Mike Harris, PR expert, on the current fast food advertising wars: “playing it safe is often the riskiest move you can make”

The vast majority of Americans reject violence between rivaling politicians or sports players and teams, as well as cruel verbal attacks. However, they do enjoy a good dustup through “trash talk” when it’s done lightheartedly with wit and humor.

The same holds true with brand rivalries and companies know that if they can strike a chord with customers with dig at their competitor that will make people laugh, the rewards can pay off. Especially if it creates a cultural conversation and gains traction on social media making their ad dollars spent go even further.

“We’re in an attention economy—playing it safe is often the riskiest move you can make,” public relations expert Mike Harris told ADWEEK.

The high-risk advertising tactic that can reap big rewards

While there have been numerous rivalries over the years in different industries, fast food companies having a go at the competition has been staple. One of the latest examples came after McDonald’s released a video of CEO Chris Kempczinski “enjoying” the brand’s new Big Arch burger.

The promo quickly gained attention on social media, and not the good kind. It earned a spot during the monologue on the Late Show with Stephen Colbert.

And the presidents of Burger King and Wendy’s put out their own videos enjoying burgers from their restaurants. Instead of taking a tepid nibble off the side like Kempczinski, they took solid mouthfuls and appeared to truly enjoy the experience.

Wendy’s went a step further taking a dig at McDonald’s soft serve ice cream machines often not working with Pete Suerken saying: “Of course you’ve got to have a Frosty with a burger,” as he walks up to the machine, adding: “Is this set up today? Oh wait, our machines are always working!”

Last year, Wendy’s did a cheeky spot poking fun at McDonald’s about the same issue titled ‘Wendy’s Frosty Fix’, where the company parked trucks that served Frosties in front of McDonald’s locations where their machines weren’t working.

“Brands have watched challengers punch up at category leaders forever. What’s changed is that even the big guys are realizing a well-aimed jab gets you more coverage than a campaign you spent a year and a fortune building,” explained Harris. “Social media turned competitive trash talk into a spectator sport. And brands are finally showing up to play.”

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