This report was one of many telling of KFC’s rebranding strategy and their attempt to create buzz by making some kind of gigantic logo, visible from outer space. There are actually two pieces of rebranding going on in this report and I’d like to be critical and complimentary to KFC in their execution of brand development.
First, the criticism – unless they are hoping to later leverage this gigantic picture into some kind of marketing scheme (perhaps combining Google Maps) it seems like a weak attempt at creating a buzz. It’s a big picture that is viewable from space. So what?
Second, the compliment: It’s great to see that KFC has rebranded “the Colonel.” I have watched with fascination as they struggled in the past few years to work through their identity. They made the huge corporate change from Kentucky Fried Chicken to KFC to get away from the negative association with “fried”… then they made some weak attempts at marketing KFC as healthy by suggesting that KFC meant “Kitchen Fresh Chicken.” Finally they are going back to their roots and eschewing the healthy aspect to instead adopt the down-home country cooking angle: a wholesome image from yesteryear that will likely resonate with their market much more clearly than an attempt at appearing healthy.
