Thread by @timjcarden

In 2018, Burger King pulled off the biggest heist in food history.

They stole millions of McDonald's customers using one sneaky trick.

The result? 1.5 Million app downloads in 9 days.

Here's how they did it:

In 2018, Burger King was in a pickle.

McDonald's had 14,000 US locations. Burger King? Just 7,000.

They couldn't compete on convenience. So they decided to compete on creativity.

Enter "The Whopper Detour campaign":

The concept was simple, yet brilliant:

Offer a 1-cent Whopper to anyone within 600 feet of a McDonald's.

But here's the twist: customers had to order through the BK app.

Burger King spent a year developing this technology:

It was no mean feat:

• Geofencing all 14,000 McDonald's locations
• Ensuring the app could handle massive traffic
• Creating a mobile ordering system from scratch

But the payoff was worth every penny...

On December 4, 2018, the campaign launched.

Social media exploded. News outlets picked up the story.

People were driving to McDonald's... to order Burger King.

It wasn't just marketing. It was performance art.

And by the end of the campaign?

The results were staggering:

• 50 million views on Twitter alone
• 1.5 million app downloads in 9 days
• 3.3 billion earned media impressions
• BK app jumps from #686 to #1 in App Store

Burger King had turned McDonald's biggest strength into a weakness.

But it wasn't just about the numbers.

The campaign showcased Burger King's brand personality:

• Clever
• Irreverent
• Willing to take risks

They weren't just selling burgers. They were selling an attitude.

The marketing world took notice:

• Grand Clio at Clio Awards
• Best of Show at One Show
• Grand Prix at Cannes Lions

Burger King had created more than an ad. They'd created a cultural moment.

The long-term impact?

• Stronger brand loyalty
• A new playbook for digital marketing
• Increased app usage and mobile orders

Burger King proved:

No matter who you're competing with, in the digital age, creativity can level the playing field...

And this isn't just about big brands.

The same principles apply universally to whatever you're building:

Blindly spending on traditional marketing is foolish. Instead, embrace creativity.

Think about how you can generate maximum, long-lasting impact without spending millions:

If you're a founder today trying to grow your business, you need to embrace unconventional methods.

Traditional marketing is getting expensive + ineffective.

The future is organic.

So we've spent the last 1.5 years perfecting a new way to get your vision out into the world...

And this is why this story resonated with me.

We've helped countless founders beat the large incumbents who are set in their ways.

Instead of pumping money into traditional marketing, these founders are building personal brands. Creating authentic content.

Why?

Because today's people buy from people.

We've seen Logan Paul sell energy drinks. Charli D'Amelio sell mattresses. MrBeast sell chocolate.

They created content first, let people get familiar with them and took advantage of that.

You need to do the same:

Creating content is this generation's real estate.

If you're a founder, it creates an asset that pays dividends for life.

You can use it to attract customers, investors, business partners, and opportunities... on autopilot.

It's this generation's Burger King masterclass. So:

Founders: We’ll build your entire personal brand on 𝕏 without you lifting a finger.

To date, we've already helped 50+ founders get 2 Billion combined views.

Interested in how we can do this for you? Book a call here:

shorturl.at/2Y4hM

Thanks for reading!

A bit about me:

1.5 years ago, I dropped everything to build personal brands for founders on 𝕏.

Since then, we’ve scaled to a team of 20+ across the world.

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Have a wonderful day!