Why Wendy's Square-Burger Marketing Scheme Almost Backfired

Wendy's once served square-shaped hamburger patties as a way to showcase the juicy meat and make preparation more efficient. However, this made many customers skeptical.

Having become accustomed to the round patties from other fast food chains, people thought Wendy's burger looked unnatural and weird.

Some said the square shape actually did the opposite of what it was intended to do — it made the burgers actually look more processed and of less quality.

When Wendy's merged with parent company Triarc in 2008, they listened to the complaints of customers regarding the squareness of the burger and decided to make a slight change.

In 2011, Wendy's rounded the edges of their burgers just a tiny bit to give them a less square appearance while still preserving the visibility of the meat.