KFCBEST CAMPAIGN: FAST GROWTH MARKET

Americana Group - KFC Arabia
"KFC Arabia Super Fans"
Initiative UAE

KFC Arabia’s challenge was not only to protect its place as the region’s lead quick service chicken restaurant, but also to create brand love, especially among its core youth segment. Globally, 70% of Millennials say they always come back to the brands they love.

MENA (Middle East & North Africa) Millennials and Young Adults can be described as mobile, tech-savvy, and social – both online and offline. They are multitaskers who can squeeze 26 hours out of a 24-hour day by maneuvering multiple devices at once. Globally, 80% of Millennials report using two or more internet devices while watching TV, a trend that was especially apparent in the Middle East (having the highest smart phone penetration in the world).

Middle East Youths also want to express themselves, be heard, and learn from others. It was important to make it easy for them to interact with KFC Arabia, each other, and the wider web community. Although the Youth target is always connected and wants to be heard, it doesn’t mean they are always listening. They only absorb a fraction of what they hear, read, and see, because they live in a world of information overload. Getting their attention can be difficult.

In order for them to take interest in KFC, they required the equivalent of an awesome party that they wouldn’t want to miss. This meant engaging them with killer content that they would want to consume and share with each other. The content needed to be interactive, fun, and authentic. It also needed to be accessible and shareable, no matter where the Youth consumer was – home, school, work, or out with friends.

One property stood out - Arabs Got Talent! AGT is a regional reality TV talent competition that was about to go into production for its second season. Its first season was ranked #1 for 11 consecutive weeks in 2010, even with the regional political uprisings that took place during that period. If we could link Arabs Got Talent to KFC’s Fan Base in an engaging and interactive way, we knew that we could create Super Fans for a sustainable life-long brand love affair amongst MENA youths.

Response to the campaign was overwhelming. Not only did KFC exceed all expectations in recruiting Super Fans, but retail business results were exceptional in terms of traffic, transactions and overall sales. KFC Arabia is now the top-rated brand among MENA youth.