KFC asks fans to vote on need for second pitchman
June 28, 2009
LOUISVILLE, Ky. — KFC is inviting consumers to vote on whether the company should add a second icon alongside Colonel Sanders to represent its new Kentucky Grilled Chicken line.
After the company announced the search for the new face of its KGC in early June, fans questioned the need for another spokesperson.
"We don't need a new face," one fan wrote.
One media outlet spurred public outrage by running the erroneous headline, "KFC may be dumping Colonel Sanders."
While KFC has confirmed that Colonel Sanders will continue to represent the company he founded and built, the search continues for the ultimate KGC fan, who could potentially appear in future advertising.
Starting today, fans of the brand can visit the KFC Web site and vote on whether they'd like Colonel Sanders to be the only icon for the brand, or whether they'd rather see the winner of the KGC Ultimate Fan search be the Colonel's counterpart. Online voting will continue through July 8 and results will be announced shortly thereafter.
Online photo op, contest
Fans can see if they have what it takes to be named the "Ultimate Kentucky Grilled Chicken fan" with KFC's "bucketizer" widget that allows fans to upload images and see how they would look on a Kentucky Grilled Chicken bucket. They can visit the brand's Web site or MySpace page to see how their faces would look on the brand's world-famous bucket. Only two people have ever appeared on a KFC bucket, Colonel Harland Sanders and race car driver Dale Earnhardt Jr.
The "bucketizer" widget also has a "Colonelize" function, which can add white hair, black glasses, a goatee and even the Colonel's signature white suit to uploaded bucket photos.
Visitors to the KGC MySpace page can submit a video entry for the "Ultimate KGC Fan Contest," through July 12. The creator of the winning video will receive KGC for life, valued at more than $13,000 and awarded in the form of KFC gift checks. The winner could also potentially appear in future KFC advertising.