McDonald's Teases the Return of the Snack Wrap

McDonald's (MCD) - Get Free Report has a very active Twitter presence that it uses to tease returning menu items and other promotions like its Halloween buckets. The fast-food chain has been very playful on the platform, occasionally mentioning some of its past menu items that fans have begged it to bring back.

In August, the company literally used its Twitter feed as a sort of informal poll as to what past favorites should make a comeback. McDonald's posted a Tweet that simply said "Bring back ____," which led to a viral flood of people responding.  

Some customers made jokes (nobody really wants McSpaghetti or Fish McBites back) but many fans lobbied hard for their favorites. One of the most popular choices, Breakfast Bagels, or more specifically the Steak Breakfast Bagel, has actually been brought back by the chain.

No formal announcement was made, but the steak, bacon, and sausage bagel sandwiches have been popping up on McDonald's menus all around the country, It's not a national rollout just yet, but it does look like the company has taken the feedback seriously.

Now. McDonald's has shared a Tweet that will give fans of another beloved item hope that the most-requested answer to its "Bring back" post may make a comeback soon.

McDonald's Gives Hope (or Trolls its Fans)

Either McDonald's wants to anger its biggest fans or it's getting ready to make a big move. The chain shared the following post on Twitter on Nov. 17.

"its easier to order snack wraps than it is to get these tickets."

The chain was, of course, making a bit of a joke about Taylor Swift concert tickets, but it did so in a way that will give hope to fans of its Snack Wraps line.

Snack Wraps have been off the chain's U.S. menu since 2016 when franchisees pushed to get rid of them because they were complicated to make. It's not that it was actually hard to make them, but they required processes that slowed down the overall kitchen.

The line first launched in 2006 giving the chain an option for customers who were sort of hungry but did not want a full meal. A Snack Wrap, -- a tortilla filled with a Chicken Select (a piece of fried chicken), lettuce, cheese, and ranch sauce -- was literally meant to be a snack. The idea was that people might eat these during the hours between lunch and dinner or after dinner. 

McDonald's Snack Wraps Still Exist

If you really want a Snack Wrap, you can still find them on the menu in Canada. They have also appeared around the world in a variety of different forms. Adding them back to the menu requires that McDonald's also bring back the Chicken Select, another product that it does sell in various parts of the world. 

McDonald's has shown that it's willing to bring back items simply for fan service. That makes sense at a time when the chain has been working to grow it loyalty program.

"Loyalty remained a significant growth driver for the quarter, in part fueled by the camp McDonald's promotion," CFO Ian Borden said during the chain's third-quarter earnings call. "A year after the launch of my McDonald's rewards in the U.S. we continue to increase digital customer frequency quarter-after-quarter. Of the customers that have engaged with the app over the last year, about two-thirds have been active in the last 90 days."

The challenge is that McDonald's, as a franchised business needs to not only serve its customers, it needs to keep franchisees happy. Adding extra work in the kitchen has never been popular with franchise owners, so it's likely that Snack Wraps will return if something else goes away or the chain can invent an easier way to make them.