Why KFC won’t chicken out as a Chicken QSR

KFC, yes, the one you know, has closed down hundreds of its outlets in the UK. And it is for no other reason than – don’t wait for it – chicken! Rather, and more accurately, the outlets are being shut down for the shortage of chicken, an integral item of the chicken-based offerings. This is unlike the reasons for having lately closed down some outlets in Nigeria.

The UK problem only arose because KFC switched its Delivery Contract over to DHL, who’s had some teething problems delivering fresh chicken to all of the 900 KFC outlets; with some of the remainder outlets now having to close down, operate reduced hours or limited menu, more because KFC says “it would not compromise on quality”.

On the lighter side, should we then resort to a name change to save the business? How about Kentucky Fried All? Or Kentucky Possibly Chicken? Or even Kentucky May-Not-Have Chicken? Or do we just say Kentucky Fried Choice, if only to keep the renowned KFC acronym.

More seriously, there definitely will be implications for this shock in the operations of the QSR as they’ve rarely seen; there will be sundry implications for the brand, for the business, and for the chicken-based platform.

Implication for Brand

There are wide and varied implications for the KFC brand on this issue, and one of it - that of perception - is already being so efficiently managed by the global chicken icon as to be expected, not with their access to world-class PR representation. However, customers might have to live the next few weeks, or days, considering other chicken options if they must get their favourite chicken in their diet.

Implication for Business

In the meantime, till DHL get their chicken-distribution channels right and running, the share of pounds accruable to KFC will shift to some competing brands, non-competing brands, even as some customers might hold back from spending the same on other chicken options.

Implication for Platform

All chicken-based QSRs are bound to be shocked, and share from the perception people might end up having on the possibility of reaching their favourite outlets and being unable to have chicken.

The positive side however, is that several competing brands, even in their native home of America, are standing-by taking on the gauntlet, including Popeyes and Church’s; even McDonald’s have great nuggets, as much as you might wish to argue whether that fits into straight chicken craving.

In spite of the foregoing, Colonel Sanders remains smiling, knowing it is unlikely any time soon, that KFC will chicken out as a Chicken QSR.

By ‘Dele Dele-Olukoju, Marketing Communication strategist, and publisher of the online Marketing Communication Digest. He writes from Lagos, Nigeria.

Connecting your brand to your consumer's Lifestyle

Three Lifestyle Brands marketers can look to for inspiration:

It’s not about products; it’s about experiences and how things make us feel.

Gone are the days when you could create a really beautiful ad and serve it in front of your consumers’ face like a carrot dangling on a stick. Even if it’s the perfect ad — being served up to the perfectly targeted person — marketers need to do more: they need to create the perfect experience for their consumers. Who does a fantastic job of this? Lifestyle brands!

By definition, lifestyle brands have a deep understanding of their target consumer’s way of life. They understand the type of experiences that they crave, as well as the people, places and things that motivate and inspire them. It’s not simply a compilation of their demographic data with some key “interests” and “likes” thrown into the targeting keyword list — it’s understanding their consumers fully as an anthropologist would understand a culture.

And then once that is determined, it’s about inserting your brand — not necessarily your product — into that culture so your brand and products become key contributors to your consumer’s way of life.

Think of traditional marketing as the YouTube pre-roll ad, and then the lifestyle brand marketing as the actual YouTube video your consumer is trying to find in the first place. Your consumer is looking for the YouTube video because they want to share it out on their social channels as a means of demonstrating who they are and how they want to be seen to their friends.

With that extremely tall order in mind, here are some exemplary lifestyle brands that can inspire you to push your brand — whatever brand that may be — further into your consumer’s culture and way of life.

Nike+

Nike launched its fitness tracker app, Nike+, a few years ago now, but the core idea of it is still just as compelling. Not only did it focus on the lifestyle of the consumer, in this case running, but it also worked to optimize the experience by allowing people to share their running routes. But the really smart part was bringing in the community. Once someone “liked” a running route, the user would hear cheers and applause in their headphones — a great motivator when you’re struggling through the last mile. What Nike did here was remove itself from the experience while also incorporating the encouragement of users’ friends and optimizing their run.

Sour Patch Kids

How did a piece of candy become a social currency for fans of indie musicians in Brooklyn and Austin? Through the clever creation of The Patch. The Patch is a brownstone building in Brooklyn, the #BrooklynPatch, and a residence in Austin, #AustinPatch was also built so that traveling musicians could stay free of charge for as long as they want. Instead of marketing the brand as a lifestyle a person could assimilate into, they reversed it and structured their brand to assimilate into an already existing lifestyle their target audience thought was “cool”: an awesome music scene of emerging artists.

GoPro

GoPro optimized the experience that their consumers are already partaking in — taking amazing pictures and videos — and created the GoPro Awards, handing up to $5 million for the best photos and videos shot with its camera. The smart part of this idea is that GoPro isn’t looking at this just as another way to build customer loyalty; they see it as an opportunity to invest in the talented people who are using their products — and they want to invest in those people.

Don’t “Always Be Closing”

“Glengarry Glen Ross,” David Mamet’s two-act play that was first staged in 1983 and then brought to life as a Hollywood movie in 1992, featured one of the most memorable sales and marketing catchphrases of the past 25 years. In the movie, Alec Baldwin plays a character who doesn’t exist in the original play and only appears in one scene yet sets the tone for the entire movie with the mantra of any sales team: “A.B.C., Always Be Closing.”

Lifestyle brands implement a strategy that is the complete opposite of “A.B.C.” Their marketing doesn’t explicitly imply the selling of their product; rather, it’s about figuring out creative ways that their brand can enhance their consumers’ way of life. It’s about finding the “lifestyle secret sauce” that connects their brand with their consumers’ daily lives. If you can look at your brand through the same lens, then you can discover how to best resonate with your target market and “Always Be Closing” on your consumer leads.

POST WRITTEN BY: Alex Frias

Alex Frias is Co-Founder and President of Track Marketing Group, a brand agency that blends event experiences and social conversations.

lots of love

hi all you,
nice to be in blogville , how has your day being?