Facebook used by KFC to launch new Cayan Grill range

In June 2009, KFC implemented a strategic social media campaign to launch its new Cayan Grill range.

Within 48 hours the chicken franchise network enlisted over 17,500 fans to its Facebook page, which launched with the news of three Cayan O’Clock consumer events in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane being held.

The fried chicken franchise network placed advertisements specifically targeting 18 – 24 year old Facebook that live in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane, pointing them to its fan page.

As a result of the connections made on the Facebook page, thousands of Australians queued outside KFC’s participating stores to try the new Cayan Grill Burger. Thousands of free Cayan Grill Burgers were distributed between 12pm and 3pm to chicken enthusiasts who wanted to be the first in Australia to taste-test the delicious new range.

Facebook fan numbers continue to grow and the chicken franchise company has a current fan base of over 53,000.

Jason Marker, Chief Marketing Officer of Yum! Australia (parent company of the chicken franchise network) said, “2009 is a big year for KFC and the launch of Cayan Grill signified the beginning of a new era. Given we are contemporising our menu options, we knew leveraging social media would be an ideal compliment to this evolution.

Our core target audience of 18-24 year olds are avid social media users so we had to engage them in a way that would ensure cut-through. We’re thrilled to have such a substantial online community of KFC fans and we plan to keep communicating with them and delivering more great experiences.”