KFC Ads, Target of FTC Probe, Add to Unit's Woes

Wed 19 November, 2003 17:42

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NEW YORK (Reuters) - Regulators at the U.S. Federal Trade Commission are examining the validity of health claims made in advertisements for KFC's fried chicken, ads that the chain plans to pull on Friday.

An FTC spokesman confirmed on Wednesday that the agency has begun looking into a complaint by health advocacy group Center for Science in the Public Interest that calls the KFC ads deceptive and misleading.

It is the latest blow to a fast food chain trying to fix disappointing sales and marketing messages that have failed to strike a chord with consumers. KFC's sales have fallen in 13 of the last 16 months and the company's management was recently overhauled.

The KFC television ads, which were touted in a press release last month titled "KFC sets the record straight," try to position fried chicken as a component of a balanced diet and as a healthier alternative to Burger King's Whopper sandwich.

The ads immediately provoked a backlash, with a scathing editorial from trade magazine Advertising Age and the complaint by CSPI.

"Our ads simply set the record straight by providing consumers accurate information and facts about KFC's Original Recipe fried chicken and how it can be part of a balanced diet," said KFC spokeswoman Bonnie Warschauer. "However, we're not in a position to comment on FTC affairs."

As for plans to stop running the ads, Warschauer said, "Our ads routinely run for three to four weeks and these have been on air for nearly four weeks through this Friday. The new ads will begin airing the day after Thanksgiving, as planned, in the normal course of business."

The TV spots are the first to come out of KFC's new agency, Foote, Cone & Belding, which was hired in September to try to revitalize sales at the chain. KFC is owned by Yum Brands Inc .

They are also the first spots to come out under the direction of KFC's new president, Gregg Dedrick, and its new marketing chief, Scott Bergren.

One of the two ads at issue features a couple affirming their dedication to eating better -- as the woman sets down a bucket of fried chicken. The ad notes that two pieces of its chicken breasts have less fat than a Whopper.

The second ad focuses on chicken as a low-carbohydrate, high-protein food fit for dieters trying to cut down on carbs.

Other fast-food chains, like McDonald's Corp., have had success by developing new, healthier options like salads.

The ad campaign was foreshadowed on Oct. 8 during Yum's quarterly conference call with investors and analysts.

"We don't think we've been that innovative in how we've really positioned our fried chicken and talked about it," Chief Executive David Novak said on the conference call.

"So you'll see in the next few months some different ways that we'll be talking about fried chicken and trying to make it more relevant for the way people are thinking today," he said.

A previous campaign by Omnicom Group's BBDO unit, featuring Jason Alexander as a spokesman, failed to drive customers into KFC restaurants.

"KFC has tried again and again to find the Holy Grail of marketing," said Mark DiMassimo, founder of DiMassimo Brand Advertising.

<shudder>

Good reminder that any low-carb claim is guilty until proven innocent.

It seems to be technically true that two KFC chicken breasts are better for most diets than a Whopper, but that is like claiming Stalin was 2% nicer of a guy than Hitler.

hmmmmmm sounds like they need to go back to the drawing board and "invent" grilled, unbreaded chicken and SF coleslaw to improve sales. Imagine that LF & LC. No one would ever want to buy that.