Denny’s ‘zoom in’ tweet is selling like hotcakes with more than 75K retweets, 100K likes & 5K new followers

Denny’s has won Twitter once again with a tweet instructing followers to “zoom in on the syrup.”

Playing off the now popular ‘zoom in’ meme, the tweet includes an image of the brand’s iconic pancake stack and directs followers to zoom in on the photo, leading them on a tour around the image — from the syrup to each corner of the image, and then back to the butter.

At last check, the tweet has generated 1.6K replies, 84K retweets and 114K likes, making it Denny’s most popular tweet of all time less than 24 hours after being posted. (Prior to this tweet, Denny’s most popular tweet — a parody of the lyrics to Chedda Da’s “Flicka da Wrist” song — had earned 48K retweets and 41K likes.)

In addition to driving record engagement, a spokesperson for Denny’s says the brand has gained more than 5,000 new followers since posting the tweet — well-beyond the brand’s normal growth rate on Twitter.

zoom in on the syrup pic.twitter.com/omRBupjrXq

— Denny’s (@DennysDiner) March 1, 2017

“This was a great example of our social media team both clearly knowing our brand and closely paying attention to topics that are trending and gaining popularity with our guests and ​fans,” says Denny’s CMO John Dillon, who commented on the tweet over email. “When the team saw how people were reacting to the new ‘Zoom In’ meme, they quickly drafted a version that fit the Denny’s voice, but in a way that stayed true to the actual meme.”

Dillon says his brand’s goal is to make sure that the conversations happening in Denny’s restaurant booths are also happening within Denny’s digital arenas.

“That’s the goal of our entire team. And I’d say it’s clearly working,” says Dillon, “There are now plenty of great conversations on the Denny’s ‘Zoom Tweet’ now happening in both the digital space AND in our restaurants across the country.”

Dillon is right, as evidenced with replies like this, the brand is meeting its social goals:

This made me laugh. Loudly. https://t.co/4j27jpHw1i

— Chelsea Clinton (@ChelseaClinton) March 2, 2017

@DennysDiner The only thing better than this tweet would be if you knocked on my door with a stack of pancakes. Thanks for the distraction!

— Tracy Maher (@tracym) March 2, 2017

Denny’s CMO credits both his in-house marketing team and agency with keeping the brand’s social content relevant.

“We have an outstanding​ social team, that includes members of our marketing team along with strategists​, writers and designers at our agency partner, Erwin Penland, th​at, just like the Denny’s brand, ​are ‘always on’ — looking for trending stories, pop culture moments​ or popular memes that allow us to join in on conversations people across America may be having.”

We won’t spoil the fun of the tweet, but here’s the photo if you want to ‘zoom in on the syrup’ and see where it leads you:

Opinions expressed in this article are those of the guest author and not necessarily Marketing Land. Staff authors are listed here.

About The Author

Amy Gesenhues

Amy Gesenhues was a senior editor for Third Door Media, covering the latest news and updates for Marketing Land, Search Engine Land and MarTech Today. From 2009 to 2012, she was an award-winning syndicated columnist for a number of daily newspapers from New York to Texas. With more than ten years of marketing management experience, she has contributed to a variety of traditional and online publications, including MarketingProfs, SoftwareCEO, and Sales and Marketing Management Magazine. Read more of Amy's articles.