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KFC has high stakes in March Madness Final Four

March 30, 2012

Many restaurants have been going all out with promotions since March Madness began, and for good reason — NCAA men's basketball engages their heavy user audience.

Some places have been able to stretch those promotions out a bit, or at least add a bit more creative flair, as the tournament has progressed. And a few are still scrambling to come up with deals as the tournament has whittled down to four teams.

KFC is in a position to maximize the benefits of expediting a special promotion since two home state teams — the University of Louisville and the University of Kentucky — have made it to the Final Four.

The rivalry is exceptionally heated (This week, a fight even broke out at a dialysis center between fans of both teams — A dialysis center!) and KFC is carefully playing neutral.

Jason Marker, KFC's chief marketing officer, has penned a letter to Louisville Mayor Greg Fischer and Lexington Mayor Jim Gray offering to cater a party for the winner.

The letter reads:

"Hoops hysteria has taken over the Bluegrass, and Louisville and Lexington are at midcourt for all the excitement! While we've always been partial to the color red, we think our iconic bucket would look pretty good in blue too!

KFC has had some exciting bucket-related moments since Colonel Sanders founded the brand in 1952. But we've never seen this level of bucketmania from Pikeville to Paducah. It's of course leading up to Saturday's edition of one of college basketball's greatest rivalries, on its biggest stage, in an event that will have the entire country focused on the Commonwealth's amazing athletes and coaches.

We heard about your bet, and while we never take sides (we prefer to sell them), we'll make you an offer that you'll find 'So Good.' Offering to wear the other team's colors is fine, but if you're looking for something synonymous with the entire Commonwealth, 'bird is the word.'

KFC will be happy to cater a party for you and 100 of your closest friends and fellow fans the weekend after the big game. If your home team comes out on top of the bucket battle, we'll be there to deliver buckets of the world's most famous chicken, which was born right here in Kentucky. Should your team lose, we'll still be there to console you with the Colonel's Original Recipe. Win or lose, your guests will enjoy plenty of buckets of Kentucky Fried Chicken at your party.

And if you'd prefer to register the assist instead of the bucket, you can gift the chicken to your favorite charitable organization. Just let us know who you'd like to feed and we'll deliver the 100 KFC meals with your compliments. That's a deal that will make everyone feel like a winner.

Enjoy the game this weekend.

Sincerely,

Jason Marker, KFC Chief Marketing Officer"

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