KFC serves up chicken without the Colonel

Published November 11, 2013 at 7:37 am

It’s not just the image of your restaurant that changes when you take a new marketing tactic: it could be the entire way that your business is perceived in the public’s mind.

Just look at the history of the fast food restaurant now known as KFC. Once upon a time, these letters stood for “Kentucky Fried Chicken,” but over time the brand has changed, dropping the longer name in an attempt to appeal to a newer audience. That effort has continued with its recent opening of a completely different sub-franchise called “KFC Eleven” in Kentucky.

According to an Associated Press story that announced the new establishment, this is an attempt to match the kind of more relaxed atmosphere of so-called “fast casual” restaurants that still serve food quickly but promote a cleaner, cafe-like style that distances itself from previous associations one might have with fried chicken places like this.

Another change that this restaurant brings with it is a menu that focuses specifically on various dishes involving boneless chicken rather than the on-the-bone style that was often the focus of its predecessor.

And along with this, the restaurant is avoiding the familiar image of Colonel Sanders that has graced the marketing materials of the chain for as long as one can remember. While this may be in line with the image owner Yum! Brands is trying to create, it also made the headlines in articles about this new opening.

What may seem like a break with tradition to some might instead be a welcome change to others, so the impact that your new marketing initiatives have on others shouldn’t be underestimated.