The American Egg Board (AEB) recently joined with Wendy’s to help further the brand’s expansion into the breakfast daypart, partnering on a custom social media influencer program.
“Wendy’s was built on fresh, real ingredients — and our recently launched breakfast menu is no exception,” said John Li, vice president of culinary innovation at Wendy’s. “Our partnership through the AEB’s new program helped us expand on consumer demand for a high-quality breakfast by highlighting the inclusion of real, fresh-cracked eggs on our breakfast sandwiches and inspiring drive-thru and delivery orders across our key markets.”
Wendy’s launched its breakfast menu in March 2020 and has featured the use of real eggs in its promotions since it launched last year. The use of real eggs is listed first in the FAQ on its breakfast landing page.
For the program, the AEB enlisted social media influencers in six Wendy’s markets to promote the restaurant’s new breakfast sandwiches made with real eggs. Instagram posts and stories featuring freshly cracked eggs were published on Wednesday and encouraged followers to celebrate #Weggsday (an AEB social marketing campaign).
“We were so excited that Wendy’s was developing new breakfast menu items featuring freshly cracked eggs and knew we wanted to partner to support their efforts and add our marketing prowess to help turn up the volume! The Incredible Egg fits perfectly within the Wendy’s promise of fresh, high-quality, real ingredients and we’re proud to support these incredible new menu items and start this new friendship off so strongly,” said Emily Metz, president and CEO of the American Egg Board.
Wendy’s has currently been promoting sale specials on its breakfast sandwiches, including a buy one get one at discounted cost sale. AEB considers this a win for eggs. “Promotions like this sell more eggs by driving traffic and also encourage trial, which can drive repeat purchases,” said Marc Dresner, director or integrated communications with AEB.
Supporting foodservice
The partnership illustrates one way the AEB supports the foodservice industry. The AEB’s efforts now also include solutions to help foodservice operators drive traffic during the pandemic.
“The AEB has a long and established record of providing custom strategic solutions to meet the unique needs of top national QSR partners, like Wendy’s — and we’ve shown how eggs can help drive business results,” Metz said.
The AEB recently introduced a foodservice recovery program encompassing enhanced partnership support for large chains like Wendy’s; resources and tools to take advantage of off-premise opportunities such as drive-thru, carryout and delivery; and a new “Boosting Breakfast Business” program for smaller and independent operators that have been hit by the pandemic.
“Restaurants that can meet the consumer where they are today by capitalizing on off-premise options and promoting use of real, authentic ingredients with strong consumer appeal, like eggs, may reap near- and long-term benefits — including capturing loyalty and market share. And we’re helping them do that,” said Nate Hedtke, vice president of insights and innovation at the AEB.
In addition to providing custom support to national QSR partners, the AEB has developed a suite of resources featuring eggs to help foodservice operators attract consumers and drive traffic.
- Boosting Breakfast Business – a program designed to help smaller chains and independent operators reinvigorate the breakfast daypart with solutions spanning how to make, menu and market.
- Incredible Egg Trends Special Edition – a special edition of the foodservice trend series devoted to optimizing an off-premise menu with crave-able items for consumers on-the-go.
- Made with REAL Eggs – the certification seal enables foodservice operators to highlight the use of real egg ingredients in menu items and has been shown to significantly increase purchase intent.
When asked how important some of these programs will be as COVID restrictions in some states begin to lift, Dresner said, “It’s impossible to predict the future, but in the immediate term the AEB is focused on supporting the off-premise opportunity by helping operators across the country optimize menus and marketing with eggs to maximize carryout, delivery and drive-through traffic. These programs have been very well received by the foodservice industry, and we are grateful to be able to support our foodservice partners during these challenging times.”
