Outdoor > Culture & Context
EDELMAN HONG KONG, Wanchai / KFC / 2023
Overview
Credits
Background:
KFC WAS LOSING TRACTION AND LTO CAMPAIGN EFFECTIVENESS WAS WEAKENING
KFC is the original leader of fried chicken in Hong Kong but the brand was losing traction when chicken was also sold by the vast array of fast food options. Limited Time Offer (LTO) promotions ran monthly and weren’t as able to drive orders and sales anymore.
COMPETITION WAS OUTSPENDING KFC SIGNIFICANTLY IN PAID MEDIA
McDonald’s, the main competitor, was outspending KFC by multiples in advertising. With a much smaller budget, KFC had to be creative and find ways to gain publicity through earned media and organic sharing.
OUR CHALLENGE: SHOW THAT EARNED CREATIVE GROWS SALES MORE EFFECTIVELY THAN LTO
With a tiny budget of USD 32,000, we couldn’t afford any advertising and would have to earn attention from, to attract people to visit and eat at KFC.
Describe the Impact:
BECOMING THE TALK OF THE TOWN
Brand Objective: Drive positive sentiment about KFC
Brand Results: With a tiny budget of USD 32,000, we couldn’t afford any advertising and would have to earn attention. Our campaign was covered by major news, business, lifestyle, and technology media, helping us to reach consumers for free.
213 news outlets shared articles
1.2+ billion impressions
US$1.5M earned media value
100% of articles delivered positive sentiment
STRONG SALES, HIGHER ROI WITH EARNED MEDIA
Business Objective: Show that earned creative could deliver stronger traffic and sales than LTO campaigns
Business Results: Our activation held at a single KFC store managed to increase orders and sales for stores across the entire city compared to the previous month when LTO campaigns ran with advertising.
+17.1% in sales over Hong Kong (vs. previous month)
+11.68% increase in orders (vs. the previous month)
Please provide budget details
Our client had almost maxed out their budget on hiring a one of Hong Kong’s most famous Pop Groups for their TV campaign, but they kindly spared us HK$250,000 (about $32,000 USD) to bring the Brainwave Bucket to life.
HK$110,000 ($14,100 USD approx) went into production of both the Brainwave Bucket device and the activation design and construction.
HK$50,000 ($6,400 USD approx) went towards photography and video coverage, both pre-event for our teaser content and at the activation for media coverage.
HK$90,000 ($11,500 USD approx) went towards our service fees for strategy development, media relations and creative executions.
Is there any cultural context that would help the jury understand how this work was perceived by people in the country where it ran?
KFC COMPETES WITH A WIDE RANGE OF COMPETITORS, NOT ONLY MCDONALD'S
The fast-food market in Hong Kong is highly competitive. With most locals preferring Chinese food from affordable local cafes, it puts western fast food at an inherent disadvantage. Furthermore, people in the city often see “western fast food” as one category, and thus, KFC isn’t only in competition against other major fried chicken players and McDonald’s, it is also competing against burger outlets, pizza delivery, sandwiches, Mexican and so much more.
COVID RESTRICTIONS LED TO BIG DECLINES IN RESTAURANT SALES
Hong Kong was still under one of the world’s strictest Covid-19 regimes at the time of the campaign, which put multiple restrictions on restaurants and caused traffic and sales
More Entries from Breakthrough on a Budget in Outdoor
24 items
More Entries from EDELMAN HONG KONG
14 items