Here's How Much That Popeyes Chicken Sandwich Tweet Was Actually Worth

When Popeyes introduced its chicken sandwich nationwide in August 2019, consumers and competitors went absolutely bonkers — and for good reason. The new menu item became such an overnight sensation that it sold out everywhere in less than two weeks, according to The Guardian. The famous meal, which consists of a crispy fried chicken cutlet topped with zippy mayo and pickles nestled between a buttered brioche bun, now ranks among the products that, shall we say, broke the internet. Many customers lined up outside their local Popeyes stores for hours just to get a taste of the latest poultry superstar.

The hype kicked off when Popeyes announced the legendary launch on Twitter on August 12, 2019 with the caption, "Chicken. Brioche. Pickles. New. Sandwich. Popeyes. Nationwide. So. Good. Forgot. How. Speak. In. Complete. Sandwiches. I mean, sentences."

After a week, in an attempt to boast about being the place for the original chicken sandwich, Chick-fil-A tweeted, "Bun + Chicken + Pickles = all the [heart emoji] for the original." A couple hours later, Popeyes responded via Quote RT with the question, "... y'all good?" — and fans yet again went wild. So, how much was this flippant social media post actually worth for the brand? Turns out we now know.

In the world of social media, even the most basic engagement metrics can not only help drive brand awareness but also increase store visits and purchases. Popeyes now viral tweet — which was retweeted nearly 85,000 times and garnered more than 290,000 likes — led to the brand enjoying one of its highest sales periods in history, according to Restaurant Business Online.

Cision, a trusted public relations software services provider that measures the success of PR initiatives, reported that Popeyes rose to the #1 Google search query, yielding 8 billion impressions worth a whopping $87 million (via Shorty Awards). Additionally, Popeyes gained more followers on Twitter during the week following the famous tweet than during the first half of 2019 plus all of 2017 and 2018 combined, as Forbes reported. And as far as in-store transactions for the chicken sandwich, sales rose significantly — 16 times more than initially estimated by the company.

Although the tender, spicy, handheld delight sold out way more quickly than anticipated, its comeback was arguably just as succulent as its launch. The Popeyes chicken sandwich returned that year on National Sandwich Day, November 3, which just so happened to fall on a Sunday in 2019, per Thrillist. Funnily enough, Chick-fil-A stores are famously closed on Sundays to keep holy the Sabbath. And the sandwich wars have continued ever since.