2020/2021 Winners & Shortlists

Background

KFC introduced ‘Fresh’ Chicken into all KSA restaurants as of December 2019. KFC now offers consumers real, ‘Finger Lickin’ Good’, Fresh Chicken, sourced from Local Alyoum Saudi farms. Communicating Fresh / Local chicken was a game changer that would help the brand build Food & Brand Trust, leading to higher brand affinity in market where local brands were dominating with a messaging tapping into the local relevance and pride. How could KFC break through the clutter of local brands and appear as a true pioneer with the fresh chicken news?

Describe the creative idea (40% of vote)

To celebrate our “fresh news”, we decided to go out and prove that we were more Saudi than any other ‘local’ brand. We did this in a way that was almost unheard of for KFC: we turned the iconic KFC red into the proud Saudi green, from our buckets, to our uniforms and the entire country through unmistakably KFC out-of-home executions. After the initial launch of the campaign, we elevated our concept even further: by taking another iconic Saudi symbol, the Shemagh (the traditional headscarf) and turning it into a “KFC patterned” poster- demonstrating that we are, in fact, the most “local” chicken brand throughout the Kingdom. We debunked the belief that Local brands are better because they tug on heartstrings of Saudi people. Thanks to KFC they could no longer be misled, as they would now know what Local chicken should taste, look, and smell like.

Describe the execution (40% of vote)

Saudi Arabia takes pride in their red and white checkered Shemagh - just like KFC takes pride in their chicken being raised in the Kingdom. To celebrate this, we created a chicken-pattern Shemagh that merged KSA’s traditions with KFC’s assets through a unique poster campaign. Within KFC’s brand colors and fried chicken, we found similarities on the Shemagh itself and used the drumstick and wing to build our unique red and white pattern. By presenting the Shemagh in a different manner, we lured our audience closer to the poster, where the intricate design quirks paid off. Yes, it was surprising up close, but also undeniably Saudi from afar. Each design element was carefully considered to not be too obtrusive, yet bold in its love for the region. Across different KFC stores, the posters allowed the Shemagh to make a statement and KFC to celebrate local chicken through a local symbol.

List the results (20% of vote)

We went all out with our campaign and made big waves in the kingdom. We not only received love offline with coverage across top publications with a circulation of over 2 million subscriptions, but also online through our social media channels and influencers partnerships. Their content reached 9 million people , and had a whopping 450K engagements. The Saudi local chicken campaign became the key to the gates of the kingdom, with an overall 39% increase in sales compared to previous month across our Saudi stores. And finally our campaign completely reversed the local zeitgeist on which brand owned Saudi pride, triggering our consumers to question other brands’ halal claims on social media: “How is it Halal when it’s sourced from Brazil?” / “It’s a shame that Al Baik is still using imported chicken”. With our Local Chicken campaign KFC took its rightful place into the hearts of Saudis.