The Campaign

The competition in the Taiwan QSR market is extremely fierce. McDonald's began to serve value meals in 2008, while KFC took no action during the price war and gradually lost its competitiveness and supporters. In 2013, KFC decided to drop the price of individual combos during lunch and dinner periods. However, in comparison to other competing brands, KFC was a latecomer in sales promotion. The mission for this campaign was to take the news of the price-drop and broadcast it to be heard loud and clear. That's why; we brought Colonel Sanders to Taipei to interact with consumers on the streets. Since people not expecting Colonel Sanders to appear they were taken by surprised, thus creating a buzz at the same time. Why did Colonel Sanders come to Taiwan? Well, a press conference was organized and Colonel Sanders personally announced the contents of the price-drop as the promotion began, which was followed by a TV commercial. As the result, we earned NT$11,139,147 of free media investment and reporting. Furthermore, KFC individual combo sales rose 69% compared to the same period in the previous year.

The Brief

Catch consumers' attention and create a stir, make them want to spontaneously spread the message, even attract the media to follow and report.

Results

1. Earned NT$11,139,147 of free media investment and reporting. 2. Individual combo sales rose 69% compared to the same period in the previous year. 3. Visits of KFC rose 15% vs. previous quarter. Combo re-pricing campaign had undeniable impact on driving an increase of visits among current WQSR users. (Source: Ipsos ASI Brand Image Tracking Report 2013 Q3)

Execution

Warm up & Create a stir (3 days before TVC on-air): 1. In the morning, practiced 'Tai-Ji-Quan' and danced with the early-rise people at park. 2. Before noon, rode the bike and took a walk in Taiwan University campus. 3. At lunch time, visited the McDonald's nearby and said hi to Ronald McDonald. Then had a lunch at KFC, also worked as the store manager and served the consumers. 4. In the evening, enjoyed an ice dessert at the famous Mango Ice shop in Taipei, then experienced foot massage for the first time. 5. Approaching the rush hour commute, took the MRT home with Taipei's citizens, creating such a stir that drew securities attention. Press Conference & TVC on-air date: 1. Held a press conference in the morning: Colonel Sanders officially announced the 'KFC price-drop' news. 2. TVC on-air in the evening, spread the news of 'KFC Value Combo, Now Available! ' all-around.

The Situation

McDonald's has served value meals for a long time, almost becoming the pronoun for 'Value' in consumers' perception. Therefore, we immediately had to make everyone remember KFC's value combo.

The Strategy

People love surprises, especially those you couldn't ever imagine; this creates urgency for people to share in their experience and spread the news. Therefore, we invited Colonel Sanders the famous character that everyone knows, but was never able to see or meet in person. We brought Colonel Sanders to the streets of Taipei to interact with consumers without any advance notice. Being amazed, people would spontaneously search for information, thus enhancing their impression and create a willingness to spread the news, creating more attention and curiosity, even for those who didn't actually see Colonel Sanders in person.