These days of the economic downturn when most companies are pretty risk adverse, KFC made a bold move. It added grilled chicken to its menu. Maybe that doesn’t sound like a bold move, but considering that KFC was known for decades for fried chicken and only for fried chicken, the grilled chicken marketing move was a very risky step.
If nothing else, such a marketing maneuver could backfire. It almost did when KFC handed out too many coupons through the Oprah Winfrey and other outlets, only to have customers discover that the KFC stand were out of the free meals. Big public relations debacle with everyone upset. So not only was their confusion, but now you had disappointed customers to boot.
But KFC remaiend undaunted. It moved on its advertising campaign that included celebrity endorsements and product placement opportunities. Sales are up somewhat, and it is reported that the alternative branding effort is appearing successful. Customers who try the grilled chicken alternative say they will go back for more.
So what the advertising community first considered a disaster is proving, at least for the moment, as a success. In spite of a recession, KFC is moving forward with its doubled edge, grilled chicken and fried chickent menu choices. All may end well in chickenville, after all.
It was a bold step, for sure. As with most bold steps, perhaps it was perceived from inside the offices of KFC a dramatic need for change. And the change, managed in-house and with advertising agencies has turned failure into success.
Are you as an employer willing to take dramatic steps to increase business in a bad economy? Do you think you have the right people and the right partners to alter your brand or at least the public perception of your brand to accommodate new products and services? Are you hiring the right people, and are you undergoing the kind of background checks that will augment your interview process and your pre-employment screening efforts? In short, are you prepared to make the necessary changes?
As we watch even iconic companies sink slowly into the sunset, these are the questions worth asking. Then it is a matter of confronting these economic issues and hiring the right people to effect positive change in branding and revenue channels. And then taking the necessary bold steps.
Check them out before you hire.
