ONE MARKETER’S CRUSADE (PART I): WENDY’S IS STEALING FROM YOU
I’m a marketing guy. In my opinion, being part of a process where you can see ideas come to life and change the way consumers behave or how they feel about a brand is an opportunity that I wouldn’t change for any other career in the world. That’s why it annoys me when other marketers do or say things that completely undermine consumer trust.
So this post is Part I of my one-man crusade to improve the reputation of marketers before we’re all viewed with scorn on par with used car salesmen. I’ll add more as I come across them, but I feel compelled to start out with an instance that I find particularly reprehensible:
Wendy’s (the fast food company) is stealing from you:
Plain and simple, if you eat at Wendy’s, be prepared for them to reach in and pick your pocket. Here’s the way it works: You go up to the counter or drive through window and order your desired meal. The person taking your order will ask you “Medium or large?” And that’s exactly when the stealing happens.
The reason why this is downright theft is because the way it’s asked implies that these are your only two options – “medium” is the smallest size you can get, and “large” is the largest size you can get. And in a Starbucks-oriented world where sizes are often skewed, it wouldn’t be that surprising if the smallest size was called “medium.” But that’s not the case – there is, in fact, a “small” option that you can ask for (it’s shown on the menu), but it’s never offered when the customer makes their order.
So play it out: you go into Wendy’s with a pretty good idea that you want a double cheeseburger. You approach the counter, look at the menu, and see that the double cheeseburger is the number 3. The kid at the counter asks what you want, and you order a number 3. He says, “medium or large?” You assume those are the only two choices, and say “medium.” Bang, you’ve just been charged an additional 39 cents for extra fries and soda that you didn’t actually want (the exact amount of the up-charge is different depending on geography, but 39 cents is a pretty good average).
Maybe you go to Wendy’s for convenience and 39 cents doesn’t mean anything to you, but to the people who eat there because they can’t afford much else, 39 cents can be a big deal – especially if they go there often. And even if it was only a penny more it wouldn’t matter – the fact is that they’re stealing from you.
Admittedly, I don’t have hard evidence to prove any of this. I don’t have a memo from the corporate office that mandates their counter staff only offer customers “medium or large.” But I have been to at least two dozen Wendy’s franchises across the country, and it’s happened each and every time, including one close to home where, after arguing about the practice with the manager, I finally got her to verbally admit that they are instructed to only ask “medium or large?” when consumers order.
I’d have no problem with them asking “Small, medium or large?” or even “Would you like to upsize that to a medium or large?” Then at least consumers would know that they have a choice. But Wendy’s knows full well that if they make it clear there’s a less expensive size, then more people would select that option. And when you think about how many customers Wendy’s serves each day, and assume that at least 50% of them are paying an additional 39 cents simply because they’re not be given all the information, that’s a hell of a lot of extra money Wendy’s is generating. I have no problem with companies making an honest profit, but this practice is far from honest.
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I can clearly see how this would tick you off… and I couldnt agree more…it’s shady!
There are hordes of people out there that suddenly and recently have found themselves on a much tighter budget. So it makes me kind of sad to think that Wendy’s would partake in that kind of bs.
People tend to stick with brands that have been around a long time and that they’re familiar with. At least i do. So the thought that a fast food brand such as Wendys (they’ve been around a loooong time now) is requiring their Managers to implement such nonsense disappoints me.
Makes me recall my grandparents. They were generous, loving but penny conscious people. Gram would calculate any check received to make sure it was correct lol. Funny enough, gram caught errors pretty often! Anyway, my gram and gramp used to stop at Wendy’s a lot on various shopping excursions in Long Island and New Jersey. Gram thoroughly enjoyed a good Wendy’s baked potato, gramp would chow down on a large cup of chili. That was their usual. I bet my Gram would’ve noticed something like that and then purposefully order a small just to see if she could get it and save that 39 cents. However, not everyone out there is as shrewd as my Gram was…and the simple truth here is that those people are indeed being taken advantage of to a certain extent.
39 cents is 39 cents. It adds up, and if we have the option to save it, then that option should be offered.
Thats ridiculous!! you talk like you eat at Wendy’s everyday!! If you would eat at Wendy’s every day, then of course this 39 cents would add up. But if you did that then you would be a fat hog!!
I can’t believe you people are complaining about 39 cents. If you look on the menu, it clearly says that all value meals come in a small size. So if you pay attention to things and you are smart, you can clearly and very easily say “no”. This article is ridiculous and makes no sense!
Jon – the point is not about whether 39 cents makes any difference to me or not, nor does it matter how often I eat there. The point is that as a company, they are taking deliberate measures to purposely “trick” people into paying more for upgrades that they might not really want. Suppose that around the county, 100,000 people a day (and my guess is that 100,000 is a VERY conservative number) order a “medium” because they believe that “medium” is the smallest size they can order. That would be an additional $39,000 per day that the Wendy’s corporation is making due to not providing all of the information.
You are correct, though – as I said in my original post, the fact that there is a small size available is stated on the menu. But people are often creatures of habits, and fast food chains aren’t places where consumers go to try all the variations of food that are available. Most often, people know what they want before they go there, they know the number of the meal, and they order it without needing to look at the menu. I remember going to Wendy’s years ago and ordering what I would always order: “A number 5, plain with cheese.” The person at the counter would ask me if I “wanted to Biggie size it.” I had no problem with that – at least I was made aware that there would be an additional charge for a larger size. When Wendy’s changed their methods from offering to “Biggie” size meals to asking “medium or large?” I had long since looked at a menu.
The bottom line, Jon, is that the 39 cents is inconsequential, and it’s no worse than if a car dealership did something similar that cost consumers an additional $1,000. It’s the practice that I don’t appreciate – the deliberate attempt by a company to make their customers pay more for a product through deceptive means.
But this is the thing.. Wendy’s is not stealing your money. This is a very common marketing tactic for a lot of restaurants. I agree with you that it is very deceptive and that the mark up on the items are extremely High. However, it is just as much the customers fault, if not more. For saying, “Ehh, it is only 39 cents more, why not” When they can just say “no” I will keep it small. Its just as easy. WE are also in a society of obesity and people eat until they puke as well. So a customer’s prospective on this is probably “Only 39 cents more to get almost double what I ordered, sure why not” This topic is not really worth getting ticked off about, because you can’t control the tactics of the company and you really cannot control the thoughts of the customers. Sometimes in situations like this, you can’t just blame the company. You also need to blame the temptation of the customers and their lack of understanding and appreciating money. It is a lost cause to worry about something like this. The company is not thinking about the customer they are thinking about how to make money. That is why it is called Marketing, Correct??? What are some Marketing techniques you use??? Because I am sure not all of them are without deception.
I’m sorry, Jon – I still think you’re missing the point. This isn’t about obesity or about consumers being frivolous with their money. It’s about being given the correct information. If somebody wants to pay more for a larger size – fine. That’s their choice. But then ask them upfront, “would you like small, medium or large?” That tells consumers that there are three choices. But simply saying “medium or large?” implies that those are the only two options available. Even if only one person is taken in by that, it’s a wrong practice. Wendy’s is aware that by only giving two options, consumers will likely choose between those two, not realizing there is a third, less expensive option. They do that because they know full well that by offering the small option, more people would choose that one.
And actually, Jon, no – while I agree that part of a marketer’s job is to put the best image of a brand across to consumers, I can sleep at night knowing that I don’t get involved in the kind of marketing that deliberately tries to deceive people.
So your “On Sale Now” for your book is not deceiving???? I thought your book was on sale, but I found out it isn’t. Small is an option, it is the basic option! Why do they have to repeat it, because people are stupid and don’t realize that?? So how is Wendy’s not giving them correct information? The way you say it makes it seem like they are not giving you the option to buy a small size, but in reality they are. Have you done a study to see if giving consumers a smaller options, actually saying that option, that they would pick that. Because if I am really hungry and they gave me that option, it wouldn’t change my mind.
Also, you are contradicting yourself by saying they say “Would you like that Medium or Large?” and then in the last response to my post you but they would ask you if you want to “Biggie Size it” which they are required to say, because at Wendy’s if they don’t you get something for free (I don’t really know what that is, because I haven’t been there in a while). But by them saying “Would you like Biggie Size it?” Then they are simply asking if you would like to upgrade from their basic, which is small, to a medium/Large. So get it straight, is it “Do you want to Biggie Size It?” or is it “Medium or Large?” Implying that they already aware that the basic meal is with a small fry and small drink. Hardees does the same thing as well.
Jon – I actually don’t have time for a full response right now (I’ll come back to it tomorrow), but I wanted to point out one mistake you’ve made: the books are on sale, as a small amount of research will show. While they are not yet in physical stores, they are all currently available on Amazon. Here is the link to the Perspectives on Marketing book:
http://www.amazon.com/Perspectives-Marketing-Jason-I-Miletsky/dp/1598638718/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1239494812&sr=8-1
You’ll find the other three book on sale there as well. Note the large words in green that say “In Stock.”
Have a great holiday weekend!
Jason – “For sale” and “On sale” are idioms with entirely different connotations to consumers. Perhaps that is the deceit that Jon spoke of, not whether or not the book is physically available for purchase. As for Medium/Large/Biggie, I could care less, but it sure gets under my skin when I’m told something is “on sale” when the product is, in fact, selling for full price.
(Jon – Correct me if I’m wrong)
Katie – thanks for your reply. If the medium and large issue doesn’t matter to you – well, that’s your opinion, and you are absolutely entitled to it. My opinion is that it’s the marketers responsibility to present all the information to the consumer in order to build trust. So if the menu states that there are three sizes available, then the Wendy’s cashier could simply ask “what size would you like?” instead of being instructed to only offer the two more expensive sizes as if they were the only two sizes available.
As for my books….again, I’m sorry to disagree with you, but if you would check the link I posted in my last response on this topic (and in fact, all the links for the books on this site), you’ll see that the books are available to purchase on Amazon (FOR sale), and new copies sell for below the cover price (ON sale) – $22.79 vs. the cover price of $29.99.
ACtually – Starbucks does the same thing!
Starbucks asks you if you want a Tall, Grande, or Vente coffee. Less known is that Starbucks also sells a ‘Short’ – because they never offer it!
You can get a ‘Short’ coffee, expresso, cappucino, etc. And it will cost you less!
Is this stealing – dunno, all I can say is caveat emptor!