|
Going negative doesn't just get your brand tweeted; it can also build market
share. El Pollo Loco, a 418-unit chain based in Costa Mesa, Calif.,
launched an aggressive campaign against KFC in April, as the chicken giant
released Kentucky Grilled Chicken. El Pollo is a Mexican concept that
specializes in citrus-marinated, flame-grilled chicken.
Using company President Steve Carley in a series of spots from agency Krueger
Communications, El Pollo challenges KFC to a taste test, and describes KFC's
product as "cooked on a griddle, no open flames at all." In subsequent
ads, with the number 877-EPL-STEVE running across the bottom, Mr. Carley says
KFC has yet to call him back, and that KFC's product is flavoured with "rendered
beef fat" and "beef powder."
El Pollo Chief Marketing Officer Karen Eadon said the spots have not only
"disrupted" the Kentucky Grilled Chicken launch in Southern California, they
have netted El Pollo four or five market-share points in the region. The
chain has not posted second-quarter results.
Ms. Eadon went on to describe KFC as "the gift that kept on giving." While
the Yum Brands chain has not officially respond to the taunts, El Pollo said two
messages left on its challenge hotline were traced to KFC headquarters.
The alleged calls are now on YouTube, with sarcastic commentary and 30,000 views
to date. One caller refers to "Highway 5," tourist speak to Angelenos, who
call it "the five." Another caller compares El Pollo disparagingly to
KFC's "OR," an insider acronym for the Colonel's "original recipe." In
another YouTube effort, El Pollo pointed out that KFC's infamous Oprah coupons
were not valid on Mother's Day. The resulting "What does KFC have against
Moms?" video has gotten 117,000 views, and led to a story in The Wall Street
Journal.
KFC, which posted its first same-store-sales increase in two years last week and
is calling Kentucky Grilled Chicken its most successful launch, isn't terribly
concerned with El Pollo. "Our efforts are focused on keeping up with
America's unbelievable demand for Kentucky Grilled Chicken, the biggest product
launch in company history, which is a much bigger priority than responding to
the marketing efforts of a small regional chain," KFC spokesman Rick Maynard
said in a statement. "The product has been as well-received on the West
Coast as it has on the East Coast, and everywhere in between." KFC
outspent El Pollo more than 15-to-one last year. According to TNS Media
Intelligence, El Pollo spent $16 million in measured media during 2008, compared
with KFC's $271 million.
Ms. Eadon said after she and her team read that KFC was launching a grilled
product about a year ago, they quickly ferreted out a test location for the
product and began building a case against it. El Pollo is a
well-entrenched brand in Southern California, and has have roughly the same
number of locations in the region as KFC, about 270. Ms. Eadon said the
brand stood to lose a great deal if Kentucky Grilled Chicken got a lot of
regional traction. So El Pollo started 2009 with ads that built up the
health benefits of grilled vs. fried, and planned its first attack for April,
when KFC began national grilled-chicken advertising.
Ms. Eadon also said PR has been a key component of its "Taste the Fire"
challenge of KFC. "Whenever they were mentioned, we wanted to be
mentioned," she said. The chain estimates that it has gotten about 8.3
million free media impressions as a result of the campaign.
The small Mexican chain isn't the only brand to benefit from negative
advertising of late. Campbell's and Progresso both posted gains following
a series of attack ads and Domino's posted its first quarterly same-store sales
gain in quite sometime after a series of attack ads against Subway. The
sandwich giant is a private company that doesn't release sales. However,
industry analysts maintain that the brand is raking in some of the segment's
best sales gains. Even Starbucks, while still posting same store sales on
the decline, said yesterday that McDonald's massive McCafe advertising has
boosted awareness and trial in the category, and is one of several factors
helping the chain pull itself out of freefall.
|