "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." 

Adds Stein, "Making and giving these phones away has been a ton of fun. But what we're most excited about is having a direct line to some of Wendy's biggest fans."

CREDITS

Agency: McCann Canada  
Chief Creative Officer: Josh Stein
Associate Creative Directors: Amy O'Neill, Bill Schaefer
Agency Producer: Jacqueline Bellmore
Account Management: Patrick O'Donovan, Alexandra Lindsay
Brand Strategy: Liam Brown
Social Strategy: Brad Richardson, Phil Dos Santos