Why KFC ‘Fixed’ the McDonald’s Chicken Big Mac
Within the fast food category, certain restaurants are associated with certain things. You get a sandwich at Subway. You get a ‘Blizzard Treat’ at Dairy Queen. And if you go to KFC, what else would you get, other than fried chicken?
With this in mind, imagine the confusion when McDonald’s Canada, an establishment traditionally associated with, well, not fried chicken, decided to announce a twist on its classic ‘Big Mac’ - the ‘Chicken Big Mac’. KFC Canada just had to respond! Working in tandem with its AOR, Courage, the pair turned around a campaign in less than 24 hours, in which the chain fixed the McDonald’s offering by replacing both patties with two KFC chicken fillets.
But just making content wasn’t enough for the brand. After all, if one is going to denounce a competitor, it’s imperative that all messages be said from the chest. To further up the ante, within minutes of McDonald’s launch, KFC took to Twitter, Instagram, TikTok and Facebook, releasing the picture and, in the case of Twitter, directly tagged McDonald’s, exchanged some words, and challenged the brand to a taste test (which has since gone unanswered).
The jousting didn’t stop there either. KFC also decided to park truck-sized ads in front of McDonald’s locations across Toronto, secured a billboard on the Gardiner Expressway, and invited paid and earned influencers to upgrade the Chicken Big Mac with KFC chicken - claiming that the sandwich is ‘#BetterWithKFC’.
LBB’s Josh Neufeldt sat down with Courage associate creative directors Hemal Dhanjee and Steve Ierullo, discussing what it took to bring such a speedy, pointed and spicy turnaround to life.
LBB> The ball got rolling for this campaign within a 24 hour window. Tell us more about this! What was the brief, and was the idea to engage in a fun social war brand-driven, or agency-driven?
Hemal & Steve> KFC is one of the most unapologetic brands in the world. And, when it comes to chicken, that’s our turf. So when McDonald’s announced the launch of the Chicken Big Mac, it made perfect sense to insert ourselves in the conversation in an unapologetic way. This wasn’t just about reacting fast for the sake of being fast. It’s something truly rooted in KFC’s DNA and what it always gets credit for – great tasting chicken. Our clients are amazing, and as soon as the idea was shared, they knew we had to make it happen… and fast.
LBB> What immediate ideas came to mind? And how did the required speed of the turnaround factor into the creative process?
Hemal & Steve> When you’re executing at the speed of culture, you have to make sure you’re making the right calls at the right time. When our Tweet went live, we set up a little war-room to craft the perfect replies if and when McDonald’s responded.
At the same time, we were one on the phone with KFC’s PR and media teams to bring ‘Fixed It’ to life in the real world. Within hours, we were able to take our troll to the next level by placing truck-sized ads of our upgraded Big Mac in front of McDonald’s locations across Toronto, along with a billboard on the Gardiner.
LBB> The ‘We Fixed It’ content is brilliant. How long did this take to prepare, and were there other lines in consideration, or did you know from the start that this was the best approach for the opportunity?
Hemal & Steve> An idea like this doesn’t come together unless you have a strong client relationship. The conversation came up in a client meeting a couple days before the launch of the Chicken Big Mac. We originally had an idea from our initial pitch deck that lent itself to the idea perfectly, so we pitched it again. The idea was greenlit on the spot.
We then put together all the campaign elements – the artwork, the line, the hashtag, the strategy. From there, the mentality was to ‘go and grow’ the campaign as it unfolded in real-time.
LBB> When writing subsequent responses, were there limitations to what you were allowed to do? And as a whole, how does working on a cheeky campaign like this compare to the traditional creative process?
Hemal & Steve> While some people online called it a ‘chicken war’, we wanted to keep it playful and fun. It’s a fine line between confident and cocky, so we wanted to let our chicken speak for itself and let the internet decide on which one they thought was better. Based on the responses and reviews – some of which were hilarious – it’s clear what the public thought was more appetising. By the way, we’re still waiting on Ronald to hit us back on a taste test.
LBB> Did you have people on standby to issue quick responses after McDonald’s initial response?
Hemal & Steve> Yes - we took our tweets as seriously as we take our chicken. We had an arsenal of Tweets and replies ready to be deployed at any moment. For us, it was a game of chess, not checkers. We knew that if we challenged them to a playful taste test, it was a battle they couldn’t win. While they dodged our challenge, we still commend them on the playful banter. It was a fun moment in the Twitterverse, where we could add some levity to the world and create a fun moment for Canadians.
LBB> Tell us more about the truck-sized ads! How did you develop these so quickly, and how did you choose McDonald’s locations to position them in front of?
Hemal & Steve> We needed to act quickly and nimbly. The mobile-billboard truck gave us the flexibility to target multiple McDonald’s locations across the city, snap a picture, and share it with the world in a matter of hours. To add some local relevance, we placed our truck-sized ads in front of some of the biggest locations in Toronto – including the Queen and Spadina location which people online noticed and appreciated. True story people were coming up to us sharing how much they loved it as it was happening live, as well as snapping photos for themselves.
LBB> You also worked with influencers to highlight that the sandwich is better. Who did you work with, and what made this the right approach for the campaign?
Hemal & Steve> We partnered with influencers like Mukbang Maxwell (@mukbangmaxwell) to get the message out. But what’s truly awesome is how many people online actually tried the KFC ‘Fixed It’ version themselves on TikTok, Instagram and YouTube.
LBB> What challenges have you faced during this project? How did you overcome them?
Hemal & Steve> You’ve got to be ready for a number of curve balls when you’re building a real-time campaign. So, being prepared and having a strong team across agency, client, PR and media was essential. Keeping open lines of communication between everyone allowed us to make calls quickly and efficiently, without having to wait on approvals.
LBB> What lessons did you learn in the making of this campaign?
Hemal & Steve> The value of knowing what your brand stands for. When you have a solid understanding of your brand, you know exactly when to insert yourselves in the right conversations. Consumers pick up on that brand relevance, and some even connect with it on a personal level – compelling them to actually engage with the content, share it, comment on it, and ultimately buy into the brand itself. Lastly, we learned that if you love an idea, just make it happen. Keep it simple, craft it and be the gas that keeps it going.
LBB> Are there any aspects of the campaign you’re particularly proud of?
Hemal & Steve> We were most proud of the engagement and traction the work garnered online. The amount of positive comments and the amount of people who actually did the ‘Fixed It’ challenge was surreal. Our epic troll was covered by a bunch of publications and even made the news. Other brands even wanted to be a part of our Twitter drama, including Harvey’s, iHop and 7-Eleven.
LBB> As a whole, how have people reacted to this campaign?
Hemal & Steve> The reactions have been overwhelmingly positive. We’re still waiting for results to come in, but so far, the campaign has received an 86% positive sentiment from consumers. It’s been talked about on national television, and has received notable PR coverage across publications like BlogTO, Narcity, EatNorth, and many, many more across social media, radio and blogs.
Most importantly, we’ve been hearing that hundreds of consumers have been eager to try our upgraded version – some even going out and swapping their McDonald’s chicken patties with KFC’s Big Crunch chicken themselves. And on KFC’s side, they’ve been getting tons of inquiries from customers who have been trying to order the sandwich from their restaurants.
LBB> What makes the KFC sandwich better?
Hemal & Steve> Strategically, the hashtag ‘#BetterWithKFC’ explains it all. Everyone knows KFC for its iconic taste. Things like its original recipe, the 11 herbs and spices, even the ‘finger lickin’ good’ tagline are all part of the brand’s DNA. So, when you replace the Chicken Big Mac patties with two golden, crispy chicken fillets from KFC, that’s a chef’s kiss.
