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Undaunted, McDonald’s returns to Twitter

After its #McDStories hashtag promotion failed, McDonald's tried again on Twitter with #littlethings.

 

Lauren Rae Orsini

Tech

Posted on Jan 25, 2012   Updated on Jun 2, 2021, 10:17 pm CDT

Oh McDonald’s, will you ever learn?

After the fast-food franchise flubbed a Twitter promotion yesterday, we cited three other examples of failed corporate tweet efforts. But rather than taking a deserved break from Twitter, McDonald’s dove right back in.

When the company asked customers to share #McDStories yesterday, they got a lot of quips about bad burgers and diabetes. Yet McDonald’s is back serving up a second Twitter hashtag, #littlethings.

“No line at the bank, a large tax refund, & those extra fries at the bottom of the bag. What are some #LittleThings that bring you joy?” tweeted @McDonalds today.

So far responses have been astoundingly tame.

“Finding a $10 dollar bill in your jeans. @McDonalds #littlethings,” tweeted @xmandingox.

“a good cup of coffee in the morning. #littlethings @McDonalds,” wrote @shannonsmith92.

As the campaign has progressed, however, users have moved beyond listing the little things to praising the McDonald’s social media department for their “bravery.”

“.@McDonalds show intrepid bravery by launching #littlethings campaign following #McDStories fiasco,” tweeted @scosteloe.

“Perseverance in the face of adversity. #littlethings,” tweeted @lskrocks with a retweet about the new campaign.

Others debated whether McDonald’s has the right to use the #littlethings hashtag; Hilton’s @DoubleTree hotel brand announced a campaign using the same hashtag two weeks ago.

“Can Twitter offer exclusivity on a hashtag? McD’s jumped on #littlethings after @Doubletree ran a paid campaign,” noted @ToddWasserman, a journalist for Mashable.

Ah, it’s the #littlethings that matter—like checking on whether your hashtag is original.

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*First Published: Jan 25, 2012, 6:15 pm CST