2023 Winner
SilverBest in Consumer Goods
BronzeBest Integrated Campaign - Budget Over $250,000
KFC
"KFCourt"
Narrative
"KFCourt"
Narrative
Basketball fans align with KFC’s target, as the most diverse audience of fans in all major North American sports, and over-index with younger consumers (48% being 34 years old or younger). Plus, NBA fans are known to enjoy food from their favourite Quick-Service Restaurants on game day. So, KFC wanted to specifically target Millennial and Gen Z NBA fans who live in urban centres and frequently eat at QSR chains.
However, the NBA space is crowded by competing sponsors like McDonalds and Subway, which have up to 10x the advertising spend of KFC. Last year, Subway even secured NBA star Scottie Barnes for their campaign. That’s why KFC needed to find an innovative way to reach basketball fans and insert the brand into their existing basketball rituals.
Led by the insight that most basketball courts in Canada close in the winter because of weather, they created a whole new type of media placement that functioned in a way unique to their target. Introducing the “KFCourt”: an out-of-home ad that doubles as a fully winterized
outdoor basketball court.
Sheltered under Canada’s biggest elevated highway, they rallied fans around their love of basketball with community events, including a visit from the ‘Walking Bucket’, NBA player Gary Trent Jr., and celebrity basketball instructor, Lethal Shooter. They got to learn skills, play ball, and have winter fun.
The “KFCourt” was the world’s first ever fully winterized basketball court. It was custom built tile by tile over four days for sub-zero conditions. The materials were meticulously tested in rain, snow, and sleet with a no-slip finish for a uniquely Canadian context.
Unlike traditional OOH, the “KFCourt” engaged their target by providing them a space to play the sport they love, in a season where courts are hard to find. It was also supported by a holistic paid media ecosystem. A 3D OOH billboard in the heart of the city drove NBA fans to the court, while paid social sponsorships, including TSN/TikTok, and Sportsnet, generated conversation about it online.
They also created an OLV and TV spot that used the court as the set, which ran on NBA game nights, further building the association between KFC and basketball over their competitors. Plus, they day-parted pre-game social ads targeting basketball fans with an exclusive offer to order KFC and encourage game night rituals at home.
Thanks to their diverse media tactics, thousands of Canadians came down to check out the “KFCourt” and an entire month’s worth of court time booked up in just 3 days. Their paid media achieved over 109M impressions, targeting Millennial and Gen Z sports fans and their estimated reach was 50% for adults 18+, Canadawide.
The “KFCourt” also caught the attention of press worldwide and generated 867 media stories, totalling 295.3M impressions. The highly visual and Instagram-able nature of the court inspired guests to share this one-of-a-kind experience hundreds of times, reaching a total of 22.8M impressions.
Their campaign successfully leveraged KFC’s authentic connection to basketball through buckets in an innovative way to reach core NBA fans, even without a sponsorship. YouGov scores showed net consideration increased 32%, net impressions increased by 51%, net satisfaction increased by 201%, and net buzz increased by a total of 1300%, amongst their Millennial and Gen Z target.
The brand was tested for its association with basketball, compared to competitor brands (McDonalds, Subway, Pizza Pizza), and their study had positive lift for KFC but negative lift for competitors. This suggests their ads caused consumers to believe KFC had a higher association to basketball than some of the bigger players with official NBA sponsorships.
By leveraging a full 360 media plan that included TV, out-of-home, social, CRM, and more, they brought the local basketball community together to learn new skills, sample KFC, enjoy music, and engage in outdoor winter fun for an unforgettable experience.
Ultimately, KFC created an association between the brand and the NBA, as well as local basketball, that can be leveraged for future initiatives at a lower cost. Plus, they got Canadians from coast-to-coast craving KFC on game night.
However, the NBA space is crowded by competing sponsors like McDonalds and Subway, which have up to 10x the advertising spend of KFC. Last year, Subway even secured NBA star Scottie Barnes for their campaign. That’s why KFC needed to find an innovative way to reach basketball fans and insert the brand into their existing basketball rituals.
Led by the insight that most basketball courts in Canada close in the winter because of weather, they created a whole new type of media placement that functioned in a way unique to their target. Introducing the “KFCourt”: an out-of-home ad that doubles as a fully winterized
outdoor basketball court.
Sheltered under Canada’s biggest elevated highway, they rallied fans around their love of basketball with community events, including a visit from the ‘Walking Bucket’, NBA player Gary Trent Jr., and celebrity basketball instructor, Lethal Shooter. They got to learn skills, play ball, and have winter fun.
The “KFCourt” was the world’s first ever fully winterized basketball court. It was custom built tile by tile over four days for sub-zero conditions. The materials were meticulously tested in rain, snow, and sleet with a no-slip finish for a uniquely Canadian context.
Unlike traditional OOH, the “KFCourt” engaged their target by providing them a space to play the sport they love, in a season where courts are hard to find. It was also supported by a holistic paid media ecosystem. A 3D OOH billboard in the heart of the city drove NBA fans to the court, while paid social sponsorships, including TSN/TikTok, and Sportsnet, generated conversation about it online.
They also created an OLV and TV spot that used the court as the set, which ran on NBA game nights, further building the association between KFC and basketball over their competitors. Plus, they day-parted pre-game social ads targeting basketball fans with an exclusive offer to order KFC and encourage game night rituals at home.
Thanks to their diverse media tactics, thousands of Canadians came down to check out the “KFCourt” and an entire month’s worth of court time booked up in just 3 days. Their paid media achieved over 109M impressions, targeting Millennial and Gen Z sports fans and their estimated reach was 50% for adults 18+, Canadawide.
The “KFCourt” also caught the attention of press worldwide and generated 867 media stories, totalling 295.3M impressions. The highly visual and Instagram-able nature of the court inspired guests to share this one-of-a-kind experience hundreds of times, reaching a total of 22.8M impressions.
Their campaign successfully leveraged KFC’s authentic connection to basketball through buckets in an innovative way to reach core NBA fans, even without a sponsorship. YouGov scores showed net consideration increased 32%, net impressions increased by 51%, net satisfaction increased by 201%, and net buzz increased by a total of 1300%, amongst their Millennial and Gen Z target.
The brand was tested for its association with basketball, compared to competitor brands (McDonalds, Subway, Pizza Pizza), and their study had positive lift for KFC but negative lift for competitors. This suggests their ads caused consumers to believe KFC had a higher association to basketball than some of the bigger players with official NBA sponsorships.
By leveraging a full 360 media plan that included TV, out-of-home, social, CRM, and more, they brought the local basketball community together to learn new skills, sample KFC, enjoy music, and engage in outdoor winter fun for an unforgettable experience.
Ultimately, KFC created an association between the brand and the NBA, as well as local basketball, that can be leveraged for future initiatives at a lower cost. Plus, they got Canadians from coast-to-coast craving KFC on game night.
Credits
Agency: Narrative/Bensimon ByrneChief Creative Officer (Bensimon Byrne): Joseph Bonnici
Executive Creative Director (Narrative): Jessie Sorell
Associate Creative Director (Narrative): Katherine Flores, Kyle Simons
Art Director (Narrative): Karen Ganeshwarran
Copywriter (Narrative): Rahman Sobrie
Senior Agency Producer (Bensimon Byrne): Katie Link
Managing Director (Narrative): Cathy Mitchell
Account Director (Narrative): Katie Mills
Vice President (Narrative): Lauren Baswick
Director, XM (Narrative): Melissa Da Costa
Senior Account Manager, XM (Narrative): Jaclyn Kirk
Project Manager (Narrative): Shireen Shah
Client: KFC Canada
Director, Marketing: Azim Akhtar
Production Company: Tier Zero Inc.
Director: Charlie Lindsay, Due Pinlac
Director of Photography: Kris Belchevski
Line Producer: Trae Nguyen
Executive Producer: Julian Nieva
Food Stylist: Adele Shaw
Editorial Company: Button Factory
Editor: Tim Pienta
Executive Producer: Katie Link
VFX/Finishing/Colouring: Darling VFX
VXF Artist: Lauren Rempel
VFX Assistant: Faith Clark
VFX Producer: Morgan Campbell
Colourist: Kassi Bellamy
Assistant Colourist: Jesse Hilton
Colour Producer: Morgan Campbell
Music & Sound: Grayson Matthews
Music & Audio Creative Director: Tyson Kuteyi
Music & Audio Executive Producer: Kelly McCluskey
Sound Engineer: Brian Bernard
Media: Wavemaker
Nikki Stone, CEO
Dan Boem, Managing Director
Kelly Wong, Account Manager
Blanca Gamez, Senior Media Planner
Marcelyn Tran, Assistant Media Planner