KFC pastes its Double Down Ad on More Students' Butts

USA Today

 

KFC is doubling down on its promo across college coeds' backsides. The world's largest chicken chain is putting yet more college women — at three more universities — into sweatpants with "Double Down" emblazoned across their rear ends.

Double Down is KFC's new male-targeted sandwich that uses chicken patties as buns.

KFC's newest Double Down "ambassadors," found through a competition on its Facebook page, will be paid $500 each to wear the pants and hand out $5 KFC coupons for a day at Colorado State University in Fort Collins, Colo.; Indiana University in Bloomington, Ind.; and James Madison University in Harrisonburg, Va.

The move follows stinging criticism last month after KFC first rolled out the provocative promo at Spalding University in Louisville. Even before it begins later this week, the expansion of the promo is drumming up additional criticism.

"It's hideous," says Terry O'Neill, president of the National Organization for Women. "This is 12-year-old boy humor."

Brand guru Steven Addis says the promo may be reprehensible, but it's not necessarily stupid. "Whether intended or not, KFC is becoming the Hooters of fast food."

KFC received 600 applications for the new jobs on its Facebook page, spokeswoman Laurie Schalow says. The women were picked for their experience, not their looks, she says. Two of the women have done beer company promos.

One is Sara Coleman, a 21-year-old senior at Colorado State, who majors in criminal justice. She says she already does promos for Anheuser-Busch and heard about the KFC promo from her mom.

Coleman has no problems with the outfit. "There are worse things that sweatpants could say," says Coleman, who hopes to use the money to go to Las Vegas.

She and two friends will pass out the coupons at CSU's homecoming football game Saturday. "There will be girls in a lot less clothing at the game. We're just wearing something we'd wear to bed."

Her school's officials are OK with the promo. "We support the right of local and national businesses to distribute information about their products and services to our campus community," says Mike Ellis, assistant vice president for student affairs.

Chris Muller, Boston University hospitality school dean, thinks the promo will be a hit, but doesn't like it. "In college life, women are supposed to be highly sexed and men are supposed to be very hungry. Someone said: 'Let's put them together.' "

KFC Pays College Women for Ad Space on Buns

USA Today

 

KFC wants folks to watch its backside.

Or, more precisely, the backsides of female college students it's recruiting to promote its hot new bunless Double Down sandwiches.

Women on college campuses are being paid $500 each to hand out coupons while wearing fitted sweatpants with "Double Down" in large letters across their rear ends.

The promo comes as KFC is in the doldrums domestically. The world's largest chicken chain's U.S. same-store sales fell 7% in the second quarter. Nearly all its growth now is in international expansion.

Last week, the chain confessed that more than six in 10 Americans ages 18 to 25 — the chain's key demographic — couldn't identify who Colonel Sanders was in the KFC logo.

Now, it's turning to cute women parading around campus with "Double Down" emblazoned across their fannies.

The nation's largest women's group doesn't like it one bit. "It's so obnoxious to once again be using women's bodies to sell fundamentally unhealthy products," says Terry O'Neill, president of the National Organization for Women. What's more, she says, KFC has forgotten something important: Women make more than half the decisions about what to eat for dinner.

But KFC marketing chief John Cywinski says it's an effective way to catch the attention of young men — KFC's key customers and the biggest fans of Double Down.

As of Tuesday afternoon, KFC had received no complaints about the campaign, KFC spokesman Rick Maynard says. "We've taken a page out of the book of some apparel companies and sororities who have promoted in this way for years," Maynard says.

The program began last week at Spalding University in downtown Louisville. The chain plans to expand it to at least three more campuses. The additional schools and the women there will be picked via a Facebook promotion.

The stunt hasn't reached Colorado State University — and senior public relations major Candace Carlucci hopes it never does. "It may be funny, but it's also inappropriate and degrading," she says. "There must be another way for KFC to get its message out."

Brand guru Jonathan Salem Baskin says there's nothing "inherently wrong" with using women to attract guys, but in this case, "It's irrelevant to the product." KFC would do better, he says, to follow the McDonald's model: "Clean up your stores, fix the menu and please people with the food you make."

One point of confusion, he jokes: "I guess the buns do come with KFC's sandwich."

PETA Wants Ads on Fire Trucks After KFC Places Wings Ads on Hydrants

USA Today

An animal rights group figures if KFC can use fire extinguishers and hydrants to promote chicken wings, it should be able to use city fire trucks to denounce cruelty to chickens.

People for the Ethical Treatment for Animals has offered Indianapolis Mayor Greg Ballard $7,500 in return for advertising space on the vehicles, after the fast-food chain announced this week that it will pay for city fire extinguishers in exchange for advertising on them. It also is paying for smoke detectors the city will give away.

PETA's proposed ad shows a plucked and scalded chicken with the phrases "Chickens Are Burned To Death At KFC" and "Boycott Cruelty." The group claims many KFC chickens are scalded to death during processing; it has long criticized the restaurant's treatment of animals.

"Our money is as good as KFC's," PETA Executive Vice President Tracy Reiman said in a statement. "The difference is that our money doesn't come from animal abuse."

KFC spokesman Rick Maynard defended the restaurant's practices and said PETA was known for resorting to publicity stunts.

KFC wants to expand the month-long campaign to three other cities nationwide. So far, it also is giving $2,500 to Brazil, Ind., for the right to emblazon local hydrants with the face of the chain's founder, Colonel Sanders.

Jen Pittman, spokeswoman for the Indianapolis mayor, said Friday that PETA's offer would have to meet city guidelines that require corporate sponsorships to yield a public benefit.

But she said city officials contacted PETA Friday and suggested sponsoring programs at an animal shelter might be more appropriate.

"Not all kinds of city assets are appropriate to display an ad," she said. Heavy advertising on a fire truck could even lead motorists to believe a truck heading for an emergency was just performing a stunt, she said.

PETA spokeswoman Lindsay Rajt said the group's legal staff was reviewing the city's policy and questioned the public benefit of encouraging people to eat "unhealthy products."

"We believe our ads do have a clear public benefit," Rajt said.