How KFC Thailand Are Changing Perspectives on Mother’s Day
Wunderman Thompson Thailand, teaming up with KFC Thailand, recently launched the heartwarming and groundbreaking ‘Let Mom Rest’ campaign. In celebrating Mother's Day, the campaign champions the message of shared household responsibilities.
Speaking to LBB’s Tom Loudon, chief creative officer of Wunderman Thompson Thailand Park Wannasiri revealed the campaign's inspiration and the challenges faced in transforming iconic brands' logos and packaging to convey the message effectively.
With a unique approach that resonated deeply with Thai families, the 'Let Mom Rest' campaign not only stirred emotions but also initiated conversations and changes in societal views. Park also shared how the campaign extended its influence to KFC employees, marking for a memorable Mother's Day in 2023.
LBB> The ‘Let Mom Rest’ campaign is such a heartwarming and unique concept. Could you share with us the inspiration behind the idea and how it came to fruition?
Park> Mother’s Day is one of the biggest days in the Thailand cultural calendar. The day that all Thais celebrate their love for their mother. But in reality, moms still have the hardest job in the world - especially in Thailand, where most people eat at home for every meal and mom is in charge of all things in the kitchen. Moms have prepared, cooked and cleaned since we all can remember, but it’s a job that should not just be a mother's responsibility. Everyone can help, especially Dad.
So, from that point, we wanted the Father of the KFC brand, Colonel Sanders, to step up and help with mom’s heavy duties. Reasoning impacts awareness on the day when everyone’s attention is toward mom – under the campaign “Let Mom Rest.”
LBB> The campaign involves transforming popular brand logos and packaging to emphasise the idea of sharing household duties. What challenges did you face in rebranding these well-known products, especially in ensuring the messaging was clear and impactful?
Park> The challenge that we mostly faced was the collaborative process with very popular and heritage brands. Both brands needed to have the same belief that we were sending out a much-needed message and that every party would benefit from this meaningful collaboration. Once we aligned on our goal together, we got everyone on board and worked as one team. By having a single-minded message and utilising the power of all four brands, the impact was guaranteed.
LBB> The limited-edition prototypes of the transformed products in the KFC ‘Let Mom Rest’ gift set surely caught people’s attention. How did you approach designing these prototypes to convey the campaign’s message effectively?
Park> The design was a very important part of these bespoke items. We needed to make sure we respected the original design that was well known in Thailand but also crafted the illustration in a charming way for people to love the new label.
Colonel Sanders is a very loved character that you could see helping moms with household duties, all with a smile. Every detail from the original label was replaced with Colonel Sanders helping with the cooking so the moms in the label could rest. All paired with a very charming and catchy copy to help strengthen the idea of “Let Mom Rest”.
LBB> Collaborating with various brands to change their logos and packaging seems like a complex task. Could you walk us through the process of reaching out to these brands and getting them on board for the campaign?
Park> You hit the point. It was not easy, but it was critical for the idea to come alive and make a solid impact. We called each brand one at a time, pitching our idea. For each brand, we customised our deck to show that we really wanted to work with them. Our message was good and pure.
Also, we needed to highlight that this was a win-win situation for KFC and all brand partners. When it came to collaboration and partnership, we also needed to think of their heritage brands. The KFC client was really supportive every step of the way.
LBB> Mother’s Day is a significant occasion, and KFC Thailand took a unique approach to celebrate it. Can you discuss the significance of choosing this day for the campaign launch and its alignment with the campaign’s message?
Park> This campaign only exists within the Mother’s Day period. It would not be as powerful as it is if we launched it on another day. The day that all attention was on motherhood, but we needed to approach it in the KFC way – a way that only we could do so. So our communication was distinctive and could cut through other brands during Mother’s Day. KFC always wants to have very exciting communication, create conversations, and put our brand right on culture. We have to go big and bold.
LBB> Viral campaigns often have a strong emotional impact. How did you strategise to ensure the KFC L.O.V.E message resonated with Thai families and individuals, leading to such a positive response on social media?
Park> Emotions can have a big impact on storytelling.
The key to making an emotional impact and viral campaign is to connect with consumers' hearts. So, they are willing to talk about and share the campaign on their social media because they connect with it. The KFC way is typically distinctive. We wanted to make a meaningful point in KFC manners. It needs to be authentic, exciting and fun but still have a very strong cultural relevance. We approach the issue with a smile, and that makes people love it. They love the brand. They get our character and separate us from clusters of the same old emotional work.
LBB> Collaborating with various brands and promoting a change in perspective regarding household duties is quite a progressive step. Were there any specific goals you set for the campaign’s impact on societal views and practices?
Park> Of course, we need people to change something. When we are doing a campaign to help start change, you want to move people. Our campaign aimed for Thailand to have a conversion and change perceptions of mom’s duties at home. We want family members to step up and help. The more conversations we get, the more perceptions change. Not just on Mother’s Day but every day, and we hope that it will lead to a change in behaviour. We also want mom to use it as a tool to talk about household duties and we did see that conversation coming out. We are super happy with the result we got.
LBB> You mentioned that “Motherhood is even highlighted in many food, household, and children’s products.” How did you approach this cultural insight to create a campaign that not only resonated but also drove change?
Park> You cannot change the world alone. So, that’s why we need all the power we can get. KFC is a powerful brand combined with three other iconic brands with millions of fans. The collaboration was how we drove change.
LBB> The concept of sharing household responsibilities is integral to the campaign. Do you envision the campaign’s message evolving beyond this Mother’s Day initiative and becoming a lasting trend?
Park> We really hope so. Not just the awareness and bespoke products that we launched, but we made sure all of our communication and PR hit the nail on the head to change perception and behaviour. We provided tools and provoked the conversation so we could all talk about it more. We are not doing it for the sake of a Mother’s Day stunt, but we really want moms to have more rest - plus more dads join the movement all year long.
LBB> The campaign not only resonates with families but extends its impact to KFC employees. Can you elaborate on the special KFC meal and fun activities that were organised for the employees to commemorate Mother’s Day?
Park> You cannot just talk and do nothing. We always do our best to prove our statement right from the inside. KFC employees are very important to our brand and they deserve a good rest, too, so we provided all mom employees a free meal on the day. No mom should work alone without help anymore. This is 2023.
