Denny's Apple-Beats Tweet is a Grand Slam

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Denny's employee Maria Hidalgo carries a tray with free Grand Slam breakfasts for customers in Hialeah, Fla., Tuesday, Feb. 9, 2010.

Image: Alan Diaz/Associated Press

By Todd Wasserman2014-05-30 01:16:47 UTC

Denny's served up a perfect tweet to tie in to the Apple-Beats deal, the latest in a long line of social media wins for the diner chain.

The barb, like others from Denny's Twitter account in recent months, was created by Erwin Penland, a Greenville, South Carolina-based agency that has handled the account since last August.

Kevin Purcer, Senior Vice President and director of digital strategy, at the agency says the idea is to emulate the experience of a late-night chat with friends. "You're sitting in a Denny's booth, just hanging out," he says. "You end up talking about all kinds of stuff. Sometimes it gets a little silly."

The volley of silly tweets, which often tie in with the discussion of the day, have doubled the brand's Twitter following over the past year or so. Alan Hanson, content editor and community manager, says he thinks fans appreciate a break from the usual brand repartee on Twitter. "So much social media activity is like 'Do you like burgers? Retweet if so.' It's pretty pointless."

Here are some of the agency's greatest hits on behalf of the brand:

After Auburn's defeat in the BCS National Championship Game in January:

Following the sudden popularity of the \_(ツ)_/¯ emoticon last week:

See also: 19 Social Media Facts That Every Marketer Should Know

For Coachella:

True Detective:

Apple's launch of the gold iPhone 5S:

It's not clear, however, if there's a direct link between the funny Twitter feed and more butts in Denny's booths. However, last month the company reported its biggest growth in same-store sales — a key metric for the restaurant business — in seven years.

Ron Paul, president and CEO of Technomic, a fast food research firm, says Denny's is one of the few players in the "family restaurant" category to be thriving these days. "It has to be their marketing efforts," he says. "There hasn't been any other kind of change." That said, Denny's rival IHOP appears to be doing just as well, though, and its Twitter feed is more conventional.

Topics: Advertising, Business, Denny's, Marketing, twittter