For the latest influencer marketing news, resources, and case studies, subscribe to our weekly newsletter! Instagram Influencer Marketing Case Study: KFC Marketing Goes Virtual With Colonel Sanders As A Spoof On InfluencersIn the crowded influencer marketing space, brands are always looking for the next big idea to help lift their heads above the parapet and mark themselves out from the rest. Launching an effective campaign and building a positive consumer relationship is the principal goal of brands on social media. This can be achieved in several ways, including participation marketing, and quite often the product is of lesser importance than the all-important engagement with followers. Brands are still trying to figure out what constitutes the best strategy for getting through to Instagram’s enormous user base. Large companies commonly attempt a variety of campaigns to garner attention—from more traditional approaches to wackier, eye-catching ideas. KFC marketing has often had its finger on the pulse when it comes to social media—for example, advertising on Twitch when other large brands are less aware of the platform’s massive potential. In addition, a quick glance at their Instagram will show that the KFC marketing team is not averse to trying new things when it comes to marketing the brand on to an online audience. With 1.4 million Instagram followers, KFC is n line with other major fast food brands and gains significant brand exposure online. It’s only natural that KFC’s marketing team should seek to leverage this popularity and build their engagement, demonstrated by the nearly 700 posts on their page. By comparison, major competitor McDonald’s has over 2 million more followers but a more traditional and seemingly far less coherent strategy, posting just 50 times since 2014. CGI Influencer Takeover Reveals New Side To The KFC ColonelIf you’re unfamiliar with CGI influencers you’ll be forgiven. Appearing since 2016 and gaining prominence thereafter, these virtual influencers—often art projects or digital models to demonstrate fashion pieces—have gained a significant amount of popularity among fans. The most popular, Lil Miquela, boasts over 1.5 million followers; not bad for someone who doesn’t exist. Few, however, would have expected a brand like KFC to get in on the action and spawn a CGI influencer of their own. Intended to parody the lifestyle of Instagram influencers, the New Colonel has a virtual model friend, reflects on his life while at the gym, and posts pictures of himself boarding expensive private jets. Of course, each of these is complete with brand sponsorships and nauseatingly on-the-money captions about spiritual awakenings which perfectly spoof some real-life influencers. The campaign, complete with the tag #secretrecipeforsuccess, ran for two weeks and appears to have come to an end on April 22. Throughout its run, the KFC influencer partnered with Dr Pepper, Old Spice, TurboTax, and Casper, collectively commanding an Instagram following of 830,000 followers. Opting to go ahead with such an oddball campaign like this shows KFC marketing is willing to test out new creative strategies with cutting edge digital marketing practices to drive their online engagement. Whether it was a success is another question, particularly regarding its popularity among the page’s followers, many of whom struggled to understand the purpose or intended parody of the virtual influencer Sanders. Let’s take a dive in and see how KFC’s revamped Colonel performed in his inaugural campaign. Goals
Approach
ThemesThe predominant theme of the KFC influencer marketing campaign was dictated by its parody of Instagram influencers. KC sought to replicate the voice, tone, and appearance of a real influencer. The quality of the posts are crisp but amateur, and captions often feature long-winded motivational themes, complete with the campaign hashtag #secretrecipeforsuccess.
ResultsSocial Reach
Engagement
‘Gazing Pensively Out The Window’ With A Dr. Pepper In HandIn one of several sponsored posts with Dr. Pepper, CGI Colonel plugs the soda brand with a post of him gazing out the window of a private jet while sipping from a flute glass and donning his famous white suit. The caption is humorous, with a recommendation that fans take time to reflect and gain a new perspective on the world: ‘Like when you’re super high in the air and the world looks real small.’ The post garnered 23,354 likes and 514 comments for an engagement rate of 1.7%. Advocating Self-Care With Old SpiceThis time sponsored by male grooming brand Old Spice, the Colonel shows off a variety of products from moisturizers to beard oil, recommending his fans to spend more time on looking good and feeling good to ‘go get your dreams.’ As with all his other posts, the campaign hashtag #secretrecipeforsuccess is present, along with a litany of positivity hashtags, and #virtualcolonel. The post racked up 25,596 likes and 527 comments for an engagement total of 1.94%. Virtual Colonel Recharges With CasperMattress brand Casper is the recipient of one of Virtual Sanders’ better-performing posts. The Colonel talks up the company’s mattresses, posing on a bed and in front of the packaging it came in, appearing to be in a relaxed mood. As ever, positivity is the theme, with the virtual Colonel talking about the personal importance of getting rest in order to become a ‘culinary and entrepreneurial artist.’ The post includes the campaign hashtag and tags Casper’s Instagram handle. With 26,179 likes and 571 comments, the post achieved an engagement rate of 1.91%. Takeaways
The post Case Study: KFC Influencer Partners With Dr. Pepper, Old Spice, TurboTax, & Casper In #SecretRecipeForSuccess Virtual Campaign appeared first on Mediakix | Influencer Marketing Agency. via Mediakix | Influencer Marketing Agency http://mediakix.com/2019/05/kfc-influencer-marketing-case-study-instagram/
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8/15/2023 09:12:15 am
At SUM we’ve been working on the launch of Fabric of Society, a multi-brand luxury eRetailer that celebrates the most exciting streetwear-influenced labels with an easy-to-wear, understated aesthetic.
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Diane Medina
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